SURPRISED BY RESURRECTION

ISAIAH 25:1–9

He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces

(Isaiah 25:8a; see 1 Cor. 15:54).

We sometimes hear secular scholars and liberal theologians dismiss the biblical accounts of the resurrection of Christ by asserting that the ancient world was full of stories about people dying and rising again. It is true that there were a few stories about gods dying and rising again—generally fertility gods who died in the fall and rose in the spring. But as regarding human beings, people stayed dead then just as they do now.

Paul tells us to base our faith on Christ’s death and resurrection. Paul argues his case at length in 1 Corinthians 15. His first argument is this: If there is no resurrection, then Christ did not rise. And if Christ did not rise, then our preaching and faith are useless. We are false witnesses, and those who have died are lost. Paul goes on to say that if our belief in a resurrection is merely wishful thinking, then we are to be pitied more than all men. If there is no resurrection, then life is meaningless, and we may as well do whatever we want.

But, writes Paul, the fact is that Jesus did indeed rise from the grave. The Bible teaches such a resurrection throughout its pages. The many cleansings, national resurrections, and personal resurrections found in the Old Testament point to it. Moreover, the tomb was empty, and angels said that Jesus had been raised. Also, Jesus Himself appeared to Peter, to the women, to the twelve, and then to a great company of people. Paul says that at the time of his writing, many of those people were still alive. His readers could have interviewed these witnesses if they had wanted to.

Since Jesus was raised, we know that our faith is not in vain. Death is not the last word. Indeed, death has been swallowed up in victory, as the Old Testament predicted. We who are united to Jesus by faith will also be united to His resurrection. We shall put on incorruptible and imperishable bodies when He comes for us. And so, while we labor and suffer in this world, we can “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). Our problems are momentary and light; our glory will be everlasting.

CORAM DEO

Nehemiah 8–10

We cannot really imagine the wonders and glories that await us in the full presence of God. We shall be far more surprised by what we experience after we die than by any suffering we experience here below. Think of the times God has surprised you with something wonderful. These are just foretastes of what awaits you.

For further study: Psalm 23 • Eccl. 8:12–13 • Rev. 19:1–9

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