The Manner of the Resurrection

In I Corinthians 15:35-42 we find that there are different grades of the resurrection; that is, there are different glories. The apostle uses as an allegory, the grain which is planted in the ground, to illustrate the manner of the resurrection. As one looks at a grain of corn, and sees its shriveled shape and feels its dryness, he would not suspect that there was life inside. This grain, when placed into the ground and left there, will die. The outer covering will decay; but, from the inside, there springs forth life. From atop the ground, this is not noticeable immediately; it takes days. But suddenly there is a green shoot which pierces the sod, and every day there is a noticeable growth. Out of the one grain of corn will come a fully developed stock of corn, with perhaps several ears and hundreds of grains of corn. This is a resurrection.

Paul states, "But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased Him." Oh, what a positive and emphatic proof against the theory of evolution! In the following verses, we read these words, "All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star in glory. SO ALSO IS THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD."

God uses everything in nature to picture some spiritual truth. The glories of the planets are here used to illustrate the differences in the resurrection. Are we going way off base by making such a statement? We do not think so. The word "glory" means "appearance." We also know that Christ is likened to the sun and is called "the Sun of righteousness" - Malachi 4:2. In Revelation 10:1 we have a picture of Christ in all His eternal glory - "And I saw another mighty Angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon His head, and His face was as it were the sun, and His feet as pillars of fire." Thus it is easy to understand that the sun glory, referred to by the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians fifteen, refers to the highest degree of glory - even that of the Lord Jesus Christ.


Let us look at another symbolic picture in Revelation 12:1 - "And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars." This is a heavenly scene, and represents all the family of God in Heaven. We know that the Church is likened to a woman, a chaste virgin. In this scene, we view the three glories spoken of earlier - the sun, the moon, and the stars. As Paul states, "One star differeth from another star in glory."


As we meditate upon the natural sun, moon, and stars, we find the key of understanding the spiritual application. The sun is, without question, the ruling force of the earth. In Genesis one, the sun is called "the greater light" which would rule the day. "The lesser light" would rule the night. Then, "He made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness." The moon is a cold rocky planet, and has no light of its own. What light we see at night from the moon is only a reflection of the sun's rays. Thus, the moon occupies a lesser place in the universe than does the sun. The stars also have some effect upon the earth but in a different way from either the sun or the moon.

In eternity, we will have no need of these natural lights. We read, "And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it" - Rev. 21:23,24. The glory of Christ and His people will not only lighten all heaven but also the earth. When Christ was transfigured before three of His apostles, He wore His eternal garments of light for a few minutes, and the glory blinded the apostles - Matthew 17. Saul of Tarsus was blinded by Christ's glory, which shone brighter than the noonday sun. When Christ and all the heavenly ones are gathered together in their glorified bodies, the light will radiate throughout the whole universe. There will be different degrees of glory and appearance in the glorified bodies of the saints. As we read, "So also is the resurrection of the dead."

What determines the degree of glory in a believer? Since we know that Christ Himself will radiate as the sun, then it would be wise to say that the more like Christ we are in our nature and development, the more like Him we shall be in glory. John wrote, "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is" - I John 3:2. This is the hope of the Christian! We attain to this place by allowing Christ to infuse our lives now and change us into His spiritual image. The Word of God will affect us in such a way as to change us completely from the realm of darkness to the realm of glory and light.

Note II Corinthians 3:18 - "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." Here again, we see that there are different glories of the Christian life. We are changed from one glory into another, as we allow the Word of God to change our entire beings. We take away the veil of unbelief and self-works, and allow the full glory of the Scriptures to shine upon us. There is progress seen and felt. We go on from one sphere to another, higher and higher.

This takes us back to Philippians 3:10,11,14. The Apostle Paul pressed toward the mark for the Prize of the HIGH CALLING of God in Christ Jesus. As we read through the remainder of this chapter, we find that we are to follow Paul in his determination and desire. We are also told of other believers, who will not follow him. They become the enemies of the Cross of Christ, because they do not appropriate the victory that the death of Christ availed for them. But Paul's great desire is summed up in the last two verses: "For our conversation is in Heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body (our body of humiliation), that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body (or, His body of glory), according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself" - Phil. 3:20,21. Paul's outlook was for a body of glory fashioned like unto Christ's own body of glory. Was this too much to hope for? Of course not, or else the apostle would not have uttered such a statement.

We also know from the Scriptures and from experience that not all believers walk alike. Some are carnal in their walk, and never grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Truth. Others remain babes in experience, and never are able to walk as they should. Other believers "grow up," and they become mature saints of God. They learn God's Word and His ways. They come to know Him intimately, as Paul expressed. They allow the Word of God to cut them down to the right size, and to cut out all that is not pleasing to Him. They use the Sword of the Spirit upon themselves, instead of upon others. These saints shall reflect all the glory of the Son of God. They will be identified with Him in the "Sun Glory." Others, who are halfhearted or rebellious to the will of God, will have no glory of their own but will reflect the glory of others. These saints will be counted in the "Moon Glory." Then there are the stars. They have light and glorious light, but they are much farther away than these other planets.

The sun rules the day; and we are told that we are "the children of light, and the children of the day." listen to Paul's words again, "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober" - I Thess. 5:4-6. We say, "Amen." There is the supposition here that some believers will be asleep and not watching when Jesus returns. They would be counted as children of the night, and then would be identified with the "Moon Glory."