1 Corinthians 15:1-34 Comments by Stephen Ricker
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The Power of Resurrection
Comments for Study 11

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I. The Gospel of the Resurrection (15:1-11)

>1. Why hold firmly to the gospel? (1-2, 12, 33, 35)

* 1 Corinthians 15:1-2 "Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain."

* 1 Corinthians 15:12 "But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?"

* 1 Corinthians 15:33 "Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character.""

* 1 Corinthians 15:35 "But someone may ask, "How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?"

* People live after the body dies. It's a fact. Jesus bodily died and was buried. It's a fact. Jesus rose from death bodily. It's a fact. Those who believe in Jesus will die and then receive a resurrection body. It's a fact. The resurrection body is far better than the body I currently have. It's a fact. The body I have now is a flesh weak earthly body. The body I will receive in Christ will be a powerful spiritual body like Jesus's body is now. These are facts.

When I think of the resurrection to come I think of a caterpillar. They have a long fussy body with many feet that traverse on plants and the ground. They eat and grow, eat and grow, and eat and grow. Then one day they form a cocoon around them. In hiding their worm body is amazingly transformed into a colorful delicate flying body. They are the same creatures on the inside. Yet outside they are something entirely new. Somewhere in their DNA is an old and a new body. For me it's an amazing picture of what God can do and will do.

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>What does it mean to hold firmly to the gospel? (Rom. 6:5,6,11,12; and 1 Cor. 15:31a; Phil. 3:10-14; Heb. 10:22)

* 1 Corinthians 15:31a "I die every day--I mean that, brothers--just as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord.

* Romans 6:5-6 "If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin:

* Romans 6:11-12 "In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires."

* Philippians 3:10-14 "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

* Hebrews 10:22 "let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."

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>What is sin? (3; Gen. 3:6; and 1 Sam. 15:23; Rom. 3:12, 23)

* 1 Corinthians 15:3 "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,"

* Genesis 3:6 "When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

* 1 Samuel 15:23 "For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you as king."

* Romans 3:12 "All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one."

* Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"

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>What are it's consequences? (Gen. 4:13-14; Rom. 5:12, 19a, 2:6-8, 6:23a; Heb. 9:27; and 2 Cor. 5:10; James 1:15; Rev. 21:8)

* Genesis 4:13-14 "Cain said to the LORD, "My punishment is more than I can bear. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me."

* Romans 5:12 "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned--"

* Romans 5:19a "For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners"

* Romans 2:6-8 "God "will give to each person according to what he has done." To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger."

* Romans 6:23a "For the wages of sin is death"

* Hebrews 9:27 "Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,"

* 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad."

* James 1:15 "Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death."

* Revelation 21:8 "But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."

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>How does Jesus' death bring salvation? (John 1:29; Rom. 5:19, 6:23b; and 1 Peter 2:24)

* John 1:29 "The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

* Romans 5:19 "For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous."

* Romans 6:23b "but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

* 1 Peter 2:24 "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."

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>Why can only Jesus' blood cleanse sins? (Gal. 3:13; Matt. 26:28; Rom. 3:25; Heb. 9:22; and 1 Peter 1:18-19)

* Galatians 3:13 "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."

* Matthew 26:28 "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

* Mark 14:24 "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many," he said to them."

* Romans 3:25 "God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished--"

* Hebrews 9:22 "In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness."

* 1 Peter 1:18-19 "For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect."

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>2. How does Jesus' resurrection demonstrate the power of God? (4; Rom. 1:4, 16; Acts 2:24; and 1 Cor. 6:14; Heb. 2:14-15)

* 1 Corinthians 15:4 "that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures"

* Romans 1:4 "and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord."

* Romans 1:16 "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile."

* Acts 2:24 "But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him."

* 1 Corinthians 6:14 "By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also."

* Hebrews 2:14-15 "Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil-- and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death."

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>How is it our hope? (1 Cor. 15:20, 51-54; and 1 Peter 1:3,4; John 5:24, 11:25,26)

* 1 Corinthians 15:20 "But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."

* 1 Corinthians 15:51-54 "Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed-- in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory."

* 1 Peter 1:3-4 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you"

* John 5:24 "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life."

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>What is the significance of "according to the scriptures" in regards to God's faithfulness? (Acts 3:18,22; Rom. 3:21, 4:21; John 3:16)

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>3. Who are the resurrection witnesses mentioned here? (5-7)

* 1 Corinthians 15:5-7 "and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles"

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>Why give an account of the resurrection witnesses?

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>How did meeting the risen Jesus change them?

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>How does Paul mention himself?

* 1 Corinthians 15:8-11 "and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed."

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>Why did he include himself among the resurrection witnesses?

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II. The Necessity of the Resurrection (15:12-19)

>4. What kind of people say that there is no resurrection?

* 1 Corinthians 15:12 "But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?"

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>How does Paul prove their claim false? (13)

* 1 Corinthians 15:13 "If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised."

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>What would be some of the logical consequences if their argument was true? (14-19)

* 1 Corinthians 15:14-19 "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men."

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>5. Why is the Christian's faith useless if Christ had not been raised?

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>How does the resurrection of Jesus demonstrate God's existence?

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>How does Jesus' resurrection solve man's sin problem?

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III. The Consequences of Jesus' Resurrection (15:20-28)

>6. What is the significance of Paul's declaration, "Christ has indeed been raised"?

* 1 Corinthians 15:20 "But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."

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>What does it mean that he is the firstfruits?

* "the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep"

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>What is the significance of the order of the resurrection? (23-24; and 1 Thes. 4:13-18)

* 1 Corinthians 15:23-24 "But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power."

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>7. How did death (spiritual death) come into human history? (21-22)

* 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 "For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive."

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>How did the resurrection of the dead to enter human history? (Rom. 5:12-21)

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>What will the risen Jesus do in the process of destroying all his enemies? (25; Ps. 110:1)

* 1 Corinthians 15:25 "For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet."

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>8. How does Jesus' resurrection foreshadow the final victory he will have at the end of time? (24; Is. 2:2-4; Mic. 4:1-5)

* 1 Corinthians 15:24 "Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power."

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>What will be the victorious climax and consummation of the resurrection?

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IV. Because of Resurrection I Die Every Day (15:29-34)

>9. What practical effect did resurrection faith have on the lives of Paul and the first Christians?

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>What does this teach us about how Christians who believe in the resurrection ought to live?

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>What did Paul mean by, "I die every day"?

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>10. How did resurrection faith answer and defeat the decadent and hedonistic ideas that prevailed in Paul's day? (32b)

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>Who does Paul mean by "bad company"?

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>How could the Corinthian Christians come to their senses and avoid being contaminated by bad company?

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