Day 167 – The Resurrection is Real

Today’s reading: 1 Cor 15:1-34

Apparently, some in Corinth are saying that there is no resurrection of the dead.  Paul addresses this head on. First, he lists all the witness to the resurrected Jesus.  Paul notes that the resurrected Jesus appeared to Peter (Cephas), then to the twelve Apostles, then to a group of 500 people, then James, then all of the Apostles a second time, and then last He appeared to Paul.

Paul's logic is simple and straight forward at this point.  If there is no resurrection of the dead, then all these people are mistaken/lying.  Paul points out that if Christ is not raised, then the teachers of the Gospel are misrepresenting God, because they are saying God did something that He did not really do.  Finally, they point out that if Christ is not resurrected then their, “faith is futile and are still in their sins.” 

Finally, Paul explains that, just like the first Adam brought death through sin, the new Adam, Jesus Christ, will, therefore, bring resurrection.  Thus, the resurrection will come to all men. 

This is a great example of how to interpret that bible.  Paul is not saying that there is some verse in scripture that proves his point.  Rather, what he’s saying is that by understanding the events and their context, we can make reasonable and, in this case, mind blowing inferences.  That is not to say that the words of Scripture aren’t important.  Of course, they are, and sometimes focusing closely on the exact words provides important insight.  However, we must understand the events in context, so we can see other important implications.

Tomorrow: 1 Cor 15: 35-58