Ask the Five Hundred

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1 Corinthians 15:3-8 “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.”

Think

It is the fourth quarter of the homecoming game, and your team is down by two touchdowns with three minutes left. Then the whole thing flips. An onside kick. A sixty-yard pass. An interception returned for a touchdown with seconds on the clock. The stands are shaking. On Monday, a kid who left at halftime says, “No way. That didn’t happen.” Everybody in the hallway laughs, because hundreds of people were there. You do not have to win that argument by yourself. You just point to the bleachers.

That is a lot like what Paul is doing in this passage. Some people in the city of Corinth had started to doubt whether the dead really rise. So Paul goes back to the most important thing he ever told them, the center of the whole Christian faith, and he does something surprising. He gives them a list of witnesses.

Christ died for our sins, Paul says. He was buried. He was raised on the third day. And then he appeared: to Peter, whom Paul calls Cephas, to the Twelve, to more than five hundred people at one time, to James, to all the apostles, and finally to Paul himself.

Look closely at one phrase: “most of whom are still living.” Paul wrote this letter a little more than twenty years after Jesus rose. That is like someone today talking about something that happened in the early 2000s. Plenty of people who were there are still around. Paul is basically saying, “Don’t just take my word for it. Go ask them.” You do not invite people to interview your witnesses if you made the whole thing up.

Also notice that Paul says he is passing on what he himself “received.” Many historians believe this short list was already something Christians were memorizing and repeating within just a few years of the resurrection. Legends usually take generations to grow. This message was being said out loud almost immediately, while the people who could have proven it false were still alive.

Then there is James. James was one of Jesus’ younger brothers, and during Jesus’ ministry, he did not believe in him. Think about that for a second. Imagine someone you grew up with, someone you shared a bathroom and a dinner table with, claiming to be the Son of God. It would take a lot to convince you. Yet after the resurrection, James became a leader of the church in Jerusalem and eventually died for his faith. Something happened to James. Paul tells you what it was: Jesus appeared to him.

The same is true for the rest of the disciples. These were men who ran and hid when Jesus was arrested. Only weeks later, they were standing in public, telling the same city that had crucified Jesus that he was alive. People will suffer for something they believe is true. But nobody willingly suffers for something they know they invented.

Paul calls this message “of first importance.” Everything else in Christianity hangs on it. If Jesus stayed dead, he was a good teacher with a sad ending. If he rose, then everything he said about himself, and everything he said about you, is true.

Hundreds of people were in the stands. Many of them were still around to be asked. And the story they told has made it, generation after generation, all the way to you.

Apply

Make the list – Reread 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 and write down every person or group Paul says Jesus appeared to. Next to your list, write one sentence about which witness surprises you most and why.

Pray

Jesus, I believe you’re alive, but sometimes it’s hard to feel sure. Thank you for real people who saw you and told the truth even when it cost them everything. Make my faith as solid as theirs. Help me to live like you really rose from the dead, because you did. In Jesus’ name. Amen.