John 5:28-29,"...all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."
We know from the first chapters of John that good deeds are only committed through saving faith in Jesus Christ. Those who have done evil have rejected the Way of salvation.
It was amazing to realize how the resurrection was such a part of the Gospel talk of the early church.
Martha understood the resurrection long before she saw her brother rise from the dead.
John 11:24, "Martha said to Him (Jesus), “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
I really got thinking about the bodily resurrection. So, if I am already dead, my body will rise from the grave at the time of the Rapture.
1 Thessalonians 4:16, "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first."
Of course, if I'm alive, I get to go alive.
I Thessalonians 4:17, "Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord."
At one point, we change these bodies in for new ones.
Philippians 3:20-21, "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body..."
So, the big question is, does that mean our entire body? Or just what's left of our body at the time of the Rapture?
from Bill Casselman.com
What about my thyroid that was removed because of cancer? It that little thingy going to fly through the air and meet up with the rest of the body for the big Trade-in?
Does my thyroid know which body to join?
Is there like a homing device?
It looks like a butterfly, maybe it can fly.
Or, do all those removed and incinerated body parts just stay in the trash heaps of the world while our fragmented bodies join in the heavenly festivities?
I got the giggles imaging all these different removed organs and limbs flying through the air, in a twinkling of an eye, matching up with the bodies they were removed due to severe illnesses, cancers and accidents.
Wow, to be whole again, even if only for a bajillionth of a second, then get to trade-in on a new, sinless, heavenly body. Amazing!
But, regardless of whether we meet up with missing body parts on the way to the heavenly glories, this much is true and doesn't need to be laughed about-
-we born-again believers will see Jesus,
and when we see Him,
we shall all be changed.
1 John 3:2, "Beloved, now we are children of God...but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is."
It won't matter if I am missing a major organ.
In that second, because of His grace, I will be completely whole, completely His and completely fit to be in the presence of the One whose hands bear the marks of His dying love for me.
Praise the Lord!
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ReplyDeleteI'd kind of like to leave my butt behind...maybe I should send up a request now?
ReplyDeleteSorry, your post made me giggle too! I'd never thought about the Rapture that way! Thank you for your precious comments today. I am glad to lift spirits. The poem I wrote was not my own -- but it seemed appropriate for the praise I wanted to give God today! I hope you and your family have a wonderful Memorial day weekend!
God created Adam from the dust of the earth. I don't think reuniting bodies will be any trouble for him!
ReplyDeleteI love thinking about all that stuff . . . even though it always baffles me! ;)
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