Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?  (16) For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen.  (17) And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!  (18) Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.  (19) If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.  (20) But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

The Apostle Paul wrote this first letter to the Corinthians to correct the early Christians there and to clarify and remind them of the foundational doctrines he had taught them.   Paul wrote the first 11 verses of Chapter 15 to establish  direct evidence of the resurrection of Jesus by citing Scripture and remind his readers of eyewitnesses to the resurrected Christ:  Jesus appeared to Peter and to a gathering of more than 500 people – many of whom were still alive; to James , the half brother of Jesus; to the disciples and also to Paul.  Now, the Apostle Paul proceeds to argue that because Jesus had risen, it must follow that His people would also rise from the dead.  If it is impossible and absurd that the dead will rise, it is impossible and absurd to think that Christ has risen.   If there is a denial that Christ has risen then there is a denial if Christianity altogether.

Paul follows this by saying that if Christ were not raised up His followers are unpardoned sinners.  If Christ was not raised up He was an imposter and our hopes of forgiveness are  in vain.    If the resurrection of Christ were not true, all Christians who had died had failed of salvation and had been destroyed – their bodies lie in graves and will turn to dust and their souls are destroyed.   All are delusional with their hopes in vain.  This unbelief strikes at the heart of our convictions of what is right and true.  And we of all men are to be pitied.

But now is Christ risen and of this Paul is certain. He has presented irrefutable testimony of the resurrection of Jesus and he, Paul, has seen the risen Christ.   Christ is not merely the first in the order of resurrection but first of the risen of all the dead.