Our Bodies Will Be Glorified

When Ian departed from his earthly body, he had a translucent body of light. This was most likely a mere foreshadow of the eternal resurrection body that will be given to all of God’s people. ‘The Lord Jesus Christ ... will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body’ (Phil 3:21). If we are still alive when Christ comes then we will bypass death altogether - our living bodies will be transformed. If however we are dead and with Christ, we will be clothed with a resurrection body too…

Read 1 Corinthians 15:35-58.

Let’s look closely at verses 42-44. They describe what our resurrection bodies will be like. Our bodies now are perishable. They get sick. They break, age and deteriorate with time. They have a time limit. But our bodies then will be imperishable. They will never age, nor deteriorate nor end. Our bodies now tend toward dishonor, especially in death. There are few things as ghastly as a rotting corpse. But our bodies then will radiate with God’s glory. What a gift to look forward to!

Our bodies now are weak and fragile. The older we get the weaker we become, until one day our heart becomes too weak to even continue pumping, our lungs too weak to continue breathing. But our bodies then will be powerful.

We’ll have heightened senses and abilities much like Jesus’ resurrection body, who had the ability to move great distances in a moment (Luke 24:13, 33 and 36) or walk through walls (John 20:26). Our bodies now are natural. The Greek word refers to ‘a body characterized by ordinary human life’. But then our bodies will be spiritual, or better translated, ‘Spiritual’ (v44). It does not mean, as some wrongly take it, that our bodies will be made only of ‘spirit’ and will be immaterial. Rather it refers to the fact that in the new heavens and the new earth our bodies will be vehicles of the Holy Spirit’s power and glory.

What encourages you most in today’s Bible passage? How does the promise of a resurrection body motivate you to serve God enduringly (v58)?