Christ Is Risen: The Map to Get Home

In one paragraph

Easter Sunday this year, Brad Yates walked us through 1 Corinthians 15:14-20 to make the case that the resurrection is not a peripheral detail of Christianity but its entire foundation. He used Paul's argument to show that if Christ was not raised, the faith collapses completely, and he pressed the question of whether that belief actually shapes how we live from Monday through Saturday. The...

Read together

1. Luke 24:1-8 read at the opening to establish the resurrection account of the women at the tomb
2. 1 Corinthians 15:14-20 main text for the sermon on the resurrection as foundation of Christian faith
3. Romans 5 referenced to support that peace with God comes through Christ, not our own achievement
4. John 14:6 quoted as one of Jesus' exclusive claims: I am the way and the truth and the life
5. John 2 quoted as Jesus prophesying his own resurrection: destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up
6. John 11 quoted where Jesus says I am the resurrection
7. John 5 quoted where Jesus tells the Jews that the scriptures testify about him
8. Isaiah 53:5 quoted as a servant song prophesying the Messiah: he was pierced for our offenses
9. Psalm 22 quoted as David writing of the Messiah: they pierced my hands and my feet and cast lots for my clothing
10. Psalm 16 quoted as foretelling the resurrection: you will not abandon my soul to Sheol
11. Leviticus 1-8 referenced to describe the Old Testament sacrificial system that pointed to Christ
12. Romans 4 referenced where Paul calls faith righteousness in the context of the Old Testament sacrificial system
13. Philippians 2 quoted describing Jesus emptying himself and becoming obedient to death on a cross
14. Ephesians 3:10 referenced as Paul talking about God displaying himself to the heavenly realms
15. 1 Thessalonians 4 referenced where Paul writes that we grieve but not as those without hope
16. Matthew 28 referenced as the great commission where Jesus called us to make disciples
17. John 15 referenced where Jesus calls us to abide in him
18. John 6:37 quoted where Jesus says whoever comes to me I will never drive away
19. John 8 quoted where Jesus says if you do not believe that I am he you will die in your sins
20. John 3 referenced where Jesus speaks of being reborn
21. Ephesians 3 read as a closing benediction praying for the church to be strengthened and rooted in love

Talk about it

1. Brad talked about how he attended church for a long time but still wanted to live life his own way, and described that internal struggle over who was actually lord of his life as tearing him apart from the inside. Have you ever experienced something like that, and what did it look like for you?
2. Brad described the culture's approach to spirituality as a cruise ship buffet, where you can mix a little of Jesus with other things and still end up with something decent. Where do you see that thinking show up, and how does Paul's argument in 1 Corinthians 15 push back against it?
3. Brad said that the resurrection both proved who Jesus was and achieved something for us. In your own words, what did he say it proved, and what did he say it achieved, and which of those two landed harder for you personally?
4. Brad described our resurrection hope not as floating on clouds but as an eternal restoration where everything that was broken becomes not only healed but recognized as having been a good thing in hindsight. How does that change the way you think about a trial or loss you are carrying right now?
5. Brad closed by putting people into three categories: deciders, disciples, and disciplers, and said that whatever stage we are in, the call is to take the next step in faithfulness. Which of those three categories do you feel you are in right now, and what does that next step actually look like for you this week?