1 Corinthians 15:16

False witnesses - As having testified the fact of Christ’s resurrection, as a matter which ourselves had witnessed, when we knew that we bore testimony to a falsehood. But could five hundred persons agree in this imposition? And if they did, is it possible that some one would not discover the cheat, when he could have no interest in keeping the secret, and might greatly promote his secular interest by making the discovery? Such a case never occurred, and never can occur. The testimony, therefore, concerning the resurrection of Christ, is incontrovertibly true.

OUR religion is not based upon opinions, but upon facts. We hear persons sometimes saying, "Those are your views, and these are ours." Whatever your "views" may be, is a small matter—what are the facts of the case? We must, after all, if we want a firm foundation, come down to matters of fact.

OUR religion is not based upon opinions, but upon facts. We hear persons sometimes saying, "Those are your views, and these are ours." Whatever your "views" may be, is a small matter—what are the facts of the case? We must, after all, if we want a firm foundation, come down to matters of fact. Now, the great facts of the Gospel are that God was Incarnate in Christ Jesus, that He lived, here, a life of holiness and love, that He died upon the Cross for our sins, that He was buried in the tomb of Joseph, that the third day He rose, again, from the dead, that after a while He ascended to His Father's Throne where He now sits—and that He shall come, by-and-by, to be our Judge—and in that day the dead in Christ shall rise by virtue of their union with Him. Now, very soon, within the Church of God, there rose up persons who began to dispute the fundamental and cardinal principles of the faith—and it is so even now. When those outside the Church deny that Christ is the Son of God, deny His atoning Sacrifice and deny His Resurrection, we are not at all astonished. They are unbelievers, and they are acting out their own profession. But when men inside the Church of God call themselves Christians and yet deny the resurrection of the dead, then is our soul stirred within us, for it is a most solemn and serious evil to doubt those holy Truths of God. They know not what they do, they cannot see all the result of their unbelief! If they could, one would think that they would start back with horror and let the Truth of God stand where it ought to stand, where God has put it.

For if the dead rise not ... - This is a repetition of what is said in 1Co 15:13. It is repeated here, evidently, because of its importance. It was a great and momentous truth which would “bear” repetition, that if there was no resurrection, as some held, then it would follow that the Lord Jesus was not raised up.