I Corinthians 15:35-49: "The Glory of the Resurrected Body"
One of the fears of the Corinthians was that the resurrected body would look and feel exactly like the earthly bodies they had. They had a hard time understanding that they would be given new bodies in their resurrection. That coupled with an understanding that resurrection would be impossible, there seems to almost be a complete aversion to the idea of resurrection by some of the Corinthians. Paul has already addressed the fact that resurrection is not only possible, but is essential for the Christian. He now shifts his focus to the understanding of the new body.
Paul begins, "but someone will say, 'How are the dead raised? and with what kind of body do they come?'". Here Paul shows he will face off once again with those who falsely believed in no resurrection, as well as answering their misconceptions about what their new bodies will be like. MacArthur writes, "Part of the problem some Greeks had may have been traceable to a false view of resurrection taught by many rabbis of that time. By misinterpreting such passages as Job 19:26 ("Yet from my flesh I shall see God"), they concluded that resurrection bodies will be identical to earthly bodies in every way". What they were obviously overlooking was the power of God. They had gotten so caught up in the details of everything they overlooked the fact that God had created them and the universe in the first place. Why would it be so hard to fathom that He could raise us up in new formed bodies? That is why Paul responds, "You fool!". Here Paul was saying, why do you underestimate the power of God. Just look through nature, can't you see he has given us a glimpse of this process through nature?
To help give them an understanding of how planting and the growth of crops is similar to the resurrection. Paul writes, "That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies". Paul was bringing up an understanding of how a seed would be planted, and yet no growth or transformation can take place until the seed dies. Just as Jesus proclaimed, "Truly, truly, I say to you , unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24). MacArthur writes, "When a seed is planted in the ground it dies, actually decomposing as a seed: it must cease to exist in its original form as a seed before it can come to life in its final form as a plant". Paul is clearly paralleling this to resurrection. He is saying, "just as that seed, so we as believers must undergo death before we can truly receive our new lives. It is not until we die that we can produce the true fruits we were created for".
Paul continues his analogy, "you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else". Here Paul wants his readers to understand that there is a difference between the old earthly bodies and the new eternal bodies we will receive. MacArthur points out, "The seed loses its identity as a seed and becomes more and more like the mature plant. But the see itself, that which you sow- whether it is wheat . . . something else- looks nothing like the mature plant, the body which is to be". It can be pointed out that Christ exemplified this in His resurrection body. He could transport with walking, walk through walls and doors (Luke 24:15, 31, 36; John 20:19, etc). His new bodies did wonderful and marvelous things that it could not do before.
Although it is true our new bodies will be different, Paul also wants us to understand that it will be similar and a continuous shift from the original. There is continuity between our old and new bodies, "But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own", Paul writes. MacArthur explains, "the seed changes radically, but it continues as the same life form. A Wheat seed does not become barley, and a flax seed does not become corn. God has given each type of seed a body of its own, whose identity continues into the grown plant". This would clearly teach against reincarnation where some believe you come back in another life as something different. We have been changed and made new, yet we are similar and recognizable, just without some of the limitations we had before. MacArthur uses Christ as the example, "After Jesus was raised, no one recognized Him unless He revealed Himself to them. But once revealed, He was recognizable. The disciples knew His face, and they recognized His wounded side and His pierced hands. In a similar way, our resurrected bodies as believers will have a continuity with the bodies we have now".
Paul then moves on to show that our resurrected bodies will be different but similar because we will all be unique just as we were on earth. Paul writes, "All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish". It is as simple as looking around to see that God has made every creature unique in that no two snowflakes, blades of grass, star, etc is exactly the same. Yet we are all identified in groups. In our resurrected bodies we will not take on some other form, we will continue to remain as humans. MacArthur points out that this is a great case against evolution, "No matter what we may eat, no matter how specialized or unbalanced our diet may be, and no matter what our environment may be, we will never change into another form. We may become healthier or more sickly, heavier or lighter, but we will never be anything but a human being and never any human being but the one we are".
Paul continues this same point using the heavenly bodies as examples, "There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars". Here Paul is showing that not only is there a great difference between the earthly bodies that God created, but he created, in far greater glory the heavenly bodies. However, even within the heavenly bodies there is great difference between the sun, moon, and stars. These verses should have us standing in awe amazed and the wonderful creation of God, and just in recognizing these truths that Paul is giving us to say to ourselves, "if God can create all this, He is more than capable of raising us however He pleases". Paul points out that, "for star differs from star in glory". Even among similar bodies, they are completely different. Just as we make up mankind, even between human to human we are unique and vastly different and it shows the creativity and power of our God. All this to say, Paul writes, "so also is the resurrection of the dead". MacArthur writes, "Resurrection bodies will differ from earthly bodies just as radically as heavenly bodies differ from earthly. And resurrection bodies will be as individual and unique as are all the other forms of God's creation".
Paul will now show us the contrast of our earthly and heavenly bodies to continue the point he was making earlier, "it is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body". We can all attest to the fact that we are perishable. Just as milk has an expiration date, so do each of us. God has numbered our days and we are "but a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away (James 4:14). We are finite beings that have the curse of death on us the second we are born. It has been said we are dying the day we are conceived. The Psalmist wrote, "For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust. As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. When the wind has passed over it, it is no more; and its place acknowledges it no longer" (Ps. 103:14-16). One of the biggest differences between our earthly bodies and heavenly bodies will be the transformation from perishable to imperishable. This is a great gift from God that we will no longer "undergo decay", we will no longer suffer the curse of the fall, but rather, "to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:3-4).
The next difference Paul points out is that our earthly bodies have been "sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory". Because of our sinful nature passed on from conception to conception there is a sense in which we are, "brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me", David says in Psalm 51:5. MacArthur writes, "We dishonor God by our inability to take advantage fully of what He has given us in His creation. We dishonor God by misusing and abusing the bodies through which He desires us to honor and serve Him . . . but that imperfect and dishonored body one day will be raised in glory. Throughout eternity our new immortal bodies will also be honorable bodies, perfected for pleasing, praising, and enjoying the Creator who made them and the Redeemer who restored them".
To continue the contrast, "It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power". Although our bodies are "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14), we are still subject to disease, sickness, and of course sin. We are powerless against these forces no matter how hard we try. We cannot control dying from a heart attack, being killed in a car accident. All these things are temporary and rendered harmless to us when we are raised in power. MacArthur writes, "but not so our new bodies, which will be raised in power. We are not told what that power will entail, but it will be immeasurable compared to what we now possess. We will no longer have to say that 'the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak' (Matt. 26:41)".
The last contrast Paul makes is to reconfirm with us that our earthly bodies are "sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body". MacArthur writes, "Our earthly body is strictly natural. That is the only realm in which it can live and function. The physical body is suited for and limited to the physical world. Even with the imperfection and limitations caused by the Fall, our present bodies are wonderfully made for life on earth, marvelously suited for earthly living . . . The new body of the believer, however, will be raised a spiritual body. Our spirits now reside in earthly bodies, but one day they will reside in spiritual bodies. In every way we then will be spiritual beings. In both spirit and body we will be perfectly suited for heavenly living". Just as we cannot live in the sea, our bodies will have to be changed and adapted to live in heaven.
To sum up his points and continue to contrast the earthly and spiritual transformation that will occur with our resurrection, Paul continues to attack the question, "How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?". Paul uses a quotation from Gen. 2:7, "'The first man, Adam, became a living soul'. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit". Here we can see Paul does what he has often done before. He uses Adam as the first prototype and Christ as the second prototype. Just as we were, so was Adam formed with a natural body. It was not a glorified, spiritual body, but it was "good" in every way (Gen. 1:31). However, the last Adam, referring to Christ is a spiritual being. MacArthur writes, "Adam's was the prototype of our natural bodies, whereas Christ's was the prototype of our spiritual bodies. All the descendants of Adam have natural bodies, and all the descendants of Christ will have spiritual bodies. Christ's resurrection, therefore, was the prototype of all subsequent resurrection". This is the whole point Paul has been making. We will follow in the way of Christ. Those that are His children will be raised, just as He was.
Naturally, from this we can see the order. Just as we are born natural first and then raised spiritually after death, Paul writes, "However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. The first man is form the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven". Adam was the first man and was from earth, Christ was the second man who was sent from heaven. We can gather from this Paul looking at his readers saying, "see how this works?" Those of us who follow Christ, will follow after Christ. Continuing this thought Paul writes, "As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly". MacArthur writes, "Just as we will exchange Adam's natural body for Christ's spiritual body, we will also exchange Adam's image for Christ's". Just as a king who is just promoted peels off his old garments and exchanges them with the garments of royalty, so we as believers will peel off this perishable, dishonored, weak, natural body and put on the new imperishable, glorified, powerful spiritual bodies. Let us strive and long after our new glorified bodies. Although we do not know exactly all that will be involved with them, we know they will be far better than our best earthly body. MacArthur concludes, "The coming resurrection is the hope and motivation of the church and of all believers. Whatever happens to our present bodies - whether they are healthy or unhealthy, beautiful or plain, short-lived or long-lived, or whether they are indulged or tortured- they are not our permanent bodies, and we should not hot them too dearly. Our blessed hope and assurance is that these created natural bodies one day will be recreated as spiritual bodies. Although we have only a glimpse of what those new bodies will be like, it should be enough to know that 'we shall be like Him'".
Paul begins, "but someone will say, 'How are the dead raised? and with what kind of body do they come?'". Here Paul shows he will face off once again with those who falsely believed in no resurrection, as well as answering their misconceptions about what their new bodies will be like. MacArthur writes, "Part of the problem some Greeks had may have been traceable to a false view of resurrection taught by many rabbis of that time. By misinterpreting such passages as Job 19:26 ("Yet from my flesh I shall see God"), they concluded that resurrection bodies will be identical to earthly bodies in every way". What they were obviously overlooking was the power of God. They had gotten so caught up in the details of everything they overlooked the fact that God had created them and the universe in the first place. Why would it be so hard to fathom that He could raise us up in new formed bodies? That is why Paul responds, "You fool!". Here Paul was saying, why do you underestimate the power of God. Just look through nature, can't you see he has given us a glimpse of this process through nature?
To help give them an understanding of how planting and the growth of crops is similar to the resurrection. Paul writes, "That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies". Paul was bringing up an understanding of how a seed would be planted, and yet no growth or transformation can take place until the seed dies. Just as Jesus proclaimed, "Truly, truly, I say to you , unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24). MacArthur writes, "When a seed is planted in the ground it dies, actually decomposing as a seed: it must cease to exist in its original form as a seed before it can come to life in its final form as a plant". Paul is clearly paralleling this to resurrection. He is saying, "just as that seed, so we as believers must undergo death before we can truly receive our new lives. It is not until we die that we can produce the true fruits we were created for".
Paul continues his analogy, "you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else". Here Paul wants his readers to understand that there is a difference between the old earthly bodies and the new eternal bodies we will receive. MacArthur points out, "The seed loses its identity as a seed and becomes more and more like the mature plant. But the see itself, that which you sow- whether it is wheat . . . something else- looks nothing like the mature plant, the body which is to be". It can be pointed out that Christ exemplified this in His resurrection body. He could transport with walking, walk through walls and doors (Luke 24:15, 31, 36; John 20:19, etc). His new bodies did wonderful and marvelous things that it could not do before.
Although it is true our new bodies will be different, Paul also wants us to understand that it will be similar and a continuous shift from the original. There is continuity between our old and new bodies, "But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own", Paul writes. MacArthur explains, "the seed changes radically, but it continues as the same life form. A Wheat seed does not become barley, and a flax seed does not become corn. God has given each type of seed a body of its own, whose identity continues into the grown plant". This would clearly teach against reincarnation where some believe you come back in another life as something different. We have been changed and made new, yet we are similar and recognizable, just without some of the limitations we had before. MacArthur uses Christ as the example, "After Jesus was raised, no one recognized Him unless He revealed Himself to them. But once revealed, He was recognizable. The disciples knew His face, and they recognized His wounded side and His pierced hands. In a similar way, our resurrected bodies as believers will have a continuity with the bodies we have now".
Paul then moves on to show that our resurrected bodies will be different but similar because we will all be unique just as we were on earth. Paul writes, "All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish". It is as simple as looking around to see that God has made every creature unique in that no two snowflakes, blades of grass, star, etc is exactly the same. Yet we are all identified in groups. In our resurrected bodies we will not take on some other form, we will continue to remain as humans. MacArthur points out that this is a great case against evolution, "No matter what we may eat, no matter how specialized or unbalanced our diet may be, and no matter what our environment may be, we will never change into another form. We may become healthier or more sickly, heavier or lighter, but we will never be anything but a human being and never any human being but the one we are".
Paul continues this same point using the heavenly bodies as examples, "There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars". Here Paul is showing that not only is there a great difference between the earthly bodies that God created, but he created, in far greater glory the heavenly bodies. However, even within the heavenly bodies there is great difference between the sun, moon, and stars. These verses should have us standing in awe amazed and the wonderful creation of God, and just in recognizing these truths that Paul is giving us to say to ourselves, "if God can create all this, He is more than capable of raising us however He pleases". Paul points out that, "for star differs from star in glory". Even among similar bodies, they are completely different. Just as we make up mankind, even between human to human we are unique and vastly different and it shows the creativity and power of our God. All this to say, Paul writes, "so also is the resurrection of the dead". MacArthur writes, "Resurrection bodies will differ from earthly bodies just as radically as heavenly bodies differ from earthly. And resurrection bodies will be as individual and unique as are all the other forms of God's creation".
Paul will now show us the contrast of our earthly and heavenly bodies to continue the point he was making earlier, "it is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body". We can all attest to the fact that we are perishable. Just as milk has an expiration date, so do each of us. God has numbered our days and we are "but a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away (James 4:14). We are finite beings that have the curse of death on us the second we are born. It has been said we are dying the day we are conceived. The Psalmist wrote, "For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust. As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. When the wind has passed over it, it is no more; and its place acknowledges it no longer" (Ps. 103:14-16). One of the biggest differences between our earthly bodies and heavenly bodies will be the transformation from perishable to imperishable. This is a great gift from God that we will no longer "undergo decay", we will no longer suffer the curse of the fall, but rather, "to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:3-4).
The next difference Paul points out is that our earthly bodies have been "sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory". Because of our sinful nature passed on from conception to conception there is a sense in which we are, "brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me", David says in Psalm 51:5. MacArthur writes, "We dishonor God by our inability to take advantage fully of what He has given us in His creation. We dishonor God by misusing and abusing the bodies through which He desires us to honor and serve Him . . . but that imperfect and dishonored body one day will be raised in glory. Throughout eternity our new immortal bodies will also be honorable bodies, perfected for pleasing, praising, and enjoying the Creator who made them and the Redeemer who restored them".
To continue the contrast, "It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power". Although our bodies are "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14), we are still subject to disease, sickness, and of course sin. We are powerless against these forces no matter how hard we try. We cannot control dying from a heart attack, being killed in a car accident. All these things are temporary and rendered harmless to us when we are raised in power. MacArthur writes, "but not so our new bodies, which will be raised in power. We are not told what that power will entail, but it will be immeasurable compared to what we now possess. We will no longer have to say that 'the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak' (Matt. 26:41)".
The last contrast Paul makes is to reconfirm with us that our earthly bodies are "sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body". MacArthur writes, "Our earthly body is strictly natural. That is the only realm in which it can live and function. The physical body is suited for and limited to the physical world. Even with the imperfection and limitations caused by the Fall, our present bodies are wonderfully made for life on earth, marvelously suited for earthly living . . . The new body of the believer, however, will be raised a spiritual body. Our spirits now reside in earthly bodies, but one day they will reside in spiritual bodies. In every way we then will be spiritual beings. In both spirit and body we will be perfectly suited for heavenly living". Just as we cannot live in the sea, our bodies will have to be changed and adapted to live in heaven.
To sum up his points and continue to contrast the earthly and spiritual transformation that will occur with our resurrection, Paul continues to attack the question, "How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?". Paul uses a quotation from Gen. 2:7, "'The first man, Adam, became a living soul'. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit". Here we can see Paul does what he has often done before. He uses Adam as the first prototype and Christ as the second prototype. Just as we were, so was Adam formed with a natural body. It was not a glorified, spiritual body, but it was "good" in every way (Gen. 1:31). However, the last Adam, referring to Christ is a spiritual being. MacArthur writes, "Adam's was the prototype of our natural bodies, whereas Christ's was the prototype of our spiritual bodies. All the descendants of Adam have natural bodies, and all the descendants of Christ will have spiritual bodies. Christ's resurrection, therefore, was the prototype of all subsequent resurrection". This is the whole point Paul has been making. We will follow in the way of Christ. Those that are His children will be raised, just as He was.
Naturally, from this we can see the order. Just as we are born natural first and then raised spiritually after death, Paul writes, "However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. The first man is form the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven". Adam was the first man and was from earth, Christ was the second man who was sent from heaven. We can gather from this Paul looking at his readers saying, "see how this works?" Those of us who follow Christ, will follow after Christ. Continuing this thought Paul writes, "As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly". MacArthur writes, "Just as we will exchange Adam's natural body for Christ's spiritual body, we will also exchange Adam's image for Christ's". Just as a king who is just promoted peels off his old garments and exchanges them with the garments of royalty, so we as believers will peel off this perishable, dishonored, weak, natural body and put on the new imperishable, glorified, powerful spiritual bodies. Let us strive and long after our new glorified bodies. Although we do not know exactly all that will be involved with them, we know they will be far better than our best earthly body. MacArthur concludes, "The coming resurrection is the hope and motivation of the church and of all believers. Whatever happens to our present bodies - whether they are healthy or unhealthy, beautiful or plain, short-lived or long-lived, or whether they are indulged or tortured- they are not our permanent bodies, and we should not hot them too dearly. Our blessed hope and assurance is that these created natural bodies one day will be recreated as spiritual bodies. Although we have only a glimpse of what those new bodies will be like, it should be enough to know that 'we shall be like Him'".
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