Paul goes to great lengths in 1 Cor. 15 to establish that Jesus rose physically from the grave. There was continuity between the body that was put in the tomb and the one that came out. Paul says that this is the foundation for everything we believe as Christians, and it is the basis for our hope that we too shall be raised physically. These things he says are of first importance, Paul says. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then our faith is in vain. We have no hope in the future, and we are wasting our time here this morning. There are growing numbers of people who think that this is a complete waste of time. But, if Jesus did in fact rise from the dead, that changes everything. This is why Paul goes to such lengths to establish eyewitness testimony to the resurrected Jesus.
That is what Easter is all about. Jesus was crucified and died on the cross. He was buried in a borrowed tomb, but on the third day that tomb was found empty. It was empty for good reason, because Jesus had risen from the dead. He appeared physically numerous times, to hundreds of people. He walked and talked. He ate and drank. People saw him, heard him, and touched him. Because Jesus rose from the dead, we can have assurance that we will rise from the dead. It will be a bodily resurrection. But what will our resurrection bodies be like? Paul tries to answer that question in 1 Cor. 15.