Yesterday I posted some thoughts on how I handled 1 Corinthians 15:50-58 and how I viewed this concluding section as Paul’s song of hope which was the result of the implications of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In short, Paul didn’t just want his readers to know something…he wanted them to feel somthing as well!
Today I want to finish up this thread with a glance at the final two verses. Not only does everyone sing now, everyone sings now with gratitude. In verse 57, Paul writes, “But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57, NLT) This hope that we celebrate comes as a gift to us. We didn’t earn it, and we certainly didn’t deserve it. It’s 100% grace. So we sing our songs of hope, but with a tinge of humble gratitude recognizing that all we have in Christ presently and in the future is all of God’s grace.
Everyone sings now with humble gratitude. But there’s one more thought that Paul leaves us with in verse 58. “So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.” (1 Corinthians 15:58, NLT)
In other words, our song of joyful hope is sung with the conviction that our lives are not vain or empty. We are not wasting our breath or our time. Our lives lived in the Lord are not wasted or useless. It all matters and everything counts. Today we sing of a victory to come. Someday we’ll sing of a victory complete. In the moments in between we live and sing with conviction because our final hope belongs to us now.
