Friday: Further Thought – The Power of Christ’s Resurrection
Daily Lesson for Friday 21st of August 2026
Further Thought:
Read Ellen G. White, “God’s People Delivered,” Pages 635–652, in The Great Controversy.
Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
“The divinity of Christ is the believer’s assurance of eternal life. ‘He that believeth in Me,’ said Jesus, ‘though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. Believest thou this?’ Christ here looks forward to the time of His second coming. Then the righteous dead shall be raised incorruptible, and the living righteous shall be translated to heaven without seeing death. The miracle which Christ was about to perform, in raising Lazarus from the dead, would represent the resurrection of all the righteous dead.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 530.
“The earth mightily shook as the voice of the Son of God called forth the sleeping saints. They responded to the call and came forth clothed with glorious immortality, crying, ‘Victory, victory, over death and the grave! O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?’ (See 1 Corinthians 15:55.) Then the living saints and the risen ones raised their voices in a long transporting shout of victory. Those bodies that had gone down into the grave bearing the marks of disease and death came up in immortal health and vigor. The living saints are changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and caught up with the risen ones, and together they meet their Lord in the air. Oh, what a glorious meeting! Friends whom death had separated were united, never more to part.”—Ellen G. White, The Story of Redemption, Pages 411, 412.
Discussion Questions
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This week’s Sabbath School Study has special meaning for me. My Mother-in-Law, Shirley, died about 3 months ago and due to family circumstances, we have been unable to have a memorial service until today. Shirley was a month short of 99 years old when she died. She lived in the hope of the resurrection. For the last 4 years she has been in care but she was always bright and cheerful, and wore her hope of the resurrection high on her sleeve. She was like a ray of sunshine in Alton Lodge.
I think I have told you that Carmel has been involved in our local U3A Ukulele strummers group. Carmel, like her mother, lives in the hope of the resurrection and breathes Christianity and love. Of their own volition, the group have offered to come and play at Shirley’s memorial. They don’t know Shirley, but they know and love Carmel.
So today’s memorial is going to be a great celebration. The family will be joined by the Ukulele players, most of whom are not Seventh-day Adventists, and they will share in our hope for the resurrection as we celebrate the life of a wonderful Christian woman who has lived in the hope for 99 years. I will let you imagine what “Abide with Me” will sound like when sung by some very old people with good voices, accompanied by twenty ukuleles. It is going to be a hoot made for heaven.
We can argue about the theology of the resurrection, but our hope must be lived in the present and shared with others by our actions.
Hi Ashton clan.
Me to thee. E squared.
Eternal equation.
Blessings. Reneanne Anderson.
Hi again Ashton clan!
Please let us know how this memorial occasion blessed your family. We are surely with you. Reneanne Anderson.
The blessing for us was to hear so many comments from the unchurched folk that it was such a happy occasion. It was a surprise to them. One of them said to me, “It was very different to what I expected, and very enjoyable.” One of my relatives commented that some of the theology of the songs was a little suspect; my response was that there was nothing wrong with the love and support being shared, and in that environment, that is what mattered most. He agreed. We have been greatly blessed by both Shirley’s life and by the response of those who her love has touched.
Wonderful to hear Maurice Ashton! A beautiful christ like character is a powerful witness and fragrant memory. Blessed occasion. Reneanne Anderson.
Isaiah 60:1. Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.
2. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.
3. The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.
1 Thessalonians 4:13. But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.
14. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
15. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
16. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
18. Therefore comfort one another with these words.
Every effort should be made to be able to rise on that day because everything left will be deep darkness, death and decay.
‘Rising’ the climax of our hope!!!!!
Can someone help me with this discussion question
3. Think a bit about Paul’s intriguing statement “If the dead do not rise, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!’ ” (1 Corinthians 15:32, NKJV). What is the point?
I think Paul is referring to the idea that if there’s no future after this life, we might as well take off all the brakes. No doubt all of us are denying ourselves things that look attractive out in the world. For example, I would have liked to be a commercial airline pilot, but that would have meant working Sabbath. Because I consider my keeping the Sabbath day holy something that will make God happy, I denied myself that wish and chose a career that didn’t require Sabbath work. If I believed there was no God and no future life, I would have gone ahead on that career pathway.
The 1920’s were called the “roaring twenties” when young people, especially, threw caution to the wind and did whatever felt good. This was understandable. They’d come through the First World War and seen so many young people killed. So, why give any mind to religion; live for today and forget about tomorrow.
I once asked a neighbour who was not Adventist if she thought our family was queer, not attending dances, not drinking alcohol, etc. Her reply, “I don’t think you missed much.”
Paul is actually quoting Isaiah 22:13. In that Old Testament passage, the people of Jerusalem were under siege. Instead of repenting and turning to God, they threw a massive party, giving up in despair because they assumed they were going to die anyway. Paul uses this quote to show that a lack of future hope always leads to moral collapse in the present.
In that same verse, Paul mentions that he “fought with beasts at Ephesus”, and he’s in a way asking Why did I risk my life at Ephesus if this life is all there is?
The last part of the verse is Epicurean language of those seeking their portion in this life.
Sarah, to answer your question, Paul presents two fundamentally different worldviews:
Without the resurrection:
Life is short, death is the end, and therefore we might as well “eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
With the resurrection:
This life is not the end. Christ has conquered death, and therefore our faithfulness, sacrifice, love, and service have eternal significance.
In other words, the resurrection changes the meaning of everything we do today. Without the resurrection, “eat and drink.” But because Christ is risen, we can “abound in the work of the Lord,” knowing that our labor is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:58)
Thanks Sarah, Paul mentioned this in response to some Men of Corinth who had rejected the Idea of Christ’s resurrection ( Resurrection of the dead, 15:12), so presently if anyone also doesn’t believe that those sleeping in Christ shall be resurrected or Christ’s resurrection too, together with His second coming, it better you enjoy your earthly time ” eat and drink ” to the fullest/ maximum coz after that you shall die eternally ( Coz of rejecting the vital part of the gospel. Christ’s resurrection ( Raised Christ) is our only hope for eternal Life,Sin forgiveness, if U reject dat then your faith is futile and empty.
I believe that Paul is saying that if this life is it, let’s live it up while we can! Many have this idea of we live once and then we die, so do all we can. With the hope of the resurrection, Paul is telling us that life has a deeper meaning and a hope of a future. We have a forever future with Christ! That causes us to live a different life now.
Sarah D.
I think that if you carefully read 1 Corinthians 15:14-19 that you will find the answer to your question.
Our recent lessons in 1 Corinthians—spiritual gifts, love, and the resurrection—are more connected than they may first appear.
In chapter 12, Paul teaches that the Holy Spirit gives each believer gifts for the building up of Christ’s body. In chapter 13, he shows us how those gifts are to be used: in love. Gifts without love can become instruments of self rather than service.
Then in chapter 15, Paul points us to the resurrection of Jesus and our victory over death. Because Christ is risen, our service has eternal significance. Paul therefore concludes: “Be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord… forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)
The gifts tell us what God has entrusted to us. Love tells us how to use them. The resurrection tells us why our labor is worth it. Because Christ lives, our gifts, our love, and our service are never ultimately in vain.
Amen! Beverley – you stated the completeness of our faith in Jesus Christ so simply, thank you! We believe in His Sonship of our God, His Life, His death, and His Resurrection. We are by faith complete in Him.
Think a bit about Paul’s intriguing statement “If the dead do not rise, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!’ ” (1 Corinthians 15:32, NKJV). What is the point?
The 1st thing that came to mind when I read this question this am is 1 Corinthians 15:14. That short verse is Paul’s simplified answer to this question.
Now I reread the question and another thought that came to my mind is that if there was no resurrection, Paul’s statement would be true. Paul was using negative teaching to get his point across. What also came to my mind is Jesus statement, “I am the resurrection and life, He that cometh unto me though he were dead yet shall he live.” Would not this make Christ a liar if we had the attitude of the resurrection, to eat drink and be merry for tomorrow, we die? I do believe Paul was saying if there is no resurrection then why live the good life, I will just cop the attitude of live it up I have no hope . I hope this answers your question Sarah D. God bless you in your quest for eternal life.
Now, we have this hope. Brings me back to memories of North Pacific Union youth Congress many years ago when I was a youth and the following song was our theme song led by Wayne Hooper a music teacher of Portland Adventist Academy.
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
We have this faith that Christ alone imparts,
Faith in the promise of His Word.
We believe the time is here,
When the nations far and near
Shall awake, and shout and sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
We are united in Jesus Christ our Lord.
We are united in His love.
Love for the waiting people of the world,
People who need our Savior’s love.
Soon the heav’ns will open wide,
Christ will come to claim His bride,
All the universe will sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope, this faith, and God’s great love,
We are united in Christ.
Yesterday I attended the funeral service of one of my school mates. I don’t usually do this at the relatively few funerals that I have attended : I actually went after the funeral service and looked at my friend in the casket.
Perhaps this could be the reason that I “looked” at these verses of Scripture in quite an unusual manner. The verses are John 11:25-26 NIV – Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this ?”
The phrase ” and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” puzzled me in light of Michael’s funeral’s service yesterday. We all knew that he was an avid believer and follower of Christ.
Could this be the reason that some group of Christians have coined the term “soul-sleep” for death ? Could this be the reason that in the story of Lazarus’s death our Lord said repetituously that Lazarus is sleeping ; until he was forced to say he is dead.
Could this also be the reason for our Lord stating that Eternal Life begins here and now.(John 17:3) ? And in “reality” death for the Christian is only a sleep ?
I hope none of our readers miss reading the wonderful chapter, “God’s People Delivered,” pages 635–652, in The Great Controversy.
You may, of course, look this up in your own copy of The Great Controversy. But we provide a link right here on the blog, so all you have to do is click it to read the chapter online.
We’d love to read your reaction.
Amen, Beverly.
What testimony am I empowered to share, as a modern women, regarding Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, given God’s grace and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in my life?
Only with the miracle of the resurrection of Christ can our preaching of the salvation of those who die in Christ – the victory of the Blessed Hope – be proclaimed.
John 3:16
Through the power of Christ’s resurrection, I do not have to experience perishing from the second death, “the wages of the sin.”
Besides, “I, – Whosoever believes – shall not perish; but, have everlasting life.”
Ps 23:4 “… though I walk through the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”
Through the power of Christ’s resurrection, my faith in God’s precious promises is established. Praise God for the hope of the Lord!
1Thes 4:16-18
“For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout; with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. And then, we which are alive and remain shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”
Through the power of Christ’s resurrection, our savior says:
Death is destroyed!
“I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death,” Jesus says in Revelation 1:18.
Through the power of Christ’s resurrection,, Jesus returns as “The King of Glory.”
Through the power of Christ’s resurrection, I am born to live victoriously, eternally, through Christ, a life beyond this one (1Cor 15:19).
What a glorious gift of encouragement, through this week’s lesson!