We’ve all done it at one time or another…maybe even every day. We’ve all stood in front of a mirror and noticed everything that seems wrong, off, or imperfect about our bodies. Perhaps it’s the size or shape of a facial feature. Perhaps it’s a mole or something about your hair. Or maybe it’s a nasty scar that will never go away; an ugly reminder of a painful injury from the past.
When Scripture talks about our resurrected, eternal bodies in 1 Cor. 15, we see words like “glory”, “imperishable”, “power”, and “spiritual”. Those probably aren’t words that come to mind when you’re standing in front of that mirror. It would be easy to assume that when God resurrects our bodies, that he would just do away with all of those imperfections that we see. In fact, it would probably just be better if he just ditched this body altogether and replaced it with something that resembled the body of a superhero! Surely a resurrection body looks more like Superman than what I see in the mirror.
The problem is, that’s not how God looks at us or our bodies at all! In fact, God values the body you see when you stand in front of that mirror! It’s important to Him because He made it! 1 Corinthians 15 gives us clues into what our resurrection body will be like. Verse 21 refers to Christ as the “first fruits of those who have fallen asleep”. Then verse 49 says “so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.” The resurrections that happen after Jesus will be similar to his own. His resurrection is the blueprint for all future resurrections and his resurrected body is the perfect prototype! Here’s what we know for sure about Christ’s resurrected body:
- It was HIS actual, physical body (Matt 28:1-15)
- He was recognizable (John 20:20)
- He ate and drank (Luke 24:30-33)
- He had SCARS! (John 20:25-29)
When Jesus conquered death in glory, he took his body with him! The tomb was empty! He appeared to his disciples in the flesh, scars and all! For Jesus, glorification didn’t mean trading his body for Superman’s! It was still his body (every last particle) but it was immortal, powerful, and completely holy! All of the particles that make up your body matter to God too! Guess what? In heaven you’ll probably still have those “imperfections” you see in the mirror now, but you won’t be disappointed at all. You’ll finally see what God sees now—his child who he loves with his whole heart…for all eternity!
Ps – I’ve always thought that I should be cremated when I die. I want my ashes scattered far and wide so that when Jesus resurrects my “body”, all of the particles will fly through the air every which way and come together in the sky!
Particles matter!
Matt Carter
Every Day With God 