In the words of verse 1 from 1 Corinthians 15, I “declare to you the gospel;” this very gospel which has been preached from the apostles, recorded in the Scriptures, and handed down through the centuries.  The gospel that was foretold in the Old Testament; the very gospel which declares that Christ died for our sins on the cross, was buried, and then raised from the dead on the third day!  And yet as we look at this passage in 1 Corinthians 15, we are reminded that the fact of the resurrection has not always been well received, even in the church.  Paul in this letter is confronting an issue in the Corinthian church.  Evidently some in the church had been teaching that there is no resurrection of the dead.  In other words, people who claimed to be Christians, were saying that there is no resurrection of the dead!  And so Paul instantly responds by showing that such a view is not consistent with the Christian faith.  Paul hypothetically considers what it would mean for Christians, if Christ had not been raised.  His ultimate conclusion comes in verse 19.  He concludes by saying that if Christ had not been raised, then we of all people, as Christians, would be most to be pitied.

Passage: 1 Corinthians 15:1-19
Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 03/23/2008 in Novato, CA.
Other Scripture Readings: Psalm 16; Matthew 28:1-15; 1 Peter 1:3-9

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 If Christ Is Not Risen – A Defense of the Resurrection [41:12m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passage: 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 01/27/2008 in Novato, CA.

The last several weeks we have been talking about Christ’s vision for his church. We’ve talked a lot about the ministry of the church. We’ve said that this ministry needs to be an ordinary means of grace ministry. And one thing that has been a bit assumed as we’ve talked about the church is that the church is made up of members. A biblical vision of the church sees that the church is made up of believers who are united together in Christ.  Paul in this passage gives us a picture of biblical church membership, using the illustration of the human body.

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 United as One Body in Christ [41:01m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passage: 1 Corinthians 10:1-22
Author: Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
Sermon originally preached during the Morning Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 01/13/2008 in Novato, CA.

This morning’s sermon is continuing our 3 week series where we have been looking at the means of grace.  Last week we looked at the Word of God as we read in 1 Corinthians 1 about the power of preaching Christ crucified.  This week we are looking at the sacraments, and next week we’ll look at prayer.

And yet when we turn to this passage in 1 Corinthians 10, you should notice right away that this is not a doctrinal discussion on the Lord’s Supper.  Actually the passage is about idolatry.  But as Paul deals with this problem of idolatry among the Corinthians he points back to the Lord’s Supper, showing how the Supper calls them away from idolatry and to Christ.  And as Paul mentions the Supper, we learn about some of its importance for the life and ministry of the church.  And so to that end, as we examine what this passage is saying with regards to the Corinthians and idolatry, we’ll ultimately see what it tells us about the Lord’s Supper and its importance for the church.

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