There are those today, even in certain religious circles, who would deny the resurrection of Christ. The Jesus Seminar, a controversial group which is supposed to look at the New Testament historically, claims that there is no evidence that the resurrection of Christ really took place. They say the passages in the New Testament that refer to the resurrection as fact, are in actuality to be viewed as symbolic language. Now, we are not surprised to hear this coming from this group because they deny the virgin birth of Christ as well, and, furthermore, claim that only about 18% of the words attributed to Christ in the New Testament were actually said by Him. The Jesus Seminar scholars say that the experience of disciples of Christ, after the crucifixion, really was not real. Seeing the resurrected Christ was all in their minds. Of course, to affirm such an outrageous thing as that is to deny the Bible. No one who believes in the inspiration of the scriptures, could read First Corinthians fifteen and come to such a conclusion. Paul affirms that the resurrected Christ appeared to all the apostles (1 Cor. 15:5). Were they all hallucinating? Furthermore, the Bible declares that after Jesus was raised by the power of God, He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once (1 Cor. 15:6). Could they all have been mistaken? Of course not.

Not withstanding the conclusion of these so-called enlightened scholars of the Jesus Seminar, the resurrection of Christ is a historical fact.

It is also concluded by these people that the religious significance of the resurrection does not depend on it being a historical fact. Never has anyone been so wrong. If the resurrection of Christ is not a fact, it has no significance, at least not with any eternal implications. It might make some people feel good to believe in the resurrection of Christ, but if He was not actually raised, our religion is vain. The resurrection of Christ is the very foundation of Christianity. Without it, everything else falls. If Christ has not been raised, not only is our faith vain and our hope lost, but atheists have a great argument for their position that says there is no God. On the other hand, if Christ has been resurrected, then God, Christ, and Christianity are all vindicated, and the Bible is proven to be authentic. This is why Paul took such great pains in 1 Cor. 15 to emphasize the fact that Christ actually experienced a bodily resurrection. In 1 Cor. 15:12-34, Paul showed how foolish the “no resurrection” doctrine is. The Corinthians were denying a general resurrection, while accepting that Christ was raised. Paul, then, set forth some of the necessary conclusions that one must accept, if he is going to believe that there is no resurrection. Here are those conclusions:

Christ is not risen (ver. 13)

If there is no resurrection from the dead, Christ, having died, is still dead. Therefore, there is no good news for we have no Savior.

The preaching of the apostles was vain (ver. 14)

From the first sermon forward, the apostles preached about the resurrection of Christ (Acts 2:24, 32; 3: 13-15; 4:33; etc.). If Christ has not been raised, the gospel is reduced to a delusionary message that offers hope where there is no hope.

Our faith is vain (ver. 14)

If the message was vain or useless, then to believe such a message would be vain too. If Paul, and the other preachers, preached a lie, then we have believed a lie. Our faith is in a man who was an impostor and a liar because Jesus Himself declared that He would be raised from the dead (Matt. 16:21).

The apostles are false witnesses of God (ver. 15)

The word “of” is the Greek word KATA and means against. If Jesus has not been raised from the dead, the apostles are liars who bore false witness against God, for their claim was that Jesus was raised by the power of God (Acts 2:23; Rom. 1:4; Eph. 1:19ff). The severity of this charge can be seen by a reflection of Ex. 20:16. If it was a severe crime to bear false witness against one’s neighbor, how much more would it be to bear false witness against God.

We are still in our sins (ver. 17)

To believe that the resurrection of Christ is not a historical fact is to believe a self-condemning doctrine. If Christ was not raised, then He was defeated by Satan, and we are still sinners under the control and dominion of the devil (Rom. 4:25).

They which have perished (ver. 18)

The sixth conclusion of the Corinthian’s hypothesis is that all who have died in Christ have perished. The Greek word for perish is APOLLUMI. It means “to destroy fully.” If Christ has not risen, all who have died in Christ experience the same end as the ungodly—a full destruction in an eternal hell (2 Thess. 1:9, 10).

We are of all men most pitiable (ver. 19)

Why is this so? Because as Christians we have such a great hope that we are willing to sacrifice and be persecuted. We are willing to endure mocking and willing to be reviled against. And yet all of it is for naught if there is no resurrection. We are surely to be pitied for we have risked everything for nothing.

Will the Jesus Seminar be willing to accept all of these horrible conclusions? Probably not, but it is the inevitable conclusion of any doctrine that says the resurrection of Christ really did not take place. So, we clearly see that to say that “the religious significance of the resurrection does not depend on historical fact” is erroneous. The wonderful thing, though, is that as Bible believing Christians, we can have confidence that the resurrection of our Savior is a historical fact, for as Paul said, “But now is Christ risen from the dead…” (1 Cor. 15:20).