This parable illustrates Jesus leaving for heaven and entrusting His servants, us believers, with the furtherance of His kingdom while He is away. Each of us has been entrusted with God’s property (talents in the parable refer directly to money, we have been entrusted with money, actual talents and abilities, and opportunities). Each of us is expected to use the opportunities, gifts and abilities that God has given us for the furtherance of His kingdom. This would include sharing the gospel as well as serving in His church. Each of us is given opportunities according to our ability. The master in the parable is gone for a long time. It is long enough that everyone has sufficient time to make the most of the opportunities given them but also so long that some may think that Jesus is never returning and will not hold his servants accountable. When the master did return, he called the servants to account for what they had done with what was entrusted to them. The first two were commended, given more responsibility and invited to join in the joy of their master. The third servant was reprimanded, demoted, and excluded from entering the joy of his master. He made excuses for the fact that he had not done anything with the money entrusted to him. His defence was that at least he still had what had been entrusted to him. He was called wicked and lazy because he had wasted opportunity. He was cast out from the celebration (light) into the outer darkness where he suffered grief because of the opportunities he had lost.

This parable is for believers (all three are servants of the master) who have all been given opportunities. Those who use the opportunities and gifts God has given them will be rewarded and given reward and further opportunities in heaven. Those who waste their opportunities will still be in heaven (because entrance into the kingdom is by faith alone) but will suffer loss and grieve because they did not make use of the opportunities God gave them (according to their ability) during their life. Are you using your life to God’s glory?

Jesus is continuing his instructions for the Jews to be ready for His return after the tribulation. This parable speaks of 10 virgins, perhaps bridesmaids, who would lead the procession of the bridegroom from the bride’s house to his own house for a wedding feast in a traditional Jewish wedding. These bridesmaids had fallen asleep but not all of them had made adequate preparation for the bridegrooms arrival. The parable speaks of a need for spiritual readiness for the return of Christ. When Christ returns there will be no time for last minute preparations. While this parable is a warning for those Jewish believers who will live through the tribulation, we too need to be spiritually ready for when Christ comes to meet us or we go home to be with Him. Our life on earth is the time we have to take the talents and gifts God has given us and multiply them to His glory. None of us know how long we have, let us not waste it on selfish living.

Be watchful: live in anticipation of Christ’s return.
Stand firm in the faith: be rooted in God’s truth.
Be brave “act like men”: Be ready for persecution and opposition.
Be strong: Live in the strength of the Holy Spirit (Eph 3:16).
Let all that you do be done in love: accomplish all these things with an attitude of love.

The household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, the region of which Corinth was the capital. They had devoted themselves to ministering to the church. Paul asked the Corinthians to submit to them as well as everyone else who worked to serve the church along with Paul. We need to submit to those God has placed over His church to serve and lead us. Stephanus and others had ministered directly to Paul and he asks that they be given recognition for doing what the entire church could not do. We cannot all be missionaries or directly support others but we should give recognition to those who go out and minister on our behalf.

Paul would use a scribe for his letters but often ended the letters by writing the final greeting himself. In this greeting, he reminds us that we must live in love for the Lord. This is a reminder for believers not to live causing dissension and division within the church but to live with Christ-centred love for one another.

As Paul concludes his letter, he deals with a few brief issues.

The Jerusalem church was in need of assistance because of their poverty. Paul had asked that every believer in the churches of Galatia give according to their ability and he asked the Corinthian believers to do the same. Paul tells them to set aside a portion of their earnings every week. On the first day of every week strongly suggests they met together on Sundays. This regular setting aside would mean that they could save a significant sum over time rather than frantically looking for something to give at the last minute when Paul arrived. It is wise to set aside a portion of your income to enable you to help others. Planned generosity allows for spontaneous giving much more easily than trying to find money when you haven’t planned. Paul was wise in his dealings with other people’s money. He wasn’t going to take the money to Jerusalem himself but had them arrange a representative so there could be no accusation that Paul had used the money for anything other than what it was intended for.

Paul spoke of his intention to visit them and, while he gave specifics on his plans, they were always loosely held based on, “if the Lord permits.” Proverbs tells us that “A man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps” (Prov 16:9). It is not unwise to plan for your future but we must do it prayerfully and in anticipation that God may alter our path as we live in step with Him.

Paul remained in Ephesus for a while because he recognised a clear opportunity for effective ministry. He mentioned that there were many adversaries. Paul’s attitude seemed to be that when there was strong opposition, that was a sign that the ministry was working and was a reason for him to press on, not run away. When your work for God gets hard, don’t run away from it, but press into God and in His strength, press on with the work.

Paul was sending Timothy to the Corinthian church. That church had a reputation for being a rather difficult bunch so Paul had to remind them to be hospitable to Timothy and to treat him with respect. He reminded them that accepting Timothy was like accepting Paul. Then they were to help him on his way on the next leg of his journey back to Paul. As believers, hospitality should be a core part of who we are. We should welcome all types of people, encourage them, and help them on their way.

The Corinthians had hoped that Apollos (a fellow worker with Paul) would visit them and Paul had urged him to visit them. It was not his (or God’s) will for him to visit at the time of Paul’s writing but Paul did say he would visit them when he had the opportunity.

Not all will die. There will come a time when Jesus returns and the believers who are still alive will be called to Him. Because flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God nor can the perishable inherit the imperishable, something needs to happen to the bodies of those still alive when Jesus returns. At that time, the dead will be raised with imperishable bodies and those alive will be changed and given a body that is free from death and disease. When Paul speaks of a mystery, it refers to something that was not disclosed in the Old Testament but is now revealed.

Paul quotes from Isaiah 25:8 and Hosea 13:14 and says that when Jesus returns these prophecies will be fulfilled. We can all join in praising God because he has given us victory from death through Jesus Christ. Because of this, we should be steadfast and unwavering in our work for the Lord (Eph 2:10). In God our work is never in vain, it will be rewarded at the judgement (Bema) seat of Christ (1 Cor 3:12-15).

God will one day completely remove the effects of sin. He will give us new bodies that are glorious and free from death and disease. If this doesn’t motivate you to live consistently for God, then perhaps you haven’t fully realised what you’ve been given in Christ. Ask God to reveal to you the significance that the gift of resurrection is and to grow anticipation inside you for that glorious future that awaits you.

Not all bodies on earth are the same. There are different kinds of bodies for humans, animals, birds, and fish. There is also a difference in glory between the bodies in the heavens like the sun, moon, and different stars and that compared to the bodies of earth. In the same way, our heavenly bodies will be different from our earthly bodies. Our earthly bodies are sown (die) in corruption and weakness but are raised incorruptible and in power. We will die in a physical body and be raised in a spiritual body. Adam came from dust and became a living body and past his sin nature on to us. The last Adam, Jesus Christ, came from heaven and became a life-giving spirit by offering eternal life to all who believe in Him. He also offers us a transformed, resurrected body that resembles His glorious body.

So many people dislike their bodies for all the wrong reasons. We are surrounded by “perfect” Photoshopped bodies that leave us unhappy with what we look like. Paul tells us the real problem with our bodies is not what they look like (remember God gave you your earthly body as well) but that they are full of the corruption of sin and are dying. We do well to long for new bodies, not bodies that look better, but bodies that are better because they are free of sin and will live forever.

Paul continues his argument for the resurrection by asking why people are being baptised on behalf of the dead if the dead are not raised at all? This is a bit of a confusing verse because it describes an action taken by believers that is not practiced today. It was not commanded here by Paul to be done nor anywhere else in the Bible. The best explanation seems to be that it was a practice the Corinthians did that Paul referenced as another thing that is completely futile if the dead are not raised. Perhaps it was a practice performed by those who denied the resurrection (many false teachings contain internal inconsistencies).

Paul also argues for the resurrection based on how he lives his life constantly in danger from those who threatened his life. Why face persecution for what he believes if this life is all there is. If there is no resurrection it would be better to live your life by the mantra “let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” If there is no resurrection we should make the most of this life. But because there is a resurrection, we dare not spend our lives living for things of passing interest, we must live for eternity, not just for now.

“Bad company ruins good morals” was a quote Paul used to point out that the Corinthians were being deceived because they were spending time with those who taught wrong doctrine. We must be careful who we spend the majority of our time with. Too much time and exposure to those with wrong beliefs will lead us astray. We must wake up and stop sinning. We must make sure we have a right knowledge of God and live for Him.

Some question the resurrection because they cannot comprehend how our dead earthly bodies can be raised. Paul argues that like a seed dies and a plant is raised up, so our earthly bodies die and a new body is given to us. Our heavenly bodies will not be the same, but God will give us a body as He has chosen and it will be more glorious than the body you have now.

Christ has been raised from the dead! As the firstfruits of those who have died, Jesus is like the firstfruits offering of the Old Testament where the early part of the harvest was brought into the temple in praise to God and an indication of the harvest still to come. Jesus’ resurrection anticipates and promises the resurrection of every believer which is still to come. Because Jesus was raised, we will be raised. The first man, Adam, brought death (both physical and spiritual) through his disobedience. Christ brought the resurrection of the dead for all those who believe in Him. The resurrection has an order: first Christ, then when he returns those who belong to Him will rise, and then He will reign in the kingdom age and destroy every rule and every authority and power until all His enemies are in subjection to Him. The final enemy to be destroyed will be death itself. God has put all things under His feet. Jesus will be over everything except God the Father. Everything Christ does is done to the glory of God the Father so that God may be all in all.

Sometimes we live as if this life is all there is—but it isn’t. Jesus will come again. He will raise us and give us glorious bodies like His. And then He will create a new heavens and a new earth where we will live with Him and God will be all in all. What can you do to be more eternity minded?

Having given the eye-witness testimony of the resurrection of Jesus, Paul now addresses this accusation that there is no resurrection. If all these eye-witnesses have said that Jesus was raised from the dead, how can some say there is no resurrection? Because if there is no resurrection from the dead, then Christ could not be risen. And if Christ is not risen then all preaching is empty and without meaning and so is our faith. Paul would be a liar who had misrepresented God because he preached that God had raised up Christ when He couldn’t have if there is no resurrection of the dead. The bottom line is that if Christ has not been raised, then our faith is pointless because we are still in our sins. Christ’s virgin birth, all the prophecies fulfilled, many miracles, and His cruel death on the cross is meaningless without the resurrection. It is the resurrection that proves that He conquered death and that His death paid for our sins. If there is no resurrection, then all those believers who have died are just dead. If we only live with the hope of Christ for this life and not eternity, then we of all people should be most pitied. This is the argument made by many an atheist, that Christianity is just a crutch for those who can’t get by in life. If Christ was not raised, then they are right and Christianity is no better than any other coping mechanism we might use to get through life. But Christ is risen and all who die will be raised. We need more than a crutch because we can’t fix our sin problem on our own, we need an empty cross.

Paul begins to address an issue where some had begun to believe that there was no resurrection of the dead. He begins by reminding them of the gospel that he preached and which they received (believed). It is also the gospel by which they are being saved. Salvation for eternal life is an instantaneous, once-off thing, also called justification. The moment you believe, you are saved (John 5:24). But the gospel is also the means by which we are sanctified daily if we hold fast (or abide in) the word. All of this is only true if what they believed in is valid, so Paul goes on to reaffirm the gospel and how it is grounded in the resurrection.

The gospel Paul preached was that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures (Isa 53:10-12) which was confirmed when He was buried. He was raised again on the third day according to the Scriptures (Ps 16:10) which was confirmed by many witnesses. He was first seen by Cephas (Peter) and also by the twelve disciples (Judas replaced by Matthias). Then Jesus appeared to more than five hundred people at the same time. At the time of Paul’s writing, some of those had died but most were still alive and these eyewitnesses of the resurrection would be able to verify what Paul was claiming. Jesus also appeared to James (His brother and the leader of the Jerusalem church) and to the other apostles. These would be others than the twelve but qualified to be apostles because they had been with Christ during His ministry on earth, perhaps some of the 72 (Luke 10:1-12). Last of all Paul himself had seen the risen Christ though he considered himself unworthy to be called an apostle because he had persecuted the church of God. Paul was unable to forget that terrible blemish on his life but it showed God’s grace much more clearly. And God’s grace towards him was not in vain because he worked harder than anyone, yet still, it was not his own efforts but God working through him. Ultimately Paul was not concerned who received the credit in ministry, only that the gospel was preached and people believed.

Paul provided multiple eye witness accounts of Jesus’ resurrection which his readers of the time could have verified. Therefore they had not believed in vain, because Christ has risen indeed. By God’s grace, we have been given a gift. Do you take that gift for granted, or are you like Paul and compelled by God’s grace to serve Him?