Notes on 1 Corinthians 15:4

[These notes are continued from last Saturday's post.]

and that He was buried: Someone reading this blog may know a person who has physically "died" in one sense or another, and who has yet been resuscitated by means of CPR, shock paddles, etc. Nobody reading this blog knows a person that died, was buried in a tomb (for three days, as the next phrase makes clear), and was then brought back to life. Jesus' death was no "swoon"-- it was no "near-death experience." Jesus' burial shows that he truly physically died in the fullest sense.

and that He was raised: Not only did Jesus die, but He "was raised" from the dead.
1. Q: Who raised Jesus from the dead? A: God (Acts 2:24).
a. God the Father (Rom 10:9).
b. God the Son (John 10:17-18).
c. God the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:11).
2. The significance of "raised:"
a. Romans 4:25 says that, "[Jesus] was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. "
b. By Jesus' death, our sins ("trespasses" or "transgressions" against God) were paid for (He gave up His life as a ransom for many, Mark 10:45). Jesus, who knew no sin was made sin on behalf of sinners; this is why Jesus called out to God from the Cross, "My God, My God! Why have You forsaken Me?" (Mark 15:34), but if we only had our sins paid for, those who trusted in Jesus would simply be back at 'square 1,' and thus again be responsible for perfect obedience to God for our salvation.
c. In His resurrection, Jesus was demonstrated to have conquered sin and death and Hell once and for all. By believing in the living, victorious Jesus, by casting ourselves upon Him, trusting not in our own works, but in what He has done on our behalf, we are justified: God considers us upright, acceptable in His sight.

on the third day: Besides confirming that He had truly died, as mentioned above, the detail concerning "the third day" further points to the fact that the gospel is news; the resurrection is considered such an important event that the timing of that event will never be forgotten. Just as many Americans have vowed to never forget the tragedy that took place on September 11th (the date of this all-too-real event is etched into our collective memory), the Church of Christ will never forget the joy that took place on the third day (again, the timing of this real, historical event is etched into our collective memory). The indication of "third day" is also mentioned because Jesus had prophesied concerning His resurrection on the third day, as mentioned in Mark 9:30-32 and Matthew 20:17-19.

according to the Scriptures: By "Scriptures," the Apostle Paul does not mean to indicate the Gospel accounts (i.e., Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), which likely had not yet been written (or at least not widely disseminated) as Paul penned his first letter to the Corinthians. Paul meant the "Scriptures" that we commonly call the Old Testament. Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection were foretold through types and prophesies in the Old Testament, which people should have recognized: this is why the resurrected Jesus reprimanded His followers for not seeing Him in the Old Testament , and then instructed them about Himself from the Old Testament, as recorded in Luke 22:25-27, and this is why Peter could preach Christ from a number of Old Testament passages in Acts 2. Of course, the title "Scriptures" also become applicable to the New Testament documents when they are produced (see, for example 2 Peter 3:15-16), and so we must preach Christ and His gospel from all the Scriptures.