🕊️’Then Last of All He was Seen by Paul’

🕊️’Then Last of All He was Seen by Paul’

by | Apr 21, 2025 | Pauline Theology | 0 comments

Series Title: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ According to Paul

 

“…that Christ died for our sins, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen…”

—1 Corinthians 15:3–5

 

Paul begins 1 Corinthians 15 by delivering what he declares as the one and (only) gospel “by which you are saved”—the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ according to the Scriptures.

 

But right after proclaiming the resurrection, Paul adds something essential:

“…and that He was seen…”

 

The resurrection wasn’t a mystical vision or a private revelation—it was a bodily, visible, verifiable event. Jesus didn’t rise in secret. He appeared—to Peter, to the twelve, to over 500 brethren at once, to James, and, finally, to Paul himself (1 Corinthians 15:5–8).

 

Why is this important?

 

Because the gospel is historical and eyewitness-confirmed. It’s not based on dreams, philosophy, or religious tradition. The risen Christ was seen, touched, heard, and testified to by many—most of whom were still alive when Paul wrote this letter (v. 6). The evidence could be verified.

 

But Paul adds something unique in verse 8:

 

“Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.”

 

Paul’s encounter was different. Jesus had already ascended. Yet the risen, glorified Christ personally appeared to Paul, revealing a new message—the gospel of grace, distinct from what the twelve preached (Galatians 1:11–12).

 

This final post in our series brings it all together:

 

  • Jesus Christ truly rose from the dead bodily.
  • He was seen after He rose from the dead by over 500 people.
  • His resurrection guarantees ours.
  • And it is the very heart of Paul’s gospel—the good news that saves.

 

Paul writes with boldness because he saw the risen Lord with his own eyes—and we believe by faith, through his testimony, by the Spirit of God.

 

Thanks for following along this series on The Resurrection of Jesus Christ According to Paul. If it’s stirred your heart or deepened your understanding, share it with someone who needs to know that Jesus Christ is risen indeed—and that changes everything.

O Death, Where Is Your Sting? ‘Resurrection Power’

O Death, Where Is Your Sting? ‘Resurrection Power’

by | Apr 21, 2025 | Verse-by-Verse Bible Studies | 0 comments

Series Title: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ According to Paul

Scripture:

“The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
—1 Corinthians 15:56–57

This is resurrection victory—victory over all things. Christ’s resurrection is the culmination of everything God has done on behalf of mankind. The grave is not the end. Death is no longer our master. The law no longer condemns us, and sin has no power over us. All of it—death, law, and sin—was nailed to His cross. There is now no condemnation. We are in Christ, and Christ is risen.

 

The resurrection of Jesus Christ didn’t just break open the tomb—it broke the power of death itself.

 

In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul builds an unshakable foundation for the believer’s hope. He doesn’t present resurrection as a future theory—it’s a guaranteed reality, anchored in the resurrection of Christ.

 

“For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.”
—1 Corinthians 15:21

 

Paul makes it personal: the same power that raised Jesus will raise those who are His—the Body of Christ—at His coming (v. 23). This is not a general resurrection at the end of time like Martha believed in John 11:24. This is a mystery revealed to Paul—we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed (v. 51).

 

“In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.”
 (1 Corinthians 15:52)

 

This is the resurrection tied to the catching away of the Body of Christ—what many call the Rapture. It’s distinct from Israel’s prophetic program. It’s part of the mystery gospel given only to Paul (1 Corinthians 15:1–4; Romans 16:25).

 

That’s why Paul can shout:

 

“O Death, where is your sting?
 O Hades, where is your victory?”

 

And then:

“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

 

This is resurrection victory—victory over all things. Christ’s resurrection is the culmination of everything God has done on behalf of mankind. The grave is not the end. Death is no longer our master. The law no longer condemns us, and sin has no power over us. All of it—death, law, and sin—was nailed to His cross. There is now no condemnation. We are in Christ, and Christ is risen.

 

The Firstborn from the Dead – Guarantee of Future Harvest

The Firstborn from the Dead – Guarantee of Future Harvest

by | Apr 20, 2025 | Bible Doctrine | 0 comments

“And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”
 —Colossians 1:18


“But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
 —1 Corinthians 15:20

 

Paul calls Jesus Christ “the firstborn from the dead”—but what does that mean? Weren’t others raised from the dead before Him, like Lazarus or the widow’s son?

 

Yes, but those resurrections were temporary. They were brought back to life in their mortal bodies—only to die again. Jesus Christ is the first to rise in glorified, incorruptible resurrection life, never to die again.

 

“But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
 —1 Corinthians 15:20

 

In Israel’s calendar, the Feast of Firstfruits came just after Passover. A sheaf of the first ripe grain was offered to God as a symbol of the full harvest to come (Leviticus 23). Paul applies that imagery directly to Christ. His resurrection is the guarantee—the down payment—of a greater harvest: the resurrection of the Body of Christ.

 

“Each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming.”
 —1 Corinthians 15:23

 

This is future, bodily resurrection for believers, revealed first and foremost to Paul (1 Thessalonians 4:13–18, 1 Corinthians 15:51–52). And it’s tied directly to His identity as the head of the Body, the Church—not the King of Israel, not the Son of David on His throne (that will come), but the resurrected Lord of glory seated at the right hand of the Father (Colossians 3:1).

 

His resurrection didn’t just prove He was alive—it was the guarantee of a future harvest. And those who believe Paul’s gospel are already spiritually raised with Him (Ephesians 2:6) and will one day be raised bodily like Him (Philippians 3:20–21).

 

Bible Reading:

  • Colossians 1:18
  • 1 Corinthians 15:20
  • Leviticus 23
  • 1 Corinthians 15:23
  • 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
  • 1 Corinthians 15:51–52
  • Colossians 3:1
  • Ephesians 2:6
  • Philippians 3:20–21

 

Raised to Walk in Newness of Life – Our New Identity

Raised to Walk in Newness of Life – Our New Identity

by | Apr 20, 2025 | Bible Doctrine | 0 comments

Romans 6:4–5

“Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection.”

 

When Paul speaks of the resurrection, he doesn’t just describe it as something Jesus did—he shows us how it fundamentally changes who we are.

 

In Romans 6, Paul teaches that believers are spiritually united with Christ—in His death and His resurrection. We died with Him. We were buried with Him. And we were raised with Him. We have a new identity in Christ.

 

“Just as Christ was raised from the dead… even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

 

This newness of life isn’t symbolic or emotional—it’s real. When we believed the gospel, something supernatural happened: we were placed into Christ, the resurrected Lord of glory (1 Corinthians 12:13). And because He lives, we live.

 

This is one of the most staggering revelations Paul received from the resurrected Lord Jesus. No prophet, no apostle before him taught this. Peter didn’t preach this on Pentecost. This is Paul’s gospel “good news”—that we are no longer “in Adam,” but now “in Christ” (Romans 5:12–19). This new identity was forged in resurrection.

 

“For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection.”
(Romans 6:5)

 

This isn’t a future promise only—it’s a present reality. We’ve been raised to live now as those who are alive from the dead (Romans 6:11). That’s resurrection power. That’s newness of life.

 

The Christian life isn’t a moral improvement plan—it’s the outworking of a brand-new creation, birthed by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We live, not by striving to be better, but by walking in the reality of who we are in Him.

 

This truth is central to Paul’s gospel, and it’s why he said:

 

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…”
(Galatians 2:20)

 

Bible Study:

  • Romans 6:4-5
  • 1 Corinthians 12:13
  • Romans 5:12–19
  • Romans 6:11
  • Galatians 2:20

 

Raised for Our Justification – the Proof Payment

Raised for Our Justification – the Proof Payment

by | Apr 19, 2025 | Bible Doctrine | 0 comments

Paul’s gospel doesn’t just declare that Jesus was raised from the dead—it explains why He was raised.

 

“Who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.”
(Romans 4:25)

 

This short verse is packed with gospel power. Christ was delivered up—handed over to death—because of our offenses. That is, He bore the penalty for our sins, taking the full weight of our guilt upon Himself at the Cross.

 

But why does Paul say He was raised because of our justification?

 

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the divine proof that the penalty for sin has been paid in full. The empty tomb is heaven’s declaration that God has accepted the sacrifice of His Son. Without the resurrection, we would have no assurance that the sin debt was satisfied. But because Jesus rose (bodily), our justification is secure. His resurrection is the receipt that the full price has been paid.

 

Justification is more than forgiveness—it’s the act of God declaring a sinner righteous in His sight. And that righteous standing is grounded in a risen Savior.

 

This is a truth uniquely revealed to Paul. The other apostles witnessed the resurrection and proclaimed it as evidence that Jesus was the promised Messiah of Israel. But Paul goes deeper. He reveals that Jesus was raised for our justification—for the justification of those who would trust Him by faith alone, apart from works (Romans 3:28).

 

This is why Paul can say in the very first verse of the next chapter, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). The resurrection guarantees our peace with God—not someday, but now.

 

Paul’s gospel is not merely about being forgiven—it’s about being declared righteous, sealed by a risen Christ who now intercedes for us at the right hand of God (Romans 8:34).