5 Minute Read

Prepare Your Heart

To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.

Read God’s Word

2 Samuel 16-17
Luke 24:36-53

A Verse for Today

Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.

Luke 24:39-43 (CSB): “‘Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself! Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.’ Having said this, he showed them his hands and feet. But while they still were amazed and in disbelief because of their joy, he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’ So they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence.”

Reflecting on God’s Word

As a child, I believed Heaven was essentially on top of the clouds. For the rest of eternity, we would sit, float, and walk on those fluffy white clouds in the sky, trying not to accidently step over the edge and fall to the earth below. I even remember being in an airplane as a youngster as I energetically looked out the window to see if I could spot someone in the clouds.

As I grew older, I realized Heaven was much farther away, maybe even in another dimension. But I found the idea of existing forever in Heaven not too exciting. In my mind, our bodies here on earth are real, but I thought that our bodies in Heaven would be less … um … real. I thought they would be more spirit-like. And I found that idea to be disheartening. After all, if we don’t have real, physical bodies, we can’t hug or kiss our loved ones. We can’t taste delicious food, and might not even eat food since we would have no stomach.

I just couldn’t imagine how a Heaven like that could be fun, especially since it was never, ever going to end.

Then, I read Randy Alcorn’s book, “Heaven.” In that book, he brought out many verses and biblical principles that caused me to see my eternal home in a very different way. One of the many verses he highlighted is Luke 24:39-43, the verses I chose for today.

In that passage, we realize that the body that Jesus had when he spoke with His disciples is the same body He took to Heaven. So, if you want to know what your eternal body will be like, just look at Jesus’ body after His resurrection and before His ascension. He walked around for 40 days in that resurrection body, one fitted for eternity.

Carefully read the following verses again. Look for clues as to what our resurrection bodies will be like when we get to Heaven.

Luke 24:39-43 (CSB): “‘Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself! Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.’ Having said this, he showed them his hands and feet. But while they still were amazed and in disbelief because of their joy, he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’ So they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence.”

Judging from what we just read, Jesus’ resurrection body (and our bodies) will demonstrate at least the following traits:

  • They can be seen because they are real (not merely “spirit bodies”).
  • They are similar to our current bodies (they were able to recognize Jesus).
  • They have all the same body parts that we do now (at least the visible parts).
  • They can be touched and felt.
  • They can eat and process food.

Friend, the picture that the Bible presents of our heavenly bodies is that they will be remarkably similar to our current bodies, only so much better and incapable of experiencing the consequences of living in a sin-sick world. We will have bodies that enable us to experience all of the wonderful sensations of Heaven! That’s why the final resurrection of our bodies is something the Apostle Paul wrote about (1 Corinthians 15) and longed for (2 Corinthians 5:1-4).

And when you realize that our bodies are made from earth and for earth, it only makes sense that since we will have physical bodies of “flesh and bone” in eternity, the place we will dwell forever is a brand new earth (see Revelation 21-22).

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to help you observe clues in the New Testament about what our experience in eternity will be like.
  • Thank the Lord for all that awaits you.

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into the future resurrection of believers’ bodies, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“Is the resurrection spiritual or physical?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)