HolyWeekDevo_2026 v4 LG print-ready 3.12.26

OF FIRST IMPORTANCE:

Christ ’s Death and Resurrection for Us A

G I F T

F R O M

M A R T I N

L U T H E R

C O L L E G E

O Sacred Head, Now Wounded This Holy Week, walk with us through one of the Christian church’s earliest creeds ever written, 1 Corinthians 15:3-11.

Concept:

Rev. Luke Thompson

Writers: Rev. Jacob Behnken

Rev. Brian Dose

Dr. Richard Gurgel

Rev. Paul Koelpin

Dr. Lawrence Olson

Rev. Benjamin Schaefer Rev. Joel Thomford Rev. Luke Thompson Editor:

Laurie Gauger

Copy editor:

Heidi Schoof

Designer:

Katherine Schmoller

Artist:

Hannah Christensen

Digital media:

Valerie Fischer

Audio engineer: Benjamin Matzke Coordination: Tami Board Allison Bovee

Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Through eight devotions, from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, we will meditate on the historical foundation and testimony of Christ’s death and resurrection. Each step of the creed reveals both the humility of Christ’s cross and the certainty of his empty tomb.

Join us as we explore the truths that anchor our faith, truths that comfort our consciences, truths that prepare our hearts for the cross and empty tomb, truths of first importance.

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

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C O R I N T H I A N S

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MLC student Hannah Christensen shares her thoughts on the image she created: I have painted Christ with his eye as the focus. He is looking directly at the viewer because his death and resurrection are personal. Reflected in his eye are those Jesus saw as he hung from the cross, those who put him there as well as those who cared for him, such as his mother and disciples.

We can find ourselves in that reflection too, for Christ died and rose for us.

Christ’s wounds and the crown of thorns represent his death, and the gray background represents the tomb from which he rose. Warm colors are used throughout the artwork to represent the hope that Christ’s death and resurrection give us.

ABOUT THE ARTIST AND HER ART

Hannah Christensen is an MLC sophomore from St. James, Minnesota, pursuing a degree in elementary education with a minor in Spanish. She’s a graduate of Minnesota Valley LHS, where she studied art with Michael Wiechmann. “O Sacred Head, Now Wounded” is oil on 16” x 20” Aquabord.

PALM SUNDAY

What We Receive, What We Pass On Imagine you have been trusted with something precious, perhaps a family heirloom. You didn’t create it. You received it. And now you have the responsibility of passing it on.

To be a Christian is to be creedal. Let me explain. We do not believe our faith is personal, untethered to reality and history, just opinion. We believe our faith is founded on facts, on real historical events that happened and that have real eternal significance. Paul once wrote, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile, and you are still in your sins.” Creeds are ways the church has summarized those beautiful facts on which our salvation rests.

Did you know that the Bible includes creeds?

In fact, 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 is especially dear to us because it’s one of the church’s first creeds.

1 C OR 1 5: 3a

And when did Christians first start sharing these truths? Verse 3 gives us a hint. Paul writes “what I received I passed on to you.”

Note the tenses of those verbs. Paul had already passed it on, so this is not the first time the Corinthians are hearing this creed.

And Paul himself had received this creed,

so the creed had to have been around even earlier. So how early? Most historians think Christians were confessing this creed within just a few years of Jesus’ crucifixion, maybe even within the first year. Think of what that means. Our faith has not evolved over long periods of time based on stories, myths, and private ideas. Right away it was based on the very words of those who saw and met the risen Jesus.

This Lent let’s walk through those truths “of first importance.” Why? Because everything depends on the death and resurrection of Jesus. Have you ever struggled to explain your faith? Start here—with what was received and passed on. The gospel is not something you invented. It is a gift delivered to you, so that it might also be delivered through you.

Lord Jesus, thank you for those who passed your saving truth down through the centuries until it reached me. Give me the courage to continue this legacy, to pass it on to others.

Amen.

Rev. Luke Thompson serves Martin Luther College as a professor of theology, history, and philosophy.

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance

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C O R I N T H I A N S

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me

MONDAY

Christ Died for Our Sins We can approach Holy Week like a crash site—a catastrophe with fatalities. We sift through the debris to answer two key questions: What actually happened here?

And why did it happen?

Something horrible has happened. We need to know what’s at fault, so the investigators dig into the wreck for the black box, which records the flight data and the cockpit audio.

With all the high drama and emotions of a catastrophe, we need to focus on the facts.

Here is the black box for Holy Week: “Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3). Here are the data and transcript that tell us clearly what we need to know.

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Why did my community or relationship crash? No surprise when we find the black box and look at the facts: “for our sins.” The catastrophe may not be a direct operator error, but even the structural and system

Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures

Black-box data point number 2: “Christ died.”

This is the great catastrophe: Jesus, the Son of God sent to save us, was killed because of our sins. Sins are not victimless. They really are a big deal. But Christ dying is also the great recorded answer to the crash. Jesus paid for the sins of the world, for your each and every word and data point.

As you look at the crash site this week, you will see a large debris field. The ragged scraps are scattered over all lands and centuries, and the broken pieces have dropped in our own backyards and over our hopes and dreams. So especially remember why Holy Week happened—that all those scraps have been redeemed. God pieces them all together for a new life and your next flight.

Dear Lord, help us see the horror and the healing of Holy Week. Amen.

Rev. Brian Dose serves Martin Luther College as a professor of English.

1 COR 15: 3b

also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

Black-box data point number 1 about the crash: “For our sins.” Listen to the painful audio of what we said and did at those critical moments to our kids or spouse or neighbor. Look at the details of our altitude and the speed of our flight.

failures in our world can be traced back to the stress and brokenness of sin. Can you ever really say, “Not my fault?” Let’s replay the recording from the black box.

TUESDAY

Christ Rose—According to the Scriptures I broke my word, and of all people, I broke my word to my own son. It wasn’t malicious or intentional. I had every intention of keeping my word. It was just that what I had said was no longer possible. Other obligations had come up, and plans would have to change.

If you’ve had that experience—of letting down someone you love—then you likely also know how small it makes you feel. How powerless we can feel when we so want to keep our word but, for one reason or another, we fail.

It’s difficult for us to fathom one who always keeps his word, yet this is who God is—the One who always keeps his Word.

Imagine the most difficult promise a person could ever make. Could it compare to the promises God has made? He promised a Savior who would die for us, and if that were not enough, a Savior who would then rise from the grave.

1 COR 15: 4

Have you ever considered how the burial of Jesus makes his resurrection that much more amazing? The fact that Jesus’ lifeless body rested in a tomb makes the reality of the situation clear. Jesus did not merely faint, nor did the cross render him unconscious.

He died, and his time in a grave, sealed with its stone door, put an exclamation mark on that truth.

So, when Jesus was raised on the third day, the miracle was that much greater. God had not abandoned his Holy One to decay. His sacrifice was sufficient to take away the world’s sin and to send death reeling, robbed forever of its sting. God had kept his Word “according to the Scriptures” and brought to fulfillment the promise first made at the world’s beginning.

For creatures like you and me, whose own word is often so flimsy and frail, God has kept his Word. Jesus lives! This means all our failures are forgiven, and we can look forward to God’s promises still to come—our bodies raised from their graves like Jesus’ and eternal life in his kingdom.

Father, in this wavering world, grant me confidence in your unshakable promises.

Amen.

Rev. Jacob Behnken serves Martin Luther College as dean of chapel.

That he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures

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For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me

WEDNESDAY

Christ Appeared to the Spiritually Broken Peter remembered the conversation vividly.

Jesus told his disciples they would all fall away when they witnessed his mistreatment at the hands of those in authority. Peter replied with an arrogance that now made him wince, “I never will.” Jesus warned, “This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”

How many times do you think Peter rehearsed that dialogue in his head after he heard the rooster crow? Tears blurred his vision as he ambled aimlessly in the darkness, muttering, “Why . . . why . . . why?”

His self-talk wasn’t kind: I’m such a failure. So pathetic. How could God ever love a coward like me?

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Remembering can be agonizing. How could I have done that?! How can I possibly make things right again?! That’s exactly where Satan wants us to be. Thinking about past offenses . . . hoping we can do something to balance the scales . . . beating ourselves up in the baseless bet that somehow the misery might help us feel better or, at least, worthy of pity.

and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve.

God’s gift of faith grasps the stunning reality: The death of Jesus means life for the sinner. Jesus submitted to the Father’s will and willingly accepted the punishment for the sin of all people—past, present, and future. Suddenly, the Christ who was killed stood among the disciples . . . very alive. In a kindly tone he announced, “Peace be with you.” No more fear or doubt. He explained, “Repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in [my] name.”

Later, another conversation: Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, do you love me?” Peter answered, “You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Peter needed to hear that. We do too.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Amen.

Rev. Paul Koelpin serves Martin Luther College as a professor of history and theology.

1 C OR 15: 5

also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

Let’s not be too harsh on Peter. All of the other proud disciples also said they’d never disown Jesus. But then they ran and hid, locked away in fear and shame.

There’s no real hope in the world of regret and embarrassment. Forgiveness doesn’t live there. Sorrow devastates. But faith renews and restores.

MAUNDY THURSDAY

Christ Appeared to Five Hundred at Once The atmosphere was electric. It was not just that more than 500 people had gathered in one place at one time. Jesus was there, and that charged things up.

Over 500 people simultaneously saw their living Lord with their own eyes in an unmistakably public event. This throng of people observed Jesus alive after his crucifixion. When Paul writes to the Corinthians some 25 years later, most of those witnesses were still living. They could testify to the historical certainty of their Savior’s resurrection. The objective reality that Jesus lives is one of the best-attested facts of human history.

1 C OR 15: 6

The crowd’s encounter with Jesus risen from the dead was a powerful shared experience.

As the years passed, those who were present must have cherished the memory of seeing him alive and delighted in telling others about the resurrected Christ. Two thousand years later, we are drawn into that same joy as we belong to a community of believers who strengthen and encourage one another.

Let’s not miss the gospel in Paul’s statement that “some have fallen asleep.” What a beautiful way to refer to those who had died.

It speaks not of final loss but of temporary rest, watched over by the One who conquered the grave. Later in this chapter, Paul writes, “The last enemy to be destroyed is death” (v. 26). Jesus destroyed that enemy by dying in our place, taking away the sin for which death is the wages. God now “gives us the victory in our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 57). For the Christian, death is merely a sleep from which our Savior will gently wake us. That unshakeable truth is of first importance.

Lord Jesus, in faith we stand at the foot of your cross and in front of your empty tomb, and contemplate the work that you finished for us. Fill us with sorrow for your death, reverence for your holiness, gratitude for your grace, and joy for your victory. Amen.

Dr. Lawrence Olson serves Martin Luther College as director of the Staff Ministry Program and the Congregational Assistant Program.

After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

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C O R I N T H I A N S

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me

GOOD FRIDAY

Christ Appeared to Skeptics

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In that simple appearance of the risen Savior, James came to believe that Jesus had been crucified for the sins of the world. James saw not a brother but a risen Savior who confirmed that this forgiveness was real.

As an adult, Jesus did not have a good relationship with his siblings. John tells us, “For even his own brothers did not believe in him” (John 7:4-5). Jesus’ swelling popularity only led his own family to assume he was losing touch with reality. Mark tells us, “When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind’” (Mark 3:20–21).

Like James and the apostles, we at times also have a skeptical heart. Do you sometimes doubt his love in difficult circumstances? Do you question his goodness in times of pain?

Thus, it seems that even his own brother James rejected Jesus as the promised Messiah.

How did Jesus deal with his brother’s skepticism?

Jesus appeared to James alive. That appearance changed James from a skeptic to a stalwart of the early church and the pastor of the Jerusalem church (Galatians 2:9).

Tradition teaches that James died a martyr’s death on behalf of Jesus.

Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles

1 C OR 1 5: 7

also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

Most scholars believe that the James referred to in 1 Corinthians 15 was the brother of Jesus. It appears to us from Scripture that Mary and Joseph had other children after Jesus was born (Mark 6:3).

When you sit in church, the crucified Savior appears to you in his Word. Each time you read a portion of Scripture, the risen Savior appears to you. He assures you, “I am risen!

I have taken away your sins! I love you, and I promise to bless you!” Jesus appears to skeptics like us and takes away our doubt.

Dear Jesus, forgive me for the many times I have doubted your love and your promises.

Daily remind me of your cross and your empty tomb. Lead me to trust in you even in the darkest of moments. Amen.

Rev. Joel Thomford serves Martin Luther College as director of admissions.

HOLY SATURDAY

Grace to the Last and Least Paul would not be our first choice for an eyewitness to Jesus’ saving work, and he didn’t even put himself near the start. Why not?

Paul knew his sins—and he knew he deserved condemnation. Paul did not run from his past.

His story was a testimony to how wide and long and deep and high is the love of God. Paul was “abnormally born,” called to be an apostle while on the hunt to imprison and murder Christians.

Yet on the road to Damascus, the risen Lord Jesus appeared to him and called him to faith.

Paul was then baptized and washed clean. No dirty record. No probationary period to prove he’s the right guy for God. That’s grace. It does not wait for worthiness. It is undeserved love for sinners.

The same grace that met Paul on the Damascus road is yours and mine on this Holy Saturday.

With Paul we admit that we too are “the last and the least.” We know our sins, and our past is not something we can simply wish away. But our Savior has washed it all away.

1 CO R 15: 8- 10

His death has paid for your sins. His resurrection guarantees your life. And grace is yours too, whether you feel like everything is

great in life or not. “The last and the least” enjoy the blessings of Easter too, all by the grace of the living Lord Jesus.

Paul had a new life, “abnormally born,” and that new life in Christ meant God-pleasing work.

Consider the words that follow: “For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me” (1 Cor 15:9-10). God used Paul as an example of amazing grace and as an instrument of his grace.

But it wasn’t Paul—it was always the grace of God at work. And now that grace has an effect on us too! The grace that found Paul now sends us, so that the last and the least of the world may know it is for them too.

Living Lord, you have given us new birth by water and the Word. Restore to us the joy of your salvation and the confidence to walk forward in the warm embrace of your grace. Amen.

Rev. Benjamin Schaefer serves Martin Luther College as a professor of Hebrew.

And last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

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C O R I N T H I A N S

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.

Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me

EASTER SUNDAY

This Is What We Preach and Believe After my parents died, and I still lived in Wisconsin, I cared for their grave. On Easter I often found myself replacing faded flowers with something new.

It wasn’t merely familial love that found me in that Fond du Lac graveyard. It was profound thanks to God that he placed me in a home where passing on the apostolic proclamation of Christ’s death and resurrection was of first importance.

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On this Easter Sunday, who was the “I” or the “we” through whom the chain of apostolic preaching of Christ’s death and resurrection remained unbroken so that believing defines you? Thank God for them!

Risen Lord Jesus, thank you for placing into my life those for whom it was of first importance that I hear the echo of the apostles proclaiming your death and resurrection for me. May your dying and rising love for me make it of first importance to continue that unbroken chain of the apostolic message. Lord Jesus, so may we preach as we believe! Amen.

Dr. Richard Gurgel serves Martin Luther College as president.

Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

1 COR 15: 11

also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

Evening after evening on my mother’s lap, day after day at the dinner table, and yes, since my father was both my father and my pastor, also from the pulpit and in confirmation class, proclaiming Christ crucified for my sins and raised again for my justification was of first importance. From baptismal waters on, they continued the unbroken chain of apostolic confession as they nurtured the faith of their rambunctious (still am!) and often rebellious (still that too!) youngest son.

And, on this Easter Sunday, may thankfulness for that unbroken chain of the apostolic message fill you with this determination: that of first importance in your life is to keep the chain unbroken.

Where we have failed at that, for that too Christ died and rose. Now seize the opportunity his grace still gives you! There is no greater privilege than to join that unbroken chain of “I”s and “we”s who’ve passed down this apostolic message! So it was preached to us. So we believe. So we preach to others that they too might believe!

It is our prayer that these devotions will be a blessing to you as you focus on our Lord’s death and resurrection.