Now, brothers and sisters, 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 Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters 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 is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11 NIV)
Early on Easter morning, the women went to Jesus’ tomb. They weren’t expecting to find the tomb empty and Jesus risen. They were carrying spices to prepare Jesus’ body for burial (Luke 24:1). When you hear “spices,” don’t think of a little can of cinnamon. When Jesus was taken down from the cross, Joseph of Arimathea wrapped his body with seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes. Seventy-pounds! I wonder how many pounds of spices those women carried on Easter morning. They walked to Jesus’ tomb with burdens. With heavy hearts weighed down by Jesus’ death and with heavy arms weighed down by spices. They walked to Jesus’ tomb with burdens.
So what happened to all those spices? I’ve never thought about this before. Have you? Those spices took hours of work and preparation. They probably cost a lot of money. What happened to all those spices? You know the answer. It’s, “Who cares?” Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Suddenly, those spices were forgotten. Because the resurrection of Jesus changed everything. Jesus’ resurrection makes things which seemed so important a moment ago completely forgotten. Those women left their burdens—their heavy hearts and heavy spices—at the empty tomb.
I bet you came with burdens today. Some of you came burdened with bacon and eggs and muffins for us. Thank you! Some of you carry the burden of anxiety or worry. It doesn’t go away. Some of you carry the burden of sin and guilt. It weighs you down! Some of you carry the burden of death. It’s sad, and it’s scary. Some of you carry the burden of expectations that you can’t ever fulfill. Like those women, you come on Easter morning with hearts and hands weighed down with burdens. But Jesus wants you to be able to leave your burdens behind at the empty tomb, just like those women did. Because the resurrection of Jesus changes everything!
The apostle Paul wrote a whole chapter—1 Corinthians 15—about Jesus’ resurrection. There was a problem in the city of Corinth. People there were saying that there isn’t any resurrection. They were so caught up with life on earth that they couldn’t imagine anything more. “This is all there is!” Sound familiar? Sound like today? So Paul wrote 58 verses about Jesus’ resurrection, starting with this: “Now, brothers and sisters, 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.”
These are powerful words! Paul says, “Friends, don’t forget the gospel.” That word “gospel” means “good news.” “Friends, don’t forget the good news of the Bible.” Why? “By this gospel you are saved!” Like those Christians in Corinth, we’re always in danger of getting so caught up with life on earth that we risk missing out on the salvation that’s waiting in heaven for believers in Jesus. That’s a constant danger. Paul says, “Don’t ever forget the gospel. The abcs of Christ.”
So what’s the “gospel”? What is the “good news” of the Bible? It’s this: “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…” What’s at the heart of the Bible’s message? The cross. The cross of Jesus. “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” That’s the gospel! Every single one of us has sinned and deserves God’s wrath, but God in his grace sent his Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins. That’s the gospel! It’s not a message of social justice or world peace or saving the environment… It’s so much more important! The gospel is “that Christ died for our sins.”
But he didn’t stay dead. The gospel continues: “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.” Christ died and rose. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Contrary to what people in Corinth were saying, there is a resurrection. Jesus rose. You and I will also rise. Later, Paul wrote, “If Christ had not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins” (1 Corinthians 15:17). But Christ “was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” “By this gospel you are saved.” Christ died for your sins. Christ rose for your salvation. This is the gospel!
But nobody actually believes that anymore, do they? This guy Jesus actually rose from the dead? At our Easter for Kids, there was a boy who kept interrupting the Bible story, saying, “He’s still dead! He’s still dead!” That’s impossible. It’s impossible that Jesus is still dead. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. There is so much proof. “He appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time…”
Let’s start with this: Whom did Jesus’ disciples say were as the first ones to the tomb? The women. Now let’s be honest. Do men like to give credit to women? No! So you’re telling me that this man Matthew made up a story in which he was scared, and the women were faithful to Jesus? No man would ever invent a story like that! Why did he write that? Because it’s true! Even more seriously, in Jewish law at the time of Jesus, women were not allowed to testify in court. That wasn’t right, but that was the way it was. Women couldn’t be witnesses. So if the eyewitnesses of Jesus’ resurrection were women, it would hurt their case. Understand? So why did the disciples write that? Because it was true! It doesn’t make any sense unless it was true!
Don’t stop there. Jesus appeared to Cephas—that’s another name for Peter—and to the rest of the disciples. Those men knew whether Jesus had truly risen from the dead. Do you know what those disciples did with the rest of their lives? They gave up everything and risked everything and suffered everything for Jesus. Most of them died horrible deaths for the sake of the gospel. Why would they do that? Because it was true! Those once-fearful disciples were so convinced that Jesus had risen that they went on to die for Christ. They knew it was true. They saw Jesus alive!
On top of all that, “he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.” The Old Testament required there to be two witnesses to prove testimony as accurate. How many people witnessed Jesus’ resurrection? Over 500. Paul challenged his readers: “Go, talk to them. Interview them. See if it’s true!” There were hundreds of people who saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. The Jewish leaders and everybody in power everywhere tried to keep the message of Jesus’ resurrection from spreading, but they couldn’t. Why? Because it’s true! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
Paul saved himself for last. “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.” Paul saved the least for last. Jesus appeared to Paul too. Even to Paul, the “one abnormally born.” What does that mean? The word really means “miscarriage.” Paul said, “I’m a miscarriage among the apostles.” Paul is the one who persecuted Christians. He didn’t deserve anything from Jesus. Ever feel that way? Like a mistake. A failure. Unwanted. Paul did! That word “miscarriage” might have been an insult that Paul’s enemies used to mock him as he preached the gospel. It’s awful: “Paul, you’re a miscarriage. You should be dead!”
Who loves someone like Paul? Jesus does. “By the grace of God I am what I am.” Remember what that word grace means? Undeserved love. Undeserved love from God. Grace. “By the grace of God I am what I am.” Paul had burdens too. Lots of them. The burden of a sinful past in which he persecuted the church of God. The burden of the insults of all those who opposed the gospel of Jesus. Do you know what he did with those burdens? He left them at the empty tomb. He found joy in the grace of God. If there was grace for Paul, then there is grace for you and me.
That’s the gospel! “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.” “By this gospel you are saved.” Not the gospel of “I’m pretty good.” That doesn’t save anybody. And it’s a lie! We’re not good. Not the gospel of “God helps those who help themselves.” That’s false. God helps those who can’t help themselves. Not the gospel of “diversity” or “inclusion” or “social justice.” Those aren’t gospels at all. They are people’s attempts to force their will on others. “By this gospel you are saved.” Jesus died for your sins and was raised on the third day. That’s the gospel!
That means you can leave your burdens at the empty tomb of Jesus. That burden of sin and guilt for all you’ve done and not done. Know what the gospel says? “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). You are forgiven through Jesus! Leave your burden at the tomb. That burden of the fear of death. Know what the gospel says? “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die” (John 11:25-26). There is eternal life through faith in Jesus. Leave your burden at the tomb.
That burden of worry and anxiety. Know what the gospel says? “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). The God who sent his only Son to die for you will care for you every moment of every day. Leave your burden at the tomb. That burden of loneliness or identity or wondering whether you matter. Know what the gospel says? “To all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). You are the child of God! It doesn’t get any better than that. Leave your burden at the tomb.
Do you see how the resurrection of Jesus is meant to change everything? Here’s Paul’s heartfelt encouragement: “By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.” Hold on to the gospel! I know it can seem like nobody believes anymore. Or nobody cares anymore. What changed? Did the truth of our sin change? No! Did the truth of Jesus’ resurrection change? No! Did the grace of God change? No! The world can turn away from God, but that doesn’t change the truth of the gospel. That doesn’t change the reality of God’s promise. Hold firmly to the Word of God. On it take your stand.
“By the grace of God, I am what I am,” Paul said. Me too. You too. That grace is what motivates our lives as Christians. Jesus’ death motivated those women to bring spices to his tomb. But Jesus’ life? Jesus’ resurrection? It motivated them to so much more—to give their lives to him. God’s grace moved Paul to work harder for that gospel than everybody else, “yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.” God’s grace is what motivates our lives as Christians. “By the grace of God, I am what I am.” You need the gospel all the time. Not just on Easter. It’s too easy to forget. Hold on to the gospel. Take your burdens to the tomb. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Christ died for our sins. Christ was raised on the third day. By this gospel you are saved!
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