In previous articles we have
seen that the Bible unequivocally informs us that we are all mortal
beings, destined to die and revert to being the "dust of the earth".
And the reason for the universality of this terminus for life takes
us back to a previous article on "human nature" - the nature
inherited from our first parents Adam and Eve, which inclines us
towards wrongdoing, and leads us inexorably to the grave.
It is a very sad picture, and one captured in a few words
written by the Apostle Paul:
If in this life only we
have hope in Christ, we are the most unhappy of all men. (1 Cor
15:19).
But these words have been
taken away from their context, and we will discover that such a
bleak assessment of the human condition is not at all necessary,
thanks to the love of God and the work of Jesus Christ. Let us begin
this quest for understanding by looking at an Old Testament
character - Abraham. He received some striking promises from God
(recorded in Genesis, from ch 12 through to ch 22) among which was
one that he should inherit the land where he currently was - the
land of Israel. But he died without having inherited anything of
that kind - he was even obliged to buy a small piece of land in
which to bury his wife Sarah. There are 2 opposing conclusions that
we can draw from this situation:
1. That God made promises
but did not keep them; or
2.
That Abraham must live again to receive his inheritance from
God.
The Epistle to the Hebrews
confirms that Abraham understood that this latter was the reality -
he was among those of whom we read that:
These all
died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having
seen them and greeted them from afar (11:13)
It seems then that Abraham
received these promises from God concerning the future, and he
believed (in biblical language believe = have faith!) that before he
could experience their fulfilment he had to die, but then would be
raised from the dead at some point, according to God's plan. We can
see this strong conviction coming through vividly in the events
concerning Isaac's 'sacrifice'. (Genesis 22). Isaac was the son of
Abraham, for whose birth he had waited more than 25 years.
Then, when God asked him to offer up Isaac as a sacrifice, he
was ready to do so. Why was he willing to do this? This same 11th
chapter of Hebrews gives us the answer:
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.
(11:17-19)
Abraham had a clear
understanding, therefore, of the doctrine of resurrection. He
understood that God's justice required the death of sinners - that
is, all of us. But he also understood that God loved this world of
sinners to such an extent that He was ready to give His only
begotten Son. This understanding is shown in Abraham's response to
his 'only son' Isaac when asked where the lamb for the sacrifice
was:
Abraham replied, "My son,
God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering" (Gen
22:8).
And this is not the last
time we find Abraham's name in a biblical teaching about the
resurrection. On several occasions Jesus was in debate with the
religious leaders of the Jews. Matthew reported such a discussion
that the Lord had with the Sadducees, which began with this
statement:
The same day the
Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection, came to Jesus....
They asked him a question
that seemed to support their belief on this subject. And Jesus'
answer is as follows:
Regarding the
resurrection of the dead, have you not read what God has told you: I
am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God
is not the God of the dead, but of the living. (Matt 22:23-32)
And no doubt the Lord
emphasized the words “I am the God of Abraham”, rather than 'I was
their God while they were alive'. It is as if Jesus, on behalf of
his Father, was informing his listeners that the faithful, such as
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, though dead, are still alive in God's
sight because God knows He will raise them up in the future.
It is the Apostle Paul who
gives us the clearest teaching on the resurrection of the faithful.
The 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians, already quoted above, is often
referred to as ‘The Great Chapter of the Resurrection’. Here is a
proposed analysis of this important chapter:
1-11 The Resurrection of
Jesus Christ - an historical fact (confirmed by eyewitnesses);
12-19 The Resurrection of
Jesus Christ - the foundation of the Christian Gospel;
20-28 The resurrection of
Jesus Christ - guarantee of the future resurrection for those who
belong to him;
29-58 Further details
concerning the resurrection in the future
It all begins with the
resurrection of Jesus Christ:
If Christ has not risen,
your faith is in vain, you are still in your sins, and therefore
also those who died in Christ are lost. If it is only in this life
that we hope in Christ, we are the most unhappy of all people.
(v17-19).
But we can have full confidence that Jesus Christ:
existed and lived in the land of Israel at the precise moment history proposed in the biblical account (confirmed by Roman historians);
was put to death - by crucifixion - by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate (ditto);
was
alive again 3 days later, having been raised from the dead by his
Father:
this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and
foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of
lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because
it was not possible for him to be held by it.
(Acts 2:23-24).
These are some of the words
spoken by the Apostle Peter - one of the "eyewitnesses" who had
nothing to gain and much to lose by proclaiming a falsehood,
especially in the presence of those who were responsible for
condemning Jesus to death!
Returning to 1 Corinthians
15, having laid the foundation for Jesus' verifiable resurrection,
Paul moves on to draw out the consequences:
But now Christ has risen
from the dead; he is the first fruits of those who have died. (v20)
That's the language of
harvesttime, isn't it? The first fruits are only the beginning - and
at the same time the guarantee - of the great harvest to come. If
the natural harvest consisted only of the first fruits, then we
would all go very hungry. Paul is reassuring us that Jesus'
resurrection was not just for himself, but for others also – which
has been the whole purpose of God from the beginning.
See how the Apostle’s explanation in 1 Corinthians 15
continues:
For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection
of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be
made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first
fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
(21-23).
Here is a striking comparison between two men:
Adam - the one who brought
sin and consequently death into the human condition;
Jesus Christ - the one who
overcame sin, and can therefore open up access to eternal life,
following the resurrection of the dead.
But let us note 2 details of
capital importance:
1. This hope of being
resurrected is reserved for “those who belong to Christ”.
2. This event of the
resurrection will take place only “at his coming”.
We shall examine these 2
details in subsequent articles, God willing.