1 Corinthians 15:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.

NIV: Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles,

NASB: then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;

CSB: Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.

NLT: Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles.

KJV: After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.

NKJV: After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.

To believe in the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus from the dead has never required blind—"evidence-free"—faith. When Paul wrote these words in the first century, evidence of Christ's resurrection was even easier to encounter. Yes, it is necessary to believe in the resurrection of Jesus in order to believe the entire gospel and be saved. The difference between now and then was that those who really wanted to know about the resurrection could interview those who saw Jesus alive again with their own eyes. The people of the early Christian church had access to those who walked and talked with Jesus both before and after His death on the cross.

Paul is building a list of who that includes. He has added Peter, the other disciples, another 500 people, most of whom were still living. He then includes James, Jesus' half-brother, and the rest of the apostles. Since Paul already mentioned the 12 disciples, later known as apostles, the "apostles" he references here must have described another group of leaders in the early church.

That's a lot of people who saw Jesus alive after He was dead and buried.

First Corinthians 15:1–11 describes the gospel as it was delivered to Paul and as he delivered it to the Corinthians. It begins with the death of Christ on the cross for our sins, but it continues to His burial and, significantly, His resurrection. The alive-again Christ appeared to many people still alive at the time Paul wrote his letter. Paul establishes that the Corinthians believed the gospel, including faith in the physical resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Paul will connect that faith to belief in the resurrection of all believers from the dead.

Paul provides thorough teaching about the resurrection of Christians from the dead. This is a direct counter to some group of Corinthians who did not believe in such a resurrection. He shows that natural death is not the end of life for Christians; it is the last step before receiving a glorified, resurrected body like that of the risen Christ. That ''spiritual'' body will be as different from our current bodies as a star is from a fish. In that moment, for all who have believed in Christ, living and dead, death will be defeated for good.

In chapters 12, 13, and 14, Scripture focused on the concept of spiritual gifts and how best to use them. This follows several other ideas where Paul corrected errors in the Corinthians' thinking. Chapter 15 contains extensive teaching on one last issue about which some Corinthians were confused or misled. Apparently, they harbored some doubts about the physical resurrection of Christians from the dead. After clearing up these confusions, Paul will address various other items, of a less doctrinal nature, and close out his letter.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.