Steadfast Day 14 Death, Where Is Your Sting?: Digging Deeper

Rachel Jones
April 13, 2023
Discover the original intent of Scripture. Make good application to our everyday lives.
Become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

1 Corinthians 15:51-56
The Original Intent
1) How will we all be changed in a moment at the last trumpet? (verses 51-52)
In 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, Paul implores his readers, “Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.”
Paul describes a time when the dead in Christ shall rise and inhabit glorified bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:16), and those Christians still living will be changed instantly, transformed into eternal, glorified bodies that God has promised. (Philippians 3:21)
This will take place when the last trumpet sounds. This trumpet is “probably called last because it in effect brings an end to the Church age as it raptures the church from earth.” (Preceptausin.org) As author H.A. Ironside puts it, “This last trumpet describes the Christian’s ‘marching orders’ at the rapture of the Church.” When Jesus comes for His church, all Christians living and deceased will be changed into the image of God by being in the presence of God. (1 John 3:2)
When we see Christ, we will become like Him, no longer hampered by any human weaknesses but, as author John Gill describes, we “will be changed at once from corruption to incorruption, from dishonour to glory, from weakness to power, from being natural to being spiritual bodies; this change all the saints will undergo, whether dead or alive, at Christ’s coming.”
God is making us more holy each day we follow Him here on earth (2 Corinthians 3:18), but one day we will be like Him when we see Him face to face!
The Everyday Application
1) How will we all be changed in a moment at the last trumpet? (verses 51-52)
When I was a teenager, my family went through a difficult, abrupt life change that caused my parents to scramble to find new employment and my sister and I to change schools. We managed our new normal for a few years, but my parents sensed God was preparing us for another transition, this time to a new city. As we prayed for God’s provision, a song on the radio caught our attention. “Cool Change” by Little River Band isn’t a Christian song, but God used it to remind us it was “time for a cool change” in our lives, prompting us to pray about the changes He was bringing.
We hoped and prayed for instant transformation in our situation, but it was several years before God orchestrated the circumstances that allowed us to transition to a new area. God used the time of waiting to prepare us for the work and ministry He had for us. (Philippians 1:6)
Often, God uses trials, difficulties, or even lulls in activity to change us into His image. (Romans 5:3) But one day, there will be instantaneous change for every Christian!
When Jesus returns, our transformation will be completed immediately. He will give all Christians, living and dead, spiritual bodies to live out eternity with Him. (Philippians 3:21) What a day of rejoicing that will be!
The Original Intent
2) What causes death to be swallowed up in victory? (verse 54)
Sin entered the world when Adam disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden; with that sin came death. (Genesis 2:17) As sin spread through humanity, so did death. (Romans 5:12)
The prophet Isaiah foretold that the Messiah would swallow up death once and for all. (Isaiah 25:8) Paul referenced Isaiah’s prophecy about death in 1 Corinthians 15:54 by saying it would be fulfilled at the return of Jesus, when “this corruptible body is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body is clothed with immortality.”
When Jesus comes back and transforms all the saints, living and dead, into their immortal, incorruptible bodies, death will no longer have power over the saints of God. The triumphant, victorious return of Christ will swallow up sin and death forever for all Christians. (Revelation 21:4)
Author R. C. H. Lenski explains, “Death and all of its apparent victories are undone for God’s children. What looks like a victory for death and like a defeat for us when our bodies die and decay shall be utterly reversed so that death dies in absolute defeat and our bodies live again in absolute victory.”
Although sin brings about death, Christians can rejoice in the free gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus. (Romans 6:23) When we trust in Jesus, the power of death is defeated in our own stories. Even when our earthly bodies die, those who follow the Way of Jesus live forever. (1 John 2:17) Not only do we have abundant life on earth (John 10:10), but we have eternal life with Jesus in Heaven!
The Everyday Application
2) What causes death to be swallowed up in victory? (verse 54)
Each age and culture has its own take on death and the afterlife. Mexicans celebrate Day of the Dead, a type of Memorial Day for departed souls that commemorates death as part of life. In Madagascar there is a “turning of the bones” tradition every several years in which families freshly wrap the remains of the deceased in order to speed decomposition and send the spirits toward the afterlife.
Whether it is parades, wakes, or internment, all cultures have rituals and practices to deal with the end of life on earth and the possibility of life after death. No matter how a person’s body is dealt with upon death, Christians believe that all beings live on after death, either in eternal reward or eternal punishment. (Matthew 24:46)
Paul discusses eternity for the Christian in 1 Corinthians 15:54 when he writes, “When this corruptible body is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
This truth gives Christians a sense of peace and joy knowing that one day death will be defeated and they will live forever with Christ. (1 John 5:11) But it also should give us a sense of urgency to share the Good News of Jesus and His triumph over death with anyone who will listen. (Mark 16:15)
What we do for our friends after their deaths won’t matter for eternity, but telling them about the saving grace of Jesus now can be the difference between them living forever in the presence of God or spending eternity without Him. (John 17:3) Death is swallowed up in the victory of Jesus’ Resurrection, and part of our purpose here on earth is to make this truth known to every tribe and nation. (Matthew 24:14)
The Original Intent
3) How does the sting of death equal sin and the power of sin equal the law? (verses 55-56)
Paul states that death will be swallowed up by victory when Jesus comes. “Where, death, is your victory? Where, death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” (1 Corinthians 15:55-56)
Paul says sin stings because it leads to death. (James 1:15) Albert Barnes explains, “sin is the cause of death. It introduced it; it makes it certain; it is the cause of the pain, distress, agony, and horror which attends it.” Paul asserts that death no longer has any sting because sin is now conquered by Jesus’ victory at the cross. (1 Peter 2:24)
Death no longer has the sting caused by sin, and sin no longer has the power brought about by the law. Classic author, Andrew Murray, observes, “The law reveals our sinfulness. It cannot help us against sin; rather, with its demand for perfect obedience, it hopelessly gives us over to the power of sin.”
The law (which we are required to keep but find impossible to obey) is fulfilled by Jesus. (Hebrews 10: 19-22) His perfection covers our imperfections, allowing us to appear blameless before God. (Colossians 1:22)
We don’t need to try to keep all the law because Jesus’ sacrifice covers all our sins. Tony Evans suggests that once death was swallowed up by Jesus’ victory, “for the believer, all death can do now is go ‘buzzing.’ All it can do now is make a lot of noise because Jesus holds the stinger in his hands, in his feet, in his side, when ‘He was wounded for your transgressions, bruised for your iniquity. The chastisement of your peace was upon him, and by his stripes you are healed.’” (Isaiah 53:5)
Because of Jesus, sin and death have no eternal hold on the life of Believers.
The Everyday Application
3) How does the sting of death equal sin and the power of sin equal the law? (verses 55-56)
In my enthusiasm to undertake household projects, I frequently overlook the fact that I am not good at do-it-yourself tasks. When I survey the copious instructions, tools, and parts required for the task, I generally give up before I get very far in the process or soon after I have made a few mistakes. The amount of work and skill required is daunting and I realize I do not have the abilities required.
I have the same feeling when I see all of the commandments in the Bible that make up God’s law. There are more than 600 laws in the Old Testament, but even if I only had to keep the famous 10 Commandments (Exodus 20), I would give up quickly, much like I do my house projects.
Paul discusses the law in 1 Corinthians 15:55-56, “Where, death, is your victory? Where, death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” W. Harold Mare explains, “It is the law of God with its stringent moral demands that strengthens the power of sin by showing us how sinful we are, and thus condemns us.”
The good news that Paul announces is that the power of sin, which is the law, has no “sting” because of Christ’s work on the cross. (Romans 7:6) My sinful nature does not want to obey all of God’s laws (Romans 7:18), but Jesus came and obeyed all of the laws for me. (Matthew 5:17)
Andrew Murray asserts that “The Holy Spirit in us takes the place of the law over us.” By taking our sins on Himself and forgiving our iniquities, Jesus fulfilled the law and removed the power of sin that leads to death.
Can We Pray With You?
Prayer is central to our ministry as believers in Jesus as we carry eachother’s burdens and intercede for one another. Our team is honored to share the work of praying alongside you!
This Week's Lock Screen

Authentically living out a life of worship to the God who rescued us from darkness requires accountability and intentionality. Join a GT POD and take the next step in your faith journey!
