Comfortable Now or Future Hope
1 Corinthians 15:30-34
30Why are we in danger every hour? 31I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
After our weird verse about being baptized in the name of those already dead, the strangeness just continues for me. But ultimately, Paul is continuing the same discussion about the importance of recognizing Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Jesus’ resurrection is the forerunner of our own and thus incredibly important.
Paul takes a negative approach at first, as he describes the utter futility of lives lived for Jesus that will not result in resurrection. He’s right. If there is no resurrection for us when Jesus returns, why bother? The Corinthians need this conversation because they were pretty self-satisfied with their lives. Does that sound familiar? I fear that many of us would fall into that category. We live comfortable lives. But how desperate our lives would be if we believed that our death meant our eternal end. That kind of nihilism is tragic. Fortunately, that is not our future. These words are harsh, but I believe Paul speaks them with love, for he doesn’t want God’s people to hold those untrue ideas as a part of their faith, for that is no faith at all.
Jesus’ death is a historical fact, as is His resurrection! Even if there was no historical ground to stand upon, the resurrection would be true. The Word of God assures us that Jesus rose from the dead and we are safe to hold onto that Word.
30Why are we in danger every hour? 31I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
After our weird verse about being baptized in the name of those already dead, the strangeness just continues for me. But ultimately, Paul is continuing the same discussion about the importance of recognizing Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Jesus’ resurrection is the forerunner of our own and thus incredibly important.
Paul takes a negative approach at first, as he describes the utter futility of lives lived for Jesus that will not result in resurrection. He’s right. If there is no resurrection for us when Jesus returns, why bother? The Corinthians need this conversation because they were pretty self-satisfied with their lives. Does that sound familiar? I fear that many of us would fall into that category. We live comfortable lives. But how desperate our lives would be if we believed that our death meant our eternal end. That kind of nihilism is tragic. Fortunately, that is not our future. These words are harsh, but I believe Paul speaks them with love, for he doesn’t want God’s people to hold those untrue ideas as a part of their faith, for that is no faith at all.
Jesus’ death is a historical fact, as is His resurrection! Even if there was no historical ground to stand upon, the resurrection would be true. The Word of God assures us that Jesus rose from the dead and we are safe to hold onto that Word.
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