F LOVE (12:316—13:13) Henry Alford describes this chapter on love as “a pure and perfect gem, perhaps the noblest assemblage of beautiful thoughts in beautiful language extant in this our world.”18 All will agree that the beauty of this literary masterpiece is excelled by the importance of its message An outline suggested for this threeparagraph chapter is this: Values of Love (13:1-3) — shown by its absence Characteristics of Love (13:4-7) — shown by its presence Abiding Nature of Love (13:813) — shown by comparison How is this chapter related to its surrounding chapters (discussed earlier)? G RESURRECTION BODY (15:1-58) This chapter is a classic Bible passage on the doctrine of the resurrection body When the Corinthians asked Paul questions about the resurrection, the apostle surely diagnosed those doubts as a main root of all their problems Thus his conclusion to the resurrection chapter is also a conclusion to all the preceding chapters about problems The following background helps to explain why the doctrine of the resurrection-body was foreign to the Corinthians’ thinking: In general the Greeks believed in the immortality of the soul, but they did not accept the resurrection of the body To them the resurrection of the body was unthinkable in view of the fact that they held the body to be the source of man’s weakness and sin Death, therefore, was very welcome, since by it the soul would be liberated from the body; but resurrection was not welcome, because this would constitute another descent of the soul into the grave of the body.19 CHART 72 The following outline shows the approach Paul took in answering the Corinthians’ questions The resurrection body (15:1-58) Question: “Is there a resurrection of the dead?” (15:12) Answer: The Fact of the Bodily Resurrection (15:1-34) Declaration: Christ was raised, 1-11 ... general the Greeks believed in the immortality of the soul, but they did not accept the resurrection of the body To them the resurrection of the body was unthinkable in view of the fact that they... would constitute another descent of the soul into the grave of the body.19 CHART 72 The following outline shows the approach Paul took in answering the Corinthians’ questions The resurrection body... passage on the doctrine of the resurrection body When the Corinthians asked Paul questions about the resurrection, the apostle surely diagnosed those doubts as a main root of all their problems