RESURRECTION! NOW WHAT?

April 15th | Pastor Gino

Many will celebrate the resurrection of Christ this Sunday and this is a wonderful and welcomed thing. Unfortunately, in many churches the implications of Christ’s resurrection will be short-sided. Many will be rightly told that because Christ rose from the dead, they too will rise from the dead one day. This is wonderful news, of course. But what happens in between? What is taking place today? Do we know? Can we know? In fact, we can. And the reason we can is because of what the Apostle Paul has written to us.

In 1 Corinthians 15 the Apostle lays out the gospel as of first-importance and then goes on to explain the implications of the gospel of Christ’s life, death, burial, and resurrection. In vs.25 he writes, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.” The little word δεῖ which we translate ‘for’ is properly understood as meaning necessity or obligation; something that is required or inevitable. We could rightly translate Paul’s words to say, post Christ’s resurrection, “It is inevitable that Christ reigns until he has put all his enemies under his feet.” And this is precisely what Jesus is doing today.

Why is this important? Because of what Paul says right before in vs.24, “Then comes the end (of our present era at Christ’s return), when he (Jesus) delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. (25) For he must reign (it is inevitable that he reigns) until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”

So, Christ has risen from the dead. Now what? Let’s parse vs.25 and be encouraged:

For He must reign…
It is inevitable and even necessary that Christ reign. It is a moral consequence of his resurrection (Ellicott). God must triumph and so the Son must conquer until the end when He returns. Psalm 110:1 is a key text where David writes, “The Lord says to my lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’ ” This indicates that the reign of Christ is both a present reality and a future hope. This reign is part of the divine order established by God, underscoring the certainty and authority of Christ's kingship today and forevermore, as the leaven of the Kingdom of God increases more and more even now (Mt 13:33).

until He has put all His enemies…
The enemies of Christ include sin, death, and all spiritual forces opposed to God's kingdom. This reflects the ongoing spiritual battle described in Ephesians 6:12, where believers are called to stand against the powers of darkness. Historically, this struggle has been evident in the persecution of the church and the resistance to the gospel. The ultimate defeat of these enemies is assured, as prophesied in Daniel 7:14, where the Son of Man is given dominion over all nations (Berean Study Bible).

under His feet.
This imagery of subjugation is drawn from ancient Near Eastern practices, where a victorious king would place his foot on the neck of a defeated enemy, symbolizing total conquest. Biblically, it signifies Christ's complete victory over all opposition. This is echoed in Hebrews 2:8, which speaks of everything being subjected to Christ, though we do not yet see everything in subjection. The phrase also connects to Genesis 3:15, the protoevangelium, where the seed of the woman is promised to crush the serpent's head, foreshadowing Christ's ultimate triumph over Satan and evil.

This Sunday as we celebrate Easter and the resurrection of our Lord, let us remember that we will also enjoy resurrection life one day. But let us also remember that the Christ of the bible is also the Christ of history. He is now ruling and reigning, subduing all his enemies, and doing so until the time of his return when his present rule and reign will end in the defeat of death itself and a new era of resurrection life and rule will begin for his elect in a new creation, a new heavens and earth! (Isaiah 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13)

So, until that time may we heed Paul’s words at the close of 1 Corinthians 15 where he writes, “Therefore (in light of these things), my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

May we live boldly in light of eternity! For our Resurrected King Reigns!