Note 3 at 1 Cor. 15:21: There is a subtle truth here which is profound. There was no other way for mankind to be redeemed but by a man. It would be accurate to say, "since death came by man, the resurrection had to come by a man also."

This is because God relinquished direct control of the earth and it's inhabitants to man. It was a man, misusing this God-given authority who caused the human race to be in this mess, and it had to be a man who redeemed the situation. This is why Jesus had to become flesh so that He could have that authority (see note 11 at Jn. 5:27, p. 155).

But we needed more than just a payment for our past sins; we needed deliverance from the present tense power of sin. Without that, we would have voided any forgiveness given us in a very short period of time. The resurrection of Jesus provided us with that power (see note 3 at 1 Cor. 15:13, p. 957). The resurrection of Jesus went beyond the forgiveness of sins. Through Christ's resurrection we have now received a new spirit with a new life that is not corrupted when we sin (see notes 7-8 at Rom. 6:6, p. 778). Christ, in all His power and purity, is now living in us (1 Cor. 3:16; Gal. 2:20; Col. 1:27; 3:11; 1 Jn. 4:4).