Paul structures the section we read this week in two parts, and the second flows from the first. First we look to Jesus Christ and his resurrection. Paul mentions what here is of "first importance." These are core events to the Christian faith, and without them–without Christ then the we would have nothing else. But since we do have such a hope that has been passed on to Paul, to the Corinthians, and through generations to us, then we see in what follows that Christ’s resurrection provides a way for our resurrection.
Christ’s resurrection is like the bottom Jenga piece that if you remove, everything else falls apart. If Christ is not raised from the dead, as Paul writes, "we are of all people most to be pitied."
Year in the Bible 