Resurrection

1 Peter 1:3-9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,  so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

1 Peter 1:3-9

Peter’s first epistle could be given the tagline, “Reasons for a Living Hope.” Peter’s audience, exiled and dispersed Christians undergoing much suffering the world and bracer for even greater afflictions to come, lived in the tension between present suffering and future glory. Like all Christians who live as pilgrims in the world, these believers could say along with the writer of Hebrews: Here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.” The tension between present suffering and the promise of future glory is held in place by “hope.” “Hope” in the Bible is not wishful thinking, but a yet to be realized certainty. In the opening verses of this pastoral letter, Peter gives us four solid reasons that his readers, as well as any Christian today who finds him/herself in a similar situation, can and should entrust ourselves to God.

1 – Because of the mercy of God (1:3)

Mercy is singled out because of the condemnation every sinner is under and the full measure of God’s indignation we all justly deserve: “If you should mark iniquities, who could stand?” (Ps. 130:3) Jesus gave a remarkable illustration of our intractable indebtedness to God in a parable recorded in Matthew 18:23-27.

“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.”

One talent is estimated to be the equivalent of twenty years wages for the average laborer. Ten thousand talents, therefore, is equal to 200,000 years of labor, or roughly 2,500 complete lifetimes even using today’s increased average lifespans! If the average person worked 50 years during his life, that would means 4000 lives trying to work off this debt. This is how Jesus illustrates our unfathomable (and unpayable) sin debt to a holy God. But it gets even worse: every life that a person lives, they incur more debt, thereby compounding the debt exponentially and nearly incalculably. No wonder the Bible warns us that the unrepentant sinner is “storing up wrath” for himself! Seen in this life, even death is a mercy, for it “closes the books” so to speak on the moral and spiritual debit ledger of one’s life.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved.

Ephesians 2:4-5

Pure justice would have demanded payment of the crushing debt, which could never be fully paid even in eternal hell. Instead, as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. We can entrust ourselves to God in the midst of suffering because He has already bestowed His unfathomable mercy on us in forgiving our unpayable debt. “Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” (1 Pet. 2:10).

2 – Because of Christ’s Resurrection (1:3-4)

If Christ was not raised from the dead, our sin debt remains (Rom. 4:24-25; 1 Cor. 15:17). Thankfully, the evidence for the bodily resurrection of Jesus is substantial. The value of our hope is inextricably bound to the veracity of the resurrection of Christ. The worthiness of the impershable, undefiled, unfading inheritance awaiting us is only as good as the truthfulness of the record that in space-time history God raised Jesus from the dead. Thanks be to God (!): that record is candid, reliable, and unimpeachable. And because God did raise Jesus, we can entrust our souls to God – he will surely one day also consummate our salvation.

3 – Because of God’s Power (1:5)

In verse 5, Peter uses a military term translated into English as “guarded” or “shielded.” This word would describe a garrison stationed within a city to protect it from its foes. The glory of our eternal inheritance profits us little if we or it can be easily plundered by our enemy. But, we are being guarded. That is, we are not doing the guarding, God is, and He is doing it presently.

We are, in fact, guarded by omnipotence, the infinite power of God to realize all that He wills to do. At the same time, we are guarded through faith. If it were solely up to us, we would all fall away. Yet, God’s loving omnipotence preserves and defends us. However, it is important to note that the divine power is marshaled to our defense through our faith. Thus, it is a “synergistic” endeavor, involving both God and the believer.

But what exactly are we being guarded from? Both life experience and the contents of this very epistle make it plain that God’s power does not necessarily shield us from trials and hardships. In many cases, faith does not eliminate or even minimize our afflictions. In fact, faith may even increase or intensify the trials of the believer (Heb. 11:35-37). Rather, while not protected from (every) present affliction, we are are being guarded for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. It is with an eschatological focus that Peter tell us we are guarded by the power of God. As it has been said: “while suffering stalks you, glory awaits you.”

4 – Because of the Authenticity of Tested Faith (1:6-9)

The fourth and final reason given here as to why we can and should entrust our selves to God is that even in our suffering, God purposes that our faith may be be proven to be authentic, enduring, having a divine origin. When we are assaulted by trials that result directly from a refusal to compromise our Christian witness and convictions, we might be tempted to wonder if our faith will remain intact through the fire: “Do I really believe this stuff?”

Peter ensures us that when tested, the genuine believer discovers a faith that tis deeper, sturdier, more profound, steadier, and stronger than it was before being tested. And such a tested, genuine faith yields three rewards (1:7-9):

1 – It will receive God’s commendation

2 – It fixes our present affections upon Christ

3 – It secures the consummation of our salvation

If that kind of faith is yours, you know that such faith has been wrought in God, you know that you are being guarded by His power, and you know that you can entrust your very soul to a Faithful Creator. These truths are so incredible, that Peter tells us into these things angels long to look. Angels, even as beings who don’t directly benefit from the gospel of our salvation, make a diligent examination of the wonder of God’s mercy bestowed upon ungodly sinners such as we. If angels marvel at the glory of the grace of God, should not we, the very recipients of that glorious grace?

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy 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 toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

1 Cor. 15:3-11

There are two main points to make here about this critical passage.

POINT 1: THERE WAS NEVER A TIME WHEN THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS WAS NOT THE CENTRAL MESSAGE OF THE APOSTLES

Paul uses technical rabbinic terms (“delivered” “received”) to introduce his ensuing discourse on that which he calls “of first importance.” The creedal formula of the verses that fall, in particular 15:3-5, allows for a concise and precise definition of the gospel as well as easier identification of false gospels. This is one of the great benefits of creeds.

The main point, however, is that the resurrection of Jesus was central to the proclamation of the gospel from the very birth of the church in Acts (see, for example Acts 2:24, 32; 3:15; 4:10; 5:30-31; 10:39-40; 13:29-30; 17:31; 26:8 to name a few). The proclamation of the gospel/resurrection dates literally to the earliest days of the church. And just to reemphasize: There was never a time in early Christianity where Jesus was preached as anything but raised from the dead. This leaves no “historical room” for legendary development. The resurrection proclamation was simply the unvarnished truth preached by the early church. Hardly any scholar disputes this at least as an historical fact regarding the early witness of the apostles. Many would dispute the claim itself, but not the fact that the apostles made the claim.

POINT 2: THE SOBER AND UNVARNISHED FACTS OF THE GOSPEL ARE FOUND IN TWO MAJOR HISTORICAL TRUTHS EACH WITH ACCOMPANYING SUPPORTING EVIDENCE.

HISTORICAL TRUTH #1: Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures. That Jesus died the horrible death of a Roman crucifixion is an historical fact, as even antagonist scholar John Dominic Crossan concedes: “That he was crucified is as sure as anything historical can ever be.”

That Jesus died for our sins, however, is a matter of revelation. The prophet Isaiah foretold his death in stark terms that highlight the substitutionary nature of Christ’s death.

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:4-6

Or as Peter put it concisely: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Pet. 2:24). And: “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Pet. 3:18a).

Historical Truth #1 is supported in the text by this accompanying fact: “Christ was buried.” Burial proves that Jesus actually died: “We know more about the burial of the Lord Jesus than we know of the burial of any single character in all of ancient history.” (Wilbur Smith, Therefore Stand, p. 370-71; quoted in Josh McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict, 229)

William Lane Craig adds: “During Jesus’ time there was an extraordinary interest in the graves of Jewish martyrs and holy men, and these were scrupulously cared for and honored. This suggests that the grave of Jesus would also have been noted. The disciples had no inkling of any resurrection prior to the general resurrection at the end of the world, and they would therefore not have allowed the burial site of the Teacher to go unnoticed. This interest also makes plausible the women’s lingering to watch the burial and their subsequent intention to anoint Jesus’ body with spices and perfumes.” (McDowell, 231)

HISTORICAL TRUTH #2: Jesus was raised bodily from the dead on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. As already noted, the disciples belief in the resurrection dates to the time of the events themselves. Historians have traced to origins of the Corinthian creed (the part of 1 Cor. 15:3-5 that Paul says he “received” and therefore “delivered”) to within months or even weeks of the event itself. In addition to the early apostolic witness, there are at least five extra-biblical source that confirm the conviction of the apostles regarding the resurrection, as well as their willingness to die for this truth. More will be said about resurrection evidences in subsequent posts.

Historical Truth #2 is supported by the all-important appearances of Christ. The Bible records twelve separate appearances, six of which are mentioned in the present passage under brief consideration. Interestingly, Christ is the subject of each verb: He appeared to is the appropriate language, not they had a vision of or they thought they saw.

The six appearances Paul chronicles here are the following.

1 – Peter, the disciple who denied him

2 – The Twelve (a generic title for the disciples; only 11 remained at the time)

3 – A large group of 500, of which at least 251 remained alive at the time of Paul’s writing and could rebut or corroborate his claims.

4 – James, the half-brother of Jesus who mocked him. Jesus’ earthly family were offended by his lofty claims of divinity, and even attempted an intervention of sorts on one occasion. James, his half-brother, was cynical and unmoved by his claims. Yet this same James became the leader of the early church. The only plausible explanation is the one the New Testament gives: Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to them.

5 – A group of unnamed “apostles.”

6 – Paul, the enemy who persecuted the church. Regarding Paul, there is near unanimous agreement among historians that Paul at least thought he witnessed the risen Jesus. Even the radically skeptic Jesus Seminar scholar Roy Hoover admitted: “Paul’s testimony is the earliest and the most historically reliable evidence about the resurrection of Jesus that we have.”

Regard Paul, this is the testimony that he personally gave of the saving grace of God:

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 

1 Tim. 1:15-16

Notice the stark contrast between two perspectives, both found in the Bible. The first describes what reality would be like if there was no God who redemptively intervened in human affairs: 

Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever. I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.

Eccl. 1:1-4, 14

The second is an exhortation based on the historical truth that God has in fact intervened in human affairs in profoundly redemption fashion:  

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

1 Cor. 15:58

What makes the difference between the despairing perspective of the Preacher (“all is vanity”), and the hopeful perspective of the Apostle (“your labor is not in vain”)? The answer is the historically grounded resurrection of Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15 is unparalleled in its exposition and application of the bodily resurrection of Christ. It begins with a declaration of the facts of the gospel of the resurrection (15:1-4) and ends with an exhortation based upon the reality of that gospel (15:58). Everything in between is centered on the certainty and implications of that historic, bodily resurrection.

The scriptures never portray the resurrection as some fantasy, as “Christ rising in our hearts” or some other type of religious feeling. Rather, the apostle Paul supports his contentions with three sober, historical facts: Christ’s death, Christ’s burial, Christ’s appearances, each of which we will briefly explore in subsequent posts. 

What further identifies 1 Corinthians 15 as the “anti-Ecclesiastes” is that it is more than some argument for “life after death.” Rather, the resurrection is about the transformation of bodily existence from corruption to incorruptibility. What was lost in Eden is restored in Paradise. Thus, the bodily resurrection of Christ is the crux issue of Christianity, and therefore central to the gospel itself, and therefore the antidote to the despair of life’s apparent vanity. 

“For [the apostles] the gospel without the resurrection was not merely a gospel without its final chapter. It was not a gospel at all.”

A.M. Ramsay