Notice again the repeating phrase in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NIV:
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NIV
Sometimes a newscaster will tell a portion of a story in advance to create interest. He will "leak the details" of that story to heighten the audience's engagement with what is coming up in the future. In the Old Testament, God repeatedly leaked the details of the gospel, telling the story in advance.
We saw this truth through the story of Adam and Eve and the animal sacrificed to save them, the lamb killed to clothe them. Their story illustrates the first point of the gospel: "that Christ died for our sins," according to the Scriptures.
Now we come to the second point of the gospel, that Christ "was raised on the third day," and again, this truth is "according to the Scriptures." Jesus said, "in the volume of the Book, it is written of me" (Hebrews 10:7).
Let us examine one portion of Scripture to which Jesus was referring. Jesus called this portion of Scripture a sign that pointed forward to Him:
"For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth"
Matthew 12:40 NIV
This story begins with the Prophet Jonah attempting to run from the presence of the Lord because he did not like the assignment God gave him. Jonah boarded a boat going in the opposite direction of where he was supposed to go, and the Lord brought a great and terrible storm upon that boat.
Thinking they were all going to perish, Jonah volunteered to die for the sailors on the boat, telling them, "Pick me up and throw me into the sea, and it will become calm."
How like Jesus Jonah was in that moment! Jesus saw the entire world in sin, about to be destroyed by the storm of God's wrath, and He volunteered to be thrown overboard out of heaven to save us.
As Jonah sank into the depths of the sea, the Bible is careful to record that "seaweed was wrapped around his head" (Jonah 2:5), painting the picture of a man dying for others with a crown on his head.
But then, God sent a whale to swallow Jonah and keep him alive, and on the third day, the whale spat Jonah out on dry land. The one who had volunteered to die to save a boatload of Gentiles, who wore the crown on his head, was now raised up and shown to be alive on the third day.
"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures"
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NIV
The Bible considers the truth of the gospel to be "of first importance," and God has given you evidence to consider. Now, put faith in that message, believing Jesus volunteered to die in your place, wore a crown of thorns on the cross for you, and was raised again on the third day.
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life"
John 3:16 NIV
Question 1. Imagine that you are one of those on the boat (unbelieving, idolatrous, afraid, under the wrath of God), and one (Jonah) steps forward who volunteers to go overboard so that everything will be calm for you. Consider, and then from that perspective, share how Jesus saved you through His death and resurrection.
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