¹² But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? ¹³ For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. ¹⁴ And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. ¹⁵ And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. ¹⁶ And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. ¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. ¹⁸ In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! ¹⁹ And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.

1 Corinthians 15:12-19

Dear God, I still remember a conversation I had with a coworker about 30 years ago that involved this passage. Funny how some things stick with us. I was about 22 at the time and I was telling him how I used to tell campers when I was a counselor that, even if there was no heaven and when we died we died it would still be worth it to be a Christian and follow you because of the joy you give us through relationship with you. He told me I was wrong and quoted this verse at me. And while I think he was technically correct, I don’t think he was correct for the right reason.

Basically, he was saying at the time that it was all about heaven and getting to be with you eternally, and he quoted Paul saying in verse 19 that we are to be the most pitied in all of the world. The difference between us is that I was not proclaiming there is no resurrection of the dead, and I was certainly not saying Jesus hadn’t been resurrected. What I was saying was that if that wasn’t how you designed everything, relationship with you, freedom from our sin, our ability to share your mercy with others, and the process of willingly submitting my plans and how I think the world should be to your will would still be worth it because of the peace and joy that comes with it.

I was talking with a friend on Friday who has a family member who is gravely ill. We talked about how some things in our lives hadn’t worked out how we hoped, but we were willing to yield to the idea that you weren’t letting anything happen that was outside of what you could use in the lives of those we love, our lives, or even for the good of those we don’t know. He asked me, “How do people who don’t believe in God cope?” I answered, “I don’t know.” Some people derisively call Christianity a coping mechanism or a crutch to get through life. That’s not how I see it. Do I lean on you? Yes! Do I find my hope and peace in you? Yes! And to be sure, some people do just use the platitudes of Christianity to live in denial as opposed to living by faith. But for those who have truly learned the letting go that faith leads to, Christianity is not a way of using denial to avoid reality, but an acceptance of reality and the idea that sometimes you are doing things we cannot see and may never see in this life. Frankly, part of my hope in heaven is to get to see all that you are doing that I haven’t been able to see.

Father, I often pray for people going through a struggle that you would make their pain count. I’ve asked that you would make my pain count. I’m willing to go through it, but please don’t waste it. Use it to improve me or anyone who touches the situation. Use it to bring us to repentance, to you, and so that your kingdom will come and your will will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen