[0:00] If you take your Bibles, it's going to be to the book of 1 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians chapter 15. We'll be finishing up the 15th chapter this morning. As we pick it up in verse 35, we'll read to the end, gets us down to verse 58.
[0:12] Pretty big section of scripture, a lot of verses, but it's really becoming of us to read them together since it's one lump sum here.
[0:23] In the 15th chapter, as Paul is, we've taken our time, as compared to other chapters of 1 Corinthians, and worked our way slowly through this 15th chapter. There's so much in it. There's so much meat.
[0:35] There's so much, really, motivation and movement for us to follow the Lord and trust Him. Paul is writing to the church at Corinth. He is writing to a church that has a number of issues.
[0:45] Some will tell you, and I would agree with them, that the church at Corinth was the most corrupt, wicked church in all of the New Testament. There were more things going on at the church at Corinth than any other church. Yet Paul reminds them of who they are.
[0:57] He says, To the saints which are at Corinth. It's so good to be reminded of who we are positionally in Christ, right? No matter what we feel like, no matter what the enemy tells us, no matter what the accuser of our souls tries to convince us of, as he stands on our shoulders, I am so thankful that we have a new position in Christ.
[1:17] And I am thankful that Paul says, To the saints which are at Corinth. And as he refers to them positionally, then he begins to commend them for what they're doing right, and then he begins to rebuke them for what they're doing wrong.
[1:29] Because, see, position should determine behavior. And he reminds them that they were saints. And since they are saints, they should live differently. And since they are saints, they should not do these things.
[1:40] And since they are saints, see how important it is to know who you are positionally. Because if you are in Christ, you are in a new position. And since you are in a new position, you should have a different behavior.
[1:52] Because you can't take who you once were and put it in a different position and think everything's okay. Because we are a new creation. We are a new being. We are in a new position.
[2:03] And therefore, things should look differently. And in the 15th chapter, he is now bringing this argument and this correction to a close. And he begins to look at the thing we've all been waiting for.
[2:14] He begins to look at the hope and the glory of the resurrection. And we've seen how this is a certain promise given to us. I know I'm giving you a long introduction. It's been a couple of weeks. Trying to get your mind reset back where we're at.
[2:26] And Paul is encouraging them with this. Verse 34 gives an admonition as a result of this thing that's about to take place. And then verse 58 gives an admonition as to what they should do in light of the coming resurrection.
[2:41] And between those two, verses 35 through 57, really is the motivation for the admonition. So we see here in our text an assurance of greater motivation.
[2:55] And it's an assurance of greater motivation. If you are physically able and desire to do so, I'm going to ask if you would join with me as we stand together and we read the word of God.
[3:05] I'm going to back up and catch verse 34, though we looked at that as we were together, because I think it has application to our text this morning. Verse 34, Paul says, And all flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men and another flesh of beasts and another flesh of birds and another of fish.
[3:53] Let me just stop right here for just a minute. I'm going to give you a reason to say hallelujah. If you ever want to argue Darwinian theory of evolution, you can go ahead to this verse right here and it says that the flesh ain't the same.
[4:04] Right? I know that's bad English, but there's a different kind of flesh for every kind of being. Paul was way ahead of the scientists here, and we're just praying that one day they'll catch up. We'll keep reading, okay?
[4:14] So we keep going on here. It says in verse 40, There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun and another glory of the moon and another glory of the stars, for star differs from star in glory.
[4:32] So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body. Perishable body. It is raised an imperishable body. It is sown in dishonor. It is raised in glory.
[4:43] It is sown in weakness. It is raised in power. It is sown a natural body. It is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also it is written, The first man, Adam, became a living soul.
[4:57] The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, then the spiritual. The first man is from the earth, earthy. The second man is from heaven.
[5:07] As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy. And as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.
[5:20] Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
[5:35] For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. This perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.
[5:46] But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, death is swallowed up in victory.
[5:57] O death, where is your victory? Where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
[6:10] Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.
[6:23] Let's pray. Lord, we thank you so much for this day. We thank you for your word, and God, we thank you for the opportunity which we've had to read it and to hear it. We pray, Lord, now by the power and presence of your spirit, you give us minds to understand it, hearts to accept it, and a life to apply it for your glory and your honor.
[6:41] We ask it all in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated. Boy, I tell you, a pastor just about preached himself there for a moment in reading the text, preached himself into a tizzy. Just to be honest, sometimes you wake up and you don't feel like preaching, and I'm so thankful that preaching isn't based upon feelings.
[6:58] It's based upon a calling, and that's why Paul says you need to be ready in season and out of season. There are a number of times, and you'll think it is kind of strange that I say this. You come to the pulpit, and you're like, well, I have this wonderful opportunity to preach this morning.
[7:11] I just want to get my feelings in line with the opportunity presenting itself, and God is so faithful that when I feel that way, and the enemy is kind of bringing this, what you say, this dark cloud over me, that all I got to do is open up the word and read the word, because the word answers every concern, every distraction, and every hindrance that there ever is to preaching and proclaiming the gospel.
[7:32] What a wonderful text we have before us. What a wonderful text we have here before us, and we have it in the middle of two admonitions. Paul tells us in verse 34 that we ought to become sober-minded as you ought and stop sinning.
[7:49] It says to become sober-minded and stop sinning, and then he gives this challenge, for some have no knowledge of the Lord, and I speak this to your shame. We sing in our first hymn there.
[8:00] I believe it was that next-to-last stanza that said where duty calls, never be wanting there, that when there's an opportunity, that when we are called to proclaim the gospel, that when we are called to share the love of Christ, never be wanting there.
[8:15] That is, don't let the Lord look up and see you missing your opportunity, because some have no knowledge of the Lord. So we ought to become sober-minded and stop sinning. And then in verse 58, he tells us that we ought to be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.
[8:34] So here's the challenge, that we ought to be sober-minded, that we ought to stop sinning, that we ought to be ready to proclaim the gospel, that we ought to be steadfast, immovable, and always abounding.
[8:45] Friend, in the flesh, you can't do it. And on your own, you don't have it within you, because it's a high gospel calling. But between the two challenges is the great motivation, and that is the assurance we have of the resurrection.
[9:01] Paul says, if our hope is in this life, we are of all men most to be pitied. Right? If this is all there is, then we have no reason to do anything else. The problem is, is that when we doubt the resurrection, we move into self-preservation.
[9:16] See, that is, even believers in Christ don't live as if the resurrection is a reality, and they live as if this is all they get, and they move into self-preservation. And they begin to hoard up, and to store up, and they begin to entertain themselves, and they begin to get distracted over here, and over there, and they begin to do things to cause pleasure now, rather than realizing there will be when eternal pleasure is ultimately found, where eternal security rests.
[9:43] And they spend their lives trying to take care of the temporary when God has called us to live temporarily in light of the eternal. And until we have that assurance, we won't become sober-minded and stop sinning, be steadfast, immovable, and always abounding.
[9:58] We won't do those things. But he gives us three affirmations. I went ahead and told you how many points I have. I don't do that. I've been out of place. Right? He gives us three affirmations of why we can live with assurance.
[10:10] And it is a greater assurance than this world can ever give you. The first one is this. It is confidence in the power of God. We can have confidence in the power of God.
[10:23] Paul says it this way. He says, But someone will say, How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come? See, doubt of the resurrection is not something that is a new reality.
[10:35] When Paul is writing to the church at Corinth, the church at Corinth is a great metropolis that is surrounded by a conglomerate of people. It isn't just Jews. It isn't just Gentiles. It is people from all over the Roman Empire.
[10:46] This is a trade town. This is a hub of a city. As a matter of fact, Corinth was so prosperous because it was so dangerous to go around the sea there. What they would do is pull the ships across the isthmus called Corinth.
[10:59] They would bring the ships and they would put them on the dry land and they would pull them across to get them to the other side because it was safer than going around the horn. So it was a very popular, a very populated town and a very wealthy town because, you know, you kind of have people captive when their ship is sitting on dry ground.
[11:15] And there's all this conglomerate of people and this reality that so many people there don't believe and accept the resurrection. And the question is, well, at the resurrection, what kind of body will I have?
[11:28] Because, see, it's not new science. As a matter of fact, it says in the book of Ecclesiastes, from dust we have come and to dust we will go. I don't care how much you preserve it. I don't care how much you try to maintain it.
[11:39] I don't care how much you try to keep it. That someday, unless the Lord tarries, this body will be laid into the ground and it will return back to dust. And the question we ask ourselves is, well, what will we look like and what kind of body will we have?
[11:53] And here, where there was so little preservation, there was embalming and things of that nature, but that was going on over there, not necessarily going on here. The question would be, well, how is that going to happen?
[12:05] And this is one of the tools of Satan to cause doubt to creep into the mind. And since doubt was creeping into the mind, people were living as if the resurrection wasn't going to take place.
[12:16] Paul begins to use a number of illustrations. He first turns to the agricultural world. Now, I know this isn't very good pastor practice in today's time, but Paul calls them fools, right?
[12:28] He says, you fool. Now, why is that? You know, the Bible says two times in the book of Proverbs that the fool has said in his heart, there is no God. And he says, you're living as if there is no God because you're doubting the resurrection and doubting what kind of body you would have is foolish.
[12:48] He says, that which you sow, you do not sow what you intend to be, but you sow what is the grain of that. We put a corn seed in the ground, we expect a corn stalk to grow. We put a bean seed in the ground, we expect a bean plant to grow, right?
[13:00] We're not sowing a corn stalk, we're sowing a corn seed. And he's saying there's a difference here. He goes into this terminology, speaking agriculturally to them, hoping that they would understand.
[13:11] And he keeps going down through the list, but the key to it all is in verse 38. The key to it all, the key to understanding. See, the hang-up is on what kind of body I will have, when really that's not the question to be asked.
[13:25] It is not what kind of body will I have. The question really is, who is it that's giving me the body? It isn't what am I going to look like, but who am I trusting for the resurrection?
[13:37] Because I like what he says in verse 38, but God, that is good. That's a good interruption right there. Man says, well, what kind of body will I have? But the Bible says, but God, look at this, gives it a body just as he wished.
[13:52] Now, you can stop right there, and you can base all your theology upon that. Every theology you need to have for the resurrection, every understanding you need to have could rest in that one statement.
[14:03] But God gives it a body just as he wished. See, the hope of the resurrection isn't found in understanding what we are going to look like, but it is a confident assurance that God has the ability to give me a body however he wishes.
[14:19] It is the power of God that comes into play, not the plans and the purposes of man. It says, but God gives it a power, and then he begins to display how God gives a body.
[14:31] He begins to talk about these realities. All flesh is not the same flesh. Now, throughout the ages, man have thought that all flesh was the same, that the flesh of the animals was the same flesh as the flesh of man, and that man derived from animals, and we have all of this evolutionary theory and all these things that are going on.
[14:51] We have to be sure to put that theory word in there, by the way, okay? We have to have all these practices that every flesh is the same, but the Bible very clearly says, Paul writing here to the church at Corinth, somewhere around mid-60 A.D., all flesh is not the same flesh.
[15:09] Now, thankfully, scientists, biologists, people have caught up with this reality that there is one flesh of man, another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish.
[15:22] We don't see people going across, or we don't see evolution that goes across species because everything stays in its same flesh.
[15:33] Paul begins to speak of this reality that each of these were given that flesh by God, that if God can differentiate flesh between species and creation, then he has the power to give you a body of resurrection.
[15:45] He says there are also heavenly bodies. Now, this one is good. Stay with me in this. There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon.
[15:57] Look at this. It's so good. Maybe you don't get excited about it, but I do. And another glory of the stars, for star differs from star in glory. You know, those who study such things have told us there are no two stars that are exactly the same.
[16:13] Isn't it good that what Paul says is absolutely right, that star differs from star in glory. And then we are reminded that God calls the stars forth by name, that he puts them, that he ensures that they are there, that he hangs them in the heavens, and that each of them has a different glory, that no two stars are exactly the same.
[16:37] And if God has the power to do such things, don't we think we can count on him to have the power to give us a body at a resurrection? See, doubting the resurrection is really discounting the power of God.
[16:50] Well, my body's going to break down. My body's going to go to ashes. My body is going to return to dust. My body's not going to be intact. You didn't have a body to start with, and God created in your mother's womb.
[17:00] God created man from the dust of the ground. Out of the dust of the ground, he formed him. The only reason we have a body to look at right now is the power of God. You say, oh, what genetics and biology and all this stuff says this.
[17:13] Oh, wow, but the Bible tells us he knit you together in your mother's womb before the world knew you. See, the same God we counted on a body for now is the same God we depend on a body for then.
[17:23] The resurrection is assured because we have confidence in the power of God. I can't tell you what I'm going to look like. I can kind of tell you what it's going to be like, and it's going to be glorious.
[17:34] Is it going to be physical? Yes. I'll show you why in just a moment. Am I going to be able to walk and talk? Yes. Am I going to be able to eat? Yes. Will I be able to walk through locked doors? Yes. That's pretty cool, right? Will I be able to go from here to there in a moment?
[17:45] Yes. It's all this amazing stuff. What's it like? I can't tell you, but it's going to be marvelous. There'll be no pain. There'll be no discomfort. Will we be able to recognize one another? Yes. Sure.
[17:56] Well, how will we recognize one another? It doesn't matter. I don't know. We just will because God's going to let us know it. See, it's not really an understanding. It's a confidence in the power of God.
[18:09] And we see here this assurance that motivates us. We don't need to know all the particulars. We just need to know his power. The second thing that we see about the resurrection, not only the confidence in the power of God.
[18:22] Friend, listen to me. This is the calling of the people of God. This is the calling of the people of God. The Bible begins to make a transition here. It says down in verse 45.
[18:36] Paul spoke of the natural body and the spiritual body, but the natural body is not first in the spiritual body. He goes down in verse 45 and says, So also it is written, The first man, Adam, became a living soul.
[18:47] He goes all the way back to the book of Genesis. By the way, every hope and promise you'll ever find finds its origin. It's Genesis in the book of Genesis, right? Genesis means the beginning.
[18:57] It finds its Genesis in the book of Genesis. And we see, it says, The first man, Adam, became a living soul. And the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
[19:08] Paul now jumps from the illustration because we can be confident in the power of God. And he takes us to the full spectrum of humanity. He takes us from man's beginning to man's end.
[19:19] He takes us from Adam in the garden to Christ in the throne. He takes us from the first Adam to the last Adam. He takes us from man in the garden to the Savior reigning. And he speaks this reality.
[19:30] However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, then the spiritual. The first man is from the earth, earthy. The second man is from heaven. As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy. And as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly.
[19:42] That is, we bear the image of the one we represent. We bear the image of Adam. We carry the seed of Adam within us. As he is, so are we. And we need to understand that.
[19:53] This is how we come to an understanding of our sin. Why am I a sinner? I am not a sinner because I do bad things. You're not a sinner because you do bad things.
[20:04] You do bad things because you're a sinner. It's good theology. Stay with me here. The bad things you do do not make you a sinner. The fact that you are a sinner and I am a sinner makes me do the bad things I do.
[20:16] You say, well, if I could just quit doing the bad things, then I wouldn't be a sinner any longer. You cannot quit doing the bad things because you are by nature a sinner. Because as is the earthy, so also are the earthies.
[20:28] We have a sin nature. This is where the problem starts, right? And this is why we have to understand this. The problem is not I need to change my behavior. The problem is not I need to quit doing these sinful things.
[20:39] The problem that I have is that by the very nature of my being, I am a sinner in the very core of my being. I am the seed of Adam. I have inherited from Adam this sin nature. So that is, naturally, I am a sinner.
[20:52] And since I am a sinner, naturally, I cannot help doing the things that I do. It is who I am. You cannot make me do anything different. You cannot force me to do anything different. It's not a matter of physical correction.
[21:04] It's not a matter of mental coercion, right? You cannot change who I am in the very core of my being, and I cannot change who you are. Because by nature, you are a sinner. As is the earthy, so also are the earthies.
[21:15] The problem that man faces is we don't need someone to help us change what we do. The problem is we need someone to change who we are. That's the need for the Savior. See, if all we thought we needed someone to help us do what we do, we have a number of police officers present with us today.
[21:31] If all we needed was someone to correct our actions, I'm sure these men would rise up and help us correct our actions. But the reason they still have a job is because no matter how much action correction they do, people still do the bad things they do.
[21:42] And we will always have a need for them. And the reason we will always have a need for them is because the very natural being of mankind is to be a sinner. As is the earthy, so are the earthy. This is the glories of our Savior.
[21:53] We didn't have a Savior who came just to get rid of the things we do. We have a Savior who came to change who we are. Paul says it in the book of Romans. You have to read it carefully. You see it in the book of Romans. And I know you say, Pastor, you're really all over the place this morning.
[22:06] It's okay. It's been a couple of weeks, right? I had a lot stored up. But it's a good text. Paul says in the book of Romans, when he starts Romans 5, 6, and 7, right before he gets this glorious passage in Romans chapter 8, we'll get to that in just a moment, by the way, Paul begins to speak of sins, sins, sins, sins, sins, sins.
[22:21] The sins with an S on the end. That is our actions. But then it says that Jesus came to take away our sin, singular. No S. So Christ came to change who we are by nature, not what we do by practice.
[22:35] Because, again, we go back to how I introduced it. When we change who we are positionally, then inevitably what we do practically will change too. You cannot change your practice until you change your position.
[22:47] As is the earthy, so also are the earthy. Don't be surprised when sinners act like sinners. Why? Because that's who they are. But it should shock us and astound us when saints act like sinners.
[23:00] Because that's not who you are. We have changed positionally. And what we see here, he has taken us to the spectrum.
[23:10] When we are in Adam, we act like Adam. But when we are in Christ, we shall be like Christ. Look at what verse 49 says. Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will.
[23:21] Some translations say we should. Either way, it's the same implication. We will also bear the image of the heavenly. It is an assurance.
[23:32] And the reason it's an assurance. If you'll turn, and I'm not going to ask you to, but I want you to write this verse down. Romans 8, 29. You know Romans 8, 28.
[23:43] For God causes all things to work together for the good for those who love him and are called according to his purposes. Right? Don't forget about verse 29. Verse 29 follows verse 28. And then verse 29 scares us quite often, but we need to stay with this.
[23:55] Look at what it says. For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined. And some people get hung up on that right there. We're not here to preach that sermon. But the Bible says it. And since it says it, we need to acknowledge it. Right? No matter how much those words, foreknowledge and predestination, all those things may scare us.
[24:09] It's there. So we say, hey, it's there. But look at what the text says. Romans 8, 29 says, for those whom he foreknew. That is, when you came to Christ, before you came to Christ, he knew you were coming to Christ. Because he's God.
[24:20] If there's anything he doesn't know, he's not God. He said, would the God know I was going to come to Christ before I came to Christ? Absolutely he did. Did he foreknow my salvation? Sure he did. Because if he didn't, something would have taken him by surprise.
[24:31] And therefore he's no longer God. Those whom he foreknew, he also predestined. But what did he predestine to happen? He predestined to be conformed to the image of his son.
[24:42] Those whom he foreknew, he predestined to become conformed to the image of his son. That is, your calling in Christ is that you would be like him. It is your calling.
[24:55] God has predestined that we would be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. And that's glorious. Because we're not speaking of a child in a manger.
[25:08] When Paul writes this, he is the savior on the throne. Right? He is speaking of the resurrected savior. He's not speaking of Jesus, lowly, meek, and mild riding in on a donkey.
[25:20] He's not speaking of the carpenter's son growing up in Nazareth. He's speaking of the exalted savior sitting at the right hand of the father. And he says that when we came to Christ, God knew we was coming.
[25:32] And after he knew we were coming, he also had predestined us to be conformed to the image of his son. That is, by calling, is we will be like him. You say, well, I can't do that on my own. Good news.
[25:43] The good news is, is you don't have to. There will be a day in the resurrection where you will be as he is. See, the resurrection is the assurance that you will answer your calling. You can never, in your flesh, by your ability, on your own, become like Jesus Christ.
[25:58] Even if you live a perfect life, which you can't, but even if you was to live a perfect life, you still would not be like the Christ that Paul is speaking of. Because when I read of the resurrected savior, I see him walking on Emmaus road.
[26:11] And in the same night, I also see him back in Jerusalem, a distance of unbelievable amount of miles. I see him, we don't want to like to use the word teleporting, but I see him moving himself from one location to another in a moment.
[26:23] I see him walking through locked doors and then eating with the disciples. I see them touching and handling him. I see him ascending on high on the clouds with the angels testifying.
[26:33] See, I see a resurrected savior. And the Bible says that someday I will be like him because that is what God has predestined that I will be. By calling, the people of God will be like the son of God.
[26:46] And that only happens at the resurrection. I believe in the resurrection because that's what he's called me to do. Paul also repeats that admonition in the book of Philippians in the third chapter.
[26:57] Philippians chapter 3 tells us that there will be a day when the savior, by his power, will conform us to his image. That by the power of Christ, we will be conformed to the image of Christ.
[27:10] Paul says this way, I am not yet what I should be, but I press on until the day when I will be as he is. There will be a day, and I'm pressing into that day, towards that day, because I know that God has called me to be like his son.
[27:26] And when I see his son, I know I'm not there yet. And I know neither are you. You're all here. Every one of you walked through an open door this morning. Every one of you have necessities this morning. Every one of you have physical ailments this morning.
[27:39] We do. They're there. They're present. But the predestination of the saints is to be conformed to the image of the son. We hope in the resurrection because God has called us to be like his son.
[27:50] And what God has called, I found it in scripture, the callings of God are irrevocable. There's the theological terminology for it is. That is what God has determined will be, it will be.
[28:02] It doesn't matter what man tries to do about it. It doesn't matter what we feel about it. It doesn't matter even what we think about it. What God has determined will be, my friend, listen, it will be.
[28:13] And since he says we will be like his son, the resurrection tells us that those in Christ, guess what, are going to be like his son. And he raised him as the first fruits of the resurrection.
[28:26] That's, by the way, what the rest of verse 29 in Romans 8 says, so that he will be shown to be the first fruits of the resurrection. See, our resurrection and conforming to his image is the confirmation that Christ takes the place of preeminence.
[28:40] And we see this reality. See, we have an assurance, and since we have an assurance that one day I will be as he is, I need to be sober-minded, stop sinning, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord.
[28:53] Number three, not only do we understand that this is confidence in the power of God, not only do we understand that this is the calling of the people of God, number three, and this is probably the greatest of them all, it took me the longest to get to in my study of the text, this is the conclusion of the promises of God.
[29:10] The resurrection is the conclusion of the promises of God. I'll just be honest. It took me a while to get to this one. As I studied and I labored over the text and I meditated upon the text, I prayed over the text, I was like, Lord, this is so good.
[29:27] And then it just hit me. Not really it. The Spirit tapped me on the shoulder and said, hey, get back into your word, right? Start studying. But look at what it says. It says, now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
[29:42] It begins to speak of the perishable, the imperishable, the mortal, the immortality, and all these things. And I like what it says in verse 53 because verse 53 gives us a divine imperative. That is, it's a holy must.
[29:55] It says, for this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. These things must happen. The divine imperative.
[30:07] So it's not a matter of question of if they're going to happen. These are things that must happen. And the reason they must happen is found when we continue reading. It's found there at the end of verse 54.
[30:20] Then will come about the saying that is written. Then will come about the saying that is written. Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory?
[30:31] O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. You know, any time we open up the New Testament and we find a New Testament author being led by the Spirit of God.
[30:50] When the Spirit of God moves the hand of man to write the Word of God and the Spirit of God so determines that the hand of man would quote the Word of God in the Old Testament, it is very becoming of us to turn to the Old Testament and see exactly what it says.
[31:06] You say, well, Pastor, it's right there in front of me. Yes, but Paul says, then will come about what is written. What is written, and he quotes there, comes from Isaiah 25. I'm going to ask you to write that one down.
[31:18] You don't have to go there because if we go there, we'll get stuck there and we'll be here another two hours. Isaiah 25, the direct quote is from Isaiah 25 verse 8. Isaiah 25 verse 8 is a good passage, but it's a good passage in light of everything that's around us.
[31:34] You need to read all of Isaiah 25. Isaiah 25, you know the books of the prophets. I love the books of prophecy. I don't open up the books of prophecy to make myself feel better because most of the time the prophets are there to tell the people of God what they're doing wrong.
[31:49] They're there to rebuke and to correct, right? Isaiah is the prophet of the coming king. Isaiah is also the prophet of the displaced people. He tells the people they're going into captivity.
[31:59] He tells them they're going to be fallen. He tells them they're doing wrong. But when we open up the books of prophecy, when we open up the majors and the minors in the Old Testament and we see the judgment of God, it seems like there's always a chapter.
[32:11] It doesn't seem like it. It is. Every time there's a chapter where God opens up the veil of heaven and shows you he's still on the throne. Man's messing up, but God's still good, right? Man's got to be rebuked and corrected, but God still reigns.
[32:24] Man's got a problem, but God's got an answer. Isaiah 25 is one of those God's got an answer because in Isaiah 25, the prophet Isaiah is telling the people of God everything they've done wrong.
[32:36] Isaiah 25, he responds and says, but God is going to bring you back. God is going to raise you up. God is going to lift you up on a mountain. And Isaiah begins to speak of a mountain. Now the mountain is Jerusalem.
[32:48] It's always Jerusalem. Anytime the prophet's speaking, it's always the mount of the Lord. That's where the temple of the Lord is. Those have good application because Christ stands there, right? So we see this, the mountain, the mountain, the mountain.
[32:59] Here's the good news. Lean in with me, if you will. He's not just speaking to the people of Israel because he says, and then God will pull back the veil, which covers all people. Now, last time I understood it, all people meant all people, right?
[33:14] And then God makes a promise here. It says that when he gets them back to their mountain and God is on the mountain, Christ, by the way, stood on that mountain. And when Christ on that mountain, he paid the price for our sin on that mountain.
[33:26] And if Christ had declared the Shekinah glory of God, he left the temple on that mountain. Christ made all the great proclamations on that mountain. It says in Isaiah 25, and then God will pull back the veil that covers all people.
[33:39] And then he tells us what that veil is. He says, for the veil that rests over all people is a shadow. And the shadow of that veil is death. Because of what takes place on that mountain, the thing that rests over all people worldwide will be taken away.
[33:57] And that thing that rests over everybody all over the world is death. And when God removes the veil, that is, takes death out of the way, then it will be said that death no longer has a sting.
[34:10] And then here's the passage that so many of us know so well. Then God will wipe the tear away from every eye. See, God promised in Isaiah 25, particularly verse 8, that there will be a day where death will be removed.
[34:24] And the resurrection is the fulfillment of the promise God made. It promises that what God has said will be actually has been. Without the resurrection, I'm talking the resurrection of the saved and the lost, the resurrection of the redeemed and the outcast.
[34:42] I'm talking of the, I believe in the resurrection. I believe in 100% resurrection. That's what I believe. There's going to be the resurrection of the righteous and the unrighteous. There's those who will go before him in the glory and those who will be separated from him into eternal condemnation.
[34:57] I believe in 100% resurrection. And the reason I believe in it is because God says, he makes a promise in Isaiah, that there will be a day that that which is veiled over all men, namely death, will be taken out of the way.
[35:09] And since man will no longer die and men will be raised to walk in life, that is the fulfillment of that promise. But we're not done yet. Because Paul also quotes another prophet, a minor prophet there in the book of 1 Corinthians.
[35:23] He quotes the prophet Hosea. Hosea chapter 13, verse 14. Now in context of this one, what Paul is quoting, O death, where is your sting?
[35:34] O death, where is your victory? For the sting of death is sin, and sin is empowered by the law. In Hosea, God is speaking to death in personification, like death is someone.
[35:46] And God is speaking of the enemies of the people of God. Stay with me here. And he is speaking to these people who have been opposing the people of God. God would bring death to judge them. Death is used as an instrument of judgment.
[35:59] And God makes this declaration, should I stop death from judging? And he says, no, for you've done wrong. And therefore, death is used as an instrument of judgment for those who do wrong.
[36:11] Stay with me. Death is used as an instrument for judgment for those who do wrong. Now let's take a deep breath, and I want you to see why the resurrection must be.
[36:22] And I'm almost done. You're doing so good, staying with me. The judgment for my wrong has already taken place. Therefore, death cannot be my judgment for the wrong that I do.
[36:35] For the wages of sin is death. But if you go back into 1 Corinthians, it says that Jesus took my wages and nailed them to the cross and paid them in full.
[36:49] Therefore, we have the law of double jeopardy. I cannot pay a penalty that has already been paid. And since Jesus has already paid the wages of my death, since Jesus has already paid the judgment for my sin, the resurrection must take place to bring about the promise of God that the promise is the price has already been paid.
[37:15] Because if sin gets the last word, then I get what I deserve. And if I get what I deserve, then what Jesus did wasn't enough. But praise be to God, it is enough.
[37:27] And since it is enough, and it is sufficient for my sin and your sin, since the price has been paid in full, death cannot have the last word. It cannot be that which ends with victory.
[37:39] Death has to be annihilated. And the reason it has to be annihilated is because God says, my sins are paid in full. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
[37:50] There is no judgment for those who have come to him. As Lord and Savior. You say, well, what about those who didn't? That's why they're given to everlasting death. And they will pay their punishment over and over and over and over and over.
[38:06] But the assurance of the resurrection is all the motivation we need to become sober minded. Stop sinning. Be steadfast. Immovable. Always abounding in the work of the Lord.
[38:18] Knowing that your labor and your toil is not in vain. My friend, I don't care how tired you are. I don't care how difficult it's been. The day is coming where we will see him face to face.
[38:31] The resurrection is an assurance. The resurrection is the end goal. There will be a day. Praise be to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. We will reign with him forevermore.
[38:44] And in that day, then we will rest in the labors of the Lord. But not until that day. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for this day.
[38:55] We thank you for your word. We thank you for the promises it holds. And we thank you for the assurance we can have. Lord, help us to live by it.
[39:06] Lord, help us to obey it. And Lord, forgive us for where we doubt it and we guess it. Lord, may our lives be conformed to your image. For your glory and your glory alone.
[39:18] We ask it all in Christ's name. Amen. Amen.
[40:08] Amen. Amen.
[41:08] Amen. Amen.