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Colin Smith: The idea of a body that dematerializes and rematerializes simply comes from watching too much Star Trek. It does not come from the Bible. And the first thing you need to know about the resurrection body is that it is a body. And when you get that settled in your mind, you will have a far greater anticipation of the joys that lie ahead.

Guest (Male): Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. And Colin, right out of the gate, I got to ask you, are you a Trekkie?

Colin Smith: It's a while since I've watched Star Trek, I've got to say, but I did enjoy it when I was a kid.

Guest (Male): All right. I've not seen it for a long time either. But why is it so important for us to begin to settle in our mind or really understand what it means for the resurrection body to be a body?

Colin Smith: Well, it's really important because we experience life in the body here and now, and so it's almost impossible for us to imagine what it is like for a spirit or soul to live apart from the body. And so people end up sometimes having very vague ideas, you know, floating on clouds and harps and all the rest of it, and then say, "Well, I'm not particularly sure that's something I want to do."

Well, of course not. The life that's promised to us is not some kind of half-life of the spirit. It's the life of an empowered, enabled, imperishable, glorious, resurrected body. And once that begins to settle in the mind, you think, "Ah, now we're talking about a real life in a renewed heaven and earth. That's something to look forward to."

Guest (Male): Well, we unpack that more in today's message. If you can, join us in 1 Corinthians 15 as we continue to look at the joys of life in the resurrection body. Here's Pastor Colin.

Colin Smith: Your resurrection body will be like Christ's glorious body. Philippians chapter three, your resurrection body will be like Christ's glorious body. Now, that means that it will be a physical body. You will not be a disembodied ghost or spirit in the new creation.

Let me put it this way. The reason that you won't be floating on a cloud is that bodies don't float. They fall, right? And when people are in this sort of vague floating world, it's a denial of the resurrection of the body. That's what it is. It really is. It's a failure to grasp Christian doctrine at its most central point. That's why this issue is so important.

Listen to what Jesus said as he appeared in the resurrection body to his disciples, and he says this, "See my hands and my feet." This is Luke 24 and verse 39. "It is I myself. Touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have." Flesh and bones, resurrection body. Our body will be like his. That's a physical body.

That's why the word resurrection is used. Yes, there will be ways in which it is different. We'll come to that in just a moment. But the first thing you need to know about the resurrection body is that it is a body. In terms of appearance, the resurrection body of Jesus, and ours will be like his, the resurrection body of Jesus was so similar in form to the body that we have now that Mary could mistake him for a gardener. The two disciples on the road to Emmaus thought this was just another traveler.

The resurrection body will be very different in some ways. It will be different in that it is a vehicle for endless life, which the present body obviously is not. The similarities between what we have now, created good by God, and the upgrade created better and best by God, the similarities are more striking than the differences.

And as if to press it home, you have the risen Lord Jesus Christ saying to them, Luke 24, "Have you anything to eat?" And they gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it before them. Later in John's Gospel, we have Jesus actually cooking the breakfast and eating it with the disciples. Friends, we are definitely talking barbecue in the resurrection. And if we start thinking in more concrete terms with regards to the promise of the life to come, we will be helped in our anticipation. Walking and running and jumping and hitting balls on green grass growing in this planet renewed and made perfect as it shares in the redemption of the children of God.

"A spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have." That's about as physical as you can get. So forget the idea of a body that passes through walls. I mean, for one thing, you can't play football with bodies that pass through walls, right? Wayne Grudem says, and this is very helpful to me because many of us have ideas that float around in our minds we don't quite know where we got them from, and I certainly have had an idea in my head of Jesus walking through walls in the resurrection appearances.

Wayne Grudem says, "No text says that Jesus passed through walls or anything like that." Period. The disciples, of course, were meeting behind locked doors, but Peter was behind a locked door in the prison in Acts in chapter 12, and God miraculously opened the door and Peter walked out, flesh and bones. I mean, no dematerializing and rematerializing or any of that. No, friends, the idea of a body that dematerializes and rematerializes simply comes from watching too much Star Trek. It does not come from the Bible.

And the first thing you need to know about the resurrection body is that it is a body. And when you get that settled in your mind, you will have a far greater anticipation of the joys that lie ahead. Fourth scripture, 1 Corinthians chapter 15 and verses 51 that was read to us. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.

And when Christ comes, the transformation of the body that you have now into the body that you will have then will be instantaneous. And all believers will receive this most marvelous gift at the same time. Those who are with the Lord receiving it, those who are alive and caught up to meet with the Lord receiving it and are meeting with the Lord and being brought later into all of the new creation that he has for us. Glorious, glorious prospects that lie ahead for all of the people of God.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith and a message called "The Joys of Life in the Resurrection Body." And we're going to pause here, but we'll get back to the message in just a moment. Well, Colin, it's Friday and the weekend's coming.

Colin Smith: Yeah, and I want to encourage you to get to church on Sunday. Find a church where the Bible is opened and where Jesus is the center of attention. And if you live in the Chicago area and you don't have a church home, I'd love for you to join us at The Orchard. There are six locations in the northwest suburbs. For more information, go to theorchard.church. That's theorchard.church.

Guest (Male): If you joined us a little late, we're in the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 15. Back to the message. Here's Pastor Colin.

Colin Smith: Now, here we've come to 1 Corinthians in chapter 15. I just want to look more closely verses 42 and immediately following. Because I've tried to stress in order to help us the degree of continuity that the Scriptures indicate with regards to the nature of this body and the resurrection body. How will it be continuous because it is resurrection, not something other.

But clearly there are ways in which it will be different, and so I want to look at these four changes that are laid out for us quite clearly here in 1 Corinthians chapter 15. Here's the first. It will be imperishable. Notice what he says, "So it is with the resurrection of the dead." Marvelous statement. Oh, right. How is it with the resurrection of the dead? Come on, Paul, tell us. How is it with the resurrection of the dead?

Well, here he says, "What is sown is perishable." I know that about our bodies. "What is raised is imperishable." Now, think about this. Lazarus was raised from the dead, but he came back in the same body when he came out of the tomb, which meant, I mean, poor Lazarus, that he would have had to go through the whole miserable business of dying all over again. Feel sorry for him almost, don't you?

But Jesus rose in the power of an endless life. That's Hebrews 7 and verse 16. And your resurrection body will be like his. It will be a body that will never die. Your resurrection body will never age. It will never decline. It will never be in reduced energy. We don't want the old perishable body back. We want the upgrade. Isn't that right?

Second, it will be glorious. "It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory." Think about the face of Moses when he came down from the mountain. It was glowing. And why was it glowing? Because he had been in the immediate presence of God. His face shone. There was a radiance about him. And you will be in the immediate presence of the Lord. The Lord will be with his people. He will be their God. They are his.

And then think about the transfiguration of Jesus. He goes up the mountain with Peter and James and John, and their faith is strengthened just before the cross with this kind of preview of the glory that is in Jesus that will soon be revealed. So, in the one case, you've got Moses' face glowing because he's in the presence of the glory. In transfiguration, you have the glory actually being in Jesus.

And both will be true of you as a believer in the resurrection body. You will be in the presence of the incomparable glory of the Lord. And because you will not only have a resurrection body but a glorified body, there will be a radiance about your inner and outer life.

Third, powerful. "The body is sown in weakness; it is raised in power." Love this. One writer says the resurrection body is going to have more energy, more physical capability, more stamina, more athleticism, more speed, more coordination, more durability than it ever had before because we're not going to need the body less, we're going to need it more and we're going to use it more.

My heart has just been thrilled reflecting and praying, thinking about what this means for our friends who have been restricted to wheelchairs, have physical challenges that have restricted their lives in this world. Think of the words of Jesus being fulfilled: the blind will see, and the deaf will hear, and the lame will walk.

And the Garden of Eden there at the beginning, it offered all of the scope for the pursuit of art and the pursuit of science and the pursuit of technology. And the same, of course, will be true in the world to come. And the last one is godly. "It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body." And the reason I use the word godly here is because the word spiritual in this verse is a word that has often been misunderstood and has led to all kinds of confusion along the lines of dematerializing and rematerializing.

People say a spiritual body, what is that, you know? It doesn't sound like a body in which you could go bungee jumping or snorkeling or snowboarding or anything that might really be enjoyable. Listen, here's what a spiritual body is. When Paul speaks about a spiritual body, he is speaking about a body that is fully responsive to the Holy Spirit. That's how the word spiritual is used in Paul's writings, and I won't go into all of the detail of that.

But when Paul speaks about a spiritual body, he's not talking about something that's not material because that would be in opposition to what Jesus said, flesh and bones. Now, when Paul speaks about a spiritual body, he is speaking—this is the most marvelous thing of all—a body that is finally fully responsive to the Holy Spirit. What a marvelous thought this is. You will never say in the new heaven and the new earth, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." All of that will be behind you. No, the resurrection body will be as eager to do the will of God as your redeemed spirit is.

So, here's what you have to look forward to in the new heaven and in the new earth: a body that is adapted to life forever and will never decline, a body that is glorious, a body that is powerful, and a body that is fully responsive at last to the Holy Spirit.

Lastly, four conclusions. Number one: recognize that you are wholly owned by Jesus Christ. I'm thinking of 1 Corinthians 6. "You are not your own," Paul says to believers, because "you were bought with a price." So glorify God in your body. He made you soul and body. He redeemed you soul and body. He paid the price not to save a bit of you; he paid the full price to save the whole of you. And the resurrection has its root in that most marvelous truth. That means that he owns you, soul and body. That means Christ reigns not only over your heart but over your life. It means he has the right to determine where you will live and what you will do.

The fact that he has bought all of you with his own blood means that over every part of your life, material, spiritual, whatever it is, Jesus Christ by right says, "Mine. Mine. You're not your own." Your life is his to spend in whatever way he chooses. That's fundamental to what it means to be a Christian.

Second: in the light of this great truth, be done with everything that defiles either your body or your soul. This is 2 Corinthians chapter 7 and verse 1. "Since we have these promises"—in other words, in the light of the glorious promise of the resurrection that lies ahead of us—"what should we do? Let us cleanse ourselves of every defilement of body and of spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of the Lord."

Did you notice that, by the way? "Since we have these promises." Not since we have these rules, though Paul could have said that for God to command is enough. But what he's bringing is motive. And he's bringing a higher motive even than the law of God in terms of the weight that it carries in the human soul. And he says, "Since we have these promises, since you have as a believer a glorious future for your body as well as your soul, well, that's the reason to cleanse yourself of everything that defiles."

You have a glorious future for your mind, so use your mind in a way that glorifies God. Don't pollute your mind. Fill your mind with what pleases God. And the same is true for your body. That's what he's saying. Don't use your body as an instrument for sin. That's Romans chapter 6 and verse 12. Use your eyes and your ears and your hands and your tongue in ways that honor Christ. And do not defile your own body because Christ died to redeem it. And there's a glorious future for your resurrected body as a servant of God forever and forever.

Number three: offer your whole self to God. This is Romans chapter 12 and verse 1. "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God"—in the light of all this, I appeal to you—"to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." It's very common, isn't it, in church circles for us to talk about giving Jesus your heart. Well, we understand what is meant by that. But why in the world would it only be your heart?

What about your body? It's not enough to say, "Oh, his heart was in the right place." God wants more than your heart. Present your bodies. Why? Because the body is what gives you the capacity to act. What he's saying is this: spend your strength. Spend your life. Spend all that you are and all that you have in the honoring of Jesus Christ. Let it be one great sacrifice of worship.

Here's one of the great truths about the resurrection body, or great applications of the resurrection body. Folks, it means you don't have to worry anymore about your bucket list. In fact, think about this: you as a Christian, if you really believe this, you can afford to live sacrificially. You can afford to lay down your life. The new earth will be better than the one we have now. The resurrection body will be better than the body you have now. And you will have forever to savor the pleasures that God has in store for you.

And the last application is this, and it's right from the conclusion of the verses that we read. Therefore, never give way to discouragement. And this comes right out of all that Paul says about the resurrection body. 1 Corinthians 15:58. "Therefore, my brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor"—that is, your hard work, your sweat, your graft, your sticking at it, your gritting your teeth and enduring stuff that's not easy—"knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."

How do you know that? You know that because soon you will savor the joys of life in the resurrection body. Soon your struggles with sin are going to be over, so fight your best warfare against it now. Soon the weariness that comes with being stretched to the limit in serving will be a thing of the past because you are pressing forward towards the resurrection. So keep giving yourself fully to everything that God is calling you to do. Do it with joy and do it knowing that if even a cup of cold water will not go without its reward, you can be absolutely certain that a life laid down in service for Jesus can never, never, never be in vain.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith as we've been looking at the joys of life in the resurrection body. Seeing the promises that we have, the changes that are coming, and as a result, the conclusions for living in the here and now. This is the last message in our series on heaven, and you can find out more about this series or listen again when you come to our website, openthebible.org.

Well, Open the Bible's able to be on this station, we're able to make the podcast, the app, and all the other resources available because of your generosity. And as you give a gift of any amount this month, we want to send you three copies of our first graphic novel inspired by Pastor Colin's book "Heaven, How I Got Here: The Story of the Thief on the Cross," plus we'll send one copy of the original book. But Colin, what is one thing that you'd like people to take away from this new graphic novel?

Colin Smith: Well, it would be that when God draws near, he comes to give us what we do not have. That's the message of grace, and it's the greatest good news in all of the world. You know, C.H. Spurgeon used to tell a story about a pastor who took money one day to an old lady who was in great need. And he knocked on the door and she didn't answer. And eventually the pastor went home.

He saw her the next Sunday, and he said, "Well, I came with a gift to your home." And she said, "Oh, when did you come?" And he told her, and she said, "Oh, I heard you knock on the door, but I didn't open the door because I thought you were the man coming to collect the rent." Now, you see, I think that's where many people are. They have this idea that if God draws near, he's calling for the rent. He's coming to demand something from us. There are millions of people who have never understood grace, and their whole idea of Christianity is that they're going to be told what they need to do and what they need to be, and they don't have either the desire or the ability to do it.

And the story of the thief on the cross just blows that out of the water. Here's this person who has not lived a life that has been pleasing to God at all, and instead of coming with a demand, the Lord Jesus Christ gives the most marvelous gift. He opens heaven for this man who believes. So here's an opportunity with a graphic novel, a simple pictorial presentation of this marvelous story of God's compelling grace. You could put it into people's hands. We'd love to see this graphic novel getting into the hands of as many people as possible. People who need to understand grace. A younger person in your family. Someone who is trying to live a good life but really hasn't understood the heart of the gospel. You could be the means of getting a simple presentation of God's grace into their hands. We'd love to encourage you to do that and hope that this graphic novel will be useful to you in that regard.

Guest (Male): Well, we want to send you three copies of the graphic novel plus the original book "Heaven, How I Got Here: The Story of the Thief on the Cross" as our way of saying thanks for your financial support this month. You can give at our website, openthebible.org, or when you call 1-877-OPEN-365. That's 1-877-673-6365 or openthebible.org. For Pastor Colin Smith, I'm Steve Hiller. Thanks for listening and I hope you'll join us next time. This program is a listener-supported production of Open the Bible.

Colin Smith: A single conversation can change your life, and that happened to me at a conference many years ago. Over lunch, I sat next to a pioneer missionary. He told me the story of how he'd made contact with an unreached tribal group in Northern Thailand. How the tribal chief had invited him to make his home there. How he built his own home and then learned the tribal language and began to serve these people. It was jaw-dropping stuff. At one point in the conversation, I asked him, "Where do you begin in explaining the gospel to people who don't even know who God is?" And he said, "We tell them the Bible story."

Now, I'm convinced that we need to learn from the approach of pioneer missionaries in reaching lost people today. And that's why I wrote "Fly Through the Bible." "Fly Through the Bible" is short, simple, and shareable. It's a place where someone in your life can begin. So who is there in your life who needs to know the God of the Bible and might be willing to open the Bible with you if you asked them? For more information, visit openthebible.org/fly. That's openthebible.org/fly.