Crystallizing my thoughts ahead of a short talk. =)
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We know that Jesus was raised from the dead. But did you know that we will be raised from the dead as well?
Some of us think that when we die, our souls will go straight to heaven to live with God happily ever after.
That's nice, but why does the Bible say that we will be raised from the dead? Why do we need to be raised from the dead?
The Resurrection is a very very important concept in Christian thinking. If there is no Resurrection, Paul says, then Jesus was obviously not raised from the dead as well. Even worse, those who have died are gone forever. We might as well eat, drink and be merry - for tomorrow we die.
But Jesus did rise from the dead. And there is even greater reason to rejoice - we too will be raised from the dead.
When will this happen?
It will happen when Jesus returns. Paul says that, "...since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died."
But what happens after we die?
The Bible speaks often of Sheol (in New Testament, Hades) - a place where the dead go after they die. However Jesus told the thief on the cross that today, he will be with him in Paradise. Paradise was understood as an intermediate (halfway stop) place where the righteous would go, before they were resurrected.
What will our resurrected bodies be like?
Just like the disciples could still recognize Jesus in his resurrected body, so too will we be able to recognize each other in our resurrected bodies. However, it will be a different body as well - one that will never die. Again Paul clarifies, "Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies."
What will we do after that?
After the Resurrection, we will live in a New Heaven and Earth. In Revelation, John tells us that he "saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."
Notice - the New Jerusalem comes from heaven. This implies that we will be living in the New Earth! But in a way, we will also be living in heaven. For the New Heaven and the New Earth has joined together and God's presence is in the eternal city, the New Jerusalem:
"God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
And so, "when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”
Finally, I don't think our new life will be "boring", as some people think heaven will be. Although this is only conjecture (meaning our best guess), there will be a lot of things to do. We will, I think, be able to do all the things we have wanted to do but never could in this life. I also don't think that the Lord made the universe with its billions of stars, planets and galaxies only to have us look at them and wonder! Who knows, we will be able to travel and see fully all of God's creation.
These then are my thoughts. I end with saying that our Resurrection is not just a future event that happens after we die. Paul says that, "We died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin."
So let's live a life of someone who has been raised into a new life, free from the power of sin.
Soli Deo Gloria. Amen!
Some of us think that when we die, our souls will go straight to heaven to live with God happily ever after.
That's nice, but why does the Bible say that we will be raised from the dead? Why do we need to be raised from the dead?
The Resurrection is a very very important concept in Christian thinking. If there is no Resurrection, Paul says, then Jesus was obviously not raised from the dead as well. Even worse, those who have died are gone forever. We might as well eat, drink and be merry - for tomorrow we die.
But Jesus did rise from the dead. And there is even greater reason to rejoice - we too will be raised from the dead.
When will this happen?
It will happen when Jesus returns. Paul says that, "...since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died."
But what happens after we die?
The Bible speaks often of Sheol (in New Testament, Hades) - a place where the dead go after they die. However Jesus told the thief on the cross that today, he will be with him in Paradise. Paradise was understood as an intermediate (halfway stop) place where the righteous would go, before they were resurrected.
What will our resurrected bodies be like?
Just like the disciples could still recognize Jesus in his resurrected body, so too will we be able to recognize each other in our resurrected bodies. However, it will be a different body as well - one that will never die. Again Paul clarifies, "Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies."
What will we do after that?
After the Resurrection, we will live in a New Heaven and Earth. In Revelation, John tells us that he "saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."
Notice - the New Jerusalem comes from heaven. This implies that we will be living in the New Earth! But in a way, we will also be living in heaven. For the New Heaven and the New Earth has joined together and God's presence is in the eternal city, the New Jerusalem:
"God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
And so, "when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”
Finally, I don't think our new life will be "boring", as some people think heaven will be. Although this is only conjecture (meaning our best guess), there will be a lot of things to do. We will, I think, be able to do all the things we have wanted to do but never could in this life. I also don't think that the Lord made the universe with its billions of stars, planets and galaxies only to have us look at them and wonder! Who knows, we will be able to travel and see fully all of God's creation.
These then are my thoughts. I end with saying that our Resurrection is not just a future event that happens after we die. Paul says that, "We died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin."
So let's live a life of someone who has been raised into a new life, free from the power of sin.
Soli Deo Gloria. Amen!
