1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,720 Good morning. This is Jerry Robbins. Usually I record my sermons in the church, but I made 2 00:00:09,720 --> 00:00:15,040 a mistake this morning. I forgot to hit the button. So I'm going to have a little bit 3 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:22,040 more of an impersonal message for you, personal message for you this morning as I'm just recording 4 00:00:22,040 --> 00:00:28,120 it in my office, more of a conversational format, which is probably a good break. But 5 00:00:28,120 --> 00:00:37,480 this morning we're going to read together 1 Corinthians 15 from verse 19 through 26. 6 00:00:37,480 --> 00:00:47,320 This is Easter. And I don't know about you, but death is all around us. It seems lately 7 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:51,880 we hear more and more as we grow older about people who have cancer and they're going 8 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:58,320 through chemotherapy. Every time you go to the doctor, it seems that there's something 9 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:04,760 I've got to look out for. I've got to watch because my body is decaying no matter, I mean, 10 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:12,120 good shape. I exercise. I try to eat right, but it's still there. Death is an enemy. So 11 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:19,880 let's see what God's word says to us this morning about Christ's victory over death. 12 00:01:19,880 --> 00:01:26,200 In scripture, it says the following, if only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are 13 00:01:26,200 --> 00:01:31,920 of all people most to be pity. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the 14 00:01:31,920 --> 00:01:39,080 first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection 15 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:46,040 of the dead comes also through a man. For as an Adam all die, so in Christ all will be 16 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:53,680 made alive. But each in turn Christ the first fruits, then when he comes, those who belong 17 00:01:53,680 --> 00:02:00,080 to him. And then the end will come when he hands over the kingdom to God, the Father, 18 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:05,680 after he's destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he puts 19 00:02:05,680 --> 00:02:15,480 all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. Let's pray. Our 20 00:02:15,480 --> 00:02:20,960 heavenly Father, we ask that your Holy Spirit will encourage our hearts this morning on 21 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:30,280 Easter because we are frail, children of dust. We have our fears about what the future will 22 00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:37,880 behold. So minister to us through your word today. Amen. 23 00:02:37,880 --> 00:02:43,680 We have all faced enemies at one time or another. I can think of my own life when I live for 24 00:02:43,680 --> 00:02:49,760 a short while in Oak Park, Illinois. There were gangs and you wanted to spend as much 25 00:02:49,760 --> 00:02:56,760 time as you can away from the gangs and avoid them because they could be mean. And part of 26 00:02:56,760 --> 00:03:04,680 the reason that I learned to run was avoiding the gangs. And in high school we had students 27 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:09,960 who were just mean and they were constantly getting into fights and you were scared they 28 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:15,400 were going to look at you and try to beat you up. So what did you do? You tried to stay 29 00:03:15,400 --> 00:03:21,800 away. They were really your enemies. And do you realize if you read the Psalms, for instance, 30 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:29,360 David, even though he was the king of Israel, in Israel he had his enemies. And then there 31 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:35,920 are nation states that create war and havoc in this world. We can think back to World 32 00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:44,680 War II with Japan and Germany. But today there's a war going on with Russia, Ukraine, and there 33 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:52,400 are terrorists who will take your life simply because you walked down the wrong street. All 34 00:03:52,400 --> 00:04:02,720 of us have enemies in one form or another. And it's been there throughout history. But 35 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:10,640 one enemy we all face that you cannot escape in which there is no neutrality, no peace 36 00:04:10,640 --> 00:04:20,960 treaty, no appeasement. The enemy called death. And whether you are rich or poor, you will 37 00:04:20,960 --> 00:04:29,000 have to face it. You will go to your funerals and you'll see the flowers. You will see the 38 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:34,640 pictures of when the person who died was young. And we look into the casket and we say such 39 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:45,800 things as, oh, they look so alive. But they're not. They're dead. They have lost to the great 40 00:04:45,800 --> 00:04:56,240 enemy of death. And we will all face our waterloo until the Lord Jesus comes again. But despite 41 00:04:56,240 --> 00:05:07,600 the truth that death is in this world, there is also something greater, Jesus Christ. And 42 00:05:07,600 --> 00:05:15,320 in 1 Corinthians 15, we are reminded that the enemy that we all have has been defeated, 43 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:22,600 death. Christ has conquered death. That's the good news of Easter. And in verse 26, 44 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:29,600 what does it say? That the last enemy to be destroyed is death. Or you could paraphrase 45 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:37,160 it this way. The last attacker to be destroyed is our mortality. The last assassin to be destroyed 46 00:05:37,160 --> 00:05:45,480 is our oblivion. Christ came into this world to do the Father's will. And in the final 47 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:54,160 moments of his existence in this world, he overcame death. So let's look and see what 48 00:05:54,160 --> 00:06:00,480 Paul is going to say to us about some of the details of this. Now, there are some out there 49 00:06:00,480 --> 00:06:05,480 who are really the enemies of Christ. And they believe that Christians are a pitiful 50 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:13,400 lot. You see that in verse 19. Now, Paul is putting up a hypothetical argument here. 51 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:18,440 But I could also see that there are a lot of unfriendly people towards Christianity who 52 00:06:18,440 --> 00:06:27,440 would mock us with such words. They would say, well, you only have hope in this life. 53 00:06:27,440 --> 00:06:33,760 Christians, you don't really believe you're going to overcome death? Now, Jesus, he may 54 00:06:33,760 --> 00:06:41,760 have been a good man, but he was just like so many other good men. Before Jesus, there 55 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:52,920 were Jewish martyrs who died. John the Baptist died. Buddha died. Muhammad died. These all 56 00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:59,760 died, but there was no resurrection. Perhaps you think he really was just a good man, but 57 00:06:59,760 --> 00:07:05,960 good men die. Leo D'Rosier, the manager of the Chicago Cubs, used to say, nice guys 58 00:07:05,960 --> 00:07:15,760 finish last, but also nice guys also die. And if that is the case, then as verse 32 59 00:07:15,760 --> 00:07:27,080 says, we should just go on and eat and drink for tomorrow we die. Why? Because death is 60 00:07:27,080 --> 00:07:36,040 the enemy, the final enemy. It haunts us. The real terrorist is death because of what 61 00:07:36,040 --> 00:07:47,080 it means for you and I. It means that our life is one of frustration. The fear of all 62 00:07:47,080 --> 00:07:59,560 of our hopes will vanish. And it is also a problem because we're still in our sin if 63 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:06,120 Christ did not rise from the grave. We're pitiful. And that's what verse 17 says. It 64 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:11,680 tells us, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile. You're still in your 65 00:08:11,680 --> 00:08:17,800 sins. Religion is nothing more than a little Tylenol or a bandaid that you put on the pain 66 00:08:17,800 --> 00:08:28,320 of your soul. One of the questions that counselors sometimes ask a person is to write an obituary 67 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:32,800 for yourself. What do you want people to say about you? And people will say such things. 68 00:08:32,800 --> 00:08:41,000 I want them to think that I'm a loving person. I'm a giving person. They want to think about 69 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:49,280 what they've done that has been good and positive. But according to the Bible, goodness doesn't 70 00:08:49,280 --> 00:08:57,360 get you eternal life. Goodness doesn't merit salvation. If you think your goodness is going 71 00:08:57,360 --> 00:09:04,200 to get you eternal life, you're really swimming in a sea with a weighted vest. It won't do 72 00:09:04,200 --> 00:09:11,800 it because all of us have sinned. We had to have one person who was righteous and who 73 00:09:11,800 --> 00:09:20,320 fought death and won. And so many people like criticize us today for our belief in the resurrection 74 00:09:20,320 --> 00:09:28,680 of the dead. But let me tell you, the critics have a problem too. Those who say such things 75 00:09:28,680 --> 00:09:36,960 have no hope either. What do they think is going to happen when you die? You could have 76 00:09:36,960 --> 00:09:41,040 the view of a Lion King where you join the circle of life, but I'm not really sure what 77 00:09:41,040 --> 00:09:46,800 the circle of life is. I don't know what hope that gives me. Is it a mere biological process 78 00:09:46,800 --> 00:09:53,840 where we simply become part of the ground? We become worms, food? That doesn't help me 79 00:09:53,840 --> 00:10:03,920 at all. It doesn't help me to have hope. In fact, it is a tragedy then because all that 80 00:10:03,920 --> 00:10:13,920 I strive for is nothing. It's vain. But here's where the good news of the Gospel comes in. 81 00:10:13,920 --> 00:10:23,440 Christ rose from the grave. If you go through the book of Acts in the preaching of the Apostles, 82 00:10:23,440 --> 00:10:27,200 you will see that there was a great emphasis on the death of Jesus Christ, but there was 83 00:10:27,200 --> 00:10:35,520 also an equally great emphasis on his resurrection. And if you look in 1 Corinthians 15 in verses 84 00:10:35,520 --> 00:10:42,400 3 through 9, look at what it says. Look at how it testifies to the historical witness. 85 00:10:42,400 --> 00:10:48,640 It wasn't just a personal experience of Paul. I don't know. There were a number of people 86 00:10:48,640 --> 00:10:54,760 who experienced this. The Bible says, For what I received, I passed on to you as of 87 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:59,480 first importance, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scripture, that he was 88 00:10:59,480 --> 00:11:04,480 buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared 89 00:11:04,480 --> 00:11:09,680 to Cephas and then to the twelve. And after that, he appeared to more than 500 of our 90 00:11:09,680 --> 00:11:17,800 brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living. Do you see what 91 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:27,120 Paul is pointing to? There were a number of people that saw the resurrected Lord Jesus. 92 00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:34,400 He points to the fact of it that Christ defeated death. Years ago, there was a news article 93 00:11:34,400 --> 00:11:41,520 in the magazine Newsweek, and they were looking at the resurrection. I think it was the Easter 94 00:11:41,520 --> 00:11:53,280 edition. And here's what the scholarly community concluded. Something happened back then. Something 95 00:11:53,280 --> 00:12:00,800 happened which caused these early Christians to go out and literally change the world. 96 00:12:00,800 --> 00:12:07,040 I can tell you what it is. It was the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. The power of 97 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:15,840 God was at work over our enemy. And look and see what else the Bible says here about Jesus 98 00:12:15,840 --> 00:12:22,200 which helps us to understand what we face. It says Jesus is the first fruit. You see 99 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:30,440 that in verse 20 and verse 23. The idea is an agricultural idea, and it goes back to 100 00:12:30,440 --> 00:12:36,480 the Old Testament. The first fruit was the first part of the crop, and it usually had 101 00:12:36,480 --> 00:12:46,280 the highest value. It also points out the blessing of a future harvest that is to come. 102 00:12:46,280 --> 00:12:49,960 It's like the first edition of the book. You've got the first edition, but there are other 103 00:12:49,960 --> 00:12:59,400 editions that are going to come. In the same way, Jesus Christ is the first fruit, and 104 00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:06,240 there's going to be more resurrections to come. Now, some may have an objection at this 105 00:13:06,240 --> 00:13:12,400 point. Well, if people rose from the dead, why can't I see it now? I go to funerals all 106 00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:20,120 the time. I don't see anybody who's resurrected from the dead. They all just lie in the grave. 107 00:13:20,120 --> 00:13:25,840 They're in the corpse. They're corpses that lie in a coffin. But I want you to see what 108 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:37,000 verse 23 says here. It gives us a time frame. But each, in turn, Christ the first fruits, 109 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:43,560 and when he comes, those who belong to him, then the end will come. What it is telling 110 00:13:43,560 --> 00:13:51,000 us here, there's a timetable. And the timetable is that first you're going to have Jesus Christ 111 00:13:51,000 --> 00:13:57,320 who will rise from the grave. But in between his first and second coming, there's not going 112 00:13:57,320 --> 00:14:07,960 to be any more resurrections. But when Jesus comes back, the rest will rise from the grave. 113 00:14:07,960 --> 00:14:13,000 And you see the same thing in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verses 14 through 15, for we believe 114 00:14:13,000 --> 00:14:17,480 that Jesus died and rose again. And so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those 115 00:14:17,480 --> 00:14:23,720 who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's word, we tell you that we who are 116 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:29,560 alive who are left until the coming of the Lord will certainly not precede those who 117 00:14:29,560 --> 00:14:37,560 have fallen asleep. What it's telling us is that you're going to have the second coming 118 00:14:37,560 --> 00:14:47,680 and soul and body will be reunited. But it will be on God's plan and God's timetable. 119 00:14:47,680 --> 00:14:53,080 That's why you don't see it. It doesn't mean death is not defeated. Death is defeated. 120 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:59,200 But we're going to see the fruition of that when he comes again. And let's remember here, 121 00:14:59,200 --> 00:15:07,960 the passage is clear. Jesus brings life and defeats death. In verses 21 and 22, Adam brought 122 00:15:07,960 --> 00:15:17,560 death. Jesus brings life. And here's why this is so important. The enemy that we all fear, 123 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:27,600 terrorist we all fear, is death. But death has been swallowed up by the death of Jesus. 124 00:15:27,600 --> 00:15:34,840 The grace of Jesus is going to cause us to be reunited, body and soul. It's not just 125 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:42,040 a spiritual resurrection, body and soul. We're going to become more fully human than we ever 126 00:15:42,040 --> 00:15:47,600 have been. And later on it tells us that our body is going to be glorified like Jesus's 127 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:54,600 body. And that will be wonderful because there will be no more chemo, no more cancer, no 128 00:15:54,600 --> 00:16:02,680 more dementia. All of that will be done away with once and for all. And I don't know exactly 129 00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:09,160 what these bodies of ours will be like. Probably whatever we are like in our prime, but even 130 00:16:09,160 --> 00:16:13,720 better than that because they're going to be glorious bodies just like Jesus. And we'll 131 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:21,480 recognize one another just as the disciples knew Jesus, who rose from the grave. And the 132 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:28,240 good news of the gospel for Easter is Jesus Christ has risen. And that's good news for 133 00:16:28,240 --> 00:16:36,160 you because death for us is nothing more than a shadow. And we will one day rise from the 134 00:16:36,160 --> 00:16:44,760 grave. We may die as the last vestiges of the curse, but we're going to be with Jesus 135 00:16:44,760 --> 00:16:53,200 in heaven. And then one day our bodies will rise from grave and we'll be with him. We 136 00:16:53,200 --> 00:17:02,680 will rise again. We have eternal life. What is that Bible verse that we all memorized 137 00:17:02,680 --> 00:17:07,900 in Sunday school for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever 138 00:17:07,900 --> 00:17:16,120 believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. Death has been defeated. Death 139 00:17:16,120 --> 00:17:27,560 no longer reigns. For as an atom all dies, so in Christ all will be made alive. Oh, think 140 00:17:27,560 --> 00:17:40,600 of what that will be when we arise. No more bodies that ache from age. Joints that no 141 00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:56,960 longer hurt. No more chemo. No more cavities. No more cancer. Doctors out of business. Hospitals 142 00:17:56,960 --> 00:18:07,700 no longer needed their clothes. No more funerals to go to. Funeral homes closed forever. Now 143 00:18:07,700 --> 00:18:14,640 funerals we go and say, oh, they look so alive, but in the new heavens and the new earth will 144 00:18:14,640 --> 00:18:22,280 be living, living in a way that's hard for us to imagine today where colors will be more 145 00:18:22,280 --> 00:18:33,080 vivid and smells will be more delightful and bodies that really do run and not get tired. 146 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:40,620 What does Paul say, which we need to repeat to ourselves over and over again as we face 147 00:18:40,620 --> 00:18:49,040 this age with all of its problems? Oh, death. Where is the sting? Oh, grave. Where is the 148 00:18:49,040 --> 00:18:55,080 victory? Oh, death. Where is the sting? Oh, grave. Where is the victory? Oh, death. Where 149 00:18:55,080 --> 00:19:02,520 is the sting? Oh, grave. Where is the victory? Christian, you don't need a bucket list. You 150 00:19:02,520 --> 00:19:09,720 don't need to dive out of airplanes when you're 89 years old. If you can't go to the 151 00:19:09,720 --> 00:19:16,800 Hawaii or some part of the world before you die, it doesn't matter because in the new 152 00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:25,000 heavens and the new earth it will be greater, more beautiful, more glorious than anything. 153 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:31,440 And as Christians, what we've got to do is focus more on the good that is to come because 154 00:19:31,440 --> 00:19:40,520 the best is yet to come. That's what we have to look forward to, because death, our final 155 00:19:40,520 --> 00:19:52,320 enemy, has truly been defeated. John Dunn was an English poet. And let me read you what 156 00:19:52,320 --> 00:20:05,120 he wrote. One short sleep past we wake eternal, and death shall be no more. Death thou shalt 157 00:20:05,120 --> 00:20:20,520 die. And I would add on praise the Lord. We live. Our Heavenly Father, it's Resurrection 158 00:20:20,520 --> 00:20:35,880 Sunday. Help us, Holy Spirit, to focus on the Word which says Jesus rose. And one day we 159 00:20:35,880 --> 00:20:47,680 will rise and have glorified bodies with no more pain, no more sorrow, no more tears. 160 00:20:47,680 --> 00:20:57,560 And as we go through this year and we will go to more funerals, more hospital visits, 161 00:20:57,560 --> 00:21:08,400 trips to hospice centers, help us to see the truth. These are but shadows. The gloriousness 162 00:21:08,400 --> 00:21:18,360 of Christ and of his followers is yet to come. Amen.