In part one and two we saw that Samuel, Moses and Elijah were alive and well, and not soul sleeping. Then we saw that those who died before the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ were raised from the dead after Jesus arose from the dead, this is the beginning of the first resurrection, and when Jesus went into heaven (Acts 1:9), He took them with Him. How do we know that?
Paul wrote, “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive and gave gifts to men. Now this, He ascended –what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth. He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things” (Ephesians 4:8-9). The Old Testament saints, those who had believed and trusted in the promises of God, were kept in Abraham’s bosom awaiting the promises of God (Hebrews 11:39-40). And when Jesus ascended into heaven, he led these captives from their captivity.
Paul and Barnabus were in Lystra, where Paul healed a cripple man. But a group of men came from Antioch and Iconium and incited the crowd, and they stoned Paul and dragged him outside of the city, thinking he was dead (Acts 14). Now, I believe that this is when Paul had a very unusual spiritual experience. We read in 2 Corinthians about a spiritual experience where Paul says that he doesn’t know whether he was still in his body or out of his body, but he was taken up into the third heaven and heard things that were impossible to explain (2 Corinthians 12:1-4). I believe that Paul was given a glimpse of heaven while he was unconscious on the outskirts of Lystra.
God gave Paul a tremendous amount of insight into the spiritual bodies we will receive when we leave our earthly bodies, in fact, no other apostle gives us anywhere near the spiritual insight on our future spiritual body. When Paul was asked what kind of new body Christians get when the earthly body dies he explained that first the old body had to die, because like a seed of wheat or some other seed, to reproduce it has to die. Then Paul says that God gives to each seed an earthly and living body fitting for that seed, like a wheat plant, or an apple tree. Resurrection goes on continuously in the plant world, and in like manner, the first resurrection began at the resurrection of Jesus Christ and will continue until the end of the first resurrection (Revelation 20:5).
Paul says that all flesh is not the same, men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. Paul is explaining that there are different types of bodies for different species of animals and plants on this earth. Paul points out that there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, and that each one has a different type of splendor or glory. Paul tells us that the sun, moon and the stars all have different types of glory, even the stars have a different glory among themselves.
Paul then tells us that so it will be with the resurrection of the dead, the body that dies is perishable, but it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, but raised in glory, it is sown in weakness, but is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, but is raised a spiritual body. And to add emphasis to this he says that if there is a natural body, then there must be a spiritual body (Read 1 Corinthians 15:1-58) Now, Paul is telling all of this to get us to understand that our spiritual bodies will be different than our earthly bodies. Just as an astronaut cannot walk out into space without a special suit, so we need a special body to enter into heaven, God will not allow our earthly and sinful bodies into His heaven.
When God created Adam He gave him an earthly body, made out of dust. When God raised Jesus from the dead, He gave Him a heavenly, or spiritual body that is made for heaven. Humans are born with an earthly body, but will have a spiritual body when they go to heaven. Paul tells us that our fleshly bodies cannot inherit the kingdom of God, because the perishable cannot inherit the imperishable. God will not allow our sinful, rotten and smelly human flesh into His presence.
Paul now tells us that we will not all sleep, but will all be changed—in a flash, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For a trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, and when that happens, death is swallowed up in victory (1 Corinthians 15:51-54). And you say, “But this says that the resurrection will not happen until the last trumpet sounds.” My answer for now is “We ain’t through yet!”
When Lazarus died, Mary and Martha were upset, and Martha said to Jesus, “If You had been here, my brother would not have died. Jesus said, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” And Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies. And whoever lives and believed in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” (read John 11:1-27).
Jesus said, “Whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.” His word is good enough for me, but for those that are a bit skeptical, we will go further into this subject in the next article. Paul wrote, “Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:6).