As background to this verse, apparently members of the church in Corinth were telling people that it is not possible for a person to be raised from the dead (possibly in following with the Greek philosophy of the day that the spirit leaves the body upon death never to return). At the basic level, this seems like a perfectly intelligent statement. Except for the fact that it conflicts with one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith. Paul claims that if no one can be raised from the dead then Jesus could not have been either. If Jesus was not resurrected then not only is our faith futile, but we are also spreading lies about God. Paul concludes with the idea that if Christians only have hope in Jesus for this lifetime then they are to be pitied more than anyone. Paul goes on to reassure everyone that this whole line of thinking is ridiculous based on all the evidence of Christianity.
Today’s verse is the mirror image of an idea expressed in many places throughout the Bible (such as the last post): Christians are to live to God’s standard which can not be understood by this world. However this new perspective (if Christianity is a lie then Christians are the most pitiful of all people) opened up a different line of thinking for me. We should be invested in this lifestyle so much that non-Christians should pity us. Pity, as defined by Dictionary.com, is “sympathetic or kindly sorrow evoked by the suffering, distress, or misfortune of another, often leading one to give relief or aid or to show mercy.” Now I’m not saying that you better be suffering otherwise you’re not doing it right. But what hit me is the question “Are my actions so skewed towards God’s thinking that other people are taking notice in a big way? Do my non-believing friends want to hold an intervention for me because they think I’m taking this ‘Jesus-thing’ too far?” I don’t want pity. I just want to make sure I’m doing it right.
If “taking this Jesus-thing too far” means you’re trying to lead God instead of follow him:
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