1 Corinthians 15:3-6. 3For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.
This is Paul’s recitation of an early Christian creed: “Christ died according to the scriptures, he was buried according to the scriptures, and he rose on the third day according to the scriptures.” Paul did not make this up. The Apostle Paul did not invent Christianity as some might have you believe. Paul is delivering to the Corinthians the gospel doctrines that he received from the other Apostles. The Apostles who were with Jesus and saw the resurrected Christ.
Including in Paul’s doctrine is a list of people who were visited by Jesus after his resurrection. Cephas (Peter), the Twelve disciples, and then to more than five hundred believers all at once.
Wait what? Over five hundred people saw Jesus alive, in once place and at one time? For such a massive claim Paul sure does state it awfully casually. Where did this happen? Why were they all together? Was this a pre-planned appearance? And who are these people who are still alive?
Could Paul be lying? Is he making this up? Is this some sort of mass hallucination? Even our most skeptical atheist Bible scholars like Bart Erhman (UNC) and Dale Allison (Princeton) agree that Paul is not intentionally lying or making this up. He actually believes what he is writing. Both scholars point to accounts of St. Mary “supposedly” appearing to masses of people over the years. But did it actually happen? “Probably not,” is their answer.
But what if it did happen? What if Jesus actually did appear to over five hundred people at once? What does that mean for us and for our faith? To answer this question, let’s take a look at why Paul may have included this detail in his letter to these precious believers.
First, the mention of over five hundred witnesses is not a throw away data point. And neither is the fact that many of these witnesses were still alive and could be subpoenaed for court. Paul is letting us know that we can put the resurrection of Jesus to the test. The church in 55 AD could take hope in this and so can we today. If the resurrection is the foundation of our faith (it is) then we had all better put the evidence of Easter to the test. Do you believe in the resurrection of Christ? Why? Can you give an answer for the hope that is within you?
Second, Paul wants to make it clear that an experience of the resurrected Jesus is not only for the elite: The Twelve, Peter, James the brother of Jesus. No, Christ is for all! Christ is for the masses. The nations. Anyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved and will have an experience of the resurrected Christ. But do our experiences of Jesus count? Are we also credible witnesses to the resurrection of Christ? In some ways we are more so…blessed are those who have believed without seeing, Jesus said.
Christian, don’t let anyone tell you that your experience of Jesus is too subjective, too personal, or unverifiable. No, your experience of Christ is just as real, provable, and objective as that of the five hundred, of Peter and Paul, of James and Mary and Mary and Mary. Has the resurrected Christ come to you, indwelt you, changed you? Don’t let anyone tell you that this is just a feeling and not a fact. Your testimony is just as important as any of the five hundred and any other saint. You (yes, you) could appear in court to testify on Jesus’ behalf just as much as any other disciple in history.
Finally, why does Paul include this point of Jesus appearing to over five hundred? And why does he say that this happened according to the scriptures? There is no proof text for this even in the New Testament gospels (which Paul didn’t have yet anyway), nor is there any kind of prophecy about this appearance in the Old Testament. So what is Paul telling us?
When Paul says that all of this is according to the scriptures, he’s letting us know that everything happening around the death and resurrection of Jesus is the climactic goal of all of God’s redemptive plan. All of scripture has led to this moment – Christ arisen from the grave! And people experiencing the risen Christ for themselves.
Again, Paul didn’t make up the resurrection, and neither did Jesus. Resurrection has been the conclusion to the Story all along. Yes, some denied it (the Sadducees), but most accepted that a future resurrection was coming. A resurrection unto everlasting life for the righteous or unto shame for the unrighteous.
Daniel 12:2-3. 2And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.
And now we can see that it is Christ’s resurrection that makes it all possible. Not only our resurrection, but first our wisdom and our righteousness. That’s what being in Christ has done for us, not only guaranteed our future resurrection with Christ, but a resurrection unto an everlasting life of wisdom and righteousness. An everlasting life within his life. His love. His light.
You: What evidence for the resurrection helps you to trust in its reality?
You in Christ: Do you have a testimony of your experience with the resurrected Jesus?How is this testimony proof of Christ’s resurrection?
Christ in you: How our everlasting life in Christ start now? How must it change how you live today?
Prayer: Father, you have given the resurrected Son to all who would believe. Help me to trust not only in Christ’s everlasting life but also my own experience of the life. Then let it change how I live for you. Amen.
To Live is Christ 