RESURRECTION LIVES
1 Corinthians 15:35-49
And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man. (49)
chapter 15
35. But someone will ask, "How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?"
36. How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
37. When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else.
38. But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body.
39. Not all flesh is the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another.
40. There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another.
41. The sun has one kind of splendor, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.
42. So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable;
43. it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;
44. it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
45. So it is written: "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.
46. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.
47. The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven.
48. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.
49. And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
1. Death often feels like a sad and tragic affair, but it is also inevitable. There is always something that must die in order for a resurrection to take place. Jesus died after being crucified on the cross. Yet, Jesus’ resurrection brought a surprising triumph of God over sin, evil, and even death. This triumph extends to all who believe in him.
2. Dying is never easy, however. Dying means letting go of a life that seems right to us at the moment. It is easier to protect, to maintain, and to justify who we are now, or to think we are no more than the mistakes we have made. By dying to who we are, we become more of what God made us to truly be. There is beauty, peace, and freedom in becoming more and more like Jesus, in the image of God in us, sloughing off the shells of who we thought we were, like a seed that blossoms into a flower. Apostle Paul says he dies every day (31). Indeed, the act of dying and rebirth can be a way of living.
Prayer: Father, you are the author of our lives, help us to claim it by dying to who we think we are and embrace the stamp of your image in us. Give us resurrection faith and lives.
One Word: We shall bear the image of Jesus