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The Most Miserable People in the World

The reality of Christ’s resurrection means everything.

Introduction

I have two groups of people standing here with me. The people on my right are not perfect, but they are all convinced Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and they have made a personal and decisive commitment to follow him. They don't always live up to this commitment fully, but they are serious about moving in this direction. These people find themselves in a daily battle with what the Bible calls sin. It is a struggle, but they find that God is helping them. They are deeply convinced that at the point of death their souls will go into the presence of Christ, and they also are deeply convinced that at some future point in history Christ will return and raise their bodies from the dead, like the body of Jesus. These people are different from each other, but they have all made a life commitment to know and serve and follow Jesus Christ.

I'm going to let these folks introduce themselves to you. They're not using their own names; they are simply representing characters to whom we can relate:

"Hi, I'm Pete. I've been a Christian for five years, and I don't find it easy to live out my faith, because I don't always want to go God's way. So there's a struggle inside of me. But I do know Christ is with me, so I keep pressing on."

"Hi, my name is Jane. I'm 45 years old. I have been attending churches for years, but it never really made a difference in my life until last year. A friend told me that if Christ is alive then there must be a possibility to know him. That was the start of a new adventure of faith."

"Hi, I'm Todd. When I look back on my life, I can see there was a lot Christ needed to straighten out. I was a self-centered person, and there was clutter in my life. When I came to faith in Christ five years ago, I discovered God could give me a new start and the strength to change."

"Hi, I'm Mary. I've been serving the Lord for 40 years, but the best part of my life still lies ahead. Being a Christian has helped me look to the future, because God promises everlasting life with Christ to all who believe."

On my left we have some folks who represent another point of view. These folks are not perfect either, and they have had a bad experience with religion. Some of them have seen hypocrisy, and that has made it difficult for them to put their faith in Jesus Christ. Some have spent a lot of time in church. Some have been in youth groups. They've heard sermons. They've been brought along to church by parents. Yet they have not come to the point of making a personal commitment of faith to Jesus Christ.

Again, I'd like for them to introduce themselves:

"Hi, I'm Dave. I've been coming to church for about 10 years, and I enjoy it. I've heard a lot of sermons, but I've never felt I needed to make a commitment."

"Hi, I'm Joanne. I'm here because it's Easter and some friends invited me, but I don't find church easy. I have a lot of questions about faith, and I don't see how anyone can suggest that only people who follow Jesus will be in heaven some day."

"Hi, I'm Steve. I've spent a lot of time thinking about the end of the world and whether there's anything after death. I've come to the conclusion that nobody can know. I don't have a lot of time for organized religion, but my personal belief is if you do your best to do a good job, you don't have to worry."

"Hi, I'm Susan. I'm comfortable with my life right now. There may come a time when I need Jesus in my life, but that time is not now. I don't want to make a commitment that will tie me down. I want to be free to make my own decisions."

The first thing I want to do is say a few words to you folks who believe Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, and have made a commitment to serve him: What if you are wrong? What if Jesus Christ has not actually risen from the dead? When it comes to the central claim of Christianity that Jesus Christ rose from the dead there are only two possibilities: either he did this thing or he did not do this thing. I want to look honestly at this first scenario, a theoretical possibility that Jesus may not have risen from the dead.

If Christ has not risen from the dead, our faith is futile.

Some people are so addicted to religion, they will tell you that even if Christianity is not true, the Christian faith is still the best way to live. You've probably heard people say things like this: "Even if it turned out Jesus Christ did not rise from the dead and there was no such place as heaven, I would still have no regrets about living the Christian life." You might have said that yourself at some point.

I want you to notice that in 1 Corinthians 15, the apostle Paul absolutely disagrees with that position. He says in verse 19, "If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men." If Christ has not risen, folks who believe he has are the most miserable people in the world. If Christ has not risen, folks like you are a bunch of sad cases.

Paul gives four reasons for this rather striking conclusion. First he says in verse 17, "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile." It's useless. You think it will deliver something to you, but if Christ has not risen, it doesn't. It can't.

Christians build their lives around the conviction that if you have faith in Christ, God does something in your life and makes you a new person and will eventually welcome you into everlasting life. But Paul is quite clear that if Christ has not risen, that is a fallacy. You've trusted a lie. You've staked everything on something that has no substance, and that's sad. If Christ has not risen, folks who believe he has are playing a mind game. They talk about trusting Christ, but if Christ has not risen, there is no Christ to trust.

When the drug companies develop a new product, they run tests with two groups of people. They give one group the new tablets, and they give the other group an identical-looking product that is a dummy. They do this for a simple reason: the mind is powerful, and some people feel that because they've taken a tablet they are better, although the tablet has no substance that could change the body. It's all in their minds.

If Christ has not risen, Christians are like people who say they feel better after taking a dummy tablet. They are confessing some change that has no substantial basis. Like the dummy drug, such faith would not do anything except within the individual minds of these people.

Christians think faith saves them, but if Christ has not risen, faith does nothing outside their own imagination. If Christ has not risen, all that has happened is that church music has made them more cheerful; Christian friends have made them more hopeful; A brighter outlook on life has made them more thankful. If Christ has not risen, what they think God has done is nothing more than a figment of their imagination, and that's sad. If Christ has not risen, we are the most miserable people in the world.

If Christ has not risen from the dead, we would still be in sin.

The apostle Paul gives a second reason that Christians are the most miserable people in the world if Christ has not risen: If Christ has not risen, we are the most miserable people in the world, not only because our faith would be useless, but also because we would still be in our sin.

Our culture is awash with new spiritualities and new religions. The most important question to ask of any religion is, "How will this teaching deal with my sins?"

I sometimes ask this question when I'm watching Oprah Winfrey, especially if she has a new spiritual teacher who's telling us how life should be lived, what kind of meditation we should practice, and what it will do for us: What will this do about my sins? The usual answer seems to be that sin is not an issue. If sin is not an issue in this new teaching, you know it is diametrically opposed to the Bible and to Christianity, because the central issue you need to deal with before you can enjoy a relationship with God is sin.

This is important, because all you Christians are worried about your sins. It's why you've come to Jesus Christ. For you, sin is an issue. But if Christ has not risen, you are still in your sins. You have staked your eternal destiny on a man who, it turns out, died 2,000 years ago and can do no more for you than Julius Caesar or Alexander the Great. Your problem is even worse, because by your profession of faith in Jesus, you have actually added to your sins. If Christ has not risen, people like you have been praying to Almighty God in the name of a man who died 2,000 years ago. That's blasphemy. You have put a man in the place of God. Frankly, it would be better if you lived an entirely secular life under these circumstances.

So if Christ has not risen, you're the most miserable people in the world.

If Christ has not risen from the dead, we hold onto false hope.

Thirdly, if Christ has not risen, Christians are the most miserable people in the world because they are holding to a false hope. Look at verse 18: If Christ is not risen, "then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost."

Many of you have stood at the grave of a loved one, and those who are Christians have drawn comfort from the conviction that the person they love is now in the presence of Jesus Christ. But Paul is brutally honest here. He is saying if Christ has not risen, it is false hope. For if even Jesus wasn't raised, there is no hope whatsoever that anyone else is going to make it into everlasting life. If Christ has not risen, they are simply lost, and you folks are living in denial.

Some people think even false hope is better than no hope. The truth is, false hope is the saddest thing in the world.

One of the privileges of being a pastor is getting to walk with people through painful times in their lives. I had that privilege with a young missionary several years ago. She had married a Rwandan pastor, a Tutsi, and they had established their home in that country. She had gone on a short trip to Kenya on her own when the awful Rwandan tragedy erupted. Hutu militia moved in from the north, butchering people wherever they went. The militia came to the area of their home, and anarchy reigned. It was impossible for this lady to return to her home. The borders were closed, and the situation was chaotic.

Eventually, she came back to England and waited for good news. The church surrounded her with love and prayer. Days turned to weeks, and we heard nothing. She told me many times she had an absolute conviction her husband was alive. The more certain she became about that, the more concerned I was about her. There was only a slim chance of that being a reality. I tried as a pastor to say some words to open the door to the possibility that her husband might already be with the Lord, but she couldn't hear these words. To her, they sounded as if her pastor lacked faith.

It was months before we heard news, but then there was a firm report. Someone had seen him taken and shot. The news was absolutely devastating. The pain of the loss was bad enough, but the false hope made it a hundred times worse.

Every person who has been by the bedside of a loved one and has seen them rally, only to see them decline, knows what I'm talking about. Don't ever say hope is a good thing even if it's not real.

The apostle Paul is saying if Christ has not risen, you are the most miserable people in the world, because you've staked your whole lives on a hope that will ultimately prove to be false. There cannot be any worse way to live than that.

If Christ has not risen from the dead, we are wasting our lives.

Finally, if Christ has not risen, believers are the most miserable people in the world because they are wasting their lives. If Christ has not risen, you're wasting your life, because "if only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men" (verse 19).

Paul must have written these words with passion. He had paid a high price for following Christ. On five occasions he was flogged with 39 lashes. On three occasions he was beaten with rods. On one occasion he was stoned. Three times he was shipwrecked. He had been in and out of prison and lived in constant danger. That was his life. Why? This man was a brilliant academic. He could have had a comfortable life as a lecturer in a rabbinic school with a good salary and the respect of the Jewish community. Why did he endure this incredible suffering? One reason: for the sake of Christ. Paul says: If Christ is not risen, I've endured all this for the sake of a dead man and a lost cause. That simply isn't worth it.

The Christian life is so hard that if Jesus Christ has not risen, it isn't worth it. The Christians in Corinth had not been persecuted, but the apostle Paul says to them, "If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men." They may not have been persecuted, as most of us have not been persecuted physically, but all of them made costly commitments to Jesus Christ.

If there is no resurrection, then the cost of your commitment to Jesus is merely a register of your mistaken choices. If Christ has not risen, you have fought battles with sin, you have struggled, and you need never have bothered. You have prayed, and it's been like sending letters that never arrived. If Christ is not risen, you have given money you could have saved and enjoyed. If Christ has not risen, you've spent hours in service for a cause that amounts to nothing.

When people say they think the Christian life would be a good thing even if there had been no resurrection, I wonder if they've never actually taken up the cross and done anything that is costly for Christ. Jesus said, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Real Christians know it costs to follow Christ, and if Christ hasn't risen, it simply isn't worth it.

How many times have you heard this phrase: "I'm really glad your faith works for you"? When a person says that, what they mean is that it doesn't matter whether Christianity is true or not; all that matters is it's a positive experience for people like you. Paul absolutely disagrees. If Christ has not risen, your faith is an emotional crutch. It is unhealthy, and it is a miserable thing to build your whole life around something false. If Christianity is not true, it is not a positive personal experience; it's actually a dangerous delusion. If Christ has not risen, folks like you are the most miserable people in the world. There are many who would agree with that assessment, and that is why they have not come to Christ. They have not believed because they perceive that Christians are the most miserable people in the world. If Christ has not risen, that position would be justified. That's what the apostle says in the Bible with great honesty. There's no special pleading, no "We must keep the church going at all costs. We must keep pastors in jobs. We must prop up Christianity in the West." Christianity stands or falls on its claim that it is true. If it is not true, integrity demands that we shut down the whole operation. If Christ has not risen, there is no validity for what we are doing. If Christ has not risen, I quit. There are easier ways to live this life.

But Christ has indeed risen from the dead.

Look at verse 20. The apostle Paul, having painstakingly made his point clear that everything stands or falls on whether or not Christ was raised, declares, "But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead." He does not paint this second scenario as a possibility; he declares it as a fact. In the Bible God confronts us with a message. My task as a preacher is to say to all who will hear: the Word of God to you is Jesus Christ has risen!

If Christ was not raised from the dead, Christianity falls apart. We would all be the most miserable people in the world. But this is the declaration: Christ has indeed been raised from the dead. Jesus, who claimed to be the Son of God, was crucified, dead and buried, and on the third day he rose. The tomb was empty. He was no longer there. He lives in the power of a new life. He is alive.

What does this declaration actually mean? It means your faith has substance. You're not believing in nothing. You've placed your trust in One who lives. When you pray, he hears you. When you worship, it brings joy to his heart. You have placed your trust in the living Lord Jesus Christ, and those who trust in him will never be put to shame. It means your sins are forgiven. Jesus Christ not only died for our sins, but he was raised again for our justification. That means God accepted his sacrifice, and what he did is big enough, great enough, and good enough to cover all your sins and the sins of everyone who will confess and put their trust in Jesus.

The Resurrection means you have a certain hope. It means that when you talk about heaven, you're talking about something that is going to happen, for you are going to see Jesus Christ. He's alive. It means costly discipleship is the greatest investment of your life. That's what Paul says in verse 58: "Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." When following Christ becomes costly for you, it is the greatest investment opportunity of your life, because Christ is alive.

Now, I have to say something to all of those who would identify with the position of not yet having come to a clear commitment to Jesus: Christ has indeed been raised from the dead. That means unbelief is the most futile thing in the world. If faith was just a mind game, taking a position of unbelief would be a reasonable thing to do. But since Christ has risen, unbelief becomes ridiculous. Unbelief in the face of the risen Christ is futile. The reluctance of people to believe in the risen Christ will not change the fact that the risen Christ is seated on the throne in heaven with all authority, calling men and women to obedience and faith under him. All over the world, people are doing this in response to Jesus Christ. Staying in a position of unbelief in the light of the Resurrection is futile.

Those who take a position of unbelief are going to have to face up to the fact that they're still in their sin. Christ has risen. That means you are going to have to stand one day in the presence of God. You're accountable to the Lord who made you, who is risen from the dead. Your guilt could be washed away, but it is not washed away, because you have stood at a distance from Jesus Christ. Why stand at a distance from him any longer? He's risen.

If you don't believe, you are holding onto false hope. Those who have taken this position are cherishing the hope that there will be no consequences to their unbelief. If Christianity were just a mind game, you would be right. But Christ has risen. That means he's coming again, and one day we will stand before him, accountable for our failure to believe, our refusal to repent, and our unwillingness to offer our lives in service to the King.

Perhaps the greatest tragedy we need to face in light of the Resurrection is that those who hold the position of unbelief are wasting their lives. The risen Christ comes to every person and offers you the greatest opportunity of your life. You can invest your life in eternity, but by this passive reluctance to make a commitment to Christ, the years are passing you by, and your life is wasting away. You're missing its greatest purpose. By your continuing to ponder over questions, you are refusing to believe. By refusing to believe, you are missing the greatest opportunity of your life.

Those who stand at a distance from the risen Christ are the most miserable people in the world.

Conclusion

You need to make the move. You need to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. You need to come to Christ. If you do, your faith will not be futile. It will be the strongest thing in the world. As you do, your sins will be forgiven. You will have the hope and the certainty of everlasting life. You will see Jesus, and you will be with him forever. As you believe, you will begin to grasp the greatest opportunity of life, the opportunity that God in Christ offers to you today. Christ has indeed risen from the dead.

Colin Smith is senior pastor of Arlington Heights Evangelical Free Church in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Colin Smith

Preaching Today Tape # 236

www.PreachingTodaySermons.com

A resource of Christianity Today International

Colin Smith is pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

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Sermon Outline:

Introduction

I have two groups of people standing here with me:

I. If Christ has not risen from the dead, our faith would be futile.

II. If Christ has not risen from the dead, we would still be in sin.

III. If Christ has not risen from the dead, we would be holding onto false hope.

IV. If Christ has not risen from the dead, we would be wasting our lives.

V. Christ has indeed risen from the dead.