Classic Christianity – A Closer Look at Faith, Hope & Love P26 (06-16-20)
Synopsis
So we, who are in Christ, have this blessed hope, that one day, in a flash, in a twinkling of an eye, we will be changed. The moment we die, or the moment we are raptured, either way, we will be changed because we will see Him as He really is. We will be given a new spiritual body, like His. This earthly body will remain in the grave. For we read that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. The perishable will be swallowed up with the imperishable. Now, what we will be, what this new body will be like, that has not been made known. But we do know what Jesus said, that our body will be like His glorious body. And we know one thing about His body, that after He walked on the earth after rising from the dead, he appeared to his disciples behind locked doors. He walked through a wall. So, I would assume that we will have a body that can walk through walls. But beyond that, what the body will be like has not been made known.
But the glorious body we will have is a spiritual body, not a natural body, and nothing of it comes from our physical body. Physical gives birth to physical and spiritual gives birth to spiritual. So this new spiritual body will be immortal, it will live forever. It will not be subject to death. There will be no sin indwelling there. This spiritual body will not be subject to sickness or decay. This body will be like His glorious body. This is the blessed hope, life forevermore with Christ Jesus.
The wonderful news of the gospel is this, new spiritual life. The Spirit that lives in you, who are born again, will remain in you forever, but not forever in a physical body, but one day in a spiritual body. We were all born alive physically, but born dead spiritually, without the Spirit of God. But in a moment of time, you were born from above, born again spiritually, where God placed His Spirit to live in you forever. That occured when by faith you recognized you were a sinner, a wretched man without hope, but then you heard about the good news in Christ Jesus and accepted the gift of life in Christ Jesus. Your sins were all taken away at the cross when Jesus shed his blood. Then, something amazing happened. Jesus rose from the dead and is alive forevermore. Therefore, since he was raised to new life, he has offered you the gift of a new spiritual life, the promised Holy Spirit of God to come live inside you forever. You received that life and were born again spiritually. All of us are born in Adam, dead, and all of us, in Christ, will be made alive, but each in his own turn.
Transcript
But God says we are a child of the living God. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. The reason the world cannot understand you is because they could not understand Him either. The reason they do not know you and what you are about is because they do not know Him and what He was about.
1 Corinthians 2:14
14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
They just cannot comprehend what is going on.
1 John 3:2-3
2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.
Let us look at this for a minute. Here is what the scripture said, “what we will be has not yet been made known”. What does that mean? Well, you get people and we talk about what we are going to be like up in heaven, and the bible says you do not know any of that. You do not know what you will be. I heard someone talk so authoritative about that like he has been up there or something. We do not know what it is going to be like. I have no clue what my glorified body is going to be like. If God is God, it is not going to be like this one. That is one thing I am confident of, what it is not going to look like. We can talk about these things.
John 20:26
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
Can you imagine having a physical body like that and walking through walls? We cannot envision these things. What we will be has not yet been made known. God has not made that known totally to you.
One thing we do know is this: “when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is”. Now that is good news. “Everyone who has this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure”. In other words, when you and I can walk in this hope, one of these days, I will be absent from the body and present with the Lord, and when that occurs, I am going to receive a glorified body. What that is going to look like nobody knows. We are not told. We do not know.
Philippians 3:21
21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
So we are talking about, has anyone seen Jesus in his totally glorified form? The answer to that is not that I know about, not like he is in heaven. We have been given some descriptions in Revelation. If those are descriptions of Jesus it is a far cry from what we think. We do not know what he is like in his glorified body. We do know he has a glorious body. We know that. We are told that. We also know God is Spirit.
John 4:24
24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
We do know that even though God is Spirit, Jesus has a glorious body. We are also told in Philippians that he is going to transform these lowly bodies of ours so that they will be like his glorious body. So back to John, where it is talking about, “what we will be has not yet been made known”. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him. We will be like him because we will see him like he is. Is there hope there? I think that is a marvelous hope. This hope purifies us just as he is pure. His work is so final and so pure that when we think about that, that there is a degree we are purified by that thought, there are no doubts about that. There is no doubt about the fact that one of these days, I am going to be out of this body that contains indwelling sin. It is not going to be like that any more. That is a purifying thought to realize that we will be free from sin that holds us to such bondage that if it were not for Christ controlling that, we would be the mess of all messes. So to realize that we are going to be like him and that we are going to have a glorified body, and it is going to be a body like his. That is a marvelous thought and that thought does a certain amount of purification in just that, as he is sure the mystery that is in the scriptures that we do not know and do not have to know. What it says there. What we will be has not yet been made known. It has not been made known to man yet. But we do know that when he appears we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is. What does that mean? I do not know. What I do know is that one of these days, when he appears to me, I am going to be like him. The reason I am going to be like him is because I see him as he is. How is he going to do that? I do not know and I don’ t even care. What I am concerned about and care about is that I am going to be like him. How he is going to pull that off is fine with me. I do not need to know how he is going to do that. But I do have hope in the fact that it is going to occur. I have hope in the fact that I will be like him. He will transform our lowly bodies so it will be like his glorious body.
Folks, I am going to vary a little bit from the lesson plan here. Let us turn to 1 Corinthians 15. This is the most natural question that we could ask, that is, “How are the dead raised?” “What kind of body will they become?” This is what we are dealing with there. When you are raised from the dead, what kind of body am I going to have? That is a natural question. He says I am going to get a new body. What kind is it going to be? In Corinthians is the answer to this. This ties into a little bit into 1 Thessalonians where people are talking about the Lord is coming back. Everyone who is there listening to what is being said, are thinking, “That is great. The Lord is coming back. He might come back today. If he does, we are going to meet him in the air”. What is the most logical question then? What about people who have already died? What is going to happen to them? You tell me I am going to meet him in the air. That is good news. But what about loved ones who have died? These questions are being answered because they are being asked.
1 Corinthians 15:35-36
35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 36 How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
Unless a seed dies, when it falls to the ground, it abides alone. You do not stick a seed in the ground and it comes out a seed. The amazing thing is that the seed dies but there is life in that seed. In that little seed there is life in there. You and I cannot see it. But there is life in there. But until that shell dies that life does not spring forth. It does not take root. It has to take root in the death of the outer shell. That shows us something. When this outer shell dies, we come alive in all of its form. We live spiritually now but that life is contained in this body of flesh but until this dies, we will not come fully alive. What we will experience life here compared to what we will experience up there, we will wonder what we had down here.
1 Corinthians 15:37-38
37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body.
When you plant a seed of corn, it does not come out a seed. It comes out as an ear of corn. It does not come out looking anything like a seed. What comes out is an ear of corn. What you plant by the looks of it, you will never know what it is going to look like once it takes root and comes alive. That is what Paul is saying here. Such great examples he shares.
1 Corinthians 15:39-44
39 Not all flesh is the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. 40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another. 41 The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
Folks, let me explain once again. Flesh and blood will never inherit the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 15:50
50 I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God,
What you see if you are looking in the mirror right now, that is not going to heaven. It came from the dust and it is going to return to the dust. It is called a natural body. You must be born again of the Spirit. That which is flesh is flesh, that is natural. That which is Spirit is Spirit. That is spiritual.
John 3:5-8
5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
What it means to be born of water is natural birth. You come into this earth in a sac of water. That is natural birth. You are then born of the Spirit called spiritual birth.
1 Corinthians 15:42
42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
When we die, these bodies are going to be sown a natural body. It will be raised into a spiritual body. But it is not going to be raised with anything that is natural. A spiritual body is spiritual. When you receive spiritual birth, did an ounce of that come from mom and dad? No. You must be born again, not out of a natural plan or human desire, not from mommy and daddy, but only from above. To be born from above is to be born of the Spirit. My spiritual body will come only from above. It will be a gift from above. It will not be made out of these ingredients. These ingredients are going back to the dust. They will be fine fertilizer. They will provide some food for the worms. There are all kinds of benefits to this body going into that grave, but it is not coming out. That body is staying there. You can dig it up thousands of years after that, you will dig the bones up, but it is staying there. But God is going to give you a spiritual body from above. Just as I was born physically now, my body will receive a spiritual body. What is it going to be like? It is going to be like Jesus. He says he will transform our lowly bodies so it will be like His glorious body. It will be like His. I am glad for that.
It says there is a natural body. There is also a spiritual body. They are not made up of each other. The natural is not made up of the spiritual and the spiritual is not made of the natural.
1 Corinthians 15:45-46
45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”[Genesis 2:7]; the last Adam [Jesus], a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.
You and I are not born spiritual. We were born natural. After that, we were born spiritual.
1 Corinthians 15:47
47 The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven.
You and I were born in Adam from the dust of the earth.
1 Corinthians 15:48
48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth;
As Adam was, we are. We are from the dust of the earth.
1 Corinthians 15:48
and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.
We are going to become as he is, but it is going to be a spiritual body not a natural body made into a spiritual body, but a spiritual body made totally from Spirit. What is that going to be like, again?
1 Corinthians 15:36
36 How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else.
So how foolish it is for us to sit around wondering is ludicrous. It is like seeds sitting together saying, “Gee, I wonder what we are going to look like. Oh, how foolish. You just wait and see”.
1 Corinthians 15:49
49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
That ties into what we are talking about, that when he appears we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is, transforming our lowly bodies so it will be like his glorious body, and as it says, bearing likeness of the man from heaven.
1 Corinthians 15:50
50 I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God
It did not say it won’t. It said it can’t. Flesh and blood are not going to go to heaven.
1 Corinthians 15:50
nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
You cannot make the imperishable out of the perishable.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52
51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – 52 in a flash
Is he talking about our death or at the end times? 1 Corinthians is not talking about end times, but what happens when you die, when the dead are raised. The context of all of this is the resurrection, the physical resurrection of Christ, not some day in the future, but now.
1 Corinthians 15:20-22
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man [Adam], the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man [Jesus]. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.
All of us are born in Adam, dead, and all of us, in Christ, will be made alive, but each in his own turn.
1 Corinthians 15:23-27
23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For he “has put everything under his feet.”[c]
You are talking about what happens at death and about end items, and you are trying to blend these things together, and sometimes it is difficult to do. But because of the question, “how are the dead raised?” I do not think they are asking that about 2000 years from now, but right now. So he is telling us how the dead are raised.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52
51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
Is that talking about the end times or is that talking about what happens at our death? We are told that we do not die as Christians. We just go to sleep in Jesus. These are going to be those who go to sleep in Jesus, the dead. Then at the end times, there will be those who do not experience physical death but are raptured into the presence of Jesus. So you have those two groups of people. But in both cases, whether dead or alive, that you are all going to be changed, one way or the other. What is he talking about there? Just what we said in Philippians 3:20-21.
Philippians 3:20-21
20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
That will happen to all of us, but each in his own turn, Christ the firstfruit, and then those who remain. As we go on, he says there will be a time, whether at death or at the end of time, I do not believe it is clear. I believe, personally, that when you and I go to sleep in Jesus, I believe He or His angels come and deliver us into His presence. If Christ is alive living in me now, why would He desert us at our death. I think He ushers us into the presence of God. When that occurs, it will occur in a flash. When you die, you will hear a trumpet sound. The dead will be raised at that moment. I do not believe that if you are dead today and live in soul sleep, as some people teach, and then, at the end times, you are raised bodily. If you have to wait until the end times to be raised bodily and nothing is coming from down here, then why would you have to wait 2000 years to be raised bodily when that body is not going anywhere except the grave. I believe what it is dealing with here is the fact that at the moment you leave your natural body, that you receive your spiritual body. You are sown a natural body and it is raised a spiritual body. It does not say 2000 years later. It says it is sewn and it is raised. I believe that is exactly what takes place. There is a natural body and a spiritual body. He is saying to us now, that that is going to happen in the twinkling of an eye at the last trump. Is it the last trump when he comes back or is it my last trump? I believe he is dealing with people. At the last trump, at the last sound, I am going to be in the presence of the Lord, and be raised imperishable. We are going to be changed. We are going to be transformed into looking like his glorious body.
1 Corinthians 15:52-53
For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable
Why would he leave the perishable for 2000 years? What benefit is there to that? So he says the perishable, our bodies now, have to be clothed. It is going to be clothed with the imperishable.
1 Corinthians 15:53-54
and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”[Isaiah 25:8]
Do I have to wait 2000 years until the rapture to say death has been swallowed up in victory? I do not think so. We are talking about ourselves. I am talking about something that I live in hope for. The blessed hope is the very moment you are absent from the body and present with the Lord. I believe that at that moment my perishable body is clothed with the imperishable and the immortal with immortality. I am going to be able to say this.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57
55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”[Hosea 13:14]56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
That is the hope we live in. For fear of someone having a heart attack over what we are talking about here, that there is not a believing in the rapture, that is certainly not what we are saying. I am saying that when a believer dies you immediately go into the presence of the Lord. In the rapture, those who are left are going to meet us in the air who are already there. That is what 1 Thessalonians is talking about.
1 Thessalonians 4:13-15
13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
So you are talking about people who are still alive and talking about those who are dead and are already there. That tells us that something has happened to those who have fallen asleep that has not happened to those who are here. When you are talking about not preceding, about the rapture in a split of a split of a second, why in the world would the bible be concerned about who went first, if you could not even tell the difference in regard to a time scale. We who are going to be here at the time of the rapture are not going to proceed those who have fallen asleep. They have already gone to be with Him. At that time, we who are still here are going to be caught up with them in the clouds.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-18
16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
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