~5 min read
Ps Paul Cheng
1 Corinthians 15:50-57
“…they do not believe in the Jesus of the Bible…”
Dear Bethelites,
Romans 10:9, That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. According to this verse, one is saved by confessing Jesus Christ as Lord, and believing that He has been raised from the dead. So, those people who deny the resurrection of Christ, they may call themselves Christians, but the truth is that they are not, because they do not believe in the Jesus of the Bible. The Jesus of the Bible is a risen Saviour!
Praise be to God that the tomb was empty, and the resurrection of Christ was a reality. It was witnessed by more than five hundred brethren, the disciples, and many others, including Peter, Thomas, James and Paul.
Let us pause for a moment and consider this. When Jesus was arrested, crucified, died and was buried, all His disciples were so fearful, and they ran away. But later on, all of a sudden, those once-fearful disciples were transformed into bold and courageous martyrs. What was the event that caused such a dramatic change that they were willing to die for something they believed in? The resurrection! Christ was risen from the grave! No one can believe that the resurrection is true, and yet not be affected by the resurrection.
What was the power that brought our Lord Jesus out of the grave? It was the power of the Spirit! In fact, when Jesus first came into this world, He was conceived by the power of the Spirit. When He walked on the face of this earth, He lived, taught wonderful doctrines, and did amazing miracles, all in the power of the Spirit. When He was resurrected, He was raised by the power of the Spirit.
Dear friend, do you realize that if we are believers, it is also this same power of the Spirit that has saved us, transformed our lives, and will one day raise us from the grave as well? Today, we would like to embark on this topic of “What has Christ’s resurrection got to do with me?”
Firstly, we want to learn what it takes for us to inherit the kingdom of God, in relation to the resurrection!
I. The Inheritance
1 Corinthians 15:50, Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
Flesh and blood is simply a reference to our body. The kingdom of God is often used interchangeably with the kingdom of heaven. Here, it is a reference to heaven, the eternal state. When we think about going to heaven, we must understand that our physical body cannot inherit heaven. None of us (the way we are right now) can enter into heaven. The reason is because this physical body of ours is strictly built for this physical world, not for heaven. We cannot be living in heaven in this physical body. Something has to change; there has to be a transformation before we can enter into heaven.
Paul explained, neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Corruption is that which is subjected to the process of aging. It is something that will decay, and ultimately die. Incorruption is the opposite. It is something that is not subjected to the process of aging, and it will not decay or die. Here, what it means is that we are corruptible and perishable, so how can we inherit something like heaven which is incorruptible, or imperishable?
Interestingly, this word corruption is used synonymously with the word mortal in verse 53 (which means liable to death). Likewise, the word incorruption is used synonymously with the word immortality (which means not liable to death).
1 Corinthians 15:53, For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
We are not going to live forever. This physical body of ours is mortal, and it will not last. Those people who are younger may not appreciate this word mortal very much because being young and strong, they tend to have this mentality or attitude that they can live forever. But for those of us who are much older, this word means a lot more to us. Perhaps you may be 80 years old, and now it dawns on you that if you were to live till the age of 85, then it means you have only another 5 years to live. On top of that, your body is also vulnerable to illnesses and diseases that may shorten your days on this earth. That is mortality! We have a corrupted and perishable body that is liable to death.
With this corrupted and mortal body, you say, “I want to go to heaven.” No, you cannot! Why? Remember this physical body is strictly built for this physical world, not built for heaven. Something has to change; there has to be a transformation before you can enter into heaven.
Allow me to give you an illustration. If you are an Australian, and there is an upcoming election. You are very excited about the election, and you want to vote. But you are only 17 years old, and the eligible age is 18 years old. Can you vote? No, you cannot! However, you say, “I want to vote.” You cannot vote the way you are; something has to change, and you have to reach the legal age of 18 before you can vote.
Recently, I was speaking to the youth in our Young People’s Group meeting. Some of them told me that they have unbelieving friends who have been clubbing in the nightclubs. But they are only Year 10 students which means they are about 15 years old, and the legal age to drink alcohol and enter into the clubs is 18 years old. How were they able to do that? Well, they told me that some of their unbelieving friends would bribe the security manager, others would use their friends’ identity cards, or fake identity cards. In this world, and in certain situations, people may be able to do that. But not in heaven!
If we want to inherit (or go to) heaven, we cannot pay to get in, or fake our way in, or get in the way we are right now. Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. Something has to change and be transformed, and that is our body. But the good news is that as believers, we will all be changed and transformed in the resurrection. We will all enter and dwell in heaven forever and ever. What a blessed promise!
(To be continued in our next pastoral chat)
With love in Christ,
Pastor Paul Cheng
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How The Resurrection Should Motivate Us (Part 2) — Motivated To Withstand DangerHow The Resurrection Should Motivate Us (Part 2) — Motivated To Withstand Danger1 Corinthians 15:30-31
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How Could Our Resurrection Be Possible? (Part 2) — Example Of The Different BodiesHow Could Our Resurrection Be Possible? (Part 2) — Example Of The Different Bodies1 Corinthians 15:39-44
How Could Our Resurrection Be Possible? (Part 3) — Example Of The First And Last AdamHow Could Our Resurrection Be Possible? (Part 3) — Example Of The First And Last Adam1 Corinthians 15:45-49
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