“12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. 20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. 28 When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all. 29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf? 30 Why are we in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.” (1 Cor 15:12-34 ESV)

There’s a lot on the table when people talk about the Resurrection of Christ. Many understand this as some group insistence: Christ is raised, death cannot have the final say. But more than insistence, is the willingness actually to believe that in a world legislated and owned by Spirit, it is conceivable that indeed—crazier things have happened—that a Man once rose from the dead. 

It is conceivable, in the vein of the claim that Christ is for All People, a unique and permanent Record of God’s love for the sinner, a new Abraham, a new Noah, a new Jonah. Telling the people such sweet things as to immediately draw the ire of credentialed folks, immediately drawing the ire of the lazily composed, who scarcely knew what they were saying, only this: that Christ must die! Must Die… because He claimed to be an eternal spirit. Must die… because He was doing for half the price what took the scribes and pharisees twice the timeline to accomplish. If they were even still even in the business of healing, of loving on the sinner, of making all things New.

Then people say, but this is an antiquated Christ, we need a modern prophetic guild or pulpit. We need, in short, a Christ who has a smart phone and who talks to ChatGPT. We need Answers, gosh darn it! And His answer, His solemn sermon without words, was to Discover on behalf of half human civilization, that the Cross was germane to All, and Timeless, and Factual. Stranger that Christ died, or that He rose? For we scarcely concede this point, that good men ceased to be at the helm, when it was decided that this Lamb of a Man, this Meek Man, this Efficacious Man, should be Crucified. And such decided some of us.

Strange therefore to Encounter spirits broadly understood, “Out There”, antagonizing against us personally: they are possessed of a different Backdrop or Organ; they are made over differently from us, accepting things we were horrified to hear about, and denying things we embraced so warmly. They were Determined to undo us, notwithstanding some modicum of Peace that to our mind was germane. And this… Christ was like this, in part. He was an agitator and a difficult bunkmate. He was on a Mission and In Good Form, to honor His Father and ours, to Push us outside the comfort zone, so we could see—hasty Piracy or Criminal Intent—He took back the night, took back the church, took back the legislature of morals.

He was no criminal, but rather a Dutiful denizen of said Church, who knew a thing or two about Righteous Objection, Righteous Stand, Righteous War. We were sitting pretty, ourselves, too lazy even as all went to pot, to stand up and Fight, stand up and be Counted, stand up and Profess Godliness. It was a solemn Day when He was born, a solemn Holy Family that believed tears notwithstanding that their Son would one day Rule in the place of His Father Above, the Father He would later speak of in such stark terms.

Unlazy. Unignorant. Undismissive or Undutiful. He rightly knew a golden ticket from the outset, and knew that if ever there were a congressional inquiry, He would be found wanting or lacking had He not gone for broke. Even though all by His lonesome in this knowledge. Even though the pundits and naysayers had not yet arisen: His lark was an early lark and a determined, lonesome lark. He knew, too, that it might even involve the shock treatment of Him dying and yet, He was not so much afraid of the Cross, afraid of the needly, but was afraid of the world without Him, perhaps. He was sad that He had to die. He was sad, but also Knew: prophecies fulfilled, He would somehow and in some wise Rise Up again resurrected. So He took the blow due to us, and Died. That we might without guile or clever intent, draw near to this parent figure who only wanted to love, unhumored by higher ribaldry or gamesmanship, on some level His sermon was simply Sincere. And He brought us to the mat on difficult themes but ones He was right there to walk us through. Including the Cross each of us is due to bear. Owners and shareholders in His gambit, His company stock, His wistful description of a Father whom we might almost say was imagined, were it not for the Resurrection, for the “I say do, and people do, do you not also have Authority?” Father who signed the form, checked the Resurrection box, and signed His Name to it all.