What's a body to do?

DAILY BIBLE READING:

Job 37:1–39:30 
2 Corinthians 4:13–5:10 
Psalm 44:9-26 
Proverbs 22:13

TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

2 Corinthians 5:4 (NLT) "While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life."

REFLECTIONS ON TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

Our Verse for Today touches on the subject matter that is also addressed in 1 Corinthians 15. It focuses on the fact that we aren't simply spirits - we are also bodies.

Some folks erroneously think that our bodies are simply a temporary part of us. They suspect that when they die, their spirit will ascend to the Lord's presence and they will never have a use for their body again.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Our bodies are essential for at least two reasons:

First, they enable us to experience sensation. A spirit has no tongue and taste buds to enjoy delicious foods that will be a part of our heavenly experience. A spirit doesn't have a nose with which to smell the heavenly aromas. A spirit doesn't have the ability to touch and be touched to enjoy connectedness with others. Neither does it have eyes or ears to enjoy the sights and sounds of Heaven. So, our bodies are not incidental - they are absolutely essential to experience Heaven.

Second, our bodies are not made for some "spiritual" Heaven. Our bodies remind us of Genesis 1-2 where Adam was made from the earth. Clearly, we are made to exist on a planet with real dirt. So, it's no surprise when we read the last two chapters of Revelation and realize that our final heavenly home is "a new heaven and a new earth" (Revelation 21:1).

If you read our Verse for Today, Paul was saying that he didn't want to be finally rid of his body. While his physical body was decimated by the beatings, stoning, and many other horrible things he had endured, he desperately wanted a body to enjoy for eternity.

2 Corinthians 5:4 (NLT) "While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life."

If you will read through 1 Corinthians 15, you will hear the Lord (through the Apostle Paul's pen) state that our present bodies will one day be supernaturally resurrected and turned into our eternal bodies. They will be remarkably similar to what we have now but incredibly better. And with those new bodies, we will be able to experience the sensations of Heaven as we walk the New Earth.

How incredible is it going to be? Well, when you get to the final chapter of the Bible as the Apostle John had been writing about the New Earth, he couldn't help himself. He got so excited that his heart cried out, "Come, Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 20:20). He was ready for Jesus to take him home right then and there.

If we properly understand Heaven and what it will be like, we will live our life to the fullest but also crave for the day that our Lord calls us home!