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Living for a Greater Future

We Will Be Transformed - Living for a Greater Future - 1 Corinthians 15:35-58

February 12, 2023 • Andrey Bulanov • 1 Corinthians 15:35–58

1 Cor. 15:35-58 1. We are created to live forever ◦ Nature shows that God created a universe with diverse kinds of "bodies" ◦ The principle of death and resurrection is in the world today. ◦ Jesus didn't just come to represent us, he came to recreate us. 2. We will be transformed ◦ A spiritual body is a supernatural body, recreated for life in a world renewed by God's Spirit. ◦ A life where God himself will set us free to live in his joy, purpose and glory with no limits, no frustrations and no pain. 3. Celebrate the victory and live like you mean it. ◦ Bath in the victory of Jesus today ◦ Through our daily struggles we are renewed. ◦ Every single day and every moment is so much more worth it than we realize. Scripture References: • 1 Corinthians 15:35-58 • Mark 12:24 • 2 Cor. 4:16-17 • 2 Corinthians 4:8-11 ------------ We are in a series on the resurrection as we make our way through 1 Corinthians 15 Those of you who have been with us, you know that Paul is seeking to correct a misunderstanding in the church in Corinth about what happens after death. The Corinthians seemed to have assumed that after death we go into some spiritual existence that does not include a physical world or a physical body. Paul is correcting this idea on a number of levels as we have seen in the last few weeks. A physical future resurrection and renewal of our own bodies, as well as all of creation - is a central point of hope for christians from the very start. Today he brings this truth to home stretch and zeros in on the main question he has been trying to get to this whole time. How exactly does the resurrection work for us? What does this mean for us personally? This is a very personal issue for all of us, even if you have NEVER thought about the idea of resurrection after death. What we have all thought about is our struggle to live in the midst of the corrupting and broken effects of our world. "Live up to your full potential" "Transcend your limitations" These are words that fill the vocabulary today. The writer of Ecclesiastes says that God has put eternity in our hearts. There is something within us that is trying to break out of the limiting and corrupting effects of our life. There is an awareness that we are created to live in a way that is more full and more powerful than anything that we see in the world around us. maybe this is why we love to tell stories about super powers. These are stories of individuals transcending thier small human frail state so something so much greater and more powerful. A few years ago, a co worker shared a music video on facebook from Eminem where he is singing about his commitment to pull out of the drug addictions and failures he has created in his life. The song has him going through a sort of death and resurrection experience where he rises up with a supernatural strength and flies on top of a building. "And I just can't keep living this way "So starting today I'm breaking out of this cage I'm standing up, I'ma face my demons I'm manning up, I'ma hold my ground I've had enough, now I'm so fed up Time to put my life back together right now (now)" We struggle with the weight of this broken world, with strained relationships, with our own sin, with physical pain and illness with a deep sense of unrealized potential. The deep mistake is that we respond to this by digging into ourselves - I AM THE ONE to make this happen. This is the mantra of the world. IT is true we are created for greater things. but the KEY to experiencing and discovering those things is to know the ONE who both created us and came into the world to REDEEM us. Read Text - 1 Corinthians 15: 35-58 1. We are created to live forever The first thing that Paul does is to show in plain examples and logic that the idea of resurrection and the idea of different kinds of bodies is built into the whole story of creation. proofs that death is not that end. "35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come?” 36 You fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies." Is that a bit extreme? It shows that the questions is not being asked in seriousness - rather in a skeptical way. Sometimes people ask questions in a way that doesn't show real desire to get answers but to mock. The idea of bodily resurrection was ridiculous to the intellectual greek world. Just like it may be today. or many other aspects of christianity. Paul's response calls these people fools. A fool in the Bible is not just a dumb person, it is a person who denies God and his power and looks at the world from a purely human perspective. Mark 12:24 "24 Jesus spoke to them, “Isn’t this the reason why you’re mistaken: you don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God?" If there is a God who created all things, what is so irrational or crazy about the idea that God has the power to raise people from the dead to a new kind of life after death? • Nature shows that God created a universe with diverse kinds of "bodies" 39 Not all flesh is the same flesh; there is one flesh for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. 40 There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is different from that of the earthly ones. 41 There is a splendor of the sun, another of the moon, and another of the stars; in fact, one star differs from another star in splendor. God's created world is diverse - there are different kinds of bodies, different forms of creation. There is diversity in on the earth - humans, animals and plants There is diversity in the heavens - sun, moon and stars there is great variety - and all of it is good and glorious - according to God's amazing design. With this argument he is laying the ground work for the idea he will give later - which states the fact that there is a body that we have for life in this present world, characterized by death and decay - and there is a different kind of body God has designed for the world that is to come. • The principle of death and resurrection is in the world today. 37 And as for what you sow—you are not sowing the body that will be, but only a seed, perhaps of wheat or another grain. 38 But God gives it a body as he wants, and to each of the seeds its own body. Paul continues this theme of God's creative power and brings the analogy of a seed. Although now we have many scientific explanations about how seeds grow into plants - at the end of the day it is still an amazing miracle. A little tiny seed is buried in the dirt. All it needs is time, sunlight and water - and it brings forth something COMPLETELY different, something hundreds of times bigger and more beautiful. "God gives it a body as he wants" God is intimately present in this world giving, creating and REcreating life. this shows the idea of both continuity and discontinuity in resurrection. The same life in the seed and the plant - though the body is changed. • Jesus didn't just come to represent us, he came to recreate us. 45 So it is written, The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, then the spiritual. 47 The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48 Like the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; like the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven. Paul returns to the Adam - Christ parallel. Jesus and Adam stand as two key figures in history, two representatives of humanity. Adam, in his rebellion against God, brought with him all humanity into a life of sin, rebellion against God's ways, and death. Jesus, as the second Adam, comes to face all the trials and tests of life, standing perfectly in our place without sin - and then taking the debt of all our sin on himself and paying for it by suffering death on the cross. But here Paul takes it one step further - just as we inherit our mortal and dying bodies from Adam - so we inherit a new kind of life and body from Jesus. He calls Adam a "man of the dust" and Jesus the "man of heaven". He's not as much talking about their origin as he is talking about their nature. the resurrected body of Jesus was of a different nature - not just the mortal, dying body we receive in this life which leads to death. Jesus doesn't just represent us, not only does he conquer death - he becomes the life giver of a new humanity. it is in the resurrected body of Jesus that we see the fountainhead of all the new creation - especially our resurrected and glorified bodies. If you follow Adam, you get what Adam has. If you follow Jesus, you get what Jesus has. "The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit." Why life giving spirit? It is not saying that Jesus is a spirit - rather its hight lighting the life giving role Jesus has through the power of the Holy Spirit. "49 And just as we have borne the image of the m an of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven." Paul is sort of poking at the corinthians here, because THEY thought they were already very spiritual, too spiritual to even think that the physical body matters very much. Paul is saying, you are still incomplete in your spirituality until you get a new body, a body patterned after the Savior that you follow. 2. We will be transformed 50 What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor can corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. 53 For this corruptible body must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body must be clothed with immortality. The essential question in this whole section is "what kind of body?" "we will be transformed...." Transformed into WHAT?? And it is this passage that has lead to so many incorrect conclusions for christians People read without carefully paying attention to Paul's argument here. They see vs 44 where Paul says we are raised in a "spiritual body" they see the comparison of dust and heaven in 47-48 and 50 - "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.." and they think - oh yeah, so its not going to a be physical. its going to be just spiritual - that means we just float around in the clouds somewhere. (and that does not sound very interesting or appealing at all...) This entire passage is about the RESURRECTION BODY. It is about the idea that a physical resurrection is essential to our understanding of the future - and the prime source of this resurrection life is Jesus. Jesus himself said, "I am not a ghost. Give me some fish to each and I will show you." He said feel my scars on my hands. And yet he could disappear and reappear. It was a body that obviously physical - and yet his body had abilities that went far beyond what the original natural human body could do. • A spiritual body is a supernatural body, recreated for life in a world renewed by God's Spirit. So when speaks of a spiritual body - he does NOT MEAN it is non physical. He means it is a SUPERNATURAL body. "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor can corruption inherit incorruption" by flesh and blood he doesn't just mean a physical body - he means a corrupt body. "What Paul means by a spiritual body is a body empowered and animated by the Holy Spirit; the body is physical but, in contrast to one’s earthly body, it lives in a whole new realm, for now it is a body enlivened by the Holy Spirit." Thomas Schreiner transformed into what? The best example we can see is in the post resurrection appearances of Jesus. It is a body that is like our original human body, but it can do so much more. Jesus ate breakfast and walked with his disciples. But he could also disappear and reappear in places hundreds of miles apart. But I don't think its even the point to think about WHAT kind of powers will we have at the resurrection. I think its important to pay close attention to Paul's words here. Notice his clear sense of wonder, beauty, and excitement. 51 Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. The last trumpet is a common reference in Jewish literature to the last moment, to the end, when God himself arrives to judge the world. "we will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed" Some will be transformed after they die. But some will be alive when Jesus returns and therefore will skip the resurrection piece and jump straight to transformation. Paul clearly believed that Jesus was coming back in his day. And that is how he lived. Ok so honestly I think that up to this point a lot of us are still like - yeah, interesting, super natural body, but honestly - this sounds kind of foreign or distant from me now. It doesn't sound personal or dear or desirable right now. It doesn't sound like it speaks into my experience right now. This is where we need to pay attention to the words Paul uses. • A life where God himself will set us free to live in his joy, purpose and glory with no limits, no frustrations and no pain. "53 For this corruptible body must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body must be clothed with immortality. " Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. 17 For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. Notice first of all here the language of ADDITION, not subtraction. We will PUT ON, we will be CLOTHED. What he is saying is the life that is to come is MORE not less than this life. More of what? Glory, goodness, beauty - incorruptibility. Here's how C. S. Lewis puts it: take all the most beautiful and good experiences of your life. Everything that makes life so wonderful. Everything that brings joy to your heart. Everything that brings you excitement and energy to LIVE LIFE to the fullest! THAT is only a whisper of what is to come. That is only just a faint scent of the goodness, the joy, the fulfillment of the life to come. Incorruptibility - a life completely free from any sort of anything spoiled or ruined. Do you think about what this means? So much of life is dealing with the effects of corruption. We have a goal in mind, we see some potential, we work towards it, and just before we reach it it slips away. • Some of us are constantly plagued by health struggles • Some by painful relationships - family and others • Some my addictions or tendencies in our sinful desires that seem so hard to shake off So much of life is just dealing with corruption, frustration, reaching, striving, falling short. Jesus himself will come to release us into a life of perfect, unrestricted joy and fulfillment. Revelation tells us the new creation is like a city coming down out of heaven to merge with the world - a life of nations, a life of cities, a life of purpose - all in the perfect presence and glory of God. A life of more, not less. 3. Celebrate the victory and live like you mean it. 54 When this corruptible body is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: Death has been swallowed up in victory. 55 Where, death, is your victory? Where, death, is your sting? 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! 58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. What do we do with this truth of resurrection? • Bath in the victory of Jesus today Paul is taunting death here. There is a an air of victory, of realization. Even though the end has not come, the end is as certain as Jesus is alive. Notice the certainty Paul brings here. 55 Where, death, is your victory? Where, death, is your sting? 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! We were sinners headed for death and destruction. Jesus came to set us free from guilt and but in us a new heart to know and follow him. This means that in the future we will be completely redeemed from all our brokenness. But it also means today we live in the victory and power of his grace. When we are surrounded on all sides with failure, weakness, pain and discouragement - it is so tempting to think this whole life is just defeat. What are you anxious about these days? • Making people like you • making your life worth it • making up for all the mistakes you made • not messing up with the responsibilities God has given you Paul says, "Do you think about this truth? Jesus set you free from sin and death!!!" Today, you are free. Today you can rest. Today you are accepted by God. • Through our daily struggles we are renewed. What are you struggling TOWARDS in your life? What is that goal? Is there a goal? Jesus sets up free from the chains of sin, guilt and death - he invites us to follow him daily by taking up our cross - into a life that is challenging - but this struggle is into glory. Is Jesus, God has come to work on your heart every day. Resurrection is not just some far off idea in the future. He has begun the work of resurrection today. Life works in cycles of death and resurrection every day. We follow the pattern of Jesus. We love others. We give ourselves up. We serve. We labor. lay our lives down. Parenting. Sin struggles. Marriage. I need this every day as a dad, as a husband. I need this every day as a provider of the home - worrying about the economy - what will happen? 2 Corinthians 4:8-11 8 We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; 9 we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed. 10 We always carry the death of Jesus in our body, so that the life of Jesus may also be displayed in our body. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’s sake, so that Jesus’s life may also be displayed in our mortal flesh. • Every single day and every moment is so much more worth it than we realize. Is it going to be me on the other end? YES. More of you than you even realize. There is continuity between this life and the next. One of the temptations of sin is to downplay the significance of our daily moments. Whatever man - just a little anger, just some bitterness, just some lust - you deserve it. No one is looking and no one cares. 58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. This struggle is MEANINGFUL. in fact, SO MUCH MORE MEANINGFUL than we realize. EVERY DAY with Jesus is significant, every act of obedience and love - is leading us in struggle and in victory to our ultimate moment of victory. Jesus tells us in the parables that our life on the other side of death is everything we did here - compounded with exponential interest. You know what this means? You don't need a million followers on instagram to tell you your worth it. You don't need lights or a stage. You don't need all the things that this world counts as significant - reputation, money, lots of friends - to be counted as successful. You have the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, He has given his life on the cross to be present in your daily moments to teach you to walk in him, to follow him in faithfulness. "Glory is coming. Victory is coming. Today I am going to prepare you for that by teaching you to follow me through the trenches of life." Every single struggle we face here is teaching us to turn to him, to depend on him and to welcome his power to enable us to fight sin and death in our lives today.

Jesus Our Conquering King - Living for a Greater Future - 1 Corinthians 15:20-28

February 5, 2023 • Andrey Bulanov • 1 Corinthians 15:20–28

Outline: 1. Jesus is the true and better Adam, come to restore humanity to its rightful place. 2. Jesus is the promised Davidic King, come to conquer all God's enemies. 3. We are called to live so that God may be our all in all 1. Life with an eternal perspective 2. Hope in the midst of pain and trials 3. A deep seriousness towards sin 4. Courage and peace in the face of monsters. Scriptures: • 1 Corinthians 15:20-28 • Psalm 8:3-6 • Eph. 6:12 • Ps. 2:7-9 • Philippians 2:5-11 • 2 Cor. 16-18 ---------------------- What does the future hold? The panic and anxiety of the covid era has given rise to the term "doomscrolling" - we are more informed than ever and we are more aware than ever of the terrible atrocities that take place in the world. The war in ukraine has brought the pain and suffering much closer to many of us than before. We see death, destruction and pain. And where is it all headed?? On the other hand we have some interesting and troubling developments in technology that really make us question the future of humanity. Artificial intelligence, machines and robots pose questions that humans have never had to seriously ask. What if robots got so intelligent they mirrored human emotion and consciousness? Would we treat them as people? Can we use technology to transcend death? Is it possible to upload our mind to the digital space and escape the limits of our bodies? We are in a mini series in our study of 1 Corinthians on the subject of the resurrection. The corinthian church had some serious misunderstanding about the future. They seemed to have adopted some of the ideas of their greco roman world that after we die we enter a spiritual existence that is separate from the body or physical creation. Paul reminds the Corinthians that there future is tied to Christ's future. Because Jesus rose physically from the grave so too will all who believe in him. One of Pauls core ideas in this text is to show that the physical resurrection of believers is an essential part of their thinking about both the future and the present. In this next section, Paul sketches for us a comprehensive picture of the future of Christ's reign. Here he is giving us the WHY of resurrection. We saw that the resurrection of Jesus himself is essential to the message of the gospel. But WHY is it that the resurrection of believers is so important? The answer comes back to the question we asked earlier - where is this world headed? What is the future of all things? Paul is saying, "Guyssssssss - God is doing something SO MUCH BIGGER than you even realize in the world. The cross and the empty tomb are KEY turning points in an epic plan that includes - not only your whole soul and body - but the entire cosmos - the WHOLE CREATION - nations, oceans, galaxies, angels, demons - EVERYTHING." READ TEXT 1. Jesus is the true and better Adam, come to restore humanity to its rightful place. One of the big questions up in the air today is, "what does it mean to be human?" What if machines became as complex as us, do we treat them with the same rights? For us to fully grasp Paul's whole picture here, we need to also understand the BACKGROUND of Paul's thinking about the world and about humanity. IN this text Paul is making it clear to us that he is pulling in major plot lines from the OT to explain our current problem in the world - and our need. Human beings are UTTERLY unique. We are created as something sacred, as the crowning point of all creation - because we are created in the IMAGE OF GOD. That means God designed us with the unique capacity and calling to live in covenant bond with our God - to live in love and obedience to him - and to be representatives of his power and presence in the world. Kings and Queens over creation - displaying and exercising God's glorious work and power. Adam was our representative in this. Adam was the gatekeeper of the garden - and the garden was the gate to the whole world. Satan, demons, sin and death had no place in this world as long as Adam stood guard and walked in obedience to God. --->> Parenthesis on the calling of men. Preston Prey's example. Paul is picking up on this theme here, it forms the background of the whole conversation. He speaks of Adam's role as representative head of all humanity, and he quotes Psalm 8 in verse 27 - which is a Psalm about the glory of creation, and the important status that God has given human beings. Psalm 8:3-6 3 When I observe your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you set in place, 4 what is a human being that you remember him, a son of man that you look after him? 5 You made him little less than God and crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: But Adam chose to rebel against God and go his own way - and in doing this he did something unthinkably terrible - he opened the door to sin, death and evil to fill the world. "for since death came through a man...just as in Adam all die..." After Adam, all people are born into spiritual death. We are born as humans, as image bearers who are dead to God - our hearts do not desire God, our minds thing in selfish ways, our cravings lead us to things we know are forbidden. The consequence of this is a beautiful world, and a glorious humanity - but it is infected with sin, death and evil. As human beings we are marred by sin - and we are destined for death - the ugliest thing of all. And yet thats not all - the world around us is fallen. It is a world that is filled with evil and darkness - a world filled with villains and monsters. Satan and his demons are real. They occupy the world as a spiritual reality that controls, manipulates and energizes pain and suffering in the world. Eph. 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens. Is this the world that you live in? This is the world in which Paul has Jesus entering. 20 But as it is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also comes through a man. 22 For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. Just as death came through a man, so the resurrection comes through a man. Jesus enters the world, not just as any other man. He enters the world as the second man - the one who has come with a mission to restore what Adam lost. In his sin, Adam brought death. In his victory over sin, Jesus brings the undoing of death - of resurrection. Very often we have a very narrow understanding of what the gospel is meant to do to us. "God comes to give forgiveness. To get rid of guilt. To make us happy and more healthy." Paul says Jesus' goal is to restore us to our rightful place as human beings. That means completely renewing us to live with him in God's love and walk in his ways. At the heart of that is victory over death. We were not created to die. A human being is not a disposable item. Those of us who have witnessed death firsthand can attest to that. Death is the ultimate contradiction to our existence. Zombies movies and books are all the hype these days. Why?? I don't know. but maybe because there is a sense in which we know there is something in us that is deeply broken and that can take us down to become monsters. This is exactly what the bible says. Without God we are spiritual zombies - we are walking dead. Our heart beats and we live in Gods world but we have no purpose, no direction, no meaning without HIM! We cannot love him. We cannot enjoy his grace and his truth. We hide from the light. And we are headed for eternal death. Paul says Jesus comes to lead us home. He has come to restore our humanity. He has come to resurrect our hearts to new life in him - to know and love God. And he has come to free our physical bodies from the chains of death, disease and pain. He is the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep - a common reference to death. He is the first few bits of a harvest that is about to come in. He is the down payment. Paul says there is an order here. 23 But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at his coming, those who belong to Christ. in the resurrection of Jesus, this process has been set in motion - his resurrection power is at work in the world - leading up to a moment very soon in history when that resurrection will renew all those who belong to him. 2. Jesus is the promised Davidic King, come to conquer all God's enemies. But he doesn't stop there. The resurrection is just the beginning of the end. 24 Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be abolished is death. One of the resounding promises throughout all the old testament is that God will establish a King from the family of David - and his kingdom will be perfect - it will have no end, and it will heal the fracture between heaven and earth. This king will conquer God's enemies and this king will reign in perfect harmony with God's word and Gods ways. Ps. 2:7-9 7 I will declare the Lord’s decree. He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will break them with an iron scepter; you will shatter them like pottery.” Once again this major theme in the Bible taps into an essential part of the human soul. There is a deep universal hunger for justice to reign and for evil to be destroyed. I think that politics in our world have gotten especially dark and many today are perhaps more cynical and skeptical than ever before about the existence of real world leaders that tell the truth and do good. Paul tells us that all of history is headed for a moment when all that will be undone. The resurrection of beleivers is just the first step of God's glorious finish. 24 Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. Lets break this down a bit. The death and resurrection of Jesus, elevated Jesus to a unique role as the conquering Lord over the universe. Philippians 2:5-11 5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, 6 who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. 7 Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, 8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross. 9 For this reason God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow— in heaven and on earth and under the earth— 11 and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. throughout the story of the Bible we see to needs that seem to be impossible to resolve. First - we need God. We need to know God. We are created to experience his presence and his love. And yet, our sin makes that impossible. Second, we need a perfect man to lead us. All throughout the OT, God is promising his people that he will establish a kingdom on earth that will last forever. There will be some final point when all evil, all the enemies of God are finally destroyed. If we want peace on earth, it has to be done through people. The problem is that there is never any person good enough, wise enough or powerful enough. The best leaders in Scripture fail and fall FAR too short. But that all changes in Jesus. Being God he doesn't grasp to his heavenly glory - he humbles himself by taking on human nature and becoming one of us. And after Jesus suffers in our place and rises from the dead - Jesus now holds the keys to the universe - not JUST as God, but as the perfect man, the perfect leader, the perfect King who has gone to war for his people - and has conquered the greatest enemy. Jesus reigns today as the perfect King, not just as God, but as the perfect man who has the power to restore the world and establish God's kingdom. He reigns today, working the power of the gospel in all the world, undoing sin and death - building the church - and the gates of hell have no power over it. But its all leading to an epic finish as well - when he returns, when all his poeple rise with him, and when he puts an end to all evil and all darkness forever. "when he abolishes all rule and all power and all authority" these are common terms paul often uses for demonic spiritual evil that fills the world. 25 For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. There is a dramatic moment in almost every super hero movie when the hero seems overcome by the greatest enemy force and all seems lost - and then against all hope the hero bursts out of the belly of the beast and stands victorious over his conquered foe. This is the moment when the tide turns, when all the evil minions realize they are lost and they must run - and he gets to work on finishing off all his enemies one by one. This is what Paul is telling us about Jesus and the resurrection. The resurrection was his first and most important victory over death. At the resurrection of Jesus all evil everywhere screamed in horror because they had thought they won. and yet now that Jesus lives it means that its only a matter of time before they are all destroyed. We live today in the glorious intermediate moment - between the resurrection and the return. Jesus reigns today and lives through his church. And his reign today is a guarantee of the end of all evil very soon • all sin, all rebellion against God • all personal evil done against people - murder, lying, stealing, trauma • all internal and physical evil - pain, diseases, suffering • and finally even death itself. "the final enemy to be destroyed is death..." Its not that death is a person. But death is a looming reality over all the world that shows the the world is not right and the the world is separated from its glorious and holy and amazing Creator - the giver and sustainer of life. Gordon Fee writes: "Death is the final enemy. At its destruction true meaningfulness is given to life itself. As long as people die, God’s own sovereign purposes are not yet fully realized. Nothing lies outside God’s redemptive purposes in Christ, in whom all things finally will be “united” (Eph. 1:9–10). Therefore, at the death of death the final rupture in the universe will be healed and God alone will rule over all beings, banishing those who have rejected the divine offer of life and lovingly governing all those who by grace have entered into God’s “rest.”" When death is killed - God can dwell forever with man again in the renewed world. "then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father...so that God may be all in all..." 3. We are called to live so that God may be our all in all This is all very grand and theological. How does this truth meet us today? with what eyes do you look at the world toady? With what eyes do you look at the struggle and pain in your own life today? Where is it all headed? Jesus reigns today. The power of his victory over death is evidenced in the continued existence of the church despite the most fierce opposition. And as King he is coming back to judge the living and the dead. how does that impact us? • Life with an eternal perspective The early christians lived boldly because they were convinced that Jesus was coming back to restore the world in their lifetimes. This burned in them the conviction that this life is NOT all there is. There is SO MUCH MORE. Do you know this? Do you live as if there is more? Look at where you time goes. Look at where your money goes. Look at your screen time count. These will be sure indicators to tell you if you live as if Jesus is not coming back and that life beyond the grave is real. Do you know this King and do you live as if he is real? His doors are open to all today. • Hope in the midst of pain and trials Our lives are surrounded by pain and suffering. Are you tempted to look at your suffering and think that this is all there is? Jesus wants you to look to him, to his resurrection body - to his promise of the life he is saving up for you. 2 Cor. 16-18 Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. 17 For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. 18 So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. "Everything sad is going to come untrue and it will somehow be greater for having once been broken and lost." keller • A deep seriousness towards sin There are no little sins. Sin and death are inseparable. God is coming to destroy both. Are you tempted to make light of sin? No one will know. Its just a little look. Its just a little gossip. Its just a little anger that i will allow to fester in my heart. Yes God hates the sin but not the sinner. Yes God does not desire nor delight in the punishment of any single image bearer. But the tragedy is that even though the light of God's love enters the world - the people love the darkness rather than the light. King Jesus is a glorious King. But at the end for all who rejected his grace, He will be a just judge. Sin is NO JOKE. Where is your heart today in relationship to the darkness, the very same darkness that Jesus wages war on? • Courage and peace in the face of monsters. Nathan asks me, "what do you do when you have bad dreams?" I tell him, "i think about the fact that Jesus is my King, he is my Savior and my protector. And every monster and every dark thing in the universe is scared to death of him." I talk to him. I thank him for his love. I think him that he is my rock, even though I will never deserve it. There is so much scary stuff we gotta face in life. For those who trust in Christ, there are the ones submitted to his kingdom, they are the ones who know his resurrection life - they are the ones who even now get to live in the beginning stages of this life that Paul describes - that God may be all in all. Do you realize what a gift it is that God gives himself to us today, to be our all in all? That we can know his presence? That he listens to your prayers? That he guides every detail of your life? That he helps you walk in his ways? That he delights to share with you his joy? He is our peace. He is our joy. What else do we need? What else do we fear?

I Will Live Again! - Living for a Greater Future | 1 Corinthians 15:12-19, 29-34

January 29, 2023 • Vitaly Kunda • 1 Corinthians 15:12–19, 1 Corinthians 15:29–34

Outline: 1. Jesus’s resurrection is a historical fact 2. Jesus’s resurrection promises believer eternal life "Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say, “There is no resurrection of the dead”? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith. Moreover, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified wrongly about God that he raised up Christ — whom he did not raise up, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Those, then, who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone." 1 CORINTHIANS 15:12-19 If there is no resurrection… • Jesus is dead • Gospel call to trust and follow Him is meaningless • Faith in Him is pointless • Apostles are liars • Sin is unforgiven • Dead saints parished • Christian religion is most pitiful "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." ROMANS 6:23 3. Jesus’s resurrection motivates people for salvation, ministry and sanctification. "Otherwise what will they do who are being baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, then why are people baptized for them? Why are we in danger every hour? I face death every day, as surely as I may boast about you, brothers and sisters, in Christ Jesus our Lord. If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus as a mere man, what good did that do me? If the dead are not raised, Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” Come to your senses and stop sinning; for some people are ignorant about God. I say this to your shame." 1 CORINTHIANS 15:29-34 Application questions: • Do you believe that after you die you will live again? • How essential teaching about resurrection for your faith? • Does reality of eternal life scare or excite you? Why? • What do words ‘eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord’ mean? Rom 6:23 • In what way does your life reflects belief in resurrection? • How can you grow in eternal perspective on life? 1. Jesus’s resurrection is a historical fact 2. Jesus’s resurrection promises believer eternal life 3. Jesus’s resurrection motivates people for salvation, ministry and sanctification.

Knowing the Risen Savior - Living For A Greater Future | 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

January 22, 2023 • Andrey Bulanov • 1 Corinthians 15:1–11

Outline: 1. The Gospel is built on historical facts. 2. The Gospel is built on the unified and unfolding story of Scripture. 3. The gospel results in supernatural change. Scripture References: - 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 - Mark 15:44-47 - Isaiah 53:5, 12 Application: - What is your view of Jesus? Do you believe in the real Jesus, or the one of your imaginations? - Have you experienced his resurrection in your life? - Do you view your relationship to Jesus as a whole-life mission? - Does your relationship with Christ drive you to LABOR with excitement for his plans and purposes for the world? ------- We are continuing our series in 1 Corinthians What does our future hold? What happens after we die? Your view of the future, and specifically what happens after death - dictates how you live today. Every religion and every philosophy is really just trying to cope with death. How you view what happens after death determines how you view all your life. Some religions promise various rewards for being good - eternal pleasure and joy in a certain kind of heavenly place. Some religions promise reincarnation and return back to this world in infinite cycles. Some religions promise disconnection from physical reality and reaching some sort of spiritual state of peace or even ceasing to exist. The corinthians had a problem in their view of the future. The seemed to adopt a view of the spiritual life that did not treat the physical body very seriously. As long as they were doing "spiritual things" they thought it didn't matter what they did with their bodies. This was used as an excuse for many in their relationship to sin. This also lead some of them to have a specific view of life after death that denied the resurrection. We are not exactly sure what the details of this view was, but we know for sure that they were denying the fact that after we die we will also have a new life that is physical, that will include physical resurrection and physical life. Very likely their view of eternity was something that is actually close to a lot of what many people who call themselves christians have today, a view that they haven't really thought a lot about - the idea that after death we go to "heaven" and we have some sort of spiritual existence of bliss and perfection, floating around among the clouds. What happens after we die? Paul takes this topic by the horns and drills DEEP. This is the great resurrection chapter, one of the most important passages in the New Testament that speaks of the believers future. This is something important to Paul, he takes 58 verses to work through and we will take the next four weeks to dive deep into this very important question. Title "Living For a Greater Future" Paul's main point in this chapter is that as Jesus rose from the dead, so also those who believe and follow him will rise from the dead. When a person dies their soul is separated from their body for a time. The Bible teaches that Gods plan for the world is not destruction but renewal - that God loves the world he has made and at his return, the world itself will be renewed, all evil and suffering will end. In this renewal, believers in Christ will also rise from the dead, their physical bodies renewed to life forever in God's created world. How do I know this is real? How do I know this is MY future? Before looking to questions of the future, Paul starts on the foundation that the future of believers is really tied to Jesus himself. Paul starts this whole discussion by sort of saying - you guys have these strange ideas of the future. But don't you realize that as a christian - your identity and your future is died to JESUS. If you have these strange ideas of the future - i want to first of all say - do you have a correct understanding of Jesus and what he did? Did you forget? or did you misunderstand the foundational message of christianity? "Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel I preached to you, which you received, on which you have taken your stand 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold to the message I preached to you—unless you believed in vain." Almost every question, every concern, every struggle in the christian life - begins with the gospel - it begins with the foundational affirmation of the bare bones facts about WHO Jesus is and WHAT he has done. A lot of poeple SAY they follow Jesus, they SAY they believe in Jesus - but then they have all these other ideas in their life that are totally inconsistent with the real Jesus and his message! We are ALWAYS in need of aligning ourselves back to the core message of Jesus. What does that message consist of?? 1. The Gospel is built on historical facts. "3 For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: 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, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. 6 Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers and sisters at one time; most of them are still alive, but some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one born at the wrong time, he also appeared to me." Paul takes extra care here to drill his argument into historically verifiable data. The Corinthians had a spirituality that was disconnecting them from real life, and real history. Maybe some claimed Jesus just had a "spiritual" resurrection"? Maybe some were claiming history is not that important, as long as you are living a spiritual life and following God. This sounds a lot like today - a lot of people who deny christianity or who want to modify christianity to their own desires often want to make facts seem very unclear and unimportant - as if we can have truth without thinking about reasons and evidence. Paul says all of christian faith is rooted in two core physical historical facts that took place. It is interesting that when you nail it down, these two facts are historical realities that any historian, any scholar agrees with - even the ones who are NOT christian, even the ones who oppose christianity. Fact 1 - Jesus died and his dead body was buried in a tomb. Fact 2 - The tomb was empty, and many many people claimed they met him and talked with him after his death. Even non christian scholars agree with these historical facts. Now the challenge is HOW they explain these things. A common argument I heard in a debate once, "Maybe he didn't really die? Maybe he just passed out?" This argument falls apart if we just look at the facts. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John - and Paul - were written when many of the people named in the stories were still alive. Mark 15:44-47 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid. Tim Keller makes this point: "The way Mark reports the burial is significant: He is “certifying” that Jesus was really dead. Joseph of Arimathea is named here as an identified witness who actually had Jesus’s body wrapped up and sealed it in a tomb. A Roman centurion (who would be an expert) bore witness of Jesus’s death to Pilate (who would be the legal authority on the matter). Finally, two women are cited as eyewitnesses to the burial. So multiple experts and witnesses prove he was really dead." (Keller, Timothy. Jesus the King: Understanding the Life and Death of the Son of God (p. 212). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.) He cites multiple witnesses and even names some of them - this is an ancient way of giving footnotes to the story. This is clear evidence that Mark is not just writing some legend - he is recording historical facts. And he he is inviting his contemporary readers who doubt the fact to go ask the witnesses. This is precisely what Paul is saying. this is common truth that is passed down from me to you - Jesus DIED and Jesus was BURIED. Ok well sure maybe he died - but of course this whole resurrection business is nonsense. His disciples probably made up the story to cover up for it. They probably stole the body and created a massive conspiracy. Ok. Lets look at history and facts again. During the time of Jesus - both before and after - there were many "Messiah" movements. Actually 14 to be exact. Gain a lot of followers. One of these leaders, Simon bar Kokhba - reigned from Jerusalem for three years! But - when the leader of the movement was killed - the movement died - EVERY SINGLE TIME. With Christianity its teh total opposite - christianity started to explode and grow - AFTER Jesus was killed. And all his followers claimed he was ALIVE and they have seen and met him after he rose from the dead. Again sceptics say, "Well these ancient Jewish people, they are not smart like we are today. They believed all sorts of weird stuff they were easily duped." Try reading some of these ancient people and tell me how dumb they were. Greeks thought the idea of resurrection was ridiculous. Jewish people had VERY LITTLE discussion or expectation of physical bodily resurrection - it was something some Jews believed would come at the very end of the world. It was NOT AT ALL something that was a part of their current thinking. This is why whenever Jesus would talk about his resurrection - his own disciples were confused. They thought he was speaking metaphorically or making analogies. And when he died they DID NOT AT ALL expect him to rise. They went back to the fishing business - within a couple of days of his death!! Point - these ancient Jewish people were not some foolish, naive, irrational people that got easily tricked by some lie about Jesus. "Well, maybe they were all so mentally unstable and sad they hallucinated it?" Paul tells us there were over 500 eye witnesses that were still alive. This makes it impossible to say that everyone had the same hallucination. The only other way to explain it is that they all created a massive conspiracy and lied about it - and they all took this massive lie to their graves. This makes no sense also because it is impossible to have HUNDEREDS of ppl in volved in a lie and noone breaks away from it, all were so devoted they were willing to die for it?? Not only that, these people were cowards - right after Jesus' death they were hiding in locked houses. They were behaving just like the followers of any other Messiah movement that had its leader die - they were scattered and afraid. Something completely unexpected happened that caused hundereds of poeple to live so passionately for Jesus that they were willing to loose EVERYTHING, willing to be driven from their homes, their familes and their lives - even die - for him. What happened? "he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. 6 Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers and sisters at one time; most of them are still alive, but some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles..." "He was raised from the dead - we SAW him - we SPOKE to him..." what does it all mean? 2. The Gospel is built on the unified and unfolding story of Scripture. Verses 3-5 is an early church creed - it was a tight summary of core beliefs of the earliest christians. Christianity is built on two core historic facts - Jesus died and Jesus was raised. But these two historic facts are not just isolated by themselves - they are tightly connected to a whole story, a plan of redemption that God has been working for hundreds of years and has been speaking to his people in his Word. 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, Paul also makes clear that this message is not a message that he invented "i passed on to you as most important what I also received..." what is this message? The story of the Old Testament, that leads up to the life of Jesus makes some very clear points. The central problem of the world is the problem of sin and death. These two things are inseparably connected - like wind and waves. You can't stop waves from crashing on the shore if you can't stop hurricane wind from blowing. Sin and disobedience to God brought into the world all manner of death and evil. As human beings we are created for life with God but we all rebel - and that means our connection with God is permanently broken and we all face judgement for our sins. Throughout the whole story of the Bible God is clearly communicating his commitment to redeem the world - to go against the work of sin and death in the world. Everything comes to a point at the problem of sin - guilt must be paid for. Jesus' life and death was not just like the life and death of any other spiritual leader. Jesus claimed to be the Son of God - to be God in the flesh. Jesus said in Mark 10:45 "I have come to give my life as a ransom for many.." "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures" Isaiah 53:5, 12 "But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds." "...he willingly submitted to death, and was counted among the rebels; yet he bore the sin of many and interceded for the rebels." Jesus came to pay for our sins with his own perfect life, and to open the door for sinful human beings to be restored to God's love. His suffering is a substitute for our penalty - he came to take our place. But the story doesn't end there. He didn't JUST die. He was raised. Why is that so important? Jesus SAID he came from God to speak the truth - He came to begin the long awaited promise of God to heal the world of sin and evil - to renew all things. He came from God to pay for our sins. He said he would rise from the dead. And then he DID IT. The undeniable fact of the resurrection is confirmation of the fact that JEsus WAS who he said he was and he did what he said he would do - and even more importantly - that in Jesus and his victory over death - God himself has finally arrived in this broken world to begin the process of forgiving and saving sinners and renewing the world. As one theologian says - In the resurrection of Jesus, the end has come forward to the middle. There is a very interesting pattern in the Old Testament of salvation coming to God's people on the third day. And there is a consistent promise that God would save his poeple and renew the world. JEsus died according to the Scriptures and JEsus was raised according to the Scriptures. these historical facts are neon signs pointed to the true fulfillment of God's promises of invading our broken world and bringing real healing and change. 3. The gospel results in supernatural change. Here is where it gets personal. 8 Last of all, as to one born at the wrong time, he also appeared to me. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 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, yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. What is your view of Jesus? Is this the Jesus that you are believing, following and trusting in? Paul says, this whole story about death for our sins and resurrection and forgiveness - its not just some story out there. Its not just good ideas. This is MY story. "I am first of sinners. I am most unworthy. I was a rebel against God. Even thought i was serving God by persecuting christians, I was going against God. I didn't deserve to know this Jesus and to know his forgiveness and his grace in my life. And yet his message came even to me." True christianity is about the gospel of Jesus. This gospel is based on historical facts. This gospel gives us a message of a beautiful plan of God's loving work to bring forgiveness of sin to sinners - to bring healing and renewal to the world - But at the center here is a living real Savior, a Jesus that we must come to know personally. Being a christian is not about being a good person or trying harder to obey God. Being a christian is about knowing the TRUE story of the TRUE Jesus - and allowing this LIVING, RISEN Jesus to take control of our life with his grace and his truth. When you meet the real Jesus you experience what Paul experienced - you come to a clear understanding of how sinful and how broken you are. How much you need forgiveness, how much you can't fix yourself - and how it is only God's grace and grace alone that can completely change your heart. When you meet the risen Savior, it results in a total turnaround of your life. You turn from the life you used to live, and you surrender to his grace. And his grace, HIS STORY, HIS PURPOSES, become your story. 10 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, yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. What is your view of Jesus? Have you met the Jesus of history? The Jesus of the good news of the Bible? Have you experienced his resurrection in your life? The real Jesus is a Jesus with a plan for history. Some christian live as if Jesus is just a spiritual idea they interact with on Sunday, but their lives and their future is in their hands. Being a disciple of Jesus means surrendering our whole life to his grace and being excited to see what he wants to do with us. "By the grace of God I am what I am" - is that your theme today? For those who are following Jesus - do you view your relationship to Jesus as a whole life mission? Does your relationship with Christ drive you to LABOR with excitement for his plans and purposes for the world?