Good morning and a blessed Thursday morning to you. Would you open up your Bibles please, for our time in God's word to 1 Corinthians, the 15th chapter. 1 Corinthians, chapter 15th. Each and every Sunday you'll notice in these weeks after Easter that the large Christ candle is right next to the altar. That Christ candle is a flame and that reminds us of the 40 days after the resurrection of our Lord until His ascension.

And so each and every Sunday in this 40 day period, may that Christ candle be a wonderful reminder to us that indeed Jesus Christ is alive. Those resurrection appearances of our Lord were very, very important. What was the purpose of the resurrection appearances of Christ during that 40 day period before the Ascension? Scripture records 10 distinct appearances of the resurrected Christ to no less than 500 people. So what was the purpose of the appearances?

In 1 Corinthians, the 15th chapter the Apostle Paul talks about the purpose of the resurrection of our Lord. 

1 Cor. 15:13-17: "If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God because we testified of God that He raised Christ, who he did not raise. If it's true that, that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins, then those also who have died in Christ have perished." 

What an instructive teaching here of the purpose of the resurrection.

Apostle Paul here just goes down the list that if Christ was not raised from the dead, then our faith is just a faith that's in vain. That if Christ was not raised from the dead, then we're misrepresenting God. That if Christ was not raised from the dead, then we're still in our sins. That if Christ was not raised from the dead, then those who have died are lost. Those that have died in the Lord are simply lost.

So what was the purpose then of the resurrection appearances?

The Gospel of John helps us. John 20. "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name." 

That we might have life... an abundant life eternal. The appearances of Christ were for the purpose that we might know without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus Christ came out of that tomb. That the sacrifice for our sins had been accepted. That Jesus paid the debt on the cross. That he's now alive. The sacrifice has been accepted. The purpose of the appearances... that we might know that Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. 

Thank you, gracious God, for this time in your Word. Your Word is truth. We thank you, O Lord, for the reality of the resurrection. And that each and every day we can live in that reality. Praise to you, O Lord, in Jesus' name, amen. 

God bless you.

Encourage someone.

Pastor Eibel