1 Corinthians: A 9-Day Devotional For WomenНамуна

Victory Over Death
1 Corinthians 15:50–58

Why do Christians sing at funerals? The world mourns without hope for their loved ones; but while Christians do mourn over the loss of beloved saints, we also rejoice in the certain hope of their glorious resurrection and their ever-increasing joy in the presence of our God and King. We sing at funerals in celebration of the victory over death won by the cross of Christ and displayed at his resurrection from the dead. 

The immortal Son of God took on flesh and blood and drained the venom from the sting of death. Jesus perfectly fulfilled the law and took the punishment for the sins of anyone who would repent and believe. There is no poison left in death for the believer. We may sleep, but we will awake and enter into eternal rest in the arms of our Savior.

When Jesus walked out of the grave in a new, invincible body, he was the first instance of the very kind of body we will one day be given. He was the “firstfruits” of one great harvest (1 Cor. 15:20). In Jesus, the final resurrection of the dead has already begun! 

And one day we too will receive our bodies back, unable to be corrupted, unable to be sick, unable to die. In this life we struggle daily with sin, “but we shall all be changed, in a moment” (vv. 51–52). No long, drawn-out metamorphoses—“in the twinkling of an eye” (v. 52). No more sin! No more “mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4). We will live this new way of life for eternity with our Lord Jesus Christ. “Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54). 

Therefore, beloved sisters, live now in light of the coming eternity. “Be steadfast” (v. 58) in your suffering. Be “immovable” (v. 58) when tempted to sin. Serve your family. Bear witness in your workplace and neighborhood. Encourage others in your church. Be “always abounding in the work of the Lord” (v. 58), because it is never in vain. 

This life is a vapor that quickly vanishes (James 4:14), but your labor in the Lord will bear fruit that lasts forever. Why not wear out these temporal, mortal bodies in service to the One who will raise us imperishable, without stain of sin, and give us bright white robes that display the good works we have done in Christ? As C. T. Studd wrote, 

Only one life, ’twill soon be passed,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be,
If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.

—Keri Folmar

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