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DIVINE
ENCOUNTER (RENEWAL FELLOWSHIP) P. O. BOX 3625, WARRI Delta
State Nigeria, West Africa. TOPIC: OUR
RESURRECTION HOPE IS NOT 'RAPTURE'
PART 3 TEXT: 1 THES 4:13-18 "'
THE RESURRECTION HOPE. 1 THES 4:13" "But I would not have
you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are 'asleep', that ye
sorrow not, even as others which have no HOPE. For if we believe that Jesus
died and ROSE AGAIN, even so them also which "sleep in Jesus" will
God bring with Him". 1 Thes 4:13-14. Having discovered the three
categories of Christians, viz those 'Asleep in Jesus', "Alive and
Remain", 'Dead in Christ' who are to partake of the 'Resurrection' at the
coming (parousia)) of Christ as discussed in this passage, we will now examine
the use of the word "RESURRECTION" as it applies to them. RESURRECTION: Is from the Greek word 'ANASTASIS', which means a standing up again (fig), a resurrection from the deafh(individual, general)), a MORAL RECOVERY OF SPIRITUAL TRUTH, raised to life again, resurrection, rise from the dead, that should rise, rising again. Now as it affects those who
are "ASLEEP IN JESUS' it is simply a "Resurrection from the dead.
The question then is HOW ARE
THE DEAD RAISED?. (That is those who lay down their physical bodies).
Please let us get the answer from the word of God.
"But someone may ask "How will the dead be brought back to life
again? WHATKIND OF BODIES WILL THEY HAVE?. What a foolish question. You will
find the answer in your own garden.
In your own experience you know that a seed does not germinate without
itself "dying". When
you sow a seed you do not sow the "body" that will eventually be
produced, but bare grain, of wheat, for example, or one of the other seeds.
God GIVES THE SEED A "BODY" according to His laws a different "body" to each
kind of seed. Then again, even in this world, all flesh is not identical.
There is a difference in the flesh of human beings, animals, fish and birds.
There are BODIES WHICH EXIST IN THIS WORLD; and BODIES WHICH EXIST IN THE
HEAVENS‑‑‑ the splendor of an earthly body is quite
different from the splendor of a heavenly body. The Sun, the Moon and Stars
all have their own particular splendor, while among the stars themselves there
are different kinds of splendor. In the same way, our earthly bodies which die
and decay are different from the bodies we shall have when
we come back to life, for they will never die, but they will be full of glory
‑‑They are just human bodies at death, but when
they come back to life they will be supernatural bodies. For just AS THERE ARE
NATURAL, HUMAN BODIES, THERE ARE ALSO SUPERNATURAL, SPIRITUAL BODIES. 1 Cor.
15:35-44 (Philip, tlb). Praise God! This is plain enough that those who per
adventure drop the flesh in death as believers receive a new body at the
resurrection. And I want to stress that Paul was not .necessarily saying that these people
will have to stay in the graves until a particular day before they will get
into this experience of receiving new bodies, rather, it is a matter of when
you drop this flesh (body), you receive a new one best fitted for the type of
life you lived in this world. Paul himself confirmed thiswhen he said, "I
want to be gone and BE WITH CHRIST, which would be very much better, but for
me to stay alive in this 'body' is a more urgent need for your sakes"
Phil. 1: 23. Jb. " I long to leave this world and live with
Christ‑". Philips please see also 2 Cor. 5: 6,8. Jesus Himself
clarified this issue when He said "And as touching the dead, that they
RISE, have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto
him saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob? He is not the God of the dead, but THE GOD OF THE LIVING; ye therefore
do greatly err" Matt. 12: 26‑28. What does that mean? Simply that
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are all alive in the spirit with new bodies. And that to think or teach contrary to this spiritual truth amounts to being in error of not knowing the scriptures and the power of God" v. 24. And we can believe Jesus can't we? Even the illustration of "Lazarus and the Richman" Lk 16:19‑31, is also a clear indication of what we are saying. Lazarus died and was carried by angels into Abraham's bosom, the Richman also died and IN HELL, he lifted up his eyes. vs. 22‑23. There was no waiting blithe 'resurrection day', was there? No! And that is exactly what we mean. The dead takes up a body and live on. This is why it is called a 'transition'. It is a matter of exchanging this flesh for another body. "For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so THEM also which 'sleep in Jesus' will God bring with Him' 1 Thes. 4:14 kjv. "So also is the resurrection of the dead it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a NATURAL BODY, and there is a SPIRITUAL BODY." 1 Cor. 15: 42- 44. It is clear from
our previous study that there is no waiting in the grave (cemetery) when a man
dies. The word of God clearly states that at death " the dust return to the
earth as it was and the spirit shall RETURN UNTO GOD WHO GAVE IT" Eccl.
12:7. And that is because God has been our dwelling place. Ps. 90:1. In Lk.
23:46, we are told Jesus "cried with a loud voice, (and) said, Father unto
thy hands I commend my SPIRIT.." This is a sure proof that the part that
moves out at death is 'the spirit'. He did not say receive my body or soul, and
of course we do know that man is made up of "spirit, soul and body:
1Thes.5:23 5:23. The point is, the spirit of man cannot die because it is part
of God in essence, which must return to Him, like a son on a journey (to earth
realm, having received a terrestrial body) must return home to God the spirit,
as sons to become one with Him. Jesus confirmed this when He said " I came
out from thee And now come 1 to thee " Jn. 17:8, 13. So when He said
"I and my father are one", (Jn. 10:30). It was simply God revealed in
a human form; and because He was one with God, in substance, the 'return to Him
in the fullness of His glory was easy (Jn. 17:5). A further proof that the
spirit part of man does not die is found in the words of Jesus "And fear
not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear
Him which is able to destroy both SOUL and BODY in hell." Matt. 10:28. Here
you see that the spirit is not mentioned because it cannot die. Now as we are
'born again' (Jn. 3:6) our spirit is joined (united with) to the Holy Spirit of
God (he that is joined unto he Lord is ONE SPIRIT 1Cor. 6:17 Again
"The Lord Jesus Christ be with THY SPIRIT = 2 Tim. 4: 22 ) and with this we
become sons of God Jn. 1:12. Therefore God Himself becomes our father. Even as
Jesus said to Mary " I go to my father and your father" Jn. 20:12. Now
this ascension to the Father cannot be possible unless one is washed clean
spirit, soul and Body with the blood of Jesus the life of God, as we receive the
word of truth from the spirit. Jn. 17:17. Eph. 5:26-27. This is why we are told,
to "cleanse ourselves from ALL FILTHINESS OF THE FLESH and SPIRIT "
2Cor. 7:1, if we must be called back to the father as sons. 2Cor. 6:14-18.
"For ye are bought with a prize, therefore glorify God IN YOUR BODY, and IN
YOUR SPIRIT, which are God's", 1 Cor. 6:20. Telling us that your 'Body' can
be contaminated with the world ("and keep oneself uncontaminated by the
world" because " the whole world lieth in wickedness" James 1:27,
1Jn 5:19) and so you manifest the works of the flesh (Gal. 5: 19-21). Again,
your spirit can be contaminated through the practice of spiritism, occult
practices, ogbanje spirits, witchcraft etc. This is what explains the difference
between a believer and an unbeliever in this world and the life after death.
The word of God says "for we know that when this tent we live in now is
taken down when we die and leave these BODIES we will have wonderful NEW
BODIES in heaven, HOMES that will be ours forevermore, made for us by God
Himself, and not by hands. How weary we grow of our present bodies. That is why we
look forward eagerly to the day when we shall have HEAVENLY BODIES which we shall
put on like new clothes These earthly bodies make us groan and
sigh, but we wouldn't like to think of dying and HAVING NO BODIES AT ALL. We
want to slip into our new bodies (even while alive) so that these dying bodies
will, as it were, be swallowed up by everlasting life. This is what God has
prepared for us and as a guarantee, He has given us His Holy Spirit" 2Cor.
5:15-5. TLB. Brethren can you see this? This is the body of glory that we are
hoping to receive if peradventure we lay down this physical body. And this was
the "RESURRECTION HOPE" that Paul was presenting to the people of God
in Thessalonica, of those who lay down their physical bodies. 1Thes. 4: 13-14.
But may we note verses 3- 4 of 2 Cor 5; it says "For we shall not be MERELY
SPIRITS WITHOUT BODIES but we wouldn't like to think of dying and having
NO BODIES at all" This then is the portion of the 'unbelievers' who are in
contamination with the world. What'd No bodies? and that means hell! This is the
same condition that those who did not receive the word in the days of Noah found
themselves IN PRISON. See 1 Pet. 3:18 -20; 4:1-6 And of course you can
agree with me that since spirits need a body to manifest they certainly use
individuals who open up themselves to wrong living and loose moral conduct as
fornication, wrong thoughts Christ explained this when He said of the " the
unclean spirit' leaving a man and coming back with " seven other
spirits more wicked than himself' into that man from whom it was
initially cast out (Matt. 12: 43-45) Why' Because the man lacked the seal of God
in his spirit, Eph. 4:30. Intact to the Pharisees, and Scribes, He said they are
" within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness" Matt.
23:27. Meaning they were carriers of disembodied spirits of the dead. If you do
not believe this, perhaps you will need to find out from the mortuary
attendants, why they have to knock on the mortuary doors before opening it to
attend to the corpses.
You can as well read Kenneth Hagin's experience of leaving his body in spirit,
seeing that same body lying dead in his grandmother's arm and entering back into
it, when he experienced death. ("1 believe in vision" by Kenneth
Hagin's). As a matter of fact the Jews have believed this for years and its no
superstition. Now
you can see why some people are more wicked, aggressive, full of hatred, very
selfish, some with the tendency to kill more than others. And of course, the
solution to his problem is deliverance and the word of God richly dwelling in
the individual thereafter 2Tim. 2:24 - 26, Col. 1:9-10, 3:16. Otherwise the end
point is "the lake of fire" Rev. 20:10, 14, in order to have the
"death and hell" realm in which they are living in, burnt out out
them. To
be continued
OGAGA O. DAVID. |
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