Vicar’s sermon. 10.5.26 1 Corinthians 15.3-6

If, as is undoubtedly the case, we all turn to dust when we die, how would anyone know that we ever existed? A stark question for a Sunday morning, but I’m sure you could come up with some answers.
Maybe there would be surviving family members or friends that remembered you? If not, you might find a grave in a cemetery or a churchyard? A famous person might have a picture or a statue made of them? Perhaps, tucked away in some library or other, there might be a stash of letters that mentioned you -documentary evidence – a photo or news report in the newspaper that you were wonderful? There might however be other evidence that suggested that you were less than good. Anyone investigating your life would then have the historian’s challenge of working out ‘who was saying what about whom’ and whether they were biased for some reason or other. But I’d imagine that you could come close to a sense of ‘historical truth’.
I chose our reading from 1 Corinthians this morning because, alongside the gospel accounts of the resurrection, this reading gives us one of the key pieces of evidence for Jesus having been raised from the dead.
Paul wrote his letter to the church in Corinth in the early 50s AD: 20 years after Jesus’ death. The Gospels on the other hand were written later. Yes, they draw on material passed down the early Christian communities by word of mouth that reaches back to Jesus himself but the written texts that collected together the stories of Jesus came later: the 60s, 70s and 80s AD.
So, when Paul says I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received – we are reaching back from the 50s towards the foundational events of that first Easter Day. Paul is not writing his own ‘theology’ at this point – he is more than capable of that and he does it elsewhere- but no. He is passing on the earliest Christians’ most precious formulation of what took place on Easter Day: and he is not at liberty to change it or tidy it up.
And notice! The words Paul passes on have a structure to them – these are words that have been crafted in order that they might be memorised.
What do we read? What is of ‘first importance’ for every Christian to hold onto (let alone Paul) What are the most important things for Paul (who wrote many, many words) to pass on? Hear again:
‘That Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. That he was buried and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures’.
If there was ever a question of Christians letting go of the Old Testament this verse would be enough to prevent that happening. The resurrection of Jesus fits within the scriptural story – it is ‘according to the scriptures’. This is a story in which God, through the people of Israel, is seeking to overcome the separation of humanity and all creation from Him caused by the rupture that we call Sin. Sin is the disobedience and faithlessness of all humanity as it seeks to live independently of God. Within that story, God chose a people: Israel. Through this people, love for God and neighbour was to be nurtured but repeatedly Israel failed. So God in the person of His Son, seeks to mend the breach between heaven and earth Himself. This Son is the ‘Messiah’ (which means ‘anointed’) and He dies to take upon Himself the Sin of the world. Notice that our text specifically speaks of ‘Christ’ doing this: not just ‘Jesus’ or ‘Jesus Christ’. It is important here that it is the one who is Christ who dies for our sins.
He dies for our sins -so the reconciliation with God has comes about – and He is buried and raised.
Note in passing that the ‘three days’ are mentioned – counting inclusively that is Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Day. Jesus does not pass directly into the Father’s presence (which, lets face it would have been neater) This is a real death, a real separation that He carries in his body into the tomb and those three days are in the text as historical anchors: they happened so they can’t be left out! And Christ is raised ‘according to the scriptures’. There are one or two ‘proof texts’ in the Old Testament that hint at resurrection on the third day but these words of ‘first importance’ are not proof texting, they speak more of the whole thrust of the scriptural message: God’s desire to overcome Death and reconcile all things to Himself. It is God’s will to renew the face of the whole earth: this is the direction of travel to which the resurrection bears witness.
And then witnesses are called. For ‘He appeared to’ (or, another translation, ‘he was seen by’) Cephas (another name for Peter); then to the twelve (that’s interesting isn’t it? because there weren’t twelve on Easter Day– Judas had died). Perhaps here our text has tidied things up for us, knowing that Matthias was appointed apostle, knowing that 12 is an important numberin salvation history (the twelve tribes of Israel and so on)? ‘Then he appeared to 500 brothers and sisters at one time’ – oh wow! Five hundred, at one time. Five hundred witnesses. Five hundred who could attest to seeing Jesus. And Paul will go on to say in the next verse ‘last of all He appeared to me.’
I mention Paul’s claim to be the last who saw Jesus because it shapes our understanding of what all these people saw…or what is meant were we to prefer the translation ‘he appeared’. Once in a while we sing the chorus ‘Open my eyes Lord, I want to see Jesus’ – but we don’t see him with our eyes do we? We might sense or perceive Him but not directly ‘see’. Paul’s ‘last of all He appeared to me’ tells us that what these first disciples saw is different to what every Christian since has seen. These appearances, after the first Easter, were of a different order to the experience of every believer since. They occurred – we have evidence to consider- and then they stopped: or at least they stopped happening in this particular way. Remember in John’s Gospel where Jesus tells Thomas ‘blessed are those who believe without seeing…’
Where does this leave us?
Well, I don’t think anyone can be argued into the Kingdom of God but I do think a text like the one we have looked at this morning can offer strong evidence for the resurrection for those that need it and perhaps for we as Christians to remember. This is evidence that needs an explanation from those who perhaps think that our faith in the crucified, risen and ascended Lord is all in our heads, that faith is the product of wishful thinking by weak minded people. Not so. Hard evidence that needs to be addressed.
And then ‘meaning’. This text of first importance, speaks of the work of God in the person of Jesus, ‘the Christ’. Sin, the separation we experience between earth and heaven has been dealt with. The Kingdom of God is being inaugurated on earth as in heaven. The transformation of all things is now possible– which, of course, means you and I can become part of this transformation which is open to all those who believe. And what are we asked to believe? Paul puts it in his great letter to the Romans where he says.
If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead you will be saved (Romans 10.9)…and the Spirit of Jesus will dwell in you. (Romans 8.9). The new creation has begun in us (2 Cor 5.17)