The Value of the Old Testament to the Christian

Galatians 3:24 Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.

Luke 24:44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”

Today's blog entry is about a series of reflections on the value of the Old Testament to the Christian.  I hope you will find them helpful in your study of God's word. 

The positive and negative functions of God's Law
Whenever you read or study the Old Testament, you often are faced with the question: why did God include this in His word? I chose to begin with the above two verses to remind the reader of the purpose of the Old Testament, and particularly the Law of God (Genesis to Deuteronomy or what is called "The Torah").  God's Law is not meant to impart righteousness, but only demand it.  Furthermore, the ten commandments, which are the heart of the Law, reveal the Holiness of God and point to Him who alone can give Grace.  Negatively, the law reveals me to be a sinner, incapable and unfit to be in God's sight.  The law shows sin to be sin, and I to be a sinner apart from grace. (Romans 7:7; 1 Timothy 1:8-10)  Positively, the law of God points beyond itself to God's promise in the Old Testament and the Person of Jesus Christ, as revealed in the two above scripture passages.  Christ's righteousness functions as a garment placed over me at salvation to make me acceptable in God's sight.  By living in the grace of Jesus Christ, I am (and should aim) to live a life not in contradiction to the law, since the grace of Christ deems me positionally to be a fulfiller of it. (Galatians 5:22-6:2) By the grace of God I can say with the great apostle in Philippians 3:12-14:

"Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

In short: the dark cloth of Law is necessary to bring appreciation of the Diamond of Grace - Jesus Christ. (Romans 7:7-25) 

The New Testament in the Old is concealed, Old Testament in the the New is revealed
It is in this second function of the first five Book of Moses (called the Torah) that we can find many wonderful pictures and illustrations that point us to the life, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  The Ten Commandments function as the heart of the law, with the attending ceremonies and seemingly lengthy list of laws functioning as illustrations of those commandments.  When Christ came, He did away with the ceremonies and prescribed civil laws. (Hebrews 5-10)  Being that all scripture is given by Divine inspiration and is profitable (2 Timothy 3:16), the chief way to see all scripture in its fullest application and richness is through Jesus Christ.1 

The New Testament in the Old is enfolded, and the Old in the New is unfolded
The Old Testament is as valuable as the New insofar as it is still profitable for the Spirit's work of leading people to a saving knowledge of Christ and for illustrating to the saints to treasures of Christ.  For people who are more visual than auditory learners, some of the Old Testament events, ceremonies and people can picture truths found in the New Testament.  I have put several examples in the endnotes for the interested reader.  Understand that studying such examples are but a sample of the hundred of pictures, types and shadows of Christ's life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension we find sprinkled throughout the Old Testament.2

A final word of advice on studying the Old Testament
I would encourage the reader to purchase a good study Bible with cross references, a Bible Dictionary that defines places and terms and a Bible Encyclopedia that contains articles on subjects related to scripture, doctrine and Biblical history.  As we gain an appreciation for the Old Testament in light of Jesus Christ, the insights gained will enable us to live out the realities of the New Testament. 

Endnotes________________

1. For example we discover in each of the major sections of the Bible:
a. In the Law or Torah (Gen-Deut) Christ is illustrated
b. In the Historical Books (Josh - Esther) Christ is anticipated
c. In the Poetical Books (Job - Song of Solomon) Christ is patterned
d. In the Prophetic Books (Isaiah - Malachi) Christ is predicted
e. In the Gospels (Matthew - John) Christ is portrayed
f. In Acts Christ is preached
g. In the Epistles (Romans - Jude) Christ is Explained
h. In Revelation Christ is Priority

2. Consider the following pictures or "types" of Christ's life, death, burial and resurrection found in the Old Testament:
a. Noah's Ark illustrates Jesus Christ, the ark of salvation, who saves all who believe from the wrath of God. (compare 1 Peter 3:18-20)

b. Abraham's offering up of Isaac on the altar in Genesis 22 is a wonderful word-picture of what would be God the Father's offering of His Son on the cross for our sins. Furthermore, Hebrews 11:19 tells us that when Abraham received back Isaac as a result of having found the "ram caught in the thicket", Isaac was a "type" or pattern of Christ's resurrection from the dead.

c. The Tabernacle revealed to Moses is a picture of Christ's Person, life and work. The arrangement of the seven key furnishings of the Tabernacle system are in the shape of a cross. Furthermore, the journey from the world of sin (outside the Tabernacle courtyard) to the throne of God (depicted in the Ark of the Covenant in the most holy place) must be made through the altar of sacrifice, which pictures the cross. Let the reader compare Hebrews 5-10 for the fullest example of this point.

d. King David prophetically and pictorially illustrates the Lord Jesus Christ. In prophecy David is told that He would have a denscendant who would sit on His throne forever. (2 Samuel 7:13-16) That prophecy was inaugurated when Christ ascended into heaven to begin His reign over His church (Acts 2:35-36) and will be fully manifest when Christ returns to rule and reign 1,000 years. (Revelation 19-20) David's life is a shadowy outline of Christ's life. David was anointed three times as king, more than any other king. Christ is described as being "anointed above His companions". (Hebrews 1:9) David was betrayed by his closest friend as detailed in Psalm 55 & 109. Jesus was betrayed by Judas, to which those same Psalms evidently predicted his need to be replaced. (Acts 1:20 fulfilled Psalm 109:8) Finally, David foresaw in God's protection of his life the promise of God raising Jesus from the dead. (Psalm 16:8-11 fulfilled in Acts 2:25-28)
 
 
     

P2 - The Wonderful Book of James

James 2:26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.

Review from yesterday's post
Yesterday we began a two-part blog series featuring an introduction and outline to the Book of James.  The aim is to whet the reader's appetite for this important book of the New Testament.  The Book of James has been nicknamed "The Proverbs of the New Testament" due to its practical nature and contents of wisdom.  Its chief value is to introduce the reader to the seeds of thought that will mature into full blooms in the New Testament.  Issues such as the relationship between faith and works, conduct in the church and Bible prophecy are included in the Epistle.  We looked at an outline of the first chapter in yesterday's post.  Today we continue on outlining the wonderful book of James, beginning with James 2.

I. Do not show partiality to one another.  James 2:1-13
II. Living Faith Works. James 2:14-26
How does James show faith to be the root and works the necessary fruit of true saving faith?
a. Practically Saving Faith is shown to bear works. 2:14-17
b. Biblically Saving Faith is shown to bear works. 2:18-25
c. Physically Saving Faith is shown to bear forth works. 2:26

III. Tame your tongue.  James 3:1-12
a. Spirit-led Christians can tame their tongues. 3:1-4
b. Self-led non-Christians won't/can't tame their tongues. 3:5-8
c. Compromising Christians must tame their tongues. 3:9-12

IV. The Christian's Two-telephones. James 3:13-4:5
I heard an illustration once featuring the two-telephones that operate in the soul before and after salvation.  This illustration has been adapted to fit the text of James 3:13-4:5
a. Before you became a Christian, you had a rusty old telephone connected in your soul to the wisdom from below 3:14-16
b. When you became a Christian, a second telephone appeared in your soul connected to your spirit to the wisdom from above. 3:17-18
c. The Holy Spirit has moved into your human spirit to tell you daily of your need to clip the cord to the old rusty telephone 4:1-5

V. Humble Like Jesus.  James 4:6-10
VI. Right and Wrong Judgment. James 4:11-12
VII. Living in God's Will. 4:12-17
a. God's Ultimate will (includes His unrevealed, permissive and revealed wills) 4:12
b. God's Unrevealed will 4:13-14
c. God's Permissive will 4:15-16
d. God's Revealed will. 4:17

VIII. F.O.C.U.S on Christ's Return. 5:1-20
Why focus on Christ's return? What are the benefits? We can see this by noting the acrostic F.O.C.U.S.  Focusing on the second coming of Jesus enables you to...
a. Fight worldliness. 5:1-6
b. Operate in endurance. 5:7-8
c. Comfort for your heart. 5:9-11
d. Undergirds the prayer-life. 5:12-18
e. Strengthens evangelism. 5:19-20

I cannot say enough about James.  Studying it will greatly add to your practical and spiritual understanding of the Christian life.  I commend it to you and hope this short series has provided you a resource for investigating the contents of the wonderful book of James. 

P1 - The Wonderful Book of James

James 2:26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.

Who was James?
In today's blog I wanted to begin giving the reader a working outline and introduction to the wonderful book of James.  To begin, James was the half brother of Jesus according to the flesh. (Matthew 13:55; Acts 1:14)  Although he grew up in the same home as Jesus, James did not become a convert and follower during the course of Jesus' earthly ministry. (John 7:5) 

James' Conversion and Ministry
According to what we read in 1 Corinthians 15:7, Jesus made a post-resurrection appearance to James, resulting in James' conversion.  The evidence we have that Jesus' appearance resulted in James' conversion is by His presence in the upper room with the disciples following Jesus' ascension. (Acts 1:14)  James became one of the main spokemen at the Jerusalem council in Acts 15.  Shortly thereafter, the Apostle Paul later identified him (along with Peter and John) as one of the Pillars of the Church. (Galatians 2:9) 

It is believed that James' letter was the first book of the New Testament, preceeding Matthew's Gospel by at least five years and Paul's first letter, Galatians, by the same amount of time.  James' letter is a wonderful book of the Bible.  I have been blessed by the Lord to have both studied and preached through it. I offer the following outline of the first chspter of James to you today, hoping that you will take a second look at the wonderful Book of James.

James: Living Working Faith

Key Verse: James 2:26

 

I. Traits of a Strong Christian. 1:1

In the above introduction we aimed to lay out the testimony and life of James.  As you study James' background, you gain the following characteristics what makes him to be a model of a strong Christian:

a. Personal Testimony

b. Prioritizes spiritual maturity

c. Passion for Jesus

d. Persists in applying God's Word



 

II. Consider the Place of Trials. 1:2-12

a. Purpose of trials. 1:2-4

b. Navigating through trials. 1:5-11

c. Rewards of trials. 1:12

 

III. Understanding & Defeating Temptation. 1:13-17

IV. The New Birth. 1:18

a. The New Birth Brings a change of heart. 1:17-18

b. The New Birth Involves Repentance and Faith. 1:19-20

 

V. Scripture: The Christian's Strength. 1:21-25

a. It shields the faith-life. 1:21

b. It stabilizes the faith-life. 1:22-24

c. It steers the faith-life. James 1:25

 

VI. Evaluating your spiritual well-being. 1:26-27

a. Your speech

b. Your compassion

c. your purity

 

In tomorrow's blog we will continue with our study of the wonderful book of James.  May you, dear reader, have a wonderful and blessed day.



Statements, Questions & Answers in 1 Corinthians 15

1 Corinthians 15:1 "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand." (NASB)

1 Corinthians 15 has a total of 58 verses, comprising the most detailed discussion of the topic of resurrection found anywhere in sacred scripture.  The significance of this chapter cannot be over stated.  We have looked at this chapter in previous blogs, witnessing how it can be viewed through the styles of argumentation that Paul uses in asserting Christ's resurrection.  For today's blog I want us to regard this chapter from the standpoint of the statements and questions raised by Paul.   

I. The Need to Know the Living Gospel.  1 Corinthians 15:1-11
A. Expressed Statement of intent about the Living Gospel 15:1
1 Corinthians 15:1 "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand."
B. Elements of the Living Gospel 15:2-4
C. Experiences of the Living Christ of the Living Gospel. 15:2-11

II. Question #1 How can some say there is no resurrection? 15:12-34
A. Question #1 Asked about the importance of Christ's Resurrection. 15:12
1 Corinthians 15:12 "Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?"
B. Question #1 Answered, Part 1: Proving the resurrection's centrality to doctrine.  15:12-28
C. Question #1 Answered, Part 2: Prioritizing the resurrection's centrality to daily life.  15:29-34

III. Question #2 How are the dead raised? 15:35a, 36-41
A. Question #2 Asked: 1 Corinthians 15:35a "But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? "
B. Question #2 Answered: Paul answers this second question in 1 Corinthians 15:36-41

IV. Question #3 And with what kind of body are they raised? 15:35b, 42-49
A. Question # 3 Asked: 1 Corinthians 15:35b "And with what kind of body do they come?”
B. Question # 3 Answered:  Paul answers this third question in 1 Corinthians 15:42-49

V. The Coming Kingdom of God 15:50-58
A. Expressing the Statement about the Coming Kingdom of God. 15:50
1 Corinthians 15:50 "Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable."
B. Explanation about the Coming Kingdom 15:51-57
C. Encouragement to endure in light of the coming kingdom 15:58

Conclusion: My hope is that the reader will want to study this chapter further. Like a cave of wonders, 1 Corinthians 15 promises many gems of truth everytime the reader gives prayerful study to its contents.

Christ the Center & Christian Obedience

Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."

John 14:21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him."

Romans 12:1 "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship."

Years ago I had went through a study called "spiritual life and evangelism" that was based off of the discipleship ministry called "The Navigators".  The material urged us as young students to memorize scripture under certain topics for the purpose strengthening our Christian walk.  I can recall in those days memorizing the above four verses: 2 Corinthians 5:17 and Galatians 2:20 were placed under the heading: "Christ the Center", while John 14:21 and Romans 12:1 were termed - "The Obedient Christian-life in action". 

In the study, when memorizing those passages, you were encouraged to think about those headings as being a wheel.  Dawson Trotman, the founder of Navigators, pictured the relationship between the believer's salvation (i.e Christ the Center) and sanctification (i.e Obedient Christian life) in the following way...



Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17 and Galatians 2:20) aims at making Him the "hub" or center of the Christian life.  Furthermore, John 14:21 and Romans 12:1 comprise the outer rim or traction necessary to move the Christian walk forward - hence the term "the obedient Christian life" (or what the scripture calls sanctification).

True salvation receives Him by grace alone through faith alone. (2 Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 2:20) Consequently, the post-conversion Christian life (sanctification) should progress onward and upward, characterizing a faith that is never alone. (John 14:21; Romans 12:1) Conversion (salvation) is the root of faith, with obedience being the necessary fruit of faith.  Numerous scriptures spell out this important and inseparable link between true saving faith and the works that come forth following the salvation commitment. 

I urge you the reader to take the above four passages and commit them to memory.  Second, I urge you to consider the "wheel diagram" above and use it as an aid in your scripture memory.  Lastly, ask the Lord to continually strengthen you by His Holy Spirit as you aim to keep centered on Jesus Christ while effectively obeying His will. 

A proposed order of prophetic events

1 Corinthians 15:23-24 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming (24) then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.

Revelation 1:19 "Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things."

The two-fold tension that exists in Bible Prophecy: We need to know and yet there are things we can't know
In today's blog I want to trace out a proposed general order of prophetic events that are described in two major sections of scripture. Thankfully we have seen agreement  or near agreement reached among Bible believing Christians in other areas of Bible doctrine, such as: The Trinity, Christ's Deity and Humanity, Salvation by Grace through Faith alone, the Bible as the Word of God and Christ's physical and bodily return.  Entire Christian bodies and historical church councils have been convened to reach an agreement on those major points, however such an agreement as not been achieved when it comes to the ordering of prophetic events.  Why? Two reasons:

1. In one sense, scripture tells us that there are aspects of prophecy (or eschatology) that we simply will not know in this age, such as the exact moment of Christ's return (Matthew 24:36) and certain times and seasons set by the Father (Acts 1:7).

2. However, it is our responsibility as Christians to communicate the hope that is within us (1 Peter 3:15), to be aware of the major events surrounding Christ's return (1 Thessalonians 4:13) and to comfort one another with the words of prophecy (1 Thessalonians 4:18). 

Just because there may be legitimate differences of opinion on the finer points of Bible prophecy, does not mean we should abandon the effort to keep searching the scriptures.  Clearly we as Christians need to communicate to the world that Christ is returning, and that they need to repent and believe so as to escape the coming wrath of God on this world. (Romans 5:9-10; 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 5:9)  In short, we have near-full confidence in being able to lay out a general ordering of events (and I would argue have a duty to do so, as seen in 1 Corinthians 15:23-24 and Revelation 1:19), even though we may not know the smaller details nor possess 100% knowledge on when some things will occur.  Bible scholars refer to this feature of Bible prophecy as "already/not yet".1  This tension is purposefully engineered by God to work forth faith and dependance upon Jesus Christ and the scriptures.2  Studying biblical eschatology (study of last things, prophecy) aims to both illuminate our understanding and push us to walk by faith rather than sight. 

Outlining 1 Corinthians 15:23-28 & Revelation
With those observations we now turn to offering two outlines in today's blog.  The first will be from 1 Corinthians 15:23-28, with the second outline being the Book of Revelation.  I would urge the reader to compare both texts and conclude for themselves where they stand on the ordering of prophetic events.  As a second caution, I would also urge the reader and myself to humbly admit that we don't possess 100% understanding of the details of the orderings, and thus allow for legitimate differences of opinion on these matters.

Outline of 1 Cor 15:23-28                      Outline of Revelation
I. Christ's Resurrection 15:23a               
                                                            I. From His Ascension to 
                                                            Future Tribulation Period 
                                                            1:1-11:19
                                                          
                                                            II. O.T Israel to end of world
                                                            system 12:1-18:24

II. Christ's Coming        15:23b           III. Christ's Return 19:1-20:3
                                                           (depicted increasing detail 
                                                           throughout the book,
                                                           with Revelation 19
                                                           being the most detailed).

III. Placing All things under His          IV. Millennial Reign 20:4-15
feet till He abolishes death                (depicted in increasing detail
15:25-28                                            throughout Revelation 20. Six
                                                          times we read of Christ reigning
                                                          1,000 years.

IV. The End before eternity               V. Final Judgment & eternity
15:24-28                                            21:1-22:21

If we were to picture the proposed interpretation of 1 Corinthians 15:20-28 and Revelation, we would have the following...

Old                Christ's        Tribulation   2nd     Millennium
Testament    Resurrection                    Coming                 Eternity

In the above diagram we did not include specific lengths of time for sake of simplicity.  My hope is that in this blog today you have gained a little bit better understanding of what such an ordering of prophetic events may look like.  Again I urge the reader to study the scriptures for themselves.  In future blogs, I hope to explore this particular area of Doctrine and Bible study further.  Until then, may the Lord richly bless you this day. 

End Notes______________________

1. So for example, "already" Christ began reigning over His church as her King and inaugurated His reign as Supreme King over the universe. "Already" the Kingdom of God is at work in the hearts of Christians and broken into this current age through His first coming, cross and especially His resurrection. However, Christ has "not yet" fully made visible His reign, and will not do so until He returns. The Kingdom of God has "not yet" fully manifested, since Christ must reign (1 Corinthians 15:25) for a 1,000 years following His coming. (Revelation 20).

2.   Consider two passages of scripture that spell out this tension of knowing and yet not knowing - 1 Peter 1:8 and 1 John 3:2-3. 1 Peter 1:8 states - "and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory". Now notice 1 John 3:2-3 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. (3) And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
 
 

A Resurrection Sunday Meditation - The Biggest & Best News!

1 Corinthians 15:20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. (NASB)

Yesterday we outlined the entirety of 1 Corinthians 15 to prepare our hearts for today.  We noted the theme of 1 Corinthians 15 to be: "The Living Gospel - The Biggest and Best News!"  Paul had just finished demonstrating how central the truth of Christ's resurrection is to Biblical Christianity in 1 Corinthians 15:12-19.  Paul puts down the shield of defense and takes up the sword of scripture and proclaims - "But now Christ has been raised from the dead...".  What follows is a demonstration of why Christ's resurrection from the dead makes the Gospel the Biggest and Best News. 

To see the beauty and scope of 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, we will offer a fresh translation of the text from the Greek to behold the glory of the Resurrected Christ.  Endnotes will be included in the translation for the reader who desires to dig deeper into the implications of Paul's words.  After the the translation, we will then consider in outline form why Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead is the biggest and best news.

A fresh translation of 1 Corinthians 15:20-28
1 Corinthians 15:20 But now behold! Christ has risen from the dead, as the first fruits (i.e first one to do so) from those who have otherwise remained dead! 21 It is a known fact that through a man came death, and through a man comes the resurrection from the dead. 22 To be more specific - all who are in association with Adam1 die2, consequently then, all who are in association with Christ3 will live. 23 You see, each occurs in a specific order: Christ the first fruits, then secondly, those who will be with Christ at His Personal Return4 24 then thirdly, The End5, that is, whenever He hands over the kingdom to God the Father following the time after every ruler and every authority and every power is abolished. 25 To clarify, it is necessary for Him to reign until He has placed all enemies under His feet. 26 The one called ‘Death’ is of course the last enemy to be abolished. 27 For He placed all things under His feet of authority.  When He states: ‘all things have already be placed under His authority’, He is excluded from the category ‘all things’, since He is the One under whom all things have been placed. 28 But whenever the condition of all things is fulfilled in relationship to the Son’s reign, then the Son Himself will voluntarily submit all things to Him so that God may be all supreme in all things.”

With a fresh translation of 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, we can now consider why the resurrection of Jesus Christ is first of all the Biggest News, followed by why His resurrection is also the Best News.

Christ's resurrection is the Biggest News because it covers every major doctrine and section in the Bible

1 Corinthians 15:20-28 is such an important section of 1 Corinthians 15 because of the scope of material that it covers. In the above translation I underlined five words that are significant in this text, since all of them put together provide a basic outline of the entire Bible!  The reader is encouraged to look at the endnotes I mentioned earlier to see the further implications of the five terms.  We can take those five words above and summarize them accordingly:

a. "Adam" = refers to creation
b. "die"      = refers to the curse
c. "Christ" = the focal point of scripture, and the One who raised from the dead
d. "Personal Return" = translated in other translations as "coming".  This speaks of Christ's Personal, Visible, Physical return at the end of this age
e. "The End" = This refers to the conclusion of all things when Christ hands over everything He has submitted under His reign to God the Father. 

So with those five terms: creation, curse, Christ, coming and conclusion, we can see why Christ's resurrection is such big news in 1 Corinthians 15:20-28.  Christ's resurrection demonstrates that creation will be redeemed, the curse has been reversed for believers in Christ and that Christ is central to understanding history and eternity.  Furthermore, Christ's resurrection also demonstrates what Christ will accomplish in His second coming as well as how He will bring all things to their appropriate conclusion.

Why Christ's Resurrection is also the Best News
The more you read and study 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, the more amazed you become at the range of ground touched by the resurrection.  But let's not forget that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is as much personal as it is profound.  1 Corinthians 15:20-28 serves to demonstrate the personal importance of Christ's resurrection to the Gospel asserted in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4: "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand. (2) by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. (3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures (4) and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures." (NASB)  


Did you catch how many times the personal pronouns (you, our) were mentioned in the text?  Paul emphasizes the personal pronouns ten times in a span of four verses to communicate how the Gospel is the Best News around.  Personally it gains you access to God, to Jesus, to His forgiveness, to all His rich graces and to the hope of an eternal home.  Not only that, but since the pronouns in the original Greek are plural, that means you and I who believe on the resurrected Jesus get to enjoy all of His saving benefits together!   

Truly the Resurrection of Jesus Christ makes the Gospel both the Biggest News and the Best News.  "Big" because of all the doctrines and events that it has either affected or will ever affect.  "Best" because you who by grace through faith believe on Him are personally and eternally saved from wrath, saved unto Him and saved to live forever with Him.  That's the Biggest and Best News you will ever hear!

Endnotes______________________

1. Creation: We see the historical Adam mentioned in 15:21-22. God created man originally perfect. Adam was not a myth, but a real person.  As we read later on in 1 Corinthians 15:45a "So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul.”

2. Curse: This second word summarizes what Paul says when he mentions in 15:22 how all born into Adam "die". We know from Genesis 3 that after Adam and his wife had eaten the forbidden fruit, God consigned both they and their descendants to a curse. Whenever we consider these first two ideas: creation & curse, we begin to see God's aim in redeeming and restoring that which was lost as a result of sin and death. Romans 8:20-21 notes - "For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope (21) that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God." 

3. Christ: So the question is: "will creation ever be redeemed and will the curse ever be reversed?" As you read on down through 1 Corinthians 15:23ff, you get the answer to that question in one Person - Christ. Christ's resurrection from the dead demonstrated two vital truths: He has reversed the curse upon all who by grace through faith believe on Him and that the created order will be redeemed. 1 Corinthians 15:20-22 presents creation and the curse - the problem, and 15:23 present the solution - Christ. For the remainder of 1 Corinthians 15:24-28, we will see how Christ will accomplish the Father's purposes. Remember, everything that Paul is writing hinges on the reality of Christ's resurrection - its that big! So we have seen creation, curse and Christ. 

4. Coming: 1 Corinthians 15:23b states in the NASB "after that those who are Christ's at His coming". In the above translation I rendered this word "Personal Return" to underscore the nature of Christ's second coming. The Personal Return of Jesus Christ is captured by the Greek word "parousia" that speaks of a King returning to his home city or country after having won a battle or a war. The inhabitants come out to meet the King and to reconnect with their Ruler, and he with them. 

5. Conclusion: 1 Corinthians 15:24 starts out with the simple but profound phrase: "then comes the end..." Christ's resurrection from the dead not only demonstrated the accomplishment of His first coming - redemption, but it also guarantees what He will accomplish when He come again - Rulership. As you go down through the remainder of 1 Corinthians 15:25-28, Paul details what he means by verse 24, as well as showing the relationship between "the coming" and "the end".  We would advocate that there is an implied space of time between "His coming" in verse 23 and "the end" in verse 24.  Furthermore, I personally see the implied "space" being explicitly 1,000 years as detailed in another scripture - Revelation 20.  In 1 Corinthians 15:25 I included the term "to clarify", since verses 25-28 are a clarification of verse 24.  Paul is proposing an actual ordering of major events outlined in Biblical prophecy or eschatology:

Christ's                  Christ's 2nd coming      He must reign   End
Resurrection-------Resurrection of saints--Millennium of--- of
(first fruits)            (those with Christ)         Rev 20 seems    all
                                                                        to fit here         things
                                                                        Resurrection
                                                                        of the wicked
                                                                        will occur at
                                                                        the end of the
                                                                        Millennium or
                                                                        1,000 year reign
                                                                        of Christ.

With that basic order, harmonized with other prophetic texts, we gain a sweeping understanding of history and prophecy.  Following the end, Christ will have handed all things up to the Father, which will then take us into eternity.