Why Change is Necessary

Paul explained that Christians would be miraculously changed when at the resurrection as we saw in the previous post.   This is critical because in I Corinthians 15:50 he tells us, “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.”    If a piece of fruit is rotten, you throw it away.  You don’t put it in the refrigerator in hopes it will get fresh again unless you can eliminate the rotten part.  Similarly, the natural body is contaminated with sin and that part must be eliminated before it is placed into heaven. 

God will take care of eliminating the parts that are not fit, a Paul explains in I Corinthians 15:51-54.  “Behold, I show 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 trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Some Christians will be alive when Christ returns to earth.  The bodies of those who have died have rotted, so when the trumpet sounds, they will get a new body to replace the old one.  And those who have not died will have their bodies changed at the same time.  The new body will not be contaminated with sin and will never die.  Death will no longer be a threat, as I Corinthians 15:55 points out.  “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?”

Sin inevitably results in death, like the bite of a poisonous snake if left untreated.  The law is like warning signs warning about danger ahead.  Unfortunately, some people view the signs as an effort to control them and deliberately disobey to show no one can tell them what to do.  For such people, the warning becomes an incentive to take chances.  This is the attitude I Corinthians 15:56 refers to.  “The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.”

Fortunately, we don’t have to violate the law and face the consequences for disobedience, as I Corinthians 15:57-58 tells us.   “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”  Thanks to Christ’s sacrifice we no longer are subject to the penalty for past sins. and can choose not to incur additional penalties.  Paul encourages us not to go back and repeat past mistakes but to consistently be obedient to God.  While we will not be perfect, we can live show our appreciation of his sacrifice by being obedient.