REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provide by Pastor Peter Yoon of Kairos Christian Church in San Diego, was first posted on May 5, 2017. Peter is a graduate of University of California, Riverside (BA) and Talbot School of Theology (M.Div.).
Devotional Thought for This Morning
“A New Spiritual Body”
1 Cor. 15:42-44a
So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
As you get a little bit older, you’re a little bit wiser (or at least you should be). It’s one of the benefits of getting older as God’s children. But, you also begin to notice that your body isn’t what it used to be. I remember when I was younger, if I ever twisted my ankle playing a game of basketball, I was right back in the gym after 2-3 days of rest. Today, I find that I’m out for 2-3 weeks before my ankles feel strong enough to run again. As we get older, our bodies begin to remind us just how frail and weak we are, until one day it ceases to work altogether.
It’s a rather morbid thought. However, the Bible tells us that for the believers, that is hardly the end. The good news is that one day our mortal bodies will be completely transformed, taking on a new “spiritual body.” We might not know all of the fine details as to what that will look like, but Paul does give us few thoughts so that we approach even our mortality with a new perspective. He says that the new body will be “imperishable”; it will be raised “in glory” and “in power.” Those phrases, along with other illustrations that Paul uses to describe what is to come in verses 35-49, gives me a sense of optimistic anticipation.
If you’ve ever lost a loved one in this life, there is much pain and grief. But for the believers, there is more than just consolation. There is good news because there is a glorious new body that is promised to those who have fallen asleep. Can you just imagine your parent or your grandparent who have passed away being embodied with an imperishable body? A body that, if you could see it, you would describe as one “in glory” and “in power”?
Do you ever fear death? Who hasn’t from one time or another? However, God’s word reminds us that we have no reason to fear death, for we will be resurrected one day in a new and improved body beyond our wildest imagination. By the way, I wonder if I’ll ever sprain an ankle with my resurrected body? Naw!
Prayer: Lord, thank You that Your Word promises me a new resurrected body for all of eternity. But as long as I live in this body of mine, help me to serve You by telling my family and friends of the good news of hope that is in Jesus Christ. In Your Name, Amen!
Bible Reading for Today: Proverbs 3
Lunch Break Study
Read Matt. 27:50-3: And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
Questions to Consider
- Upon Jesus’ death, what phenomena do Matthew record for his readers?
- What is significant about the tearing of the curtain of the temple?
- What is significant about the raising of the dead to life?
Notes
- There are two: the tearing of the curtain of the temple and many holy people being raised to life.
- Jesus’ death is the beginning of the end for the temple system that had opposed Him, that had denied Him, and that had prevented people of all nations into fellowship with God. Now people would have direct communion with God through Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death.
- This is a very odd story, but Matthew intends us to see the story as picture-language, a vivid way of saying “from that moment on, death was a defeated force.” It was a hint of what would come at the end of all things, the great final resurrection of which Paul speaks about.
Evening Reflection
As the week of Thanksgiving approaches, reflect on the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ and ask the Holy Spirit to shape your heart to reflect that of Jesus.