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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

Psalm 140-144
1 Corinthians 15:35-58

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.

1 Corinthians 15:51-53 (CSB): “Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will 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 will be changed. For this corruptible body must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body must be clothed with immortality.

Reflecting on God’s Word

When I was much younger, I thought that my spirit (the immaterial part of me) was the only thing that was going to Heaven. With that perspective, I thought that Heaven would be so much different than here on earth. And while life sometimes gets really hard, I liked having a body that could experience the sights, tastes, smells, sounds, and touch of this earth.

But then my eyes began to open to the last two chapters of Revelation. I came to realize that when the present earth is destroyed by fire, God will resurrect/create a brand new earth and heavens (Revelation 21:1ff). The ultimate manifestation of Heaven that we will enjoy forever is a tangible, “real” earth that is remarkably similar to the one we now reside on, but one that is perfect in every way and fitted for eternity.

My eyes also opened to the truths of 1 Corinthians 15. This chapter informs us that when Jesus saved us, He didn’t merely redeem our immaterial part (spirit). He also redeemed our material part (body).

This is why Christians through the ages have placed such respect upon the human body, even at death. Christians realize that when we die (our spirit separates from our body), that condition is only temporary. We believe that there is coming a day when Jesus will resurrect our bodies and miraculously convert our mortal bodies into a body that is fit for eternity.

1 Corinthians 15:50-53 (CSB): “What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: Flesh and blood (our mortal bodies) cannot inherit the kingdom of God (it’s ultimate expression in Heaven), nor can corruption (what deteriorates) inherit incorruption (what cannot deteriorate). Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep (euphemism for “death”), but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead (our material part: our bodies) will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. For this corruptible body must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body must be clothed with immortality.” (parenthetical commentary mine)

Do you want to know what our heavenly bodies will be like? I believe that we can look at Jesus’ resurrection body and get some ideas. Just read the Gospels and the first chapter of Acts to see what you can learn about Jesus’ body in the 40 days He walked the earth between His resurrection and His ascension into Heaven.

  • They will look remarkably similar to our current body (John 21:9-12).
  • We will be able to experience “touch” (Luke 24:36-40).
  • We will be able to eat (Luke 24:41-43).
  • Maybe we could even travel through closed doors or walls (John 20:19).

In Acts 1, we observe that Jesus took His body to Heaven with Him. So, that seems to tell us that all of the things He did after His resurrection are the things we will also be able to do in our own “eternal” bodies one day.

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to enable to, through Bible study, to develop an even more accurate and fascinating conviction about the experience of our Heavenly home. And then live joyfully with that in mind.

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into our heavenly bodies, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“What will we look like in heaven?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of White Hall Baptist Church in Richmond, Kentucky (whitehallbaptistchurch.org)