Doreen and I are visiting her sister Ingrid and husband Harold in Calgary. Our itinerary includes day trips, shopping, shared meals, uplifting conversations, and exchanging memories.
Yesterday, we visited our parents’ gravesite. We parked our car and walked slowly and reverently. No words were spoken. Walking through a cemetery surrounded by gravestones is a deeply moving experience. It is thought-provoking. Eventually, we stood before the gravestone: Siegfried and Lina Raasch. Engraved beneath each name were the dates of birth and death. How often had our parents spoken of the fleeting nature of life? We stood there in silence. Only memories remain. Beautiful memories. Their life’s work is complete. They are home with the Lord.
I recall a remark someone made at the cemetery just before a burial. With the coffin in front of us, while we were waiting for the other people to arrive, he turned to me and whispered just one phrase: “Final destination!” I understood what he meant. But is this statement theologically accurate? Doesn’t the Bible speak of the resurrection of the dead?
The Apostle Paul addresses the topic of “resurrection” in his letter to the Corinthians. Usually, there was a specific reason when Paul addressed such an important topic. In this case, there was a group within the church who believed that with death, everything was over. This can be concluded when Paul asks, “Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” (1 Corinthians 15:12). They held the view that with death, everything ends – in other words, “final destination!”
In a detailed manner, the Apostle Paul addresses the topic of resurrection. He wants to bring clarity and end the negative influence of those who denied the resurrection. He bases his argument on the proof that Christ was raised from the dead – a fact that was common knowledge. Many believers who encountered the risen Christ were still alive and could be questioned as eyewitnesses. If Christ had not been resurrected, our faith would be meaningless, and all our hopes would be buried. But that is not the case. Triumphantly, Paul adds: “But now Christ is risen from the dead… and by Man [Christ] also came the resurrection of the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:20-21). The grave could not hold Christ. Death is defeated. While dying remains a reality, the resurrection is an unshakable fact. With this knowledge, Paul can joyfully and challengingly ask, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55).
When we attentively read chapter 15, Paul addresses the topic from another perspective. He compares our current body with the body we will receive in the future. He calls the first one the “natural” body and the second one the “spiritual” body (1 Corinthians 15:44). The first is “perishable,” the second “imperishable” (1 Corinthians 15:42, NIV). In summary, Paul concludes: There is only one way to receive this immortal body: we must first die before resurrection can occur, and it will be “imperishable, in glory, in power” (1 Corinthians 15:42-43).
Once again, I imagine myself standing at the graveside of our parents. When the resurrection takes place, the grave will open, and they will rise with a new resurrection body. This will happen not only to them but to all the deceased – probably to us as well, unless we are still alive when the resurrection occurs. Those alive at that time will be transformed in an instant. The outcome is the same: we will have a new, imperishable body. No longer the old, frail, vulnerable, and deteriorating body of an aging person, but a new body, no longer subject to aging. Pain and disease will leave it completely untouched. Canes and walkers will be set aside forever. They will never be needed again.
When I asked an older brother where he would spend his vacation, he replied, “We don’t travel anymore. We always need to be within reach of a doctor and a hospital.” I felt sorry for him. Such limitations will no longer apply to the resurrection body. It is difficult to imagine: Our calendars will not alert us to a doctor’s appointment. Hospitals and pharmacies will not be needed. Doctors will be unemployed, medications will not be required, nor will injections have to be endured. Whatever troubles and burdens you face today will not exist over there.
Although all of this is impressive and fascinating, we will be filled with far greater joy when we meet our Lord and Savior and will “see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2).
“When all my labors and trials are o’er,
And I am safe on that beautiful shore,
Just to be near the dear Lord I adore,
Will through the ages be glory for me.
Oh that will be glory for me, glory for me.
When by His grace I shall look on His face
That will be glory, be glory for me.”
In the last book of the Bible, the Apostle John gives us a tiny glimpse into the new world to come. We read: “I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Look, God’s dwelling is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away’” (Revelation 21:3-4, NIV).
In verse 7, he adds: “Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God, and they will be my children” (NIV). Simply glorious. Incomprehensibly wonderful.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the foundation of our faith. Considering the Apostle Paul’s reasoning in 1 Corinthians 15 leads us to conclude that a bright future lies before us. The best is yet to come! Perhaps Paul was thinking of our future in the presence of the Lord when he wrote: “… and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).
Harry Semenjuk
Wetaskiwin, AB
Be the first to comment