1 Corinthians 15:35-41
35: But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?”
36: You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies;
37: and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else.
38: But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own.
39: All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish.
40: There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.
41: There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
In this section of Scripture, Paul addressed the practical question of how the body of a person who had died could be raised up, since their body had been decaying. It reminds me of when Jesus went to raise Lazarus from the dead and Martha said that he must stink by now for he’s been dead for four days (John 11:39). That didn’t matter, for with God all things are possible, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and he lived among them again.
Paul called them foolish for not considering that year after year when they plant grain, wheat, or any other seed, the seed would decay in the ground, and the body of the plant would sprout from that. The seed hadn’t perished without a new life resurrecting from it. It didn’t matter that the seed died in the ground, a new plant body arose, and the resurrected body is one that God had chosen.
There are different kinds of seed, each one producing a different “body.” Apples, carrots, oak trees, grass etc. There are different types of flesh as well. Men, beasts, birds, and fish are different species of flesh. Heavenly bodies and earthly bodies differ. There are different classes of heavenly beings and angels. Each having their own glory. Each body differing as God has chosen. The glory of celestial bodies differ—sun, moon, and stars. Then we see, not just various species, but differences within a species—individual stars differing from one another, just as individual human beings differ from each other.
Jesus Himself came, died, and was “planted” in the ground—buried—as a seed. He was resurrected to bear much fruit—many more seeds. Those who believe in Him, follow His example, and die daily, will one day be resurrected with a glorious body that God has designed. (See also Luke 9:23-24, John 11:23-26). He truly was the first fruit of many brethren.
Paul used simple examples from the natural world, to show that the power and will of God is seen all around us every day. It is not foolish to believe in the resurrection of the dead. It is foolish to deny it, with similar evidence of God’s miraculous workings all around us. We have evidence in the physical realm of the reality of the spiritual realm and its truths, but we must believe. We see it by faith. Skeptics and doubters try to explain it away, but those who believe will see. As Jesus said to Martha in response to her comment about Lazarus, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” (John 11:40).
36: You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies;
37: and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else.
38: But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own.
39: All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish.
40: There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.
41: There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
***
In this section of Scripture, Paul addressed the practical question of how the body of a person who had died could be raised up, since their body had been decaying. It reminds me of when Jesus went to raise Lazarus from the dead and Martha said that he must stink by now for he’s been dead for four days (John 11:39). That didn’t matter, for with God all things are possible, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and he lived among them again.
Paul called them foolish for not considering that year after year when they plant grain, wheat, or any other seed, the seed would decay in the ground, and the body of the plant would sprout from that. The seed hadn’t perished without a new life resurrecting from it. It didn’t matter that the seed died in the ground, a new plant body arose, and the resurrected body is one that God had chosen.
There are different kinds of seed, each one producing a different “body.” Apples, carrots, oak trees, grass etc. There are different types of flesh as well. Men, beasts, birds, and fish are different species of flesh. Heavenly bodies and earthly bodies differ. There are different classes of heavenly beings and angels. Each having their own glory. Each body differing as God has chosen. The glory of celestial bodies differ—sun, moon, and stars. Then we see, not just various species, but differences within a species—individual stars differing from one another, just as individual human beings differ from each other.
Jesus Himself came, died, and was “planted” in the ground—buried—as a seed. He was resurrected to bear much fruit—many more seeds. Those who believe in Him, follow His example, and die daily, will one day be resurrected with a glorious body that God has designed. (See also Luke 9:23-24, John 11:23-26). He truly was the first fruit of many brethren.
Paul used simple examples from the natural world, to show that the power and will of God is seen all around us every day. It is not foolish to believe in the resurrection of the dead. It is foolish to deny it, with similar evidence of God’s miraculous workings all around us. We have evidence in the physical realm of the reality of the spiritual realm and its truths, but we must believe. We see it by faith. Skeptics and doubters try to explain it away, but those who believe will see. As Jesus said to Martha in response to her comment about Lazarus, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” (John 11:40).
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