“Jesus said unto
her, I am the
resurrection, and
the life: he that
believeth in me,
though he were dead,
yet shall he live”
(John 11:25).
Of all the trials of
this life─when they
end─there is nothing
that gives the
average man on the
street more anxiety
than thinking of his
own: death. Most
don’t want to think
about that time. The
young never think
about it, as they
are full of life and
to them they are
virtually immortal.
Sadly, many come to
the realization too
late, that life is
fleeting and very
fragile and must be
guarded with caution
and utmost regards
as to its safety.
Every man and woman
alive wants to put
off that inevitable
outcome. That is the
finality of death.
Men in their
darkened hearts deny
the existence of
God. They are called
atheists, as they
see no need for God.
They believe in
themselves only, and
deny a life after
this one.
“The fool hath said
in his heart, there
is no God. They are
corrupt, they have
done abominable
works, there is none
that doeth good”
(Psalm 14:1).
Paul reprimanded
such thinking in
Romans chapter 1:20:
“For the invisible
things of him from
the creation of the
world are clearly
seen, being
understood by the
things that are
made, even his
eternal power and
Godhead; so that
they are without
excuse.”
So men seeing the
world and its
creation clearly see
the wonders of an
intelligent design
that many atheists
have proven by
science could not
have happened by
chance, or
evolution. Then
there is no
explanation for what
we see with our own
eyes, but a
supernatural
presence in our
universe that made
the earth, heavens
and all that exist
in this world by one
author, we call God,
namely the God of
the Bible. If we are
honest with
ourselves and
acknowledge that we
have been gloriously
made, how do we
discover this
supernatural power?
We begin with the
only written
revelation of His
power and authority,
which is found in
your Bible. It is
God’s only
communication with
man during the times
we live in that He
has chosen to reveal
Himself to a sinful
creation that we
have become.
The Bible is a
collection of Holy
Spirit inspired
books that deals
with one subject and
is about one Man,
Jesus Christ. God’s
creation was stolen
because of the will
of man to sin
against the commands
of God and believe
the lie of Satan,
“You will become as
gods.” But God had a
plan from the very
beginning. Knowing
all things, He put
into action the plan
to redeem His
creation and draw
men unto Himself. He
knew that men could
not save themselves;
it would be
impossible. There
had to be a way to
satisfy the
requirements of
pardoned sin. God is
holy and without
sin, and will not
allow it into His
presence so sin must
be covered by a
perfect sacrifice.
Paul speaks
of this requirement
for forgiveness of
sin in Hebrews 9.22:
“And almost all
things are by the
law purged with
blood; and without
shedding of blood is
no remission.”
It must be a sinless
offering, not an
offering of sheep
and bulls, but a
sinless offering,
which required that
God come and offer
Himself as a ransom
for many. He was to
be our Kinsman
Redeemer, born of
woman, born of God,
sinless and
undefiled to take
our place.
John 3.16:
“For God so loved
the world, that he
gave his only
begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth
in him should not
perish, but have
everlasting life.
For God sent not his
Son into the world
to condemn the
world; but that the
world through him
might be saved.”
So the greatest
manifestation of
eternal love laid
down His life
willingly for the
redemption of all
who believe on the
name of Jesus
Christ, in faith to
cleanse them from
their sins and lead
them into a new life
of becoming
transformed into His
image, His likeness
and model the way He
lived while here on
earth. This is the
beginning of the
greatest story ever
told and believed by
millions of people
unto salvation, but
the last part of the
story is even
greater. On the
third day, Jesus was
raised to life to
receive a
resurrection body,
and became the first
fruits of those
“born of the dead.”
Let us now
turn to the chapter
in the bible that
some call the
“resurrection
chapter” found in
your Bible in 1
Corinthians chapter
15.
Resurrection of the
Dead?
Paul tackles this
question head on, as
many had come to
believe that there
was no resurrection.
Paul gives one of
the clearest, most
concise definitions
of the “gospel”
found anywhere in
the Bible. He shows
how a denial of the
resurrection of the
dead is a denial of
the gospel itself,
and how believing in
the gospel gives one
hope for the next
world as well as for
the present.
“Now if Christ is
preached, that He
has been raised from
the dead, how do
some among you say
that there is no
resurrection of the
dead?” (1
Corinthians 15:12)
This heresy had come
into the
congregations in
Corinth by the
pagans surrounding
this church, these
Greek citizens did
not believe in a
physical
resurrection. Paul
reminds them of the
many witnesses that
saw the Lord Jesus
in the flesh after
His resurrection:
1 Corinthians
15.3-8:
“For I delivered
unto you first of
all that which I
also received, how
that Christ died for
our sins according
to the scriptures;
and that he was
buried, and that he
rose again the third
day according to the
scriptures:
And that he was seen
of Cephas, then of
the twelve: After
that, he was seen of
above five hundred
brethren at once; of
whom the greater
part remain unto
this present, but
some are fallen
asleep.
After that, he was
seen of James; then
of all the apostles.
And last of all he
was seen of me also,
as of one born out
of due time.”
Paul goes onto
affirm by witness
accounts the bodily
resurrection of our
Lord and
Savior, Jesus
Christ, but he makes
an even more
astounding
pronouncement later
in this chapter.
1 Corinthians
15:12-18:
“Now if Christ be
preached that he
rose from the dead,
how say some among
you that there is no
resurrection of the
dead?
But if there be no
resurrection of the
dead, then is Christ
not risen:
And if Christ be not
risen, then is our
preaching vain, and
your faith is also
vain.
Yea, and we are
found false
witnesses of God;
because we have
testified of God
that he raised up
Christ: whom he
raised not up, if so
be that the dead
rise not.
For if the dead rise
not, then is not
Christ raised:
And if Christ be not
raised, your faith
is vain; ye are yet
in your sins.
Then they also which
are fallen asleep in
Christ are
perished.”
Paul is testifying
that if Jesus was
not resurrected (and
by extension we will
not be resurrected)
then His sacrifice
meant nothing. For
if Christ was not
raised, we are not
raised, if He is
still dead, then we
are dead as well.
The resurrection of
Jesus Christ to
life, a
well-documented
historical fact seen
by hundreds of
witnesses who
actually touched
Him, ate with Him,
and listened to His
Words and untold
hundreds into the
thousands in this
time period -- that
went to their death
with the knowledge
of His resurrection
and their own future
resurrection to
eternal life as
well.
Paul goes onto
explain that there
is an order of those
born of the dead.
Jesus Christ, the
first of the first
fruits and the first
resurrection of
Jesus coming for His
church.
“But now is Christ
risen from the dead,
and become the first
fruits of them that
slept. For since by
man came death, by
man came also the
resurrection of the
dead. For as in Adam
all die, even so in
Christ shall all be
made alive. But
every man in his own
order: Christ the
first fruits;
afterward they that
are Christ's at his
coming” (1
Corinthians
15.20-23).
Paul goes on to
explain that we will
be same as Jesus is,
in the same
resurrection that He
experienced.
1 Corinthians
15.38-44:
“But God giveth it a
body as it hath
pleased him, and to
every seed his own
body. All flesh is
not the same flesh:
but there is one
kind of flesh of
men, another flesh
of beasts, another
of fishes, and
another of birds.
There are also
celestial bodies,
and bodies
terrestrial: but the
glory of the
celestial is one,
and the glory of the
terrestrial is
another. There is
one glory of the
sun, and another
glory of the moon,
and another glory of
the stars: for one
star differeth from
another star in
glory.
So also is the
resurrection of the
dead. It is sown in
corruption; it is
raised in
incorruption: It is
sown in dishonor; it
is raised in glory:
it is sown in
weakness; it is
raised in power: It
is sown a natural
body; it is raised a
spiritual body.
There is a natural
body, and there is a
spiritual body.”
John wrote about
what we can expect,
when we finally see
Him in our glorified
bodies.
“Beloved, now are we
the sons of God, and
it doth not yet
appear what we shall
be: but we know
that, when he shall
appear, we shall be
like him; for we
shall see him as he
is.”
This is the final
fulfillment of our
eternal lives that
begins right then.
But some say, “What
about the dead in
Christ now, what are
they and where are
they?” (1 John 3:2).
The Dead in Jesus
Christ
Many interpretations
have been made about
the hereafter, what
our dear departed
love ones are
enjoying or not
enjoying right
now...All of us have
seen the depictions
of winged spirits
floating on clouds
playing a harp, or
walking around on
streets of gold, or
people alive
contacting long dead
relatives in a
forbidden act called
“necromancy.” The
plane of existence
between spirit world
and the world of
flesh is a parallel
existence from what
I can gather from
reading our Bibles.
A war goes on in the
spirit world that is
played out in a
mirror image of the
fleshly and material
world we live in.
Paul warned us of
this spiritual
warfare when in
Ephesians he
encouraged each of
us who call on the
name of the Lord, to
take on the whole
armor of God in
Ephesians chapter 6:
“For we wrestle not
against flesh and
blood, but against
principalities,
against powers,
against the rulers
of the darkness of
this world, against
spiritual wickedness
in high places.”
Our brother Ed Wood
gave a very good
analogy of this
spirit world that
surrounds us and is
populated with the
power and the prince
of the air. To speak
to souls departed,
is most likely
speaking with demons
and is forbidden.
From Scripture we
can learn several
things and that is,
people go one place
or another, one is
good, the other is
bad. One is with God
and the other is
devoid of everything
that is God.
In the Old
Testament, it was
called Paradise and
the souls that
departed this life
dying in faith
believing the coming
of the Messiah,
found peace in the
“bosom of Abraham”
as noted in the
parable about the
rich man and
Lazarus. Some try to
make this just a
parable that Jesus
spoke of to make a
point, but Jesus
used real life
examples to state a
spiritual truth. In
this we see Lazarus
who died a poor man
in the bosom of
Abraham comforted,
and the rich man who
had everything
enduring torment in
Sheol, called hell.
Jesus mentions
flames that torment
and needing only a
drop of water to
quench his thirst.
In picturesque terms
a very graphic
picture of lost
hope.
In Ecclesiastes
chapter 9, Solomon
speaks of the grave:
“For the living know
that they shall die:
but the dead know
not any thing,
neither have they
any more a reward;
for the memory of
them is forgotten”
Ecclesiastes 9:5).
If you speak of that
material body, that
is correct. That
flesh turns back to
dust and knows
nothing...but what
of the spiritual
part that man is
made of?
“Then shall the dust
return to the earth
as it was: and the
spirit shall return
unto God who gave
it” (Ecclesiastes
9:7).
“We are confident, I
say, and willing
rather to be absent
from the body, and
to be present with
the Lord” (2
Corinthians 5.8).
So according to
Scripture, the body,
which is flesh goes
to dust, but the
spirit that God gave
goes back to Him,
but in what form?
That is when the
Bible goes silent.
We are not told, but
glimpses of the
glory we will share.
We are told of the
City of God, but
that is after Jesus
Christ comes back
and God lives with
us. There are many
testimonies of
experiences of
seeing a glimpse of
the life on the
other side. I have
in my library, the
book by Terry James,
who I believe
experienced glory in
an all too brief
encounter that he
wrote about in his
book, Heaven
Vision.
It will
bring a sense of awe
that a person can
experience just a
taste of what we can
expect when we are
with the Lord for
all eternity.
I go back to
the explanation that
Jesus gave of those
who are found in
Jesus Christ, when
He spoke to the
thief on the cross.
“Today thou shalt be
with me in
paradise.” We
cannot fully
comprehend, apart
from what the Bible
describes of the
glory that will be
found in us at the
end of this age, to
understand what
transpires at the
last breath we take
and the angels of
God usher us─those
that are saved in
Jesus Christ─to be
with God.
Yes, I can hear the
naysayers quoting
Scripture, and I am
aware of those as
well. Jesus made
mention of that:
“No one has
ascended into
heaven, but He who
descended from
heaven: the Son of
Man’ (John 3:13).
But does that limit
God? Who are we to
say what God does
with the spirit that
belongs to Him?
“Wherefore he saith,
when he ascended up
on high, he led
captivity captive,
and gave gifts unto
men. (Now that he
ascended, what is it
but that he also
descended first into
the lower parts of
the earth? He that
descended is the
same also that
ascended up far
above all heavens,
that he might fill
all things)”
(Ephesians 4:8-10).
If manifestations
were mentioned in
the parable of
Lazarus, would it
not make sense that
when Jesus rose from
the dead that He
released captives
who were captive and
brought them with
Him? Brought them
where? Scripture
does not say
definitively, but we
are left wondering
about life after
death. One thing we
know for sure, life
does not end with
physical death. But
let us make an
assumption, just for
the sake of argument
for you naysayers
about the concept of
the resurrection of
the dead, and life
after death....
Belief vs. Unbelief
in God
Scenario one...
“Billy” is an
atheist and has
lived like the devil
for most of his
natural life. He
relies on no one but
Billy and proclaims
no god but the god
of his flesh, which
he satisfies in any
ungodly manner he
can think of...when
he dies, he is like
the cockroach, or
the animal who dies
in the wilderness.
He goes to nothing,
nobody remembers
him, and his time of
glory is over.
A Christian
dies, “Joe,” about
the same time. He
believed and
followed the God of
the Bible. He
attempted to live a
life that was taught
by Jesus Christ his
whole life. He also
dies, but as the
atheist, there is
nothing out there
and he goes to be as
the animals...to the
dust. Both have
lived their life of
their own free will,
and both have
received the same
reward...NOTHING.
Scenario two…
“Billy” finds out
one second after his
death, that his
belief that there is
no resurrection, no
life, no nothing
after death -- finds
out he was terribly
and horribly
mistaken. He finds
himself in a black
pit. There is no
light, no laughter,
no joy and sounds of
anguish fill his
ears. He is bumped
into once in a while
-- in the dark by
someone he can’t see
but can feel. He
senses total loss,
total hopelessness,
total despair and
wonders, is this
real? His throat is
dry and parched. His
mind is in a whirl
about what is
happening and he
screams out in
emotional pain of
total loss.
At the same time,
the Christian,
“Joe,” opens his
eyes and peers back
at loving eyes
holding his hands
pulling him up,
standing him on his
feet. Light is all
around, people are
laughing. Children
are running and
playing. The sights
and smells are more
intense than he ever
experienced in the
life he just left.
He feels joy,
everlasting hope,
and intense emotions
of gratitude wash
over him, as the
loving eyes are his
Lord and Savior
welcoming him home.
Where is this place?
He doesn’t know, but
doesn’t care, as he
knows he will be
taken care of, as
His Lord is by his
side.
Tell me reader, in
the conjecture of
each scenario
starting with number
one...what has each
lost? Nothing, if
there is no
resurrection and no
life after death.
They are both equal.
They lived their
lives and the result
is
blackness...nothing...void...
But what of scenario
number two? If the
Christian “Joe” who
believed on the only
begotten Son of God
is correct, what has
he gained...?
Answer...everything!
And conversely, what
has the atheist
lost…again…
EVERYTHING!
Jesus rightly said
in Matthew 16.26:
For what is a man
profited, if he
shall gain the whole
world, and lose his
own soul? Or what
shall a man give in
exchange for his
soul?
You who are reading
this, you don’t like
to think of yourself
as a “fool,” nobody
does. But the Bible
says those who do
not believe in God,
or His Son, are just
that. Me, I’m not a
gambling man. I
never did well at
betting on an unseen
or unknown quantity.
I sure am not so
foolish to play
Russian roulette
with my eternal
destination for all
the tea in China,
let alone the
fleeting pleasures
of this world. That
is an over
simplification of
what I have spoken
of.
Who amongst you are
so SURE in your
belief that there is
no God, that you
would risk your very
soul for all
eternity, when this
life is but a vapor
in the wind, and
gone so quickly? If
you knew that if I
am right, and I have
testimony of
countless millions
outside the Bible,
and thousands inside
its pages that say,
I’m right, that
eternity is forever,
either with God or
apart from Him,
would you go one
more day denying
your need to put
your faith in the
only begotten Son of
God?
One is pure
joy and the other is
pure...well, for a
lack of a better
word...HELL and all
that it implies.
Ladies and
gentleman, citizens
of this fast dying
world, “Where will
you spend eternity?”
If the grim reaper
came calling
tomorrow, would you
be “Billy” or “Joe”
in my scenarios?
Will you bet your
soul on it?
This is Pastor Mike
Taylor, praying that
the salvation of
Jesus Christ finds
its way into your
life. If you need
prayer, counseling,
or just a listening
ear, email me at
realteam1999@sbcglobal.net,
or visit me online
at
www.churchofgod-usa.org.
God bless you all.
UNTIL WE MEET AT
JESUS’ FEET