RISEN1 Corinthians 15

THE RESURRECTIONFor historical evidence…

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THE RESURRECTION• The facts (1 Cor 15:3-4)

THE RESURRECTIONActs 17:31–32 …he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given proof to all by raising him from the dead.” Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked…

THE RESURRECTIONMarcus Borg, Jesus Seminar “As a child, I took it for granted that Easter meant that Jesus literally rose from the dead. I now see Easter very differently. For me, it is irrelevant whether or not the tomb was empty. Whether Easter involved something remarkable happening to the physical body of Jesus is irrelevant.”

THE RESURRECTION• The facts (v3-4)• The proof (v5-8)

THE RESURRECTIONJohn Updike’s "Seven Stanzas at Easter”“Make no mistake: if He rose at all it was as His body; if the cells’ dissolution did not reverse, the molecules reknit, the amino acids rekindle, the Church will fall….”

BECAUSE JESUS ROSE…1. Sins became forgivable

(v17-18)John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

BECAUSE JESUS ROSE…1. Sins became forgivable

(v17-18)Romans 4:25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

BECAUSE JESUS ROSE…2. Death became temporary

(v20-22)

Jack Kerouac “I am young now and can look upon my body and soul with pride. But it will be mangled soon, and later it will begin to disintegrate, and then I shall die, and die conclusively. How can we face such a fact, and not live in fear?”

BECAUSE JESUS ROSE…2. Death became temporary

(v20-22)At death: we’re at home with Jesus (2 Cor 5)At resurrection: we receive our glorified bodies

not a reanimation of our current bodies

but a new creation, immortal, powerful, perfect

Benjamin Franklin’s epitaphThe Body of B. Franklin, Printer Like the Cover of an old Book Its contents torn out, And stript of its Lettering and Guilding, Lies here, Food for Worms, But the Work shall not be wholly lost: For it will, as he believ'd, Appear once more In a new & more perfect Edition, Corrected and amended by the Author.

BECAUSE JESUS ROSE…3. Life became meaningful

(v19,32,58)

BECAUSE JESUS ROSE…Sins became forgivableDeath became temporaryLife became meaningful