How an Empty Tomb Gives us Strong Hearts
1 Corinthians 15:58
One thing that’s true of every one of us in this room is that we all want our lives to count; we want our lives to have some lasting purpose. That desire can be nurtured, or it can be ignored, but it can’t be removed. It’s there in all of us. And the more we see that our lives are fulfilling a lasting purpose, the more satisfied we are.
But it’s right at this point that we face a problem – the problem of death. How can our lives have any lasting purpose, if we are all going to die? We might answer that our lives will go on in the people we’ve impacted around us; but they will die, too. So is there any lasting meaning to your life?
Let me read you a quote from Bertrand Russell that has deeply impacted me. I think he’s wrong, but it’s a helpful quote to think about. Bertrand Russell was an atheist who wrote a book called “Why I am not a Christian” which is still a required text in some colleges. Here’s his answer to the question:
Man is the product of causes which have no purpose; his origin, his growth, his hopes, are only the chance combinations of atoms; nothing can preserve an individual life beyond the grave; all the labors of the ages, all the devotion, are destined to extinction. This despair is the only foundation on which our souls can rest. (Paraphrased)
That’s Bertrand Russell’s answer. But this morning I want to show you Jesus’ answer. Let’s turn to 1 Corinthians 15. If you need a Bible, go ahead and raise your hand and we’ll bring one to you. 1 Corinthians 15 is on page 961 in the Bibles we are passing out.
Here’s some background on 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians was written by Paul. Paul had opposed Christianity, but the resurrected Jesus appeared to him, and Paul was convinced. So Paul traveled all through the Mediterranean basin preaching about Jesus and planting churches. And one of his churches was planted in Corinth. And a few years later Paul wrote a letter to strengthen them.
And in 1 Corinthians 15 Paul explains to them how, even though they will die, their lives can have lasting purpose. That’s Paul’s conclusion in the very last verse – v.58 –
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
Your labor is not in vain – in the Lord. In the Lord. So to understand what Paul is saying, we have to understand who the Lord is. Who is this Lord?
Jesus Christ is the Lord. Jesus Christ lived on earth 2,000 years ago. He was fully man, and fully God. In Jesus God came to the earth. The Creator came to His creation. But why? It’s because we faced God’s punishment, and the only way we could be forgiven was if God came to the earth in the person of Jesus, to be punished in our place.
See, the Bible teaches that God created us, and promised to provide for us, guide us, and satisfy us in Himself. But even though we were created by God to depend on God and be guided by God and be satisfied in God – we all revolted against God.
We’re like a fish that’s created to live in water, created to depend on water, who refuses to stay in the water. We’ve been created by God to depend on God, but we all revolted against God. We’ve all made a declaration of independence against God.
And because God is perfectly just, our revolt against God has to be punished. I just finished a two-week trial on jury duty. As I was in the courtroom and saw the judge in his robe and how we all stood up when he came in and listened to his words, it struck me justice is really, really important. And God is completely just, and our crime deserves eternal punishment.
So God could have just cast us into eternal punishment and been done with us. But He didn’t. In amazing love and mercy God chose, at great suffering to Himself, to forgive humanity’s sins.
So He allowed Himself to be arrested, to be beaten, to be scourged, and to have his wrists and feet nailed to a cross, and lifted up to suffer for hours – and all of this was Jesus being punished for our sin in our place. Then Jesus died. That was on Good Friday. Friday evening He was buried in a tomb. Then Sunday morning He rose from the dead.
And because of His life, death, and resurrection – if you will turn away from your independence, and welcome Jesus as your Lord, your Savior, your Treasure – you will be completely changed. I remember when I experienced this back in high school. Oh, it’s an amazing thing to feel completely forgiven by Jesus, to see your life start to change by the power of Jesus, and to have your heart completely filled and satisfied with the presence of Jesus.
So that’s who the Lord is. The Lord is Jesus Christ. And the moment you welcome Jesus as Lord, Savior, and Treasure he not only forgives, changes, and satisfies you – he also calls you to work. You can see that in v.58 --
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
So what is the work of the Lord? All through the Bible we see what that work is:
Jesus calls us to pray and study God’s Word.
Jesus calls us to fight against sin in our lives.
Jesus calls us to endure trials and suffering and difficulties.
Jesus calls some of us to marriage and family – to love your wife or husband and children.
Jesus calls us to a job – to nurture your children and run a home, or work to provide money for yourself and your family.
Jesus calls us to love his people – be devoted to a group of his followers.
And Jesus calls us to help others come to know Jesus.
So with that in mind – read v.58 again --
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
Now the fact that Paul calls them to be steadfast, immovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord must be because they were being tempted to stop being steadfast and immovable in the work of the Lord; they were tempted to stop abounding in the work of the Lord.
And I’d guess that many of us are as well. So what keeps us from abounding in the work of the Lord? Here’s what I came up with:
There’s distractions: you sit down to read God’s Word, and all of a sudden the thought of cleaning out my car feels really important; or you’re planning on going to home group, but the Sharks are on.
And how about disappointments: you’ve been looking for a job for months, and nothing is happening; you’ve been struggling with medical issues for years, with no relief.
Then there’s difficulties: maybe there’s someone in my home group who’s difficult to love, or my child is very hard to discipline, or my work environment is terrible.
And what about hopelessness: like – why bother? I’m going to die. Maybe that will just be the end? Why not just take the easy road? Why not just coast? What difference will my life make anyway?
So there’s lots that can keep us from abounding in the work of the Lord. And yet in this verse – Paul calls us to always abound in the work of the Lord. He wants to give us strong hearts that abound in the work of the Lord. So how can we keep abounding in the work of the Lord? Look at the reason he gives at the end of v.58 --
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
It’s because if you are trusting Jesus and doing your work in the Lord – then your labor is not in vain. It will make a difference. It will matter. It will count. It will last. “In the Lord your labor is not in vain.”
Why not? The reason is found in the first word of that verse -- “therefore.” The word “therefore” shows that what Paul says in this verse is a conclusion based on previous verses – like vv.51-52-
51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
What keeps us abounding in the work of the Lord is the certainty of our resurrection. If you are not trusting Jesus, you will be raised to everlasting punishment. But if you are
trusting Jesus Christ, you will be raised to everlasting life. That’s what Paul’s talking about here.
That does not mean you will become a pudgy cherub sitting on a cloud plucking a harp. It means you will receive a new resurrection body more real, more physical than your present body, where you will live on a new earth that’s more real, and more physical than this earth. But you’ll hardly notice your new body and new earth, because you’ll be so blown away in seeing Jesus.
Imagine seeing with your own eyes the Being who has always been; has created everything; who rules over everything; against whom you’ve rebelled – but who loved you – you – so much that He would be scourged, beaten, tortured, and nailed to a Cross to pay for your sins. What will you do? Fall on your face? Weep with joy? Leap with joy? If you are trusting Jesus, you will be raised from the dead.
So how does our resurrection in the future motivate our work now? It’s because the resurrection means your work now will count for eternity. It will last. It will make a difference. How? Because you will see Jesus displayed in all His glory – you will see that Jesus’ glory is infinitely precious – and you will see that your work added something to the display of His glory.
When you face months of unemployment or health problems, and you persevere in trusting Jesus – that will add something to the display of His glory.
When for Jesus’ sake you share the gospel with your neighbor – whether he responds or not – that will add something to the display of His glory.
When for the glory of Jesus you labor in prayer for the Morocco team, for your children, for your home group – that will add something to the display of His glory.
When out of love for Jesus you use God’s Word and prayer to fight your lust, your pride, your laziness – that will add something to the display of His glory.
When for Jesus’ sake you are steadfast in loving someone who’s not responsive, whether it’s a wife or husband or child or fellow-worker – that will add something to the display of His glory
As you stand with the redeemed before Jesus in all His glory – you will see facets of His glory that are shining specifically because you were steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. This will happen because you will be raised from the dead.
So how can we be sure we will be raised from the dead? Paul says that if we are trusting Jesus, we can be sure we will be raised from the dead, because Jesus was raised from the dead. Jesus’ resurrection is the guarantee of our resurrection.
And how can we be sure Jesus was raised from the dead? Look at what Paul says in vv.3-8
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.
The reason we know Jesus rose from the dead is because there’s massive historical evidence. When I was in jury duty, we heard from witnesses. Eye-witness testimony is the strongest evidence. So imagine being a juror in a courtroom when not just one, but over 500 sober-minded, ordinary people stand up and testify that they saw Jesus after the resurrection.
The reason we believe Jesus rose from the dead is because there’s massive historical evidence that he rose from the dead – and there’s no evidence to the contrary.
Dr. Simon Greenleaf taught Law at Harvard. He wrote three volumes on the use of evidence in courtrooms, volumes which were the standard textbooks for decades. Some Christian students challenged him to apply legal standards of evidence to the resurrection of Jesus. He did, and changed his mind, saying that "the resurrection of Jesus is one of the best established facts of history.
Jesus rose from the dead. And because Jesus rose from the dead, if you are trusting Him, then you will rise from the dead. And to the extent that you’ve done the work of the Lord – to the extent you’ve lived for His glory – your life will count, your life will matter – because it will add to the display of His glory for ever and ever and ever.
So what does this mean for us?
First, trust Jesus. Just like a fish is created to depend on water, so you’re created to depend on God as revealed in Jesus. So turn from your independence, and trust Jesus. Bend the knee in joyful, loving submission to Jesus. And you will be forgiven, you will be completely accepted and loved and welcomed by God, and God will go to work changing your heart. Trust Jesus.
And second, abound in the work of the Lord. Yes, you face difficulties. There are discouragements. It takes effort, and steadfastness. But your labor will not be in vain.
If you labor to study God’s Word, to pray, to fight sin in your life – if you labor to love your wife, love your husband, care for your children, work in the home or at your job – if you labor to love your brothers and sisters in Christ and help others come to know Christ -- it won’t be in vain. It will matter.
Because your work done now for Christ’s sake will forever add to the display of His glory. Forever you will see facets of His glory that are displayed because of this afternoon’s work, tomorrow’s work, next week’ work.
So – be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your work is not in vain.