It is always a delight to welcome back Graham Dawson from Holland Road Baptist Church. Having been a pastor, Graham brings such wonderful teaching and opens up the Word with clarity and practical insight to make us all stop and think.

Today was no exception as Graham opened up the mysteries of 1 Corinthians 15 concerning some interesting truths about the resurrection of Jesus and what it means for us.

What happens after we die? What sort of body will we have when we are resurrected? Graham said we can learn so many lessons from the garden, the animal kingdom and space! (1 Corinthians 15 v 35-41).

“What goes down must come up!” Graham reminded us that we sow autumn bulbs for spring flowers and the bulb/seed has to die before new life comes.  It is the same with us – for new life, physical resurrection follows physical death. And the wonderful thing is that there is something infinitely better.

Graham opened up the truth from the scriptures that identity passes through the ground. The daffodil bulb dies and becomes a daffodil, it doesn’t become a poppy! So with us, our individual identity reappears – there is no ‘identity theft’ – we are resurrected as ourselves and people will recognise and know us and we will recognise others.

Graham posed the question, why is the second body different to the first? Well, we need a body fit for the environment in which we live – the old body cannot crossover! The modified resurrected body is transformed and suitable to live in heaven.

The resurrection of Jesus is the prototype for every believer’s resurrection.

Death/dead versus resurrected/life
Perishable versus imperishable
In dishonour versus in glory (a glory that will never fade)
Weakness versus raised in power
Natural/physical versus supernatural/spiritual

Isn’t it wonderful to know that we are being changed into His likeness, that death isn’t the last word.  For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive (verse 22).

Graham left us to mull over the thought that “the reality of our bodily resurrection will always be richer than the language it tries to describe.” He also prayed that we would be at peace and would know the glorious hope to which we are called because of Jesus and what he did for us on the cross.  Death has been conquered and life will be transformed.

Why not read 1 Corinthians 15 over the next week in the light of some of these thoughts!