The Assurance of Our Resurrection
1 Corinthians 15:35-54
Death is such a mystery to us. What can we make of it? Do we want to agree with Job when he said that it is a screaming contradiction, grossly unfair? Job said that if you cut down a tree and the spring rains come, it may sprout and grow, but if you cut down a man, he lies down and never rises again. What are we to make of this contradiction?
What can we know with certainty about life after death? How can we know anything about it? Is all our faith in heaven just a handful of guesses? Does it have some basis in reality, in historic facts? When we push back the curtains of this mystery and probe as deeply as we can into it, we will still not have all the answers, but we can catch a glimpse and learn that for those in Christ glory is waiting.
It is natural for us to fear death. The best place for us to find comfort in facing death is the Bible, and maybe these verses are some of the best. Over the next few weeks we will be digging deeply into these verses, and others around them, to find out what we need to know about death.
All of us have a natural fear of death and dying. This is not something we need to feel guilty about, as it is something that all humans deal with. It is not a sign of weakness to have these fears. Jesus had them the night before he was crucified while he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. Just think about his prayer there that night. “If there be any other way, let this cup pass from me.” Of course he knew that there was no other way, that without his going to the cross that mankind would face eternal separation from God. But put yourself in his shoes.
33 years old, facing the cross the next day. He knew what was coming, but do you really think he wanted to die? Think about the prayer that he prayed, did he just pray it once? No, he prayed the same prayer repeatedly that night. The key to his prayer, though, was that he wanted the Father’s will to be done.
Paul tells us in verse 26 of this same chapter that the last enemy to be overcome is death. We are always uncomfortable around things or places that we are not familiar with. If we died as Christians once, we would not be afraid to do it again, but because we have not faced a bodily death yet, we are bound to be anxious about it.
As Christians, we should really have no fear of death, but how about the ones that don’t know Jesus yet? This sense of being unprepared should bring them anxiety like they have never had before. Hopefully these questions and fears will not drive them from the Lord, but bring them to the Lord.
The important thing is, that when we get right with God, we make our peace with him. By repentance, faith, and a faithful life in Christ, we know that death is not going to have the ultimate victory over us.
Let’s drop back a few verses to 1 CORINTHIANS 15:20. We have no reason to hope that we will survive death other than the hope that we have in Jesus and his resurrection. Jesus was the first to be raised from the dead, but he is not going to be the last. Because he had victory over death, we have the promise and assurance that we will have it too. He was raised to live again, and all those who have lived and died in him will one day be raised to live again as well.
If we think back to the story of the first Easter and some of the events after it, we see Jesus walking, talking, eating and sharing with his followers. He had a real body. That gives us just a glimpse of what we can expect when we are resurrected. What was his body like? It was a real body, not a ghost or a figment of the imagination. The Bible tells us that he appeared to numerous people, including 500 at one time. People saw him, touched him, talked to him, walked with him, shared with him, and even saw his wounds from the cross.
Christ’s resurrected body was real, but more than that, it was transcendent. His resurrected body was not limited the way his real body was. Think about some of the times that Jesus appeared. The story of the men from Emmaus, he disappeared from their table after breaking bread. With the disciples, he appeared in a locked room. His body had been transformed by the power of God. His resurrected body was not like ours, but was prepared for the heavenly glory, so that gives us a little glimpse of what we have waiting for us.
Paul gives us three key words to understand what our resurrected bodies will be like. The first word he used we see in VERSE 42, imperishable. Our present bodies that one day will wear out will return to the dust that they were made from. Our new bodies, though, will be immortal, they will live forever.
That’s where we find the second word Paul uses, glorious. They will never wear out, never suffer pain, never have a weakness. They will be perfect, strong and beautiful. They will be just like the body that we see described to us when Christ ascended into heaven.
Then we come to the final word, spiritual. Not mortal, dying, but spiritual, living forever. Think of the hope Paul’s word here holds for us, that one day we will have bodies that are imperishable, glorious and spiritual.
Death wears two faces. When we look at death from the human point of view, it appears to be destruction. We are cut off, defeated, separated. It seems so unfair to us that a person face death before we are ready for them to. On its face death has the appearance of destruction or defeat.
But when you look at it from God’s point of view it is something vastly different. It is not destruction, but departure. Departure to be with the Lord. This is something very different from the world view. Psalms 116:15 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. Can you imagine that? The death of God’s children is precious to him because it means they are coming home to him.
When Paul was growing old, he wrote a letter to Timothy that he closed by saying that the time of his departure was at hand. Have you ever thought of death that way? Simply a departure from this life to an everlasting one? A departure from this weak human body, to a glorified, heavenly one? That is really what it is. Paul knew that his death by Roman soldiers was close at hand. History and tradition tell us that he was executed by them not long after he wrote the words we just referred to. Paul looked at his death not on human, sad terms, but through the eyes of God, as a departure.
Do you enjoy life in this world today? I am sure we all do, at least to some extent. I am here this morning though, to tell you that you ain’t seen nothin’ yet! What is waiting for us in heaven is so much greater, so much more special, that the things of this earth, even the very best ones, will not hold a candle to the most insignificant things in heaven.
How do we know that we will experience these things? By placing our faith and trust in Jesus, giving our life to him, letting our work and daily lives to be dedicated to his glory and the service of others. Life everlasting is ours through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.