Most court cases need to have good and reliable witnesses. A defense attorney needs witnesses who can testify that his client was not at the scene of the crime, while the prosecuting attorney wants to find a witness saying that they saw the person do the crime. Witnesses are very important. In our passage today in I Corinthians Paul is defending the most important, key doctrine of Christianity, that of the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead, against some in Corinth who argue that it never truly happened. Like a good attorney, Paul brings forth some witnesses. Let’s look into Paul’s defense of the Resurrection, as he gives as evidence for Jesus’s resurrection from the witness of the Church (vs. 1-2); the Scriptures (vs 3-4); many eyewitnesses (vs 5-7); and then finally Paul, himself (vs 8-10).
Paul’s first evidence that he gives is the witness of the Church. From the very beginning the Church has stated that the fact of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead was an integral part of Gospel message. That truth was preached everywhere, including to the people of Corinth (vs. 1-2). Everyone who truly accepts Jesus, believing in Him as their Savior, would need to believe that He rose from the dead. Otherwise they have “believed” in vain, meaning they really are not believers at all. Some people have a shallow, non-saving “faith”. They claim to believe, but have no real love for God or righteousness. True believers will hold fast to the Gospel, including the doctrine of the resurrection.
The second evidence Paul gives for the resurrection is that of the Scriptures. At the time of his writing of this letter to the church in Corinth, the New Testament had not been completely written or compiled together yet. The Scriptures he was referring to in verses 3 and 4 were the Old Testament. There are several passages in the Old Testament that prophecy of the passion, death, and resurrection of the Messiah. Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22 are prominent passages. Psalm 16:8-11 very specifically prophecies of the resurrection of the Messiah, when it states that God would not allow the Holy One (Jesus, the Messiah) to see corruption, meaning His body would not lie endlessly in a grave and corrupt like all dead bodies do.
The third evidence that Paul gave was that of numerous eyewitnesses (vs. 5-7). First he states that Cephas (better known as Peter or Simon Peter) had seen the risen Savior. Not only did Peter see Jesus when He appeared to all of the apostles together, but Luke mentions that Jesus seems to have seen Peter separately, on his own (Luke 24:34), perhaps to give him special reassurance that his denial had been forgiven. Jesus appeared to all eleven of the apostles (Matthew 28:16-17; Mark 16:14; Luke 24:36-40; John 20:19-21). He met with them several times before He ascended to heaven. Paul refers to Jesus being seen by more than 500 people at a time before His ascension. These would have been some of the many disciples who had followed and believed in Him during His ministry. Then Paul mentions Jesus appearing to James. This is most probably His half-brother who had not believed in Him during His ministry, struggling with his faith. Jesus knew that, and came to him personally. Later James wrote the Book of James, and was a leader of the church in Jerusalem.
Paul’s fourth evidence was his own testimony of seeing the risen Savior (vs. 8). Paul saw Jesus several years after the Ascension, when on the road to Damascus where he was going to further persecute the early church (Acts 9:1-9). Though he was not one of the original twelve, Paul was accounted an apostle because he saw the risen Christ and was commissioned by Him. Paul considered himself the least of the apostles (I Timothy 1:12-16).
Just about any court of law would accept the testimony of over 500 people as a true witness. Those who denied Jesus’ resurrection, stating that some had stolen His body and hid it elsewhere (Matthew 28:11-15) never produced a body. Witnesses sometime lie, but not usually when their word could lead to death. In the days of the early church, openly proclaiming the Resurrection very frequently did lead to execution. There will always be people who say Jesus did not rise from the dead. They often say it is the spirit of His good words and example that live on, not an actual, physical resurrection. Don’t let them discourage you from believing this Gospel truth. Paul continues his defense further in his letter to the Corinthians, which the Lectionary will cover in the next few weeks.
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