1 Corinthians chapter 15

vs 13

And this is what they were claiming - the impossibility, or implausibility, of Christ being raised from the dead, and of the promise that we too would be raised.

vs 14

Christianity requires resurrection. Without it, it just doesn't work. But Paul will go so much deeper into it.

vs 15

Paul continues to lay out the consequences of this belief - because Paul himself testifies to Christ being raised from the dead by God, if it is not true, then he is a false witness, and what he has preached is probably false. And if God is not a God of resurrection, then no one will be raised, not even Christ.

vs 16

Paul says that it is a one-in-all-in thing - either God raised Christ, and so can and will raise everyone, or he raises no one, not even Christ. It sounds like a childish argument, but what he is doing is dispelling the argument that God could have raised Christ, because he is special, but that we will not be raised. Because the arguments against resurrection were mostly moral (the flesh being seen as evil) it makes no sense for God to do it even once if they are correct.

vs 17

Again, Christianity is futile if resurrection is non-existant, becauase it means we are still in our sins. Resurrection is absolutely necessary for the remission of sins.

vs 18

This is the tragedy of a resurrection-free Christianity. Without God's proof of power over sin and death in the resurrection of Christ, then once we die, that's it. If God has no power over death, then death is it for us.

vs 19

That there is a further life to have hope in is an easily accepted part of NT doctrine. It's not quite as easy to find in the OT (although I haven't studied that personally, but it's what I've been told). Our lives would be pitiful if we were only saved for this life, especially if we were saved later in life. Remember, the first generation of the saved were probably mostly adults.

vs 20

But never fear, because whoever is saying there is no resurrection is some sort of fruitcake. And fruitcakes are not known for their sterling theology.

vs 21

There is this incredible link between Adam and Christ, between creation and new creation, which should alert us to the incredible nature of our salvation. Creation was such a powerful moment that, through one person, we all sinned. The coming of the Christ was such a powerful event that, through one person, all can be saved.

vs 22

Now you might think I'm going to go on about hyper-calvinism, or universalism, but I'm not. All Paul has said here is that all people will be raised through the power of Christ at the end times. And there will be a mass resurrection of people at the end times. And then they will be judged. So not everyone who gets resurrected will be happy about it.

vs 23

But there is a hint that those who are in Christ will be resurrected differently, perhaps first. It has been said that judgement begins with the people of God (1 Peter, but he may well be quoting an OT reference). Of course, our hope is in resurrection, so we've got nothing to fear except a hell of a lot of embarassment.

vs 24

Dominion, power, and authority on their own aren't bad things. They tend to be in this world, though, because they tend to try and raise themselves above God. Whether it's a spiritual power like Satan, or even just a governmental power. These terms are most likely spiritual in this verse, but could easily also relate to governmental powers of the time (which of course weren't greatly friendly to Christianity).