I Corinthians 15:12-20

We spend the remaining two Sundays of our meditation on the Church as the body of Christ reading from chapter 15 of I Corinthians. Paul spends the entire chapter defending and describing the new life secured for us by the resurrection of Jesus — our own resurrection life.

This Sunday, February 13, we read I Corinthians 15:12-20.

In verse 12, Paul identifies his motivation to write about resurrection: some Corinthians reject its reality. What do you think about the resurrection of Jesus Christ? What to you think about your own resurrection in him?

Paul will use logic to paint a picture of the end of the resurrection-deniers’ thinking. In a series of logical clauses, employing protasis and apodosis (“If…then”), Paul descends to a sad conclusion. You can follow this logical conclusion in I Corinthians 15:13-19.

In verse 20, Paul returns to a bold and uninhibited renunciation of the deniers’ claim. This is one of the most pure statements of faith; it cannot be proved logically, as the denial of resurrection can be.

What do you think? How do you sustain your own faith in the resurrection of Jesus, and your own hoped-for resurrection, when it flies in the face of logic?