"If...But...Believe"
1 Corinthians 15 (NASB)
1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;7 then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;8 and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.9 For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.12 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised;14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised.16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised;17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christs at His coming,24 then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.26 The last enemy that will be abolished is death.27 For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, All things are put in subjection, it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.28 When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all.29 Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?30 Why are we also in danger every hour?31 I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.32 If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, LET US EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE.33 Do not be deceived: Bad company corrupts good morals.34 Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.35 But someone will say, How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?36 You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies;37 and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else.38 But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own.39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish.40 There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body;43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.45 So also it is written, The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual.47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven.48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly.49 Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.50 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.54 But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory.55 O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law;57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.
John 20 (NASB)
1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb.2 So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.4 The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first;5 and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in.6 And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there,7 and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.10 So the disciples went away again to their own homes.11 But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb;12 and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying.13 And they said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? She said to them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.15 Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.16 Jesus said to her, Mary! She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, Rabboni! (which means, Teacher).17 Jesus said to her, Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.18 Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, I have seen the Lord, and that He had said these things to her.19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, Peace be with you.20 And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.21 So Jesus said to them again, Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.23 If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.25 So the other disciples were saying to him, We have seen the Lord! But he said to them, Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, Peace be with you.27 Then He said to Thomas, Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.28 Thomas answered and said to Him, My Lord and my God!29 Jesus said to him, Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;7 then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;8 and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.9 For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.12 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised;14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised.16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised;17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christs at His coming,24 then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.26 The last enemy that will be abolished is death.27 For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, All things are put in subjection, it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.28 When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all.29 Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?30 Why are we also in danger every hour?31 I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.32 If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, LET US EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE.33 Do not be deceived: Bad company corrupts good morals.34 Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.35 But someone will say, How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?36 You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies;37 and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else.38 But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own.39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish.40 There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body;43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.45 So also it is written, The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual.47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven.48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly.49 Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.50 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.54 But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory.55 O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law;57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.
John 20 (NASB)
1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb.2 So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.4 The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first;5 and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in.6 And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there,7 and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.10 So the disciples went away again to their own homes.11 But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb;12 and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying.13 And they said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? She said to them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.15 Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.16 Jesus said to her, Mary! She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, Rabboni! (which means, Teacher).17 Jesus said to her, Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.18 Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, I have seen the Lord, and that He had said these things to her.19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, Peace be with you.20 And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.21 So Jesus said to them again, Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.23 If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.25 So the other disciples were saying to him, We have seen the Lord! But he said to them, Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, Peace be with you.27 Then He said to Thomas, Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.28 Thomas answered and said to Him, My Lord and my God!29 Jesus said to him, Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.