11. So whether it was I or the other apostles who preached to you, that is what we preach. And that is what you believed.
12. We have preached that Christ has been raised from the dead. So how can some of you say that no one rises from the dead?
13. If no one rises from the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.
14. And if Christ has not been raised, what we preach doesn't mean anything. Your faith doesn't mean anything either.
15. More than that, we would be lying about God. We have given witness that God raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if the dead are not raised.
16. If the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either.
17. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith doesn't mean anything. Your sins have not been forgiven.
18. Those who have died believing in Christ are also lost.
19. Do we have hope in Christ only for this life? Then people should pity us more than anyone else.
20. But Christ really has been raised from the dead. He is the first of all those who will rise.
21. Death came because of what a man did. Rising from the dead also comes because of what a man did.
22. Because of Adam, all people die. So because of Christ, all will be made alive.
23. But here is the order of events. Christ is the first of those who rise from the dead. When he comes back, those who belong to him will be raised.