What Will Our Resurrected Bodies Look Like?
"...when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.'" John 20:19 People wonder what their bodies will be like when they are raised from the dead, or when they are changed to immortal beings in the Rapture. The apostle Paul addresses the question: "But someone will say, 'How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?'" 1st Corinthians 15:35 Jesus is the pattern. When we are raised from the dead, or changed in the Rapture, our bodies will be as his was after his resurrection. After the crucifixion of Christ, the disciples were together in one place in an upper room with closed doors ...and suddenly ...Jesus was there. The Scripture clearly states that the doors were shut, so how did Jesus come into the room? He was able because he was now in his resurrected body just as we will be when we are resurrected. He looked the same, they recognized him. In further Scriptures we know that he eats and drinks with them. In other words, his body is the same one he had before, only with a lot more functions added and without limitations. He was able to come into a locked room, the walls and doors were no obstacle to him. And he was able to appear and to disappear, yet he invited them to touch him so that they would know for sure that this is the same Jesus they knew before. In order to make it clear that this was his same body, he showed them the nail prints in his hands. "...he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord." John 20:20 And so we will be like him. Our bodies as they are, are not able to enter heaven because they are not pure and whole, they are subject to corruption. They are old, diseased, missing parts, defective. But when they are resurrected they will be as Jesus's body. Whole. Healthy. Young appearing. Perfect. "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Handle me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” Luke 24:39 The apostle Paul further elaborates on this: "The body 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." 1st Corinthians 15:42-44 "A spiritual body" ...but it will be the same body, just changed. Like Jesus, it will be made of flesh and bones, as he made the point that his was. This is not something to be feared, but rather to have joyful anticipation of as we think of it. This imperfect body will be forever changed and no longer subject to damage, to disease, or to limitations. And it will never again know death. vs 53-54: "For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: 'Death is swallowed up in victory.'” Friends, if you have been born again, do not fear death. Death is merely a change in location. We close our eyes on earth and open them in heaven. But if you are not born again, that won't be the case for you. Oh you'll open your eyes alright, but not in heaven. We're talking about your soon-coming eternity. If you have not bowed your knee before the Lord Jesus Christ, do so now. Don't wait, you may not get another chance. See to your eternal destination now. And remember, it is not determined by whether your good outweighs your bad. It is determined by whether or not you have been born again by the Spirit of God. "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You MUST be born again.’" John 3:6-7 If you're not sure, click on the link below and read what the term "born again" means. And I pray that God grant you the grace to understand the importance of it, and to receive from Jesus Christ what he offers to all who will receive it.
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