Resurrection Logic (1 Corinthians 15:12–19)

Pascal’s wager posits that individuals essentially engage in a life-defining gamble regarding belief in the existence of God. Simply put, if God does not exist, and yet I believe he does, I lose nothing; if God does exist and I do not believe then I lose everything. I have never found this argument appealing. In fact, if God does not exist, and I believe he does, I have lived a deluded existence. My life is built on a lie. And therefore perhaps I have missed out on a lot of pleasure and even some luxuries.

Paul also would have rejected such a philosophical wager, as is clear from the passage before us: 1 Corinthians15:12–19. In this passage, Paul argues that, if there is no future resurrection of Christians to eternal life, then Jesus Christ has not risen, which results in a logical dominoes-like collapse of all we hold dear.

Simply, if Jesus Christ rose from the dead after dying for our sins, we have been blessed with a promised resurrection from the dead one day. If he did not rise from the dead, we are fools who should be pitied. To counter Pascal’s wager, if we believe in the resurrection and yet there is no resurrection, then not only do we gain nothing, but, in fact, we lose all. As pastor Stephen Um summarises,

This is what we can call the logic of the resurrection and this logic is important to follow, for the biblical teaching concerning “the resurrection of Christ in the past and the resurrection of human beings in the future have deep practical significance for the present” (Um), which is Paul’s thrust in this passage.

We will study this text under two broad headings:

1. A Logical Problem (vv. 12–13)
2. A Logical Peril (vv. 14–19)

A Logical Problem

Paul, first, presents a logical problem: “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised” (vv. 12–13).

As we saw previously, some members of the church at Corinth were denying the resurrection of the dead—not the resurrection of Jesus but their own resurrection and the resurrection of all other people, Christian or not. In accord with Greek philosophy, and the general view of Roman society, “everybody knows that dead people don’t come back to bodily life.” The common worldview was that that which is “spiritual” is good, that which is physical is evil, so why would it be a good thing for a pure spirit to be embodied again in evil flesh?

The technical name for this philosophy is “dualism,” which exalts the spiritual but despises the physical. Dualism creates a false dichotomy between the spiritual and the physical, suggesting that the physical is in fact the enemy of the spiritual. Ultimately, dualism suggests that the body is merely the vehicle for the soul and, in the end, doesn’t really matter. The doctrine of the resurrection gives the lie to this. “The gospel message was wrapped up in the bodily resurrection of Christ and its promise of the restoration and renewal of human life and creation, not an escape to some disembodied, ethereal world” (Ciampa and Rosner). However, dualism continues to plague much of Christendom, including conservative Christians.

Many Christians embrace wrong-headed ideas about the so-called “afterlife,” with the idea that we will float around rather disembodied rather than actually living on this glorified planet, working, interacting, and being productive throughout eternity as we continue to grow in our knowledge of God (John 17:3).  As N. T. Wright helpfully reminds us, “The message of the resurrection is that the world matters.”

It seems that this church was being misled about the resurrection by ungodly influences, who did not know God and thus did not appreciate his promise and power to raise the dead. They should be ashamed of allowing such unorthodox and biblical and theological irrationality to be entertained (vv. 32–34). Paul is thus admonishing the church, “Think, people!! Consider the logic of the resurrection.”

A Logical Deduction

Paul begins this section “by asking how it could make any sense whatever to deny that resurrection was a viable or credible concept if at the same time their very salvation rested upon the foundational event of the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (Thiselton). “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” (v. 12).

Paul reminds the Corinthians of the proclamation he and the apostles heralded: the message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ (vv. 3–4). The word translated “proclaimed” means to herald and it connotes gravity because what is being proclaimed must be listened to. It was crazy for them to deny the resurrection of the body since resurrection was imperative to the gospel. After all, “one cannot say that Christ is risen but believers will not be, for Christ’s destiny is their destiny; they are bound up together” (Schreiner). To deny your resurrection is to deny Christ’s resurrection. This is not a good idea.

Though Paul’s emphasis in this chapter is the resurrection of the Christian to everlasting life (John 11:25–26), the fact that God raised his Son from the dead indicates that every person will one day rise from the dead, some to everlasting life and others to everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord.

Christian, rest and rejoice in the truth that, when Jesus rose from the dead, his church rose with him (see Romans 6).

A Logical Implication

The logical implication of v. 12 is solidified in v. 13: “But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.” If God will not raise the dead, then he did not raise Jesus from the dead. Both these verses reveal that the gospel message of the good news of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is equally good news of the resurrection to everlasting life of those he died and rose again for (Romans 4:25).

The resurrection of Jesus, as with election, is causal. If you have the one then you also have the other.

Paul is helping his readers to make the logical, rational connection between the resurrection of Jesus Christ—verified Scripturally and historically—and the resurrection of those who have received, believed, stand in, and hole firm to this good news (vv. 1–2).

The gospel is an integral message, meaning that its parts are integrated and you can’t mess with one part without messing with all of it. For instance the “lordship salvation” debate arose because some want to separate Jesus (“he will save his people from their sins”) from Christ (“anointed King”). The result is a truncated and, in the end, ineffective gospel.

If we deny the fruits of salvation we in essence will deny its roots, as Paul shows. We would do well to return to an emphasis on the resurrection of Jesus Christ and on the resurrection of his people.

Christians need to think. We need to think through the message of the gospel and its logical implications. Thinking not only helps us to have a more biblically integrated Christian life but also protects us from the false teachings that abound.

A Logical Peril

If it is true, Paul argues, that there is no resurrection of the dead then there was no resurrection of Jesus Christ, which he now shows would be perilous.

The first consequence would be that “our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (v. 14). Ouch.

The biblical truth of the resurrection is essential to the gospel of God. Without the resurrection, there is no good news. Without the resurrection, the gospel message is “vain.” It is empty, devoid of truth and therefore of no purpose. If there is no resurrection of the body, there was no resurrection of Jesus Christ and therefore the so-called gospel is nothing more than a mirage for the sinner, who is dying of thirst to be reconciled to God.

Paul intensifies this logical deduction by saying that, in such a scenario, “your faith is in vain.” The two go hand in hand. If the message is a fraud then your faith is equally a fraud; if the message is empty then your profession of faith is empty; if the message is devoid of truth then your faith in that message is devoid of truth. You are trusting in a lie and, in effect, are living a lie.

In a day that lauds illogical nonsense (“you have your truth and I have my truth”), we must not fudge on the fact that truth has absolute content—or it is not truth. Truth is neither a social construct nor a self-created axiom. If a belief has no transcendent substance, then to embrace it is like planting your feet mid-air. You will fall, and you will fall very hard. You will fall for eternity.

Yes, content matters. Facts matter. Truth matters. If the gospel message merely makes you feel good but is not rooted in “true truth” (as Schaeffer puts it) then you have been fooled and your life will be built on folly.

In his book The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt suggests that one way to recue people from “screen addiction” is to do what he refers to as “spiritual” exercises. Haidt claims to be an atheist, which means that his counsel is actually vain advice: “These are practices that all of us can do, whether we are religious or not, to flourish and connect in our age of anxiety and fragmentation. In fact, they may be more important for those who are not religious and don’t get exposure to these practices inside a faith community.”

Do you hear what he is saying? Regardless of whether or not the practices are true, there is pragmatic value in such practices. But we are correct to ask whether there is value in practising what amounts to a lie. When we see the chaos arising from a relativistic worldview, Haidt’s proffered cure is at least as bad, if not worse, than the illness. Building your life on a lie is never productive for, ultimately, the lie will leave you naked and at a loss, like the proverbial Emperor and his “new clothes.” Fairytales might help you to sleep at night, but they won’t help you when you stand before holy God.

The point to all of this is that truth matters. If the gospel message you profess to believe is devoid of God’s truth, then it is no truth. It is a sham and we are fools to believe it. Contextually, a resurrectionless gospel is no gospel at all.

Second, if there is no resurrection of the body, then there has been no resurrection of Jesus Christ and those who preach the resurrection are guilty of misrepresenting God (vv. 15–16). To do so is both irreverent and idolatrous. To put this in perspective, Morris comments, “‘Testified of God’ is literally ‘testified against God.’ They said he did something (almost they accused him of something) that he did not do.”

To speak for God, as to speak of God, is a serious matter. Woe to those who misrepresent him. As we have seen, truth matters, and since truth is whatever God says about anything, we dare not bear false witness to what he has declared. If bearing false witness against another human being was a capital offence under the old covenant, how much more so to bear false witness against the triune God?

A key phrase to this argument is “God … raised Christ.” Two things are important about this statement.

First, Jesus did not raise himself; rather, God the Father and God the Spirit raised Jesus from the dead (see Acts 3:15; 4:10; 5:30; 10:40; 13:30; Romans 4:21; 8:11; 10:9; 1 Corinthians 6:14; 15:15; 2 Corinthians 4:14; Galatians 1:1; Colossians 2:2; 1 Thessalonians 1:10).

Second, “raised” is in perfect tense, which means that God raised Jesus once for all.

Now if Christ is not risen from the dead then Paul is misrepresenting God as having done something—testifying to Jesus Christ’s lordship—that he did not do. Again, Paul and every other preacher of the gospel (v.12) would be guilty of bearing false witness against God. Perish the thought!

Misrepresenting God’s Promised Resurrection

How tragic, and frightening, that God is misrepresented by preachers when they fudge on the resurrection.

God’s integrity is tied to the resurrection of Christians because God’s integrity is inseparable from his righteous power and grace displayed when he raised his Son from the grave. As Thiselton observes, “Resurrection springs from God’s promise, God’s power, God’s act of re-creation, and God’s grace—and this alone.” Therefore, “resurrection depends not on our ability to imagine it, but on the capacity of the Creator God to design and activate it.”

The point I am making is that God said it, God did it, so Paul proclaimed it. And we should believe it!

Paul’s theology guarded him from misrepresenting God. To do so would be to shape God into his own “imagined image,” thus making him guilty of idolatry. That is always a serious error and highlights that, when handling God’s word, we dare not trifle with what God has revealed. To take God’s name in vain is a serious error that can lead to the worst kind of vanity (see Jonah 2:8).

It is truly tragic when this happens at the most serious point of a person’s life: death. I have heard ministers misrepresent God and the gospel putting someone “in heaven” when everything about their life screams the contrary.

It is equally tragic when prosperity preachers abuse the doctrine of the resurrection by teaching people that God will raise your loved one from the dead if you pray and believe enough.

Beware of promising more than the gospel promises. The resurrection of the believer to eternal life is the greatest of gifts.

Most significantly, God has put his testimony “to the test” by raising Jesus from the dead. Jesus coming down from the cross in response to those taunting would not have proved God’s approval of him. Rather, the empty tomb followed by his appearances proved God’s approval.

Third, in vv. 17–18 Paul says that, if there is no resurrection of the body, and hence no resurrection of Christ, then we are still in our sins and those who professed faith in Christ and who have “fallen asleep” (i.e. have died) have perished because they are still in their sins. This logic is explained by Godet who explains, “Christ dead without resurrection would be a condemned, not a justified, Christ. How could he justify others?”

He would prove to be a liar, not the Lord. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then there is no logical reason to believe God’s grace in the gospel and to submit to Christ as Lord.

Futile Faith, What a Horrible Phrase

Like the word “vain” (v. 14) “futile” speaks of that which is of no purpose; that which is devoid of truth and thus that which is useless and ultimately false (see 1 Peter 1:18; James 1:26). In Acts 14:15, Paul rebukes pagans for worshipping him and Barnabas explaining that they need to repent of worshipping “vain idols.” He uses the same word there as here. Just as idols cannot save us, secure us, or “solve” us, neither could Jesus if he had not been raised from the dead. Our sin problem would remain unsolved. Perish the thought!

To be still in our sins and yet to claim to be saved is futile. Horribly so. To still be under the guilt of our sin, to still be under the wrath of God, to still be liable for the penalty of our sins and yet to claim to be saved is the greatest of delusions. The resurrection assures true believers that they are now in Christ rather than in their sin.

As Paul’s readers contemplate his argument, v. 18 must have struck them powerfully. Having entombed their dead but believing loved ones, they perhaps left the graveyard contemplating the good news that they had died forgiven and thus they would face no condemnation. However, according to Paul, if it is true that Jesus Christ did not rise from the dead (v. 16), there was no place for joyful, peaceful assurance. The talk of forgiveness would have been nothing but a sham. Perish the thought!

Because Jesus Christ was raised from the dead, what he claimed to have accomplished on the cross was vindicated. His atoning, redemptive work was finished.

Are you still in your sins? If so, this is serious. If you die in your sins, if you die unreconciled to God, if you die bearing the guilt of your sin, then, though you will rise again, you will die again—a second death—eternally separated from God (Revelation 21:8).

Fourth, “If we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied” (v. 19). If Jesus did not rise from the dead, if his body corrupted like ours and turned to mere dust, then we have been deluded and non-Christians have every right to conclude that we are fools. We have believed empty words if Christ turns out to be nothing more than a dead guru (Prior).

As Paul will further elaborate, to follow Jesus Christ is to face hardship, including persecution (vv. 30–32). If it is only in this life that we are “in Christ,” then our hope is earthbound and we should be pitied for living a lie.

If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then we are fools to live as though he did, investing our treasures in heaven, stewarding for the future. Rather, we should live each day as pagans who live by the adage, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (v. 32). Live carefree, conscience-free, contemptuous about anyone or anything.

Sadly, many Christians do live this way. Thiselton asks the convicting question, “Do we sometimes act as if we had nothing more in which to glory than unbelievers? Does the glory that lies ahead influence our present attitudes and inspire us to promote the gospel?”

What about the way you live proclaims that you believe Jesus is risen and that you will rise again as well? Does our response to trial, affliction, and disappointment show that we are different to those who are not Christian?

What I am saying is that there are logical applications of the logic of the resurrection. If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we must believe that we who trust in Christ will also rise from the dead one day. And this makes all the difference concerning how we live. May God help us.

Conclusion

The resurrection matters. It matters when it comes to how we live because it matters when it comes to how we die. The hope of the resurrection is a certain hope that fuels how we live and how we die. Those who lived like there is a resurrection provide hope for those who remain alive.

Christians are called to a life of living backwards (Gibson). That is, because we know that we are going to die, because we know that we will be raised to everlasting life, we will live informed by the resurrection, making decisions in the light of the resurrection, knowing that what we do here in our bodies matters. In fact, it matters so much that God will raise our bodies to receive a reward for how we lived for him in our bodies (2 Corinthians 5:9–10).

Christian, it does matter what you believe. It matters that you believe that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. In a society saturated in scepticism, in a culture conditioned by cynicism, hang on to the risen Lord Jesus Christ. Don’t wobble on this essential gospel truth, a truth verified by Scripture and by history. Don’t give an inch to those who decry this doctrine. If you do, you will be ruined.

Non-Christian, you too will rise from the dead—but to everlasting condemnation. But that can change. Exchange your second death for a first resurrection—being born again. Then you too can look forward to the second resurrection when you will be gloriously changed to enter into a glorious new creation to forever enjoy the glorious Creator God, who is also our Saviour.

AMEN