“The Gospel Foundation”

Week 12
Main Point and Overview:   

There will always be people who say that Jesus did not rise from the dead. Many people in our culture today believe in Jesus…the teacher, or Jesus…the prophet, or Jesus…the humanitarian, but few people see Jesus as the resurrected Christ. The Apostle Paul made it clear to the Corinthians that hundreds of people saw Jesus after his resurrection. Apparently, false teachers were beginning to call the resurrection into question, and some of the Corinthians were getting confused and even starting to follow this heresy. So, Paul aggressively confronts the issue by reminding the Corinthians of the importance of the resurrection. The fact is that nothing is more important to the Christian faith than the resurrection of Jesus Christ. If it is “torn down,” the Gospel of salvation is torn down. So, Paul took the time to remind the Corinthians of what the Gospel actually was – Christ died for our sins, was buried for three days, and raised to life by the power of the Holy Spirit! Too many people struggle with the supernatural. They see things from a logical lens which often can keep them from faith in Jesus. Paul’s argument was that the resurrection of Jesus changes lives! How can you explain an addict becoming clean, or a bitter man becoming a joyful friend, or a selfish jerk becoming a selfless neighbor, or an arrogant woman becoming a humble servant? It’s the power of the Gospel. Sure, people can make some “limited” changes without Christ, but the Gospel completely changes a person from the “inside-out!” If the resurrection is a farce, then we are still lost in our sins, and life-change is not possible. Ultimately, the great apostle wanted the church to understand and look forward to the future. Someday we will all die, and then we will stand before God at the final judgment. When we do, we will receive a heavenly body with no limitations. It’s easy to fear death, but for the disciple of Jesus, there is nothing to fear! Death will only have a “limited victory” over us. Eternal life with Jesus will then become our “realized gift.” Paul’s ultimate encouragement was that since we know what’s coming in our future, we should passionately serve the Lord in our present. As we preach the Gospel, we can be assured that it is totally worth it for both us and others.