First Importance

FIRST IMPORTANCE – PREACHING THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST

I Corinthians 15

When cooking or baking, what is the most important? Would you agree with me that it is the ingredients?

Widow who made coffee for us, but forgot to put the coffee in.

Recipes that fall flat because of wrong ingredients.

Final product has been changed:

- Dad once fried bullheads in powdered sugar rather than flour

- Mom’s baking powder biscuits

Of all that we do and believe in this church . . . what is the most important? Or as Paul says in I Corinthians 15 is of first importance?

It is the resurrection.

Which do you like better: Christmas or Easter?

The resurrection is of greatest importance.

This is a simple message from a very profound passage.

I have never attempted to go through the entire chapter of I Corinthians 15 in one sitting. We always break this great passage up because it is so large. But I would like to read the entire passage as a part of this message today.

Two challenges:

I. We need to recognize what is of first importance.

Christ died for our sins.

Christ was buried and rose again the 3^rd day.

Resurrection of Jesus Christ is of first importance!

Notice Revelation 1:18 – “The Living One”.

II. We need to recognize why this is of first importance.

Hope of the resurrection is center in our faith that our sin can be forgiven (vs. 12-19).

Hope of the resurrection is the key of good New Testament doctrine (vs. 20-28).

Hope of the resurrection brings meaning to daily life and ministry (vs. 29-34).

Hope of the resurrection makes us recon with these material perishable bodies (vs. 35-49).

Hope of the resurrection is of first importance (vs. 50-58)!

This is mysterious and deep! Philippians 3:11, “. . . and so somehow attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

Why is the world:

- looking for the bones of Jesus?

- working hard to discredit His resurrection?

- Producing so much ghost material and programs?

The enemy of the gospel knows how important the resurrection is.

It is a crushing defeating blow to the serpent.

It is a climactic final victory for us.

What is of first importance?

To our gold fish, food is of first importance. I thought he knew me as he begs for food each time I walk by the tank. But I read a bit of trivia that says that a gold fish has a memory span of 3 seconds. All he knows if food.

What is of first importance?

Christ Jesus died for our sin.

Christ Jesus was buried and rose again the 3^rd day.

This is our gospel!