7/9/23 - Resurrected Bodies - 1 Corinthians 15:35-49 - Pastor Hudson Garcia

“There is a preacher of the old school but he speaks as boldly as ever. He is not popular, though the world is his parish and he travels every part of the globe and speaks in every language. He visits the poor, calls upon the rich, preaches to people of every religion and no religion, and the subject of his sermon is always the same. He is an eloquent preacher, often stirring feelings which no other preacher could, and bringing tears to eyes that never weep. His arguments none are able to refute, nor is there any heart that has remained unmoved by the force of his appeals. He shatters life with his message. Most people hate him; everyone fears him. His name? Death. Every tombstone is his pulpit, every newspaper prints his text, and someday every one of you will be his sermon.” -Unknown Author   In fifth grade, my teacher loved to remind us as 10-year-olds that you only have to do two things in life, pay your taxes and die. I’m not sure why she felt the need to repeat this day after day, but she was right.    Death is inevitable, and trying to explain or draw meaning from death is the point of every worldview and religion. However, it is only in Christianity that the Gospel of Jesus Christ confronts death head-on in the middle of history.    In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul states that it is the resurrection of Jesus that gives us hope in the face of death. He goes on to make the claim that because Jesus has resurrected from the dead, we can have faith that someday we will be resurrected with him.    Paul directly links his boldness for Christ in this life with his hope in the resurrection in the life to come. It is important to note that for Paul, an eternal existence for a human being is an embodied one.    We will be specifically looking at 1 Corinthians 15:35-49, where Paul describes what these resurrected bodies will be like. For now, we will leave it at; our resurrected bodies will be superior to our earthly bodies in every way.