Soulfood

Steve Midgley

1 Corinthians 15:35-58

How much of this do I really believe? The Corinthians seem to have struggled to believe it, too. Death seems to strike at the heart of what it means to be human. How can we be human if we are dead? Death is an awful enemy. It raises hard questions about the value of being human.

Paul tells us three things about death:
1. The resurrection is not inconceivable. God can do with bodies what he does with seeds. And God can work out with human bodies what is needed for the resurrection. The resurrection is a physical resurrection, not a spiritual resurrection. We have already been resurrected spiritually and our souls will not die! They will immediately pass into glory and be with Jesus. But our bodies will rest in their graves, being still united to Christ. And our resurrection bodies will be like that of Jesus. Jesus’ resurrection body was recognizable as Jesus, but not always immediately. He was somehow changed. You could touch him, and yet he could pass through locked doors. There is a lot that we don’t know. But we do know that the stuff of this world matters. What we do here, now, matters. It is THIS body that will be raised, not a new one that will be united to my soul. God will give us bodies that are fit for the resurrection life.

2. Resurrection faith is in every way transformational. The perishable becomes imperishable, the dishonored becomes glorified, the weak becomes powerful. Our mortal bodies are perishable. They have a shelf life. Joints weaken, skin sags, everything slows. But as D.A. Carson said, there is no suffering that a good resurrection won’t fix! If Jesus Christ returns this afternoon, then in an instant will be changed. To imperishability, to glory, to power! Do I really believe this? How does it change the way I live? For Paul, it allows him to live in victory in the midst of sorrows and physical defeats. For us, it changes the way we minister to those who are living under the shadow of death. It changes the tone of funerals. It changes our own perspective on death. Whatever we love about this life, what is next is better.

3. The resurrection means our labor is not in vain. All that we do is meaningful. This is the ultimate anchoring, ballast, stabilizing weight, security. We may weeble and wobble but we won’t fall down. And Paul shares this with us because he met the resurrected Jesus! So we can also share this security with others. And we can abound in the work of the Lord, knowing that even giving a cold cup of water to a thirsty neighbor is done as if we were doing it to Jesus.

How big is the truth that I am putting my trust in? Is the truth I hope in as big, as all-encompassing, as the truth Paul offers to us? This truth is so big, so sure, so certain, that it can bear the weight of all our doubts and concerns. We can trust in it – we will be changed, and this is the meaning of our resurrection hope!

We will bear the image of the man of heaven just as surely as we bear the image of the man of dust! We can carry this with us through our whole lives, walking with Jesus as we were made to do having been created after the image of God. We will be like Jesus. Hallelujah!