For example, Paul raises an important subject in Romans 8:18. “I reckon that the SUFFERINGS of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” The word “pathema” (path’-ay-mah) is sometimes translated “affliction.” Paul could be talking about a hundred different kinds of human problems and afflictions. He could be talking about persecution by the wicked. He could be speaking of financial problems or droughts that had brought many people to starvation. This might include the effects of hurricanes or tornados, earthquakes or floods. And of course it would have reference to the ravages of disease and death. But his conclusion is that no matter what kind of problems, afflictions and sufferings which Christians might experience, they are not worth comparing to the future blessings that God has in store for us. That isn’t to say that there aren’t dozens of blessings for us to enjoy at this very moment even in the midst of our sufferings, but what is yet to come will be infinitely more grand and glorious. I can say without hesitation or doubt that the atheist, the Shintoist, the Buddhist, and the Mormon are not now enjoying these blessings, and they never will, if they remain in their deluded and demonic religions.
As part of his explanation of this subject, the Apostle adds that creation in general, and the saints in particular, are looking forward to the adoption, that is, the redemption of their bodies. I believe that man is a tri-part being – that he is body, soul and spirit. Some theologians teach that man is only body and spirit, but the Word of God is pretty clear. In I Thessalonians Paul prayed: “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” And in Hebrews he said, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, AND of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Just as the God-head is a Trinity – Father, Spirit and the Son – Who took upon Him human flesh… Just as God is a Trinity, man is a trinity as well – body, soul and spirit.
But of those three which is the most important? In some ways our human spirit is the most important. Certainly, in most people the spirit is dead in trespasses and sins, desperately needing to be regenerated. It is the most important thing that anyone can ever imagine. But some people might talk about the importance of the soul. Whichever, I think that we can reasonably say that of the three, the body is the least important. Someone’s body might be ravaged with MS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease or Alzheimer’s, but if that person is a child of God by faith in Christ Jesus, then the condition of the body is not absolutely important.
But, of course, we live in a physical world, and physical bodies are essential for our existence here. When our bodies die, then our souls are released, and they enter another sphere of existence. The soul and the spirit of the child of God instantly go to be with the Lord. And the soul of the unbeliever immediately enters a place of judgment and spiritual pain. I don’t have time to give you all the scriptures which teach these truths, because this is not my purpose this morning. My question is: what about the body?
Without dealing with the wicked – a subject worthy of our attention – what about the body of the Christian? Are bodies as necessary for the enjoyment of Heaven as they are for the enjoyment of earth? Are David, Daniel, Abraham and Adam miserable at this moment, because their bodies have decayed back into the dust from which the Lord originally created them? I don’t believe so – they are quite happy right now, and better off than they ever were while on this earth. Heaven and eternity do not require physical bodies – and yet – the Lord has chosen to include our bodies in His eternal plan.
Why does verse 23 speak about the redemption of our body? I cannot point to any scripture and say, “There is the answer to the question.” All that I can do is suggest that some scriptures suggest some answers.
But at some point many of God’s angels, under the leadership of Lucifer, rebelled against their Lord. And shortly after the conclusion of creation, Lucifer – Satan – the Devil – tempted the man and his wife. When Adam sinned, he fell from his lofty position and became thoroughly corrupt and depraved. His spirit immediately died, and his body began the slow process of decay and death. Eventually, after 930 years, that corrupted body succumbed to that corruption, and Adam physically died. With only a handful of miraculous exceptions, the corruption of sin has destroyed the body of every single person, except the generation in which we live, and now it is working on us. Because of sin, the righteous God has decreed that it is “appointed unto men once to die, and after this the judgment.”
But going back to the beginning, could we say that God intended that His perfect creation include human beings uncorrupted in body, soul or spirit? And if that was the Lord’s original intent, doesn’t it make sense to think that in His perfect salvation God would include the human spirit, soul and body? I have neither the time nor the spiritual intellect to talk about why God permitted sin and its corruption, other than to say that the Lord is glorified in both judging sin in most people and in removing sin in some. But I think that it is safe to say that God’s perfect salvation means a perfect restoration and more. The entire man was corrupted by sin, and when God is finished, those whom He saves will be entirely redeemed – body, soul and spirit.
“And not only (creation in general), but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”
When Mary and Martha sent word to the Saviour about their brother, he was apparently suffering enough to make them worry for his life. So are we to assume that he was in pain? Great pain? Was he feverish, incoherent, hallucinating, self-destructive, or abusive to others? Was his body wasting away? Had his bowls or other organs quit working? Did his joints ache, and did he moan in pain with every move? No one can say whether or not his soul had an easy passing. But I can tell you this that his suffering, and the death which followed, were the result of sin and the curse. This isn’t to say that he was dying of lung cancer from smoking, or mouth cancer from chewing tobacco, or from the effects of venereal disease. But disease and death are results of the curse, which is a result of sin. Yes, many times death is a direct result of sin, but many other times, it is nothing more than an indirect result of the very first sin committed by Adam. As I’ve said many times, that little baby, six months old, who inexplicably dies in his crib, has died as a result of sin, even though it was not sin directly committed by either himself or his parents. Lazarus was suffering and eventually died because of sin. That is always the case in every death.
And yet the Lord Jesus put his suffering in a different light in verse 4 where He said: “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” Now, this is something that not even many Christians like to hear. Most people think that it is our duty to go to extreme measures and bankrupting debt in order to keep suffering saints alive. Most people, even Christians, have a hard time believing that the sovereign, omnipotent God, ordains that some of His people should suffer and die horrible deaths. They hate the words of verse 15, “I am glad for your sakes that I was not here” to heal Lazarus and prevent him from dying.
It has been said, although it is impossible to prove, that no one has ever remained physically dead in the presence of the living Christ. Certainly there were several who died and Jesus’ restored them to life. There was the young man, the son of a widow, who was being brought out of town for burial – Luke 7. And there was Jairus’ daughter – Luke 8. But just because these are specifically mentioned, they don’t prove that the Lord Jesus raised every dead body which came into His presence. And yet ….. maybe……
The Lord Jesus, here, used some interesting and instructive language in speaking about death. At first it confused the disciples, and it has confused a great many people since. Jesus said that Lazarus was “asleep,” and the disciples assumed that he was “taking of rest in sleep,” and “if he sleep, he shall do well” (verses 12 and 13). When they didn’t get it, their teacher said unto them plainly “Lazarus is dead.” The obvious point is that what we call “death” is not the end or a complete conclusion of life. While a body may stop moving, a heart stop beating and a brain stop thinking, the soul of the deceased moves on. And that body, which we call “dead,” will some day be restored to life. There is no such thing as “soul-sleep,” but there is a sense in which the bodies of the dead “sleep.” On the day that Jesus died on the cross, at the moment of his death, scripture says that “the graves were opened, and many bodies of the saints which slept arose.” In Acts we are told – “David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption.” And what usually happens at the conclusion of a period of sleep? We awake. It might be argued that there is a kind of “resurrection” from our temporary, nightly “death” when we wake up in the morning.
So Christ Jesus said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” Notice once again, just in passing, that when the Son is glorified, the Father is glorified as well. When God the Father is honored, God the Son is also honoured. When one member of a family is honored everyone in that family feels the pride. But it is infinitely more true within the triune God. And yet the question remains: How can death possibly bring glory to God? Actually there are a great many ways, but we are interested in only one this morning. Verse 14 – “Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe.” And what was it that caused the faith of the disciples, the sisters and many of the residents of Bethany and Jerusalem to increase? Verse 24 – “Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. (But) Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?” Then a few minutes later Mary and Martha took the Lord Jesus to Lazarus’ tomb – verse 43. And Christ “cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth.” Verse 45 – “Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.” And in believing Christ – in putting their faith in Him – those people glorified both God the Father and Son.
Do you think that Lazarus’ sisters would have been satisfied merely to know that their brother was alive and well on the other side of death? They should have been satisfied, but they wouldn’t have been, at least until their grief subsided. But there is something highly comforting in knowing that the dead in Christ shall live again, just as Lazarus returned to his life.
“Death is swallowed up in victory.” There are two kinds of victory. There is the victory where the enemy runs away, but still lives, and is still the enemy. And there is the victory when the enemy is thoroughly and completely decimated never to rise again. Likewise, there are two basic kinds of resurrections. There was the resurrection of Lazarus, when death fled the battlefield, only to return later. And there was the resurrection of Christ, who so destroyed death that it can hardly be found in the same sentence with the Name of Jesus Christ. And the resurrection to which Paul refers here is the absolute and final variety. God doesn’t do anything half-way or half-heartedly.
Why did Paul speak of the “redemption” of our body, rather than its “resurrection?” Well, first of all, they are related enough that most readers won’t even ask the question. The word “redemption” refers to a loosing, an unbinding, a release caused by paying a ransom. Wasn’t the resurrection of Lazarus a loosing and unbinding? But in “redemption” there is an additional idea of permanence. Lazarus was resurrected only to die again, but the saints of God at their resurrection will live to never die again. And besides, this is not the only place where this word and idea are used. Paul tells us that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, “which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” And the Lord Jesus in talking about the day of His glorious return said, “And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”
In returning to our original question: “Why is God interested in resurrecting our bodies and preparing them for eternity,” the answer seems to be: It was His original intention to be loved, worshiped and served by perfect people – body, soul and spirit. But sin corrupted man entirely – body, soul and spirit. Salvation restores sinners to a condition where they can once again serve the Lord as He originally intended. And for salvation to be complete, it must be complete – body, soul and spirit. So that throughout eternity the saints of God will love, worship and serve God with their whole being – body, soul and spirit.
Will you be among them? Have you been made a child of God through the sovereign grace of the Lord? Have you bowed before the cross of Christ, repenting of your sin and with loving faith in the Lord? If not, then none of the things which I have described this morning belong to you. When you die, you will enter hell, to be later restored to your body and then to be cast into the Lake of Fire to be eternally judged for your sins. I beg of you to fall on your face before God this morning.