1 Corinthians 15:
1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.1 Corinthians 15 contains the authentic apostolic gospel, the gospel Paul received and passed on to the believers in Corinth. This gospel contains events in the life of Jesus that Christ died, that Christ was buried, that Christ was raised, and that Christ appeared.
A. Good Friday - The crucifixion Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, V.3Sin is a nature that dwells in our flesh from the time of our conception (Psalms 51:5). Here is what the Holy Spirit revealed to Paul regarding sin.
19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. Romans 724 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature[d] a slave to the law of sin.Big revelation: Sin is not us! Sin is rather a nature that entered into our flesh at the time of conception. It is a nature that we have inherited from Adam. It is an evil nature that always acts contrary to the law of God. Thank God, that we have not turned into sin. Even though, it is sin that acts contrary to the will of God in our hearts; we still become guilty for its actions when we allow sin to use our body parts: our minds, our hearts, our hands, eyes, legs. When we act on sin, we become sinners, we don’t become sin. Jesus was not a sinner but He became sin for us.
Sin is an evil nature that will never improve or get better. It is doomed to death! God punished sin through the death of Christ on the cross. Sin is evil; it has the power to separate us from God, “6 The mind governed by the flesh is death,” Romans 8:6.
The sin in us is as old as we are! It grew and developed in us through time. Sin has the power to alter our character and behaviour. God gave us our conscious to expose the act of sin in our lives. Our conscious is the mirror that alerts us when sin is trying to take over our lives. Our conscious exposes the hidden enemy that lived in our flesh from the day of our conception. Our conscious Is not our enemy! It is God’s gift for all mankind. Romans 2:14-15.
When we lie it is actually the sin nature that is lying, but because sin is using our tongue, we become responsible before God and before others. It will be considered as if we have committed it! We are held responsible for the acts of sins in our lives.
That is why God made Jesus sin for us! 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them… 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5On Good Friday – God poured out His wrath and anger on Jesus. God placed our sins on His Son Jesus and allowed Him to suffer and die. As soon as Jesus shed His blood and died, then God considered sin in us dead! Immediately, God’s face was turned towards us with smile and with wide stretched hands. The temple curtain was torn into half! Now God is not in a bad mood with us anymore. Hebrews 10:10 - “…we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
To be saved however we have to
receive Jesus’ work of atonement for our sins by putting our trust in Him! John 1:12.
What do we do when we are overcome by sin? Practical actions!This is what you have to do to deal with sin - run to Jesus and wash your soul with His precious blood. (1 John 1:8-9; 1 John 2:1-2).
Christ’s death on the cross did not give us the freedom to live in sin. The bible pleads with us not to commit sin; it urges us to fight sin and to fix our minds on the things of the Spirit (Romans 8:5; 1 Corinthians 9:27; 1 Timothy 6:12).B. Easter Saturday – the Grave“…that he was buried…according to the Scriptures, … 1 Corinthians 15:4Saturday represents the day of darkness; the day of uncertainty; the day of hopelessness. On Saturday, Jesus’ disciples gave up and lost hope about their Messiah. Their dreams, hopes and aspirations about the Kingdom of the Messiah diminished completely.
The Devil will throw everything at you to discourage you in your Christian journey. You may be enduring a Saturday experience right now in your life. Maybe your hopes and your dreams have been shattered and you feel defeated in life. You may be experiencing despair and cannot see God at work at all. The good news is that the same Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the grave, is right now working in your lives and dealing with your situations and fighting your battles (Romans 8:11).
C. Easter Sunday - The Resurrection “…that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, …1 Corinthians 15:4Resurrection is the most powerful message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the message of Resurrection that reignited the movement of Jesus! The resurrection made the disciples of Jesus courageous and contagious! Seeing Jesus resurrected from the dead, made them resilient & bold in times of persecutions. The resurrection of Jesus made them fearless!
Paul challenged the Corinthians saying, “19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
Jesus didn’t only come back to life; but also He is coming back to take us into His Glorious Kingdom by giving us brand new resurrection bodies. (1 Corinthians 15:51-57).
Two Powerful Effects of the Gospel on us: (1 Corinthians 15:58)1. Makes us immovable!
Because we consider our present sufferings not worthy compared to the glory that will be revealed in us. (Romans 8:18).2. God’s Kingdom becomes our priority
We start storing treasures in Heaven! Every day our plans, desires, aspirations, and dreams will be centred around God’s Kingdom. (Matthew 6:19-21). Discussion Questions1. Why did God have to die for our sins? Why can’t He just forgive our sins without dying on the cross? Isn’t God able to do anything?
2. Why did God had to chase out Adam & Eve from the Garden of Eden? (Genesis 3)
3. How significant is the Good News of resurrection in your life? Why?
4. What does the Gospel (the Good news) mean to you?
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