A Body Fit for Heaven
Hey y'all, I know I've been slacking on keeping up with this blog, but I'm sorry to say that my grandmother passed away last week, and so I've been dealing with the grief, and at the same time, joy that comes with it. My grandmother was a believer, and so I know I will see her again in Heaven. But, grief is hard, y'all. It comes so fast, and sometimes it comes unexpectedly, however, I also know that my grandma is pain-free in the presence of God. So, as you know, I've been doing a 'mini-series,' if you will, on what happens to us when we accept Christ as our Savior. I've briefly touched on justification and sanctification, and now I would like to talk about the glorification of our bodies.
In a way, this is perfect timing to talk about this, since my grandmother has gone on to glory. The idea that our bodies will be glorified is a strange concept because it's a future reality. It's not something that has happened yet, and it will not happen until Yeshua comes back again. However, those who have died, I believe are already enjoying the presence of God fully, and therefore should be in their glorified state, but I could be wrong on this as I need to study this further.
However, the Bible does talk about the glorification of our bodies after the return of Yeshua. This is seen in 1 Corinthians 15:51-54: "Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed- in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."" In these verses, Paul is encouraging the Corinthians that death is defeated, and that our bodies will be changed when Jesus comes again. It is still unclear to me how exactly our bodies will be changed, but if you read in Luke where Jesus visited His disciples after His resurrection, He was still recognizable, however, His body was able to vanish and the disciples thought they saw a spirit (Luke 24:31, 36, 51). So maybe, then, our bodies will also be more spirit-like, since 1 Corinthians 15 mentions that "there is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body" (verse 44b). Although this is something that I have not fully come to understand yet, I do believe in this truth:
Paul briefly mentions the assurance of the resurrection in 2 Corinthians 5:1-4, when he wrote, "For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life." Here, the message is similar to what I had previously quoted, but Paul is looking forward to the better things that are in store for him in Heaven, and I think He is encouraging the Corinthians, and us, to do the same. He knows that Yeshua's body is glorified after the resurrection, and therefore death is already defeated, but once our mortal bodies wear out, or if we die, then our new, spiritual body will take place (1 Cor. 15:44-46). So, our new bodies will be made for the heavens, where we will live for eternity. We would be required to receive a body that is able to dwell in the glories of God's great presence, in His kingdom. We will never die in these new bodies since our current, physical bodies are not fit to survive forever. I've read "Heaven is Real" and the little boy shares his story of going to Heaven and returning. In his story, he mentions that everyone looks young, but still he knew and recognized a relative that did not look the way he did when the little boy was born. But, after going to Heaven and coming back, he still was able to know who each person was. This leads me to think that we will all be recognizable, just like Yeshua was when He appeared to His disciples. However, the idea that everyone is young on top of that is something is really surprising, but understandable at the same time. Maybe our new bodies is something I can't quite wrap my head around because I am not sure if we will be "see-through" or if we will glow, although I imagine that we will. I haven't found specific verses in the Bible that explain and describe exactly what it will be like in Heaven, with our new bodies, which is fine. I know this is an unclear subject for me, but, then again, I am not seeing a whole lot of different verses regarding this since the verses I've seen thus far are fairly close in meaning and slightly repetitive. So, maybe God doesn't want us to fully understand how our new bodies will look like, or how it will come to be. I can rest in faith knowing that it will happen, but I don't think I should stress myself out in trying to come to full terms with it. I know that death is defeated, and I have the hope of inheriting this new body when Christ returns, and for now, that is enough for me. However, if you have something that you would like to share with me, I would be glad to hear it.
Stay blessed, my friends, and I'm sorry for the probably confusing post (haha).
In a way, this is perfect timing to talk about this, since my grandmother has gone on to glory. The idea that our bodies will be glorified is a strange concept because it's a future reality. It's not something that has happened yet, and it will not happen until Yeshua comes back again. However, those who have died, I believe are already enjoying the presence of God fully, and therefore should be in their glorified state, but I could be wrong on this as I need to study this further.
However, the Bible does talk about the glorification of our bodies after the return of Yeshua. This is seen in 1 Corinthians 15:51-54: "Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed- in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."" In these verses, Paul is encouraging the Corinthians that death is defeated, and that our bodies will be changed when Jesus comes again. It is still unclear to me how exactly our bodies will be changed, but if you read in Luke where Jesus visited His disciples after His resurrection, He was still recognizable, however, His body was able to vanish and the disciples thought they saw a spirit (Luke 24:31, 36, 51). So maybe, then, our bodies will also be more spirit-like, since 1 Corinthians 15 mentions that "there is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body" (verse 44b). Although this is something that I have not fully come to understand yet, I do believe in this truth:
Once our bodies are glorified when we go home, we will be saved from the presence of sin.This, to me, is a beautiful hope and future that we have waiting for us in the realms of Heaven. God is preparing such a wonderful and beautiful place for us, that we can't even imagine. But, knowing that there will be no pain, no tears, and no sin is a beautifully comforting thought.
Paul briefly mentions the assurance of the resurrection in 2 Corinthians 5:1-4, when he wrote, "For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life." Here, the message is similar to what I had previously quoted, but Paul is looking forward to the better things that are in store for him in Heaven, and I think He is encouraging the Corinthians, and us, to do the same. He knows that Yeshua's body is glorified after the resurrection, and therefore death is already defeated, but once our mortal bodies wear out, or if we die, then our new, spiritual body will take place (1 Cor. 15:44-46). So, our new bodies will be made for the heavens, where we will live for eternity. We would be required to receive a body that is able to dwell in the glories of God's great presence, in His kingdom. We will never die in these new bodies since our current, physical bodies are not fit to survive forever. I've read "Heaven is Real" and the little boy shares his story of going to Heaven and returning. In his story, he mentions that everyone looks young, but still he knew and recognized a relative that did not look the way he did when the little boy was born. But, after going to Heaven and coming back, he still was able to know who each person was. This leads me to think that we will all be recognizable, just like Yeshua was when He appeared to His disciples. However, the idea that everyone is young on top of that is something is really surprising, but understandable at the same time. Maybe our new bodies is something I can't quite wrap my head around because I am not sure if we will be "see-through" or if we will glow, although I imagine that we will. I haven't found specific verses in the Bible that explain and describe exactly what it will be like in Heaven, with our new bodies, which is fine. I know this is an unclear subject for me, but, then again, I am not seeing a whole lot of different verses regarding this since the verses I've seen thus far are fairly close in meaning and slightly repetitive. So, maybe God doesn't want us to fully understand how our new bodies will look like, or how it will come to be. I can rest in faith knowing that it will happen, but I don't think I should stress myself out in trying to come to full terms with it. I know that death is defeated, and I have the hope of inheriting this new body when Christ returns, and for now, that is enough for me. However, if you have something that you would like to share with me, I would be glad to hear it.
Stay blessed, my friends, and I'm sorry for the probably confusing post (haha).
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