Open your Bibles with me to First
Corinthians chapter 15. I've been going through this
chapter and Lord willing, I'll continue to the end. But today
I want to just mark out a few verses that deal with this question
that is asked in these verses beginning, we'll begin at verse
35. But it says, how are the dead
raised up? That's the title of the message.
Look at verse 35. You know, we talked about this
in verse 34. Awake to righteousness, sin not. Some have not the knowledge of
God. I speak this to your shame. What he's talking about there
is that believers, sinners saved by grace, are to stay focused
on the glorious person and finished work of Christ, committing our
whole salvation to him. and knowing that all the blessings
and all the benefits of eternal life and glory are fully given
and fully free because of his merits, his work as our surety,
our substitute, our redeemer. None of it, and I think this
is something important that we all need to realize, that what
I have, what I possess, before God in Christ. There's not one
part of it I can say I deserved it or I earned it. I was thinking about that hymn
that we said, you know, we endure these things really not to secure
them because Christ endured what he endured to secure it. But
our looking to him and persevering in him by the grace of God is
the security that we have in him. And so understand that it's
all by his power, all by his goodness, and all by his merits.
But it says in verse 35, but some man will say, some will
say, how are the dead raised up? Now this is the whole subject
of this chapter. Some false preachers had crept
into this church, and that's why the apostle said in the end
of verse 34, I speak this to your shame. The fact that you
would even listen or give a moment to these false preachers who
are denying the resurrection from the dead is to your shame. And so he tells them, he says,
if the dead rise not, Christ is not risen. And we've talked
about how that we're so connected to Christ legally and spiritually
and eternally that what he accomplished is the surety that we gain and
have of our own salvation, our own spiritual life, and our own
glorified life. We will be raised from the dead. Death to a believer is a passage. It's a passage into a glorious,
glorious existence, and a more glorious future. But some will
say, now here's the question, and it's kind of like in the
form of an objection. Somebody says, well, how are
the dead raised up, and with what body do they come? Well,
the Bible tells us that when we who are in Christ are resurrected
unto glory, at the end, we read about there in 1 Thessalonians
4, we'll have a new spiritual, sinless, incorruptible body. What we know about that is very
limited. We have some idea of it when
we look at Christ himself after his resurrection. And in that
body, in that glorified body, there'll be no tears, there'll
be no sickness, there'll be no sorrow, no pain. Boy, that'd
be good, no pain. No death. No death. Now, we'll die physically, and
the reason we have to die physically is what Paul wrote over here
in the latter part that we're gonna look at later, where he
says in verse 53, 1 Corinthians 15, he says, for this corruptible,
now what is corruptible? This human body. The body is
dead because of sin. But this corruptible must put
on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So there's
got to be that change. I've heard people say, well,
just like what we read in 1 Thessalonians 4, that the dead in Christ will
come back with him in the clouds, and we who are alive will be
caught up. And I've heard people say, well, that means we don't
have to die. No, it doesn't. Because being caught up in what
he says, in that time, in that hour, and I don't know how it's
all gonna come about, but we'll all be changed. Why? Because this corruptible must
put on incorruption, and that change involves the physical
death of these bodies. I don't know about you, but I'm
thankful that I'm not gonna live forever in this body. Because
this body hurts. This body's grown old. I don't
look like what I used to, that kind of thing. But it's an incorruptible,
it's a glorious body, without pain, without suffering. And
that's not just pie-in-the-sky religion now, because Christ
arose from the dead in a glorified body. And God the Holy Spirit
inspired the Apostle Paul to answer some of our questions
as raised in the following, how are the dead raised up and with
what body do they come? Now, I've often said that what
we know about the glorification, I know we'll be eternally in
fellowship with God in Christ. You know, hell is separation
from God. Now, you know, a lot of people
arguing about what hell's gonna be like and all that. I don't
do that, all right? I know hell is gonna be separation
from God. I've often told people I take
the caveman view of heaven and hell. Heaven good, hell bad.
I don't wanna go there. So just leave it at that. But
it's separation from God and it's not pleasant. Whatever it
is. Our message is the gospel, the
good news of how to stay out of hell through the blood and
righteousness of Christ. But I've often said that when
it comes to the glorification of these bodies and what it's
gonna be like, What we know about that is pretty much recorded
here in 1 Corinthians 15. And when you finish looking at
this, you'll probably have more questions that I can't answer
or the Bible doesn't answer. But we're gonna look at it this
week and next week, Lord willing. But look at what he says in verse
36. Now, how are the dead raised up? He asks. And with what body
do they come? Well, he starts out this way.
Look at verse 36. Thou fool, That which thou sowest is not
quickened, except it die. Now this word quickened, what
does it mean? It means life. It means life. Sometimes physical
life, spiritual life, eternal life. And it won't be quickened,
that which thou sowest in death, that's what he's talking about,
is not quickened, except it die. And the Lord himself explains
here that this to his disciples when he taught, or he explained
it to his disciples before back in John chapter 12. And listen
to this, this is John chapter 12 and verse 24. Now what he's
talking about is his own death, the crucifixion. And it says,
verily, verily, I say to you, except a corn or a seed of wheat
fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. But if it die,
it bringeth forth much fruit. Now what he's explaining there
is in order for us to have life, he's got to die. See? Because law and justice has to
be satisfied, righteousness has to be established. In that verse
in Romans 8 and verse 10, talking about this body is dead because
of sin, it goes on to say, but the spirit is life because of
righteousness. So sin, the wages of sin is death,
the gift of God's salvation is of righteousness. So if we have
a righteousness, which we do in Christ, imputed to us, we're
gonna have life. We're gonna have first spiritual
life in the new birth. That's what Romans 8, 10 is talking
about. The body dead because of sin, the spirit is life because
of rights. You must be born again. So if you have spiritual life,
that's just the, as some people say, the down payment or the
guarantee that you're gonna be a part of this company that he
says, how are the dead raised up? You're going to be glorified.
How do I know that? Well, the spirit's given me life
to look to Christ and he arose from the dead. and I'll be raised
too after I die from this. Now if I'm alive when Christ
comes again, and that's a possibility we don't know, but I'm still
gonna get rid of this body and I'll have a new body. And that's
what we're talking about. How are the dead raised up with
what body? Even God's creation of this world. This physical
world teaches us that life comes through the process of death.
Consider the wheat seed that Christ spoke of planted in the
ground and the process as he described it is that seed when
it's planted and it literally dies only to bring forth a full
stock of wheat. You don't take an ear of corn
out there and bury it and expect to get a corn. You have seed. I'm no farmer now, so I do my
best, but I eat a lot of farm food, but I'm no farmer. But consider how the tree dies
in autumn as signified by the falling of the dead leaves only
to bring forth life in the spring. So that's a testimony of God,
that life comes out of death. And what he's talking about is
eternal life there. The Lord was speaking of his
own death as the substitute and surety of his people when he
said that, that corn of wheat, that seed of wheat. And it tells
us later on in John 12 that he was speaking of the death, that
he would die on the cross. He would, and bring forth spiritual
and eternal life. So all of God's elect, all right,
our passage into eternal glory is this physical death. And that's
a truth so fundamental to the gospel and to true Christianity
that anyone who claimed to be a Christian is foolish to deny
it. And that's what's happening here. These guys come along denying
that we were raised from the dead. Listen, let me read more
of that passage from Romans 8 that I read. What it says in Romans
8 10, it starts this way. It says, and if Christ be in
you, all right, Now what does that mean? Well how does Christ,
how is he in his people? By his spirit and by his word. Spiritual life given, a new heart,
new mind, new goals, new motives, I mean all of that, the spiritual
part that we're talking about. And if Christ be in you, the
body is dead because of sin. Face that, it is appointed unto
men once to die. But the spirit is life because
of righteousness. And then it goes on to say, but
if the spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell
in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken
your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you. Now this
quickening of the mortal body is the glorified body. This is
how the dead are raised up, and what body they come forth with.
So for a true believer, physical death is a necessity. Really it's not something to
be dreaded, and I know we dread the unknown. I understand that,
I'm human. I know the day of my death is
already appointed. And I can, you know, we can kid
around about it, we can joke about it and all that, we know
it's true. I hope I lay down my head on the pill at night
and just don't wake up again, you know, but, you know, it might
be a plane crash, it might be a car wreck, it might be what,
we don't know. We might lay and suffer with a disease for a while,
I don't know. We don't like that prospect,
all right? But when death comes, we look
at it, it's a necessity. Because it's the process by the
grace and power of God that He raises us up to eternal glorification
based on the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ freely
imputed to us, received by Him, and we stand before God. That
verse in Hebrews 9 says that it is appointed unto man once
to die and after that to judgment. Well, that judgment is something
that we don't have to fear. Isn't that right? Because we
expect, according to the word of God, to be found there in
Christ. A sinner saved by grace. Well
look at verse 37. He says, and that which thou
sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, that body
that goes into the grave or is obliterated in a massive whatever
it is, but bare grain it may chance of wheat or of some other
grain. And he says, but God giveth it
a body as it hath pleased him and to every seed his own body.
In other words, we'll be individuals. our own particular body as it
pleases God. The Lord will give us a new body.
And this indicates that we will not all be the same, just like
we're not all the same now. We'll have our own individual
resurrected bodies according to God's sovereign will and way.
It may also indicate that there will be an ability to recognize
each other. I don't know all the ins and
outs about that. All right? Consider the following
illustration as an aid to understanding something of this. Those who
are resurrected in the glory will each have his own individual
body, his or her, but it will be so much better and so much
more glorious, only beauty and holiness, no sin, as we said,
no flaws, no infirmities, perfectly conformed to the perfection of
the humanity of Christ in that sense. Our vile bodies become
dust and mingle throughout with the dust of the earth. That's
what happens. Somebody said, well, you've got
to preserve that body somewhat. No, it's going to be dust. Consider, for example, how some
people die in explosions and their bodies disintegrate. And
what about those whose bodies are burned up in fires and smashed
to pieces in wrecks, all that? How's God going to get the ashes
thrown to the wind? And how's he going to find the
right bones on the floor of the ocean? You see what I'm saying?
How's he going to get the dust of the body of one person and
distinguish it from the dust of another person? Now we know
God is all powerful. God can accomplish whatever God
pleases. But the resurrection of the body
is not the equivalent of God putting together the greatest
jigsaw puzzle of the universe. That's not what it is. Consider
the death and resurrection of Christ. In his resurrection,
his body was some way transformed into a glorified body. And you
remember how he walked through a wall? I mean, but he still
retained the scars. Remember how Thomas doubted him?
He said, put your hand in my side and the scars and all of
that. The body he was born with was
in every way a human body without sin. But his going into the grave
was the burial of his old body, which even though sinless now,
he was sinless, he suffered the infirmities and the pain to which
the flesh is subject. He thirsted, he sorrowed. And
when he came out of the grave, it was in some way a unique spiritual
body. His glorified body was so much
more glorious that no one even recognized him. They didn't recognize him until
he revealed himself to them. He had to say, it is I, you know,
all that. And he revealed himself to them,
and yet when they knew who he was, they saw him the same as
he was before with the same features, yet glorified. I don't know how
to explain all that. But look at verse 39. He says,
all flesh is not the same flesh, but there's one kind of flesh
of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, another of
birds, Different species. Man, I know the biologists and
the scientists will say otherwise, but man is not an animal. Man
is separate from the animals. They put us in the kingdom of
what they call animalia or something like that. We're not animals,
even though we sometimes act like animals. Or you might say,
we act worse than animals. I always think of that passage
over in Isaiah chapter one, where Isaiah said, the ass knows his
master, knows where his food comes from, but man doesn't.
Man forsakes God. So in other words, what he's
telling us there is the donkeys are better than us. But the thing
about it is, as far as recognizing their master. But man is not
an animal. Man is a living soul. Animals
animals have life, but they don't have life like what human beings
had who were created originally in the image of God Now granted
that image is fallen in Adam. We know that But I'll never I
have to tell you this I'll never forget I was up in Waynesville,
North Carolina preaching one time and we met at a Buffet for
breakfast one morning And several men just from the church were
sitting around there talking. We're eating bacon and sausage
and all that stuff. And one of them said, I wonder
if animals, if they do go to heaven, you know, and all that.
And I said, I told him, I said, well, if they do, we are committing
a high crime of cannibalism. Because we're not to eat anything
that's got a living soul, you know, like that. You know, they
don't. You know, they go to the dust. They live, they have a
spark of life, but then they go to dust. But man doesn't.
Now, I believe when we die, as Christ told the thief on the
cross, our spirits go to be with the Lord. He said today, I'll
tell you today, that this day you shall be with me in paradise.
And that's what I believe. I'm not gonna, I don't make it
a gospel issue necessarily. Some believe that the soul sleeps
until the resurrection. Now, whatever you believe, don't
use any part of it to deny the gospel, because that's the issue,
all right? The gospel of how God saves sinners
and how and why we live forever in the kingdom of God's eternal
glory. That's all based upon God's grace,
his sovereign mercy and grace in Christ. His blood is our life,
but life forever. His righteousness is our life,
but life forever. And so what he's saying here
is there are different kinds of beings on this earth. Look
at verse 40. He says, there are also celestial
bodies, bodies terrestrial, that's earth and space, but the glory
of the celestial is one. Look at the stars and the sun
and the moon. And the glory of the terrestrial
is another. You can look at some of the beautiful
areas of this world and see it. But verse 41, there is one glory
of the sun and another glory of the moon, another glory of
the stars, for one star differeth from another star in glory. So
also is the resurrection of the dead. And listen to what he says
here. It is sown in corruption. It is raised in incorruption. That's key. Why do we die? Why is it appointed unto man
once to die? Even though we cannot fully explain
the vast difference between our physical bodies as they exist
here on earth and our new resurrected bodies, we can understand something
of the greater glory. of our resurrected bodies by
comparing it to the various things in creation. The stars have a
glory, all their own. The sun has a glory, all its
own. The earth has a glory, all its own. But all flesh is not
the same, he says. It's not the same thing. Consider
the differences that we see in the nature of humans and animals
and fish and birds. Also consider the differences
between celestial bodies, terrestrial bodies, the sun, the moon, all
of that. Well, when we are raised unto
glory, we'll have a glorious body, and it'll be an individual
body. and yet we'll all be like Christ,
and from here on, he gives us several aspects of that. Let
me just read some of it, and then I'm gonna come back and
preach on it next week. Look at verse 43. It's sown in
dishonor. That's the nature of man now,
isn't it? And even with believers, the dishonor would not refer
to our relationship with God, but the state of our existence
here in our physical nature. I mean, believers are, you know,
you've heard of the health and wealth gospel people. They claim,
well, if you pray hard enough or you live well enough, you
know, you won't get sick and they can heal all forms of disease.
Well, let me say this about that. God does heal. If you get cancer
or you get diabetes or you get arthritis or what else do I have?
Heart disease. If you get all those things,
God can and sometimes does heal our bodies physically and allow
us to exist longer on earth. But it's not gonna last. And
especially when a young person gets sick, that's hard for us
because we want our loved ones especially to live a full life.
But God does heal. But it may be, for a believer,
he may heal you permanently. And that's taking you on to glory
where there'll be no sickness and no death. But the dishonor
that he's talking about here for a believer is the state of
this physical body which still suffers the consequences of sin.
And that's something I always think about. Even though we suffer
the consequences of sin, natural results of sin, we are not under
the condemnation of sin. Aren't you glad of that? The
law, you know the strength of sin is the law. Because the law
condemns sin. So if the sin matter is taken
care of, which it is in Christ, the law cannot condemn us. So
we may be sown in dishonor, this old body. If I lived to be 80
some years old, heck, I don't know what I'll look like then.
It's going to be dishonorable. I mean, from what I was when
I was 20, you understand what I'm saying. It's sown in dishonor,
but it's going to be raised in corruption in honor. In honor. And so, it's sown in weakness,
he says, in verse 43. It's raised in power. It's sown
a natural body, it's raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body,
there is a spiritual body. And then, I'll stop right here.
In verse 45, this is what it says. So it is written, the first
man Adam was made a living soul. The last Adam was made a quickening
spirit. Now the first man Adam was made
a living soul, wasn't he? And that, we know what happened. You remember what the Lord told
him. Adam, you can eat of all the trees of the garden except
this one, that represents God's sovereignty, God's right to say
what's good and what's bad. But in the day that you eat thereof,
thou shalt surely die, which interpreted literally is dying,
thou shalt die. So Adam lost that quickening
spirit. And he died. Now Adam didn't
die immediately, but the process of death started. And of course
we know that people lived longer before the flood than they do
now. And there's a lot of scientific explanations for that, I won't
go into it. But the lifespan now, you know what the Bible
says, three score and 10, and anything after that, you know,
is just a gift. Well the whole thing's a gift. If I live one
day, that's a gift from God. The next breath you take is a
gift. You didn't earn it, you didn't deserve it. But eternal
life and glory, salvation, to be resurrected from the dead.
How is this body raised up from the dead? By the grace and the
power and the goodness of God in Christ. And that's where we'll
leave it and we'll go into some of these things in detail as
the scripture speaks. And I'll stop right there. I
won't speak any more than what the scripture speaks. Let's stand
and sing our closing hymn, hymn number 52, Majestic Sweetness
Sits in Throne.