50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.
You cannot go to Heaven as you are. You must be changed. Jesus told Nicodemus that he had to be born again before he could even see the Kingdom. You do not understand spiritual things at all until the Holy Spirit makes you alive. You watch Christians excited about Jesus and you don't understand why. You read Scripture after Scripture and finally give up because it makes no sense to you at all. Some of it even turns you off . You can't understand why some of your friends don't watch TV or at least some of the shows you think are so cool. If you pray at all, it is before meals, and then never in public. You must be born again. From above.
But when you are born again on the inside, your exterior remains the same. And you still can't get to heaven until you have been changed again. And the same Jesus that changed you on the inside will change you on the outside on that day. But remember. If you have not been born again here, you will not be going there.
Paul says your corruptible decaying body will not be able to climb through the atmosphere and unite with Jesus on HIs return. You must be changed. So next he tells us some of the details of that change.
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed-- 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
When Jesus comes, He comes immediately. The Scripture that says "I am coming quickly has been interpreted by many as I am coming soon. The Greek word can mean either quickly or soon. 2 different ideas. Then he mentions the Eagle or Vulture as an example of how He will come and we know exactly what He means. When he finally comes, it will be as swift as an Eagle swooping down on a prey, and even more quickly. In that same instant, the dead in Christ rise. Within seconds after that the ones who are alive still will be changed in their bodies. You will hear a trumpet. You will see angels. You will see the blinding flash of light that is Jesus. And suddenly it's a new world. That is the new world order I live for and work for. Not the one that humans , especially powerful politicians talk about. They envision a new world with themselves on top, and everyone cooperating with their vision of how the world should operate. That is the antichrist vision. We look for a world headed up by the resurrected Christ. It is His vision that will be followed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory." 55 "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
Ever been stung by a bee? Not a pleasant experience. There is pain, swelling, sometimes worse. The final sting we will have to experience, unless Jesus comes first, is the sting of death. There may be pain. There will be tears. But instantly the revelation of the glory of Jesus Christ, the resurrected Christ, will be near us, and the little bee sting will be forgotten.
But even if there is no physical pain in death, there's a sting, says Paul. The sting is sin. Sin is the bee. If it were not for the bee sting, there would be no death. We've all been stung. We're all doomed to die from this sting. And what makes sin so strong and so deadly is the law of God.
We know what God wants us to do, but we do not do it. Some try. But fail. Some try with great desire. And they fail too. No one can keep the law. The law makes sin come to life. And sin's life is the sting that poisons us with death. This is where the human race is headed. To a mass grave. And over that grave a grave marker that reads, Killed by Poisoning.
57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
But today especially we remember. Death is no longer a destination. It's simply a stop along the way. Jesus rose from the dead. He defeated sin. Healed us from the poison wound. Conquered death. Filled us with his resurrected life. Will receive us to Himself, ourselves also resurrected from death.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
This is the message that year-round is to be our motivator. keep working for the Lord. It gets difficult. It seems in vain. Nothing happening. But everything we do in Jesus has eternity in it, because He is risen.
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