How critical is the resurrection to the Christian System? Let Paul respond: "If Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise upif in fact the dead do not rise. For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!" (1 Corinthians 15.14-17).

Paul knew that the resurrection was and is an essential part of the Christian faith; destroy the possibility of the resurrection and destroy Christianity. For that reason there is no equivocation in 1 Corinthians 15! It is not written in think-so, could-be, might-be, seems-like, and probability language. Rather it is written in absolutes! "There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body" (1 Corinthians 15.44). And, the natural body precedes the spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15.46). Just as surely as there is a natural body in the present, there will be a spiritual body in the future. The denial of the resurrection remains equivalent to the denial of the apostles' doctrine, of the Holy Spirit's teachings, of the express statements of Jesus, and of the affirmations of the Father.

However, one might legitimately ask, "What proof is there of the resurrection?" Paul responded to those who might ask in his day with irrefutable proofs. "Jesus," says he, "is become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Corinthians 15.20). His statement is absolutely packed with meaning. The firstfruits among the Hebrew nation had historically served as a guarantee that the latter-fruit would be dedicated to the holy purposes of Jehovah. From of old, they had been accustomed to bringing the first of their produce and offering it before the Lord (cf. Deuteronomy 26.2 and Leviticus 23.10-11). The firstfruits by common use became synonymous with the idea of a guarantee. In fact, that was the express purpose of the firstfruits offering. Paul capitalized on this well know Jewish tradition to illustrate that God had effectively done the same thing regarding the resurrection. He had guaranteed latter-fruits (the general resurrection of the dead) would occur by means of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. The argument goes like this, If Jesus was raised from the dead then we are guaranteed that others will also be raised in due order.

Someone says, "How do we know that Jesus was raised from the dead? We have not seen Him!" One line of argumentation to respond to this question could have been, "If He is not raised, where is His body?" Since the resurrection of Jesus was almost immediately proclaimed publicly in the regions in and around Jerusalem (Acts 2 & 3), all that would have been needed to disprove the resurrection claim was for someone to produce the lifeless remains of the Christ. This would have silenced the claims of His resurrection forever. Christianity would have become a prison like all other philosophies of man. However, the body of Jesus was not produced. Given the determination of the Sanhedrin as well as others having an interest in quelling the claims of the Christians, had such a feat been possible, it would have been done. The absence of the body was and is powerful tacit evidence for the resurrection.

Someone objects and says, "But that is arguing from the lack of evidence? What positive proof is there that the one called Jesus actually did arise from the tomb on the third day?" Paul is ready to respond to that questioner also! "He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time" (1 Corinthians 15.5-8). Effectively Paul says, there are currently more than 250 eyewitnesses who stand willing and ready to testify to the truthfulness of the claims of the resurrection of Jesus! If it is evidence you need, evidence is readily available!

"But what kind of body will the resurrected dead have?" (See 1 Corinthians 15.35.) We permit Paul to respond again: "Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies. And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grainperhaps wheat or some other grain. But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body" (1 Corinthians 15: 36-38). The natural realm is subject to the scientific method of experimentation, theories, proofs, verifications and other similar disciplines. However, the spiritual realm, by definition, lies outside the realm of the natural and hence is not subject to the same laws as the natural realm. If one can accept the fact that God is able to change a tiny seed sown in the earth into a large plant in a vastly different form than the seed, surely one can accept the fact that He is able to do a similar work with the human body. When one accepts the fact that the resurrection is in the hands of Creator, God, the details are not all that important but for curiosity's sake.

Wrapped up in the questions of the resurrection are the fundamentals of the Christian faith. Without the resurrection, the rewards that are anticipated as a result of the Lord's sacrifice on our behalf could not be received. Without the resurrection, the privations suffered by believers go without recompense. Without the resurrection, evildoers suffer the same fate as the redeemed. Without the resurrection, God's exaltation is only as it is depicted so pitifully here upon this earth. Without the resurrection, Jesus' sacrifice is of no more significance than any other martyr who has died for a cause. Without the resurrection every injustice that remains yet unresolved will remain that way for eternity; the sense of fairness and justice that drive all civilized people is but a theory with no means of implementation.

With the resurrection, watch: "'Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?' The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15.54-57). It is no more possible to have Christianity without the resurrection than it is to have a house without an exit. A house without an exit becomes a prison and Christianity without the resurrection becomes the same. "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 15.58).