Originally it said strongly, we preach Christ crucified. He currently serves now as the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Santa Barbara. a. Crispus believed on the Lord with all his household (Acts 18:8), and was saved. e. If the dead do not rise, Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Pauls third proof for the resurrection in this section is also compelling. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul deals more fully with what makes a person an apostle. d. Those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints: Paul continued his description of the Corinthian Christians. In the Septuagint it is one of the words used to denote the people of Israel in their religious character as Yahwehs assembly. (Bruce in his Acts commentary). It is as if he says, You all may not recognize my apostolic credentials. i. is typical of Pauls letters, and draws from both Greek and Jewish customs. Paul says, In light of what God says in Isaiah 29:14, now where is your wise man? At the core of the gospel are things that. Otherwise you will be prompted again when opening a new browser window or new a tab. I am of Cephas: There was the Peter Party, who declared We are following in the footsteps of the man who is first among all the apostles. : Jesus made a special resurrection appearance to Peter (Luke 24:34). How much of this came in because of they kept. Paul knew that God gives His grace, we work hard, and the work of God is done. 1 Corinthians 15:51-58 EXEGESIS: THE CONTEXT: Corinth was an important and wealthy city on the isthmus (narrow strip of land) separating Northern and Southern Greece. Christ has obtained a victory over the law; he has stopped its mouth, and answered all its demands; he has been made under, and subject to it; he has obeyed its precepts, and bore its penalty, and has delivered his from the curse and condemnation of it, so that they have nothing to fear from it; it is dead to them, and they to that: he has also Einstein asked them, how much of all the knowledge in the world they had amongst themselves collectively, as a class. The second perfect man, Jesus the, , can give us another kind of body. But all that is temporary. This conflict had made them divide up into parties or cliques, each party having its own leader., : There was the Paul Party, who declared We are following in the footsteps of the man who founded our church, the apostle Paul. To remain willfully ignorant of the truth is sin. Its wrong to say that Paul preached a watered-down gospel in Athens. ii. Get Prayer Requests and Updates from David Guzik . Jesus does not belong to any one party. These cliques ignore the truth of unity over all diversity in the church, even if they were all in the name of spirituality. "THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS" Chapter Fifteen OBJECTIVES IN STUDYING THIS CHAPTER 1) To see how the resurrection of Jesus is the basis of our faith 2) To determine why we believe that Jesus was indeed raised from the dead 3) To notice the sequence of events which will occur at the end of time as presented in this chapter 4) To understand iii. d. You come short in no gift: Paul thanks God for the gifts among the Corinthians, even though they were causing some trouble. Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother. We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Encouraging and getting others to study, believe, and rely on God to be real. The disunion is unnatural and must be cured.. : In Pauls day, the Jewish world was looking for a, . iii. We are no longer subject to the penalty of the law (death), and we are set free from sin. If there is no principle of resurrection, then the dead in Christ are gone forever. Then life is lived only under the sun, as is considered in Ecclesiastes. He gives thanks for their conversion to the faith of Christ; that grace was given them by Jesus Christ. This remarkable, instant gathering of Christians unto Jesus in the clouds has been called, iii. Grace isnt given because of any works, past, present or promised; yet it is given to, iii. 5. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. d. There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory: Some take this to mean there will be different degrees of glory for believers in heaven. a. , he does not speak of his spiritual identification with the death of Jesus. Copyright - Enduring Word       |      . We may pride ourselves on not having the problems of the Corinthian Christians, but do we have their positives? There are also celestial bodies and terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. But they were. c. He who glories, let him glory in the LORD: Paul uses this reference to Jeremiah 9:23-24 to show that God did it all this way so that God would get the glory. See passages such as Numbers 16:3, Numbers 20:4, Deuteronomy 23:1, and 1 Chronicles 28:8. was a secular term (referring to the gatherings of the citizenry in a city-state to discuss and decide on matters of public interest [Mare]), Paul calls the gathering of Christians in Corinth, . : A resurrected body is not a resuscitated corpse. ! A strong church once inscribed these words on an archway leading to the churchyard. a. How sobering this is! i. Freud was wrong when he said: And finally there is the painful riddle of death, for which no remedy at all has yet been found, nor probably ever will be. Compare that with Pauls triumphant declaration, Death is swallowed up in victory! But the best news ever is that we can be saved from the punishment we deserve from God because of what Jesus did for us. ii. 3. the gospel. This is the sting of death to you, unconverted ones, not that you are dying, but that after death is the judgment, and that you must stand before the Judge of the quick and dead to receive a sentence for the sins which you have committed in your body against him. (Spurgeon), The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law, : The principle of resurrection also proves that we are not under the law any longer. The first perfect man, Adam, gave us one kind of body. I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name. Certain divines tell us that they must adapt truth to the advance of the age, which means that they must murder it and fling its dead body to the dogs which simply means that a popular lie shall take the place of an offensive truth. (Spurgeon). The bottom line is this: is the church influencing the city, or is the city influencing the church? : This is not a quotation from the Old Testament, or even from the words of Jesus. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. Not only did they see Jesus after His death, but they saw Him in a manner which revolutionized their faith and trust in Him. They are saints together, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Therefore, the resurrection of Jesus is not some add on to a more important work on the cross. No doubt, many of the Corinthian Christians were beginning to think of themselves in high terms because of Gods work in them. The great gospel of Jesus Christ, the very power of God unto salvation made empty and of no effect through the pride and cleverness of men! This remarkable, instant gathering of Christians unto Jesus in the clouds has been called the rapture, after the Latin word for caught up in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18. ii. The name Joshua means, Yahweh is salvation.. This speaks to the vital need described in Romans 12:2: ii. Conceivably, if Paul had not worked as hard as he did, the grace of God would still have been given to him, but in some measure it would be given. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory., O Death, where is your sting? They are not lost; they are sown. (Spurgeon). The Corinthian Christians just did not think carefully. ix. How can Paul be confident of this when the Corinthian church has so many problems? The pursuit of human wisdom may bring an earthly contentment or happiness (though this is rare), but in itself, it can never bring the true knowledge of the true God. Were the ones really right with God!, : There was the Apollos Party, who declared We are following in the footsteps of a man who is great in power and spiritual gifts, and an impressive man. The last trumpet may not refer to the last trumpet of the seven trumpets of Revelation at all, but simply refer to the last trumpet believers hear on this earth. The Lord Jesus Christ: Paul will often (more than 17 times in the letter) refer to Jesus as the Lord Jesus Christ; it is well to recall what the title means. Though the word gospel isnt in this verse, it is in the previous verse. , and therefore an enemy we need not fear. . For others, there is resurrection and eternal life, but unto damnation. God's Sufficient Grace. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloes, : Chloe was a woman (probably a Christian) whose business interests caused her representatives (those of her. ) The Greek word has both a Gentile and a Jewish background. d. I have fought with beasts at Ephesus: The book of Acts does not record an occasion when Paul faced wild animals in an arena. ii. By proceeding, you consent to our cookie usage. Finally, have all your affairs in order so that you are ready to die. Because church was a secular term (referring to the gatherings of the citizenry in a city-state to discuss and decide on matters of public interest [Mare]), Paul calls the gathering of Christians in Corinth the church of God. Now, after preparing their minds for rebuke, acting like a good, experienced surgeon, who touches the wound gently when a painful remedy must be used, Paul begins to handle them more severely. (Calvin). Death is defeated by resurrection. True wisdom isnt about getting smart. Gods wisdom is received in and through the person of Jesus. Believers in Palestine are described this way (1 Corinthians 15:9), as well as the church at large (1 Corinthians 10:31-32). Grace means that God gives freely, for His own reasons. 1 Corinthians 15 In this chapter the apostle treats of that great article of Christianitythe resurrection of the dead. Crucify him! if we had our wits about us, we would have shouted back, Dont crucify Him! Jesus also made a special appearance to Peter (Luke 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:5). Death has no power over the person found in Jesus Christ. When Jesus came upon the tomb of Lazarus, He, . Third, hold this world with a loose hand. Click to enable/disable Google reCaptcha. So this corruptible must put on incorruption. What happened to change them? If it were if the teaching of baptismal regeneration were true then Paul could never thank God that he baptized so few in Corinth, and he, as an evangelist, could never say Christ did not send me to baptize. I speak this to your shame. Knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord: Even if your labor is vain to everyone else, and everyone else discounts or doesnt appreciate what you do for the Lord, your labor is not in vain in the Lord. . The answer is, Yes! God does it and we do it. Grace to you and peace: The greeting including grace and peace is typical of Pauls letters, and draws from both Greek and Jewish customs. 15:20-34 All that are by faith united to Christ, are by his resurrection assured of their own. The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. . iv. If there is no resurrection, then there is no future judgment to consider. i. a. In the Septuagint it is one of the words used to denote the people of Israel in their religious character as Yahwehs assembly. (Bruce in his. i. It means that the righteous deeds and character of Jesus are accounted to us. (19-21) The wisdom of the world and the wisdom of God. "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 1 Corinthians 15:23. It predates the writing of the Gospels, Acts, and Revelation by decades. How sobering this is! It was prosperous, busy, and growing; it had a deserved reputation for the reckless pursuit of pleasure. All rights reserved worldwide. However, we learn something just from the meaning of the ancient Greek word " apostolos ," which has the idea of "a special ambassador." Paul was a "special ambassador" of Jesus Christ to the world and to the church. God has called the weak and ignorant first, but not exclusively; shepherds first, then wise men; fishermen first, then the educated (like Paul, who was himself an educated man). Does we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed mean that Paul predicted Jesus would come in his lifetime? Death is a defeated enemy because of the work of Jesus, an enemy that will one day. 2. When we understand what Paul meant when he wrote, , If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable, , then we understand what a difficult life Paul lived. Paul, knowing death is a defeated enemy because of Jesus work, can almost taunt death, and mock it. Over time, two things happened: the church lost its passion for Jesus and His gospel, and ivy began to grow on the archway. 2. Whether there are degrees of glory, as it seems probable, so we shall certainly know, when we come to heaven. (Trapp). Specifically, they wanted the sign of a miraculous Messianic deliverance. b. This is a question Paul doesnt really answer in the following verses, because the answer is obvious. Session 5: Ministry of Reconciliation. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site. Otherwise you will be prompted again when opening a new browser window or new a tab. ? iv. They got this bad thinking by associating either with Jews who did not believe in the resurrection (such as the Sadducees) or by associating with pagan, Greek philosophical types, who did not believe in the resurrection (Acts 17:31-32). It is significant that often the most educated people have the least regard for God. Sin is the ultimate cause of death (Romans 6:23, Genesis 2:17), and the, : This defeat of death is only possible for those who live. f. His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord: In these first 10 verses, Paul refers to Jesus in every verse, for a total of 11 times. : God was at His most foolish and very weakest at the cross, but it was infinitely wiser and stronger than anything man could do. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. In fact, he makes it clear in 1 Corinthians 15:11 that they, i. : The Corinthian Christians had their strong points, and they had their weak points. We sometimes sing: You ask me how I know He lives; He lives, He lives inside my heart. But that is not the best way to prove Jesus lives. It is important and useful for Christians to daily reckon themselves dead to sin with Jesus Christ (as in Romans 6:11. to support that truth is wrong, because in context Paul is writing about the danger to his physical life. Pottery and Corinthian brass (a mixture of gold, sliver and copper) from the city were world famous. i. Perhaps it would be something along the lines of the way a body was transported on the old Star Trek series; the molecules would alter, and the person could pass through a solid object, and re-assemble themselves into a solid person. means good news. As the word was used in ancient times, it didnt have to describe the message of salvation in Jesus Christ; it could describe any good news. Ironside says that the last trumpet was a figure of speech that came from the Roman military, when they broke camp. This should make us steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord! What you sow: Paul says our bodies are like seeds which grow into resurrection bodies. In putting the strong and wise and great to shame, God does not exalt the weak and uneducated and worthless, but brings all of them down to one common level. (Calvin).