The Advantage of the Resurrection (Part 1 of 2)

I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

1 Corinthians 15:50-58

The Resurrection as Our Advantage

There are two key issues in this passage related to dead people coming back to life. First, what happens to those alive at the last trumpet, when Jesus ends history? Second, what happens to death itself? Paul teaches that nothing will stand in the way of your new life. Therefore, do not let anything stand in the way of your current life.

The promise of the new life—life after the grave—gives strength and motivation for our current life. Without this hope, Christians would have far less endurance through trials and circumstances.

To clarify: as Christians, you already have new life in Christ now. If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. This is the Christian life—putting off the old self and putting on the new. But the "new life" here refers to the resurrected life after death: not just spiritual renewal, but a total transformation where you put off your perishable body and take on an incorruptible one, changed to live forever with Jesus.

Knowing what this resurrected life will be like is one of the greatest advantages for your current life. Dwelling on your new body gives you strength to endure now.

Consider Paul's words in 1 Thessalonians 4 to grieving Christians: you will see your loved ones again because we will all be resurrected. This hope does not eliminate grief, suffering, or temptation, but it enables meaningful endurance—resisting sin, overcoming suffering, and rising above defeat.

Paul refutes those denying the resurrection, teaching it in a way that equips us with this advantage.

1. Our Advantage Is in the Change to Our Bodies

Before concluding, Paul emphasizes the change of our bodies. For Christians, death is a transition from corruptible to incorruptible bodies—not decomposition, but putting off the perishable to put on the imperishable.

When a Christian dies, they are absent from the body and present with the Lord in paradise. This separation of spirit from body is unnatural but necessary until the resurrection brings imperishable bodies. Jesus said of believers: though they die, they shall live.

Our current bodies are perishable—they break down over time. Muscles weaken, spines curve, movement slows, especially in the elderly. Even impressive feats by the aged highlight how bodies perish.

Imperishable bodies are the opposite: functioning perfectly and permanently. No torn ACLs, no allergies, no autoimmune diseases, no asthma, no cancer. Imagine no sickness, no pain, no tears—eternal health where even viruses and bacteria are eradicated.

With this in mind, push forward in your Christian walk. Endure sickness and suffering knowing God will wipe away every tear. Eternity without pain makes temptation—like clicking a sinful link or grumbling—seem trivial. In 10,000 years of pure joy, today's trials fade.

Our current bodies cannot handle ultimate joy, like Moses beholding God's glory. Imperishable bodies are equipped for eternal delight. Why steal, envy, or fear death when it is merely the transition to this glory?

2. Our Advantage Is in Our Savior's Victory over Death

We have this life after the grave because Jesus died for our sins and rose again. Many fixate on the intermediate state, but true bliss requires bodily resurrection—secured by Christ paying sin's full penalty.

If sin's wages are death, why do believers die? Death's victory and sting are removed for us.

O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Victory means defeating sin and God's enemies—we are no longer His enemies. Death has no sting because its sting is sin, powered by the law's decree. Christ's work changes death fundamentally for believers.

Death for the unbeliever is horrific punishment, like imprisonment then burning at the stake. For believers, it is transition—like a peaceful passing after a full life. Pain may remain, but horror is removed. Jesus bore sin's wages on the cross; our death is not wrath-bearing but a shedding of the perishable.

God views His saints' deaths as precious—valuable. Paul calls it "sleep," a mild term for this changed reality.

What of those alive at Christ's return? Paul reveals the mystery: "We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye" (a blink). All Christians—dead or alive—receive imperishable bodies instantly. Nothing hinders this inheritance.

3. Our Advantage Is Our Endurance

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is never in vain.

1 Corinthians 15:58

This resurrection truth enables endurance through trials, temptation, sin, and suffering. Paul wrote correctively against resurrection deniers, yet concludes with this motivational charge.