I Corinthians 15:1-11
Celebrate the True Meaning of Easter!
Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (NIV1984)
Dear fellow worshipers of our living Lord and Savior,
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
In churches and in stadiums all across our country, in parks and in homes all over the world, millions upon millions of people are gathering together to celebrate Easter. Young girls are wearing pretty Easter dresses while young boys may even be wearing a suit and a tie. Moms and Dads, Grandmas and Grandpas, aunts and uncles are all dressed up in their Easter finest. Easter baskets and Easter eggs and Easter candy is being enjoyed by young and old alike. Easter hams are in the oven beckoning family and friends to come together for a delicious Easter dinner. Yes, my friends, today is indeed a day that people are gathering together to celebrate!
But what exactly are people celebrating today? The answer to that question is quite diverse, isn’t it? Some people are celebrating the resurgence of new life as spring replaces winter in the world around us. Some people are celebrating the invisible bond that brings family and friends together on days such as this. Some people are celebrating the warm and fuzzy ideals of hope and comfort and security. Some people may not even be sure what to celebrate.
You and I, however, have no doubts whatsoever as to why we have gathered together here in God’s house today, do we. You and I have no doubts whatsoever as to what this glorious day is all about. We are here to celebrate, my friends! We are here to: Celebrate the True Meaning of Easter! Using these inspired words from the great resurrection chapter of the Bible let’s celebrate three aspects of the true meaning of Easter. First, let’s celebrate the fact that the true meaning of Easter is found in the message of the Gospel. Second, let’s celebrate the fact that the true meaning of Easter is confirmed by eyewitnesses. Third, let’s celebrate the fact that the true meaning of Easter has the power to change people.
First, let’s celebrate the fact that the true meaning of Easter is found in the glorious message of the Gospel. Look at the opening portion of our text. As Paul is speaking to the Corinthians about the message of the Gospel he says, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”
The apostle Paul did not “come up” with the message of the Gospel all on his own, did he. The Gospel that Paul proclaims to you and to me on this glorious Easter Sunday is not simply his own personal “opinion.” Paul very clearly tells us that he “received” the message of the Gospel! How? When? From whom? Paul “received” the message of the Gospel directly from the risen Christ Himself! Back in the days when Paul the Apostle was still Saul the Persecutor, the risen Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus and “revealed” to him not only the true meaning of Easter, but the risen Christ also “revealed” to Paul the message of the Gospel! (See Acts 9)
What did the message of the Gospel include? And how does the message of the Gospel enable us to celebrate the true meaning of Easter? Look at what the Holy Spirit led Paul to emphasize here in this portion of our text: the message of the Gospel guarantees that through faith in Jesus all of our sins are completely forgiven! Why? Because “the Christ,” the long-awaited Promised Messiah, the Son of God Himself “died for our sins”! (Pointing to the cross) The message of the Gospel guarantees that we do not need to fear the day that we are placed into our graves. Why? Because “the Christ,” the long-awaited Promised Messiah, the Son of God Himself was “buried.” He has sanctified the graves of all those who believe and trust in Him as their Savior from sin! And most importantly, the message of the Gospel guarantees that Jesus has kept His promise to us! “The Christ,” the long-awaited Promised Messiah, the Son of God was physically “raised from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures.”
This is why we can say that the message of the Gospel enables us to celebrate the true meaning of Easter. Jesus’ physical resurrection from the dead guarantees that our sins are forgiven! Jesus’ physical resurrection from the dead guarantees that we don’t have to fear our own death and burial. Jesus’ physical resurrection from the dead guarantees that through faith in what Jesus has done for us— we too shall physically rise from our graves and live with our living Savior for ever and ever! So let’s celebrate, my friends! Let’s celebrate the true meaning of Easter as it is found in the glorious and victorious message of the Gospel!
But there is even more reason to celebrate today. We are able to celebrate the true meaning of Easter because the true meaning of Easter is confirmed by eyewitnesses. Here in our text Paul brings out the fact that the risen Christ “appeared” to people on six different occasions. Paul says, “…he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.”
The physical resurrection of Jesus Christ was not a hoax. The physical resurrection of Jesus Christ was not a hallucination. Over a period of forty days the risen Christ appeared six different times to both individuals and to groups of individuals. Why did the risen Christ do this? There are two reasons for this. First, Jesus wanted to prove to the disciples of that time that He did indeed physically rise from the dead! These were the people who were to take the true meaning of Easter and proclaim it far and wide. Jesus wanted to make sure that they had no doubts whatsoever concerning what happened on that first Easter Sunday. As a result of the risen Christ appearing to these disciples many of them were willing to suffer persecution, rejection, imprisonment and even death as they powerfully proclaimed the true meaning of Easter.
Secondly, Jesus wanted to make sure that you and I know exactly what happened on that first Easter Sunday. Any doubts that we might have concerning the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ, any doubts that anyone might try to plant in our minds are erased by the eyewitness accounts recorded for us here in God’s holy inspired Word. So let’s celebrate, my friends! Let’s celebrate the true meaning of Easter as it is joyously and victoriously proclaimed to us by people who saw the risen Christ with their own two eyes!
Finally, we have the privilege of celebrating the true meaning of Easter on a very personal level as we see how the true meaning of Easter has the power to change people— even us. Paul gives us a personal testimony of the power of the true meaning of Easter when he says in our text, “For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them— yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.”
Just as the true meaning of Easter had the power to change Saul the Persecutor into Paul the Apostle, so also the true meaning of Easter has the power to change people today— including you and me. The true meaning of Easter changed us from being dead in our transgressions and sin to being alive in Christ Jesus our Lord. The true meaning of Easter changed us from being people who were wasting their lives chasing after the temporary treasures and the fleeting pleasures of this world, to people whose lives find fulfillment in serving our risen Lord and Savior. The true meaning of Easter changed us from sinners who were destined to spend eternity separated from the grace and the blessings of the Lord, to saints who are guaranteed a glorious eternity enjoying a glorious life in the glorious Kingdom of our God! So let’s celebrate, my friends! Let’s celebrate the fact that the true meaning of Easter does indeed have the power to change people!
In churches and stadiums all across our country, in parks and in homes all over the world, millions upon millions of people are gathering together today to celebrate. Praise God, my friends! Praise God that purely by His power and purely by His grace we are able to gather here in His house today and celebrate the true meaning of Easter! So let’s celebrate! Celebrate the true meaning of Easter as it is proclaimed to us in the message of the Gospel! Celebrate the true meaning of Easter as it is confirmed to us in the eyewitness accounts recorded here in God’s holy Word! Celebrate the true meaning of Easter for it is the true meaning of Easter that has the power to change people’s lives— and to change people’s eternity!
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
To God be the glory!
Amen
