First Corinthians 15 is the definitive chapter on the
subject of resurrection. There Paul severely rebukes anyone who would doubt or
question it: “But someone will ask, ‘How are the dead raised? With what kind of
body do they come?’” To which Paul responds, “You foolish person!” (1 Corinthians
15:35–36). That is one of the most caustic retorts in all the
Pauline writings. But in Paul’s estimation, this doctrine is fundamental. To
deny an actual, physical resurrection is to embrace something other than
genuine Christianity: “For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been
raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are
still in your sins” (1 Corinthians
15:16–17).
God made human beings body and soul together. He “formed the man
of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and
the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2:7). We consist
of an inner self and an outer self (2 Corinthians 4:16).
Therefore our ultimate perfection demands that both body and soul be renewed.
Even the creation of a new heaven and earth demands that we have bodies—a
physical earth calls for its inhabitants to have physical bodies. An honest
approach to Scripture does not permit these realities to be simply
spiritualized or allegorized. Eternal life as a mere state of mind would defeat
the whole point of many of the promises of Scripture.
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