“Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.” (1 John 3:2 nlt)
Human ingenuity has devised countless ways to transform the human body. From plastic surgery to weight-loss drugs. From tattoos to piercings. From hair dye to colored contact lenses. Many people, it seems, will stop at nothing to have a new body.
In the third chapter of his first epistle, the apostle John addresses the topics of transformation and new bodies from an eternal perspective. His point is this: Every believer will have a new body in Heaven. Those who are disabled on earth won’t be disabled in Heaven. Those whose bodies are broken by the ravages of age or disease on earth won’t experience that brokenness in Heaven.
John says that our resurrection bodies will resemble the resurrection body of Christ. Think of it! In 1 John 3:2, we read, “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is” (nlt).
What were the differences between the resurrection body of Jesus and the body that was put to death on the cross?When Jesus walked among us on this earth, He voluntarily exposed Himself to the limitations of humanity. Just likeeveryone else, He got sleepy, thirsty, tired, and hungry. In His resurrected body, there were similarities to the old body but major differences, too. His disciples recognized Him, yet something in them wondered, “Is it really You, Lord?”
Then again, Jesus did things in His resurrection body that He never did in His old body. He suddenly appeared in aroom without using a door. He ascended through the air until He disappeared into the clouds.
Will we be able to do similar things in our resurrection bodies? No one can say for sure, but we can know this:“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9 nlt).
That’s why Paul wrote, “For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life” (2 Corinthians 5:1–4 nlt).
Reflection question: What is most exciting to you about having a new body in Heaven?
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Greg Laurie is the pastor and founder of the Harvest churches in California and Hawaii and of Harvest Crusades. He is an evangelist, best-selling author, and movie producer. His latest film ‘Jesus Revolution,’ from Lionsgate and Kingdom Story Company, is now available on-demand worldwide.
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