1 Corinthians 15:20-58 - Part B

Your body's gonna be like Jesus' body. A real human body, but limitless.

He'll transform it into a glorious body. Now, some of you don't like Paul's language, perhaps, because he just called your body lowly. And you're going, my body isn't lowly. Man, I work on that baby. I lift weights. I'm looking pretty good.

Or I've gotten some procedures, and I've worked really hard, and my body isn't lowly. Just wait. The resurrection of Jesus previewed our own. And today on Connect with Skip Heitig, Skip brings you startling insight on your future resurrection. But first, did you know that Skip shares important updates and biblical encouragement on social media? Just follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to get the latest from him and this ministry. That's at Skip Heitig, at Skip, H-E-I-T-Z-I-G. God is using the generosity of friends like you to bring families into his kingdom.

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Again, that's 800-922-1888. Thank you. Now, we're in 1 Corinthians chapter 15.

As we dive into today's teaching with Skip Heitig. The last enemy, verse 26, that will be destroyed is death. Remember what Revelation chapter 20 says?

That death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. Verse 27, 4, he has put all things under his feet. Paul is now quoting Psalm 8. He has put all things under his feet. But when he says all things are put under him, it is evident that he who put all things under him, that is God the Father, is accepted.

Now when all things are made subject to him, then the son himself will also be subject to him who put all things under him that God may be all in all. In the millennial kingdom, a thousand year reign of Jesus Christ upon the earth. That for a thousand years Jesus will reign and rule as king. Revelation 19 says that he will rule all the nations with a rod of iron.

It will be an iron-clad rule. He will be dominant, but any rebellion that would be springing up on the earth will be put down immediately. He'll rule with a rod of iron.

So during that millennium Christ will be the one bringing righteousness over all the earth. We'll rule and reign with him, but he'll rule with a rod of iron. Now the idea of everything under his feet is an old metaphor of a general or a king vanquishing another general or a king. When you would win a battle and you were the king, you would have the other king of the nation you just defeated placed on the ground and that new king would place his foot on the neck of the king that he conquered.

As if to say I'm now in charge, you are under my authority, under my dominion, and it was an iron-clad kind of a rule. So all things will be placed during the millennial kingdom under Christ's rule and reign. After the millennial kingdom, so there's the rapture of the church, the tribulation period, the second coming of Jesus Christ, the thousand-year reign of Christ upon the earth in the millennium. After the millennium comes what is called what Bible scholars call the eternal state and in the eternal state it will be God and the glory of the lamb that lights the new Jerusalem we are told and the throne of God. We will worship God face to face. We will see his face.

His name it says was written on our foreheads. So it will be an immediate direct kind of a fellowship. Now the only way you can ever get to God is through a mediator. There's one God and one mediator and that is Jesus Christ. In the eternal state you will have direct access to God the Father. You will see him face to face. You will be like Jesus. You will be like him for you will see him as he is but it says you will see God's face and there'll be a direct intimacy with him. Now we have verse 29 and we just sort of left that dangling. Last time didn't explain it just read it and now we need to get into it because it's an odd verse. Otherwise Paul continues otherwise what will they do who are baptized for the dead if the dead do not rise at all? Why then are they baptized for the dead? It is this scripture that has caused consternation for 2,000 years. Argument, debate, interpretation, more argument, more debate, weird practices, etc. etc. There are no less than 40 different interpretations of verse 29.

Just to let you know just to let you know the kind of trouble it has caused. It is this verse that the Mormon church has used since 1840 for proxy baptism and the whole reason they are so into genealogy and have the probably the world's greatest bank of genealogical records is because they want to identify people who have died so that a living Mormon can stand for those who have died by proxy baptism vicarious baptism. So it's an odd scripture and you're thinking man was Paul endorsing it? No he wasn't but he is mentioning it and I say he's not endorsing it because if he was endorsing it you would see it in other places in the New Testament. You would expect Jesus perhaps to introduce the idea. You certainly would see Paul explaining this to other churches but he doesn't. In fact he doesn't even make baptism a big deal.

He said to the Corinthians I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius and the household of Stephanus because Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel. So what's up with this baptizing for the dead? Well throughout history a little bit after this letter was written like in several decades and really the next century there were different groups that did baptize for the dead. The followers of Marcion who denied the humanity of Jesus, the Gnostics who denied a lot of stuff as we mentioned Sunday, they got involved in a practice of vicarious or proxy baptism. But when Paul writes 1 Corinthians there was a temple in a town next to Corinth, one of the mystery religions in Greece that practiced proxy baptism.

They baptized people for the dead. So it could be that that belief system of that neighboring worldly town had worked its way into the church. That wouldn't surprise us because a lot of weird worldly ideas have worked their way into the Corinthian church, right?

We have noted that from the beginning of this letter. They're borrowing all sorts of weird things that Paul as a polemic letter has to write against. So it wouldn't be unusual that a few people at Corinth in the church like the pagans next door got involved in proxy baptism.

Paul is not endorsing it. Paul is just saying what would the point of that be if there were no resurrection? Even the dumb pagans believe in a resurrection, at least some of them. They're baptizing people for the dead because they believe in a resurrection.

So he's going through the list of proofs. Jesus rose from the dead, etc., etc. Now he comes to this practice that he does not endorse. The Bible does not say we should do, but he makes note of it as if to say even they do it.

And what would be the point of them doing it? The point is they believe in a resurrection. You followers of Christ certainly should believe in a resurrection. That is what I think the point of verse 29 is.

So I'm adding my interpretation at least to those 40. He continues, verse 30, and why do we stand in jeopardy every hour? I affirm by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. That is, I face the possibility of death daily. You know, wherever Paul went, we've made note on several occasions, he was always persecuted, often thrown in prison.

He was beaten and a number of times he was shipwrecked. I mean, he suffered for his faith probably greater than any Christian in the ancient world. And so when he says, I die daily, he's simply pointing to the fact, you can read it in 2 Corinthians 11, a whole list of the things that he faced. And so he says, if there's no resurrection, why would I do that? If this life is all there is, if my body doesn't have a future resurrection, why would I place my body in jeopardy every single day? Why would any Christian go through the persecution and facing of death over and over again if there is no resurrection? I die daily. If, verse 32, in the manner of men I have fought with the beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me if the dead do not rise?

Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Now, Paul mentions that he faced the beasts at Ephesus. And so some have supposed maybe that means Paul faced the gladiatorial fights where Christians were exposed to animals like they were in Rome at the Colosseum. And it was for the sport, the entertainment of people who would watch that. I don't think he's referring to that.

Why? Because there's no record of gladiatorial fights as such taking place in Ephesus. I think he's referring to human beasts. I think you could go back and just simply read Acts 19, not right now, but later on, and discover what he's talking about. When Paul was in Ephesus, he faced the persecution by a leader of a trade in that city by the name of Demetrius, a silversmith.

And Paul preached Jesus' death and resurrection and just belief in him changes the life. And there was a guy named Demetrius who said to his fellow workers in that silver trade, they made little gods of the goddess Diana, little replicas that they would sell. And people would buy this little statue and they put the statue in their house of the goddess Diana. And so Demetrius got his fellow workers together and said, look, this Paul the Apostle is preaching something that is going to make our occupation in jeopardy. People aren't going to buy our stupid little statues anymore.

People aren't going to buy our dumb little idols anymore. If they believe in this Jesus and resurrection stuff, we're going to go out of business. And this city is going to get sidelined because we are the great gatekeepers for the temple, the temple of Diana, which is worshiped throughout all the Roman world, and the center of it is right here. So they drug Paul, Demetrius, and a guy by the name of Alexander, drug Paul into the theater in Ephesus.

Now I've been to that theater, seats 24,000 people. And the people of Ephesus flooded into the city and for two hours they shouted, great is Diana of the Ephesians, great is Diana of the Ephesians. Great is Diana of the Ephesians.

And they thought Paul's going to be pulled apart by this crowd. And so they brought him out and he escaped, went to a nearby town, came back. He spent a total, as I mentioned Sunday, of three years in Ephesus. But he dealt with these beastly-like representatives of a false god like Demetrius over and over again. And then notice how he closes out verse 32, if the dead do not rise, let us eat, drink, and drink for tomorrow we die. So if there's no resurrection, then let's just eat and drink for tomorrow we die. Now that's a quote from the scriptures, by the way. That's a quote from Isaiah chapter 22. It's what the people in Jerusalem were saying when the Babylonians encircled them and were going to destroy the city. They said, well, the Babylonians are going to destroy us and take us captive. Let's eat and drink, man, for tomorrow we die. Let's just party, party, because the captivity is coming. So Paul says, if there's no bodily resurrection, we're no better off than backslidden Jews before the Babylonian captivity.

Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die. And then verse 33, do not be deceived, evil company corrupts good habits. Now that's an interesting thing that he writes there, because that happens to be also a quote, but not from the scriptures. Paul is quoting a Greek author named Menander.

And Menander wrote a play, a comedy, in which he wrote, evil company corrupts good habits. It was so famous an entertainment piece that it became proverbial. Everybody knew this proverb.

Just like we would say, you know, every cloud has a silver lining, or if you can't beat them, join them. We all have our sayings in every culture. That was a saying from a secular source. So here you have Paul quoting a secular entertainment piece that had become a proverb, and he throws that in, you know, as if to just sort of use all of these different arguments for the resurrection. But it's interesting that he throws this in, don't be deceived. Evil company corrupts good habits, as if to say, hey Corinthians, if you keep hanging out with people who deny the resurrection, it's going to turn out bad for you.

It's going to corrupt you even further. And they were hanging out with those who either were involved in proxy baptism, vicarious baptism, or those who denied the resurrection altogether. So he says, awake to righteousness and do not sin, for some do not have the knowledge of God.

I speak this to your shame. Verse 35, but someone will say, how are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?

Now that's really two questions. How are the dead raised up? How is that even possible that dead people get up again? I mean, in the history of humanity, every generation has the display of proof that dead people, as a general rule, stay dead. I've never seen a resurrection. I've seen plenty of funerals. I've buried a lot of people. I've never had one person I've done a funeral for sit up in the casket and go, hey, what's up?

I'm back. Now that would be cool if that happened, but it hasn't happened. No, it actually would be pretty frightening if that happened. The question is, how are the dead raised?

How is that possible? Now, that's what the Greek would ask. That's what the Roman would ask. That's what the Sadducee would ask.

But Christians have also, to this day, similar questions. A resurrection. Well, what about the person who's at war and his body gets blown to smithereens? What about a person who's out in the ocean and he drowns and a shark bites off an arm and swims in that direction, another shark bites off a leg and swims in that direction, and now you've got parts of this guy all throughout the world in the gut of a shark, and then the shark dies and gets eaten by this. How is that possible? Or, boy, you know, they cremated my grandpa and they put part of him on Sandia Mountain and part of him in the lake down there in the river, and, I mean, he's all over the place.

How is that going to happen? And then the second question, and with what body do they come? So, if a person dies with a stroke and when he dies he is incapacitated, is that how he's going to come back in the resurrection? Or if a person has lost a limb and had to, he's an animal and he's an amputee, will that amputee be an amputee in a resurrected body? If an infant is born, will that person always be an infant forever and ever? If an older person dies at 104 and just, you know, is decrepit, is that how they'll live? So, with what body do they come?

Really, two questions. How is it possible that dead people are raised and with what body do they come? And notice how wonderfully gracious Paul is in answering that. He says, verse 36, foolish one, dummy. What you sow is not made alive unless it dies.

Certain things have to go dormant for life to come. And what you sow, you do not sow that body. Now, let's go back to that question, that second question in verse 35. With what body do they come?

Now, we've touched on that, but let me give you the short answer to that. The short answer to what body you will have in the resurrection is found in Philippians chapter 2 or Philippians chapter 3. Paul writes in verse 20, our citizenship is in heaven from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, now get this, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to his glorious body according to the working by which he is able even to subdue all things to himself. So, the short answer is your body is going to be like Jesus' body. A real human body, but limitless.

He'll transform it into a glorious body. Now, some of you don't like Paul's language, perhaps, because he just called your body lowly. And you're going, my body isn't lowly. Man, I work on that baby. I lift weights. I'm looking pretty good.

Or, I've gotten some procedures, and I've worked really hard, and my body isn't lowly. Just wait. Just hold that thought. Just buckle your seatbelt. Give it time.

Let gravity take its course. Pretty soon, as you age, you will just start nodding more and more and more with this, and you will look for the transformation, say, lowly body waiting to be transformed. Want the extreme makeover.

Thank you. I want my heavenly Botox. You'll get it in a resurrection. Now, what Paul does in back to 1 Corinthians 15, is he gives you some illustrations from the biological world, the plant world, the terrestrial world, as well as the heavens, the celestial world. And what you sow, verse 37, you do not sow that body that shall be but mere grain, perhaps wheat, or some other grain, but God gives it a body as he pleases, and to each seed its own body. You take a seed. Effectively, it's dead. Of course, technically, it's just dormant, but you place it in the ground. It decomposes. The point is, you bury it, and something comes up that is related to it, but different from it. Right? It has the same genetic code that same DNA of an oak tree is in an acorn.

This summer, if you spit watermelon seeds over the fence, that little black seed has a code within it, and it gets spit over the fence, gets buried in the ground, it'll rain a little bit, something's going to come up, and a big, juicy watermelon will come from that seed. They don't look anything alike. But they are related. So, there's a relationship genetically, but they're vastly different from one another, so it is with our body. The body that shall be is related to this one, same DNA, dioxiribonucleic acid, same genetic code, but vastly different and unlimited in its capacity compared to what you have now. So, the body that shall be is related to this one, compared to what you have now. That's Skip Heitzig with a message from the series Expound 1 Corinthians.

Now, we want to share about a resource that will help you grow stronger in your faith. Our lives are punctuated by defining moments, pivot points that shape who we are now and who we'll become, such as choice of marriage partner or where we choose to work as Skip Heitzig observes. There's predictable events that happens like in your life, but every now and then, life sort of hits you by surprise. It comes crashing down on you. You are going a direction. Your day is planned out, but you get a phone call from a doctor or a friend. The news is not good.

The prognosis is not good, and you didn't see it coming. God's Word has the direction to get you through the planned and unplanned pivot points in your life. The pivot point package speaks to marriage, death, depression, recovery, fear of the future, and moving to a new location or job. Get these teachings that include written personal direction from Skip on each of these topics. You'll receive this package when you give $50 or more today to this Bible teaching ministry. We'll send you Pastor Skip's pivot points collection of six messages plus an encouraging letter from Pastor Skip so you can strengthen your faith in defining moments. A faith that cannot be tested is a faith that cannot be trusted.

Get these critical pivot point messages today when you give online securely at connectwithskip.com slash offer or call 800-922-1888. Tune in tomorrow as Skip Heitzig shares why your future physical resurrection is necessary and what you can look forward to when it happens. Adam sinned, brought corruption, degradation, decay. He bombed out. He was the Adam bomb.

He bombed out. Jesus, we've been radioactive ever since. Every human being in every generation. Jesus restored that and the full restoration demands a physical restoration. That's why Paul P. labors the idea. Connect with Skip Heitzig is a presentation of Connection Communications. Connecting you to God's never changing truth in ever-changing times.