Day 28 - Hope of Resurrection

Child of Hope: An Advent Devotional

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Hope of Resurrection

I stand on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead.
Acts 23:6

Standing before the Sanhedrin, the highest religious court of the Jews, Paul defended his belief in the resurrection of the dead. Indeed, he said that it was his hope. Paul saw, in Jesus, the first fruits of the resurrection. Just as Christ was raised to life by the awesome power of God, so shall we, when the trumpet sounds, and those who have slept shall live again.

We have no real idea how this will happen. Our bodies decay, they return to dust, to the earth from which they came. Paul tells us that the bodies with which we shall be raised will be spiritual, quite unlike the bodies of flesh which we now inhabit. We shall, somehow, be able to recognize one another. We shall enjoy sweet fellowship, beyond the cares and concerns of this earthly life. We shall also enjoy the banquet feast of the Lamb. At the table of the Lord we shall celebrate and sing God’s praises without ceasing. It will be a huge table, big enough to accommodate believers of every tribe and tongue. In that New Jerusalem we shall add our voices to the angels as they sing, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.”

The hope of resurrection is not that we shall all regain our earthly bodies, and that we will sit around on clouds wearing wings. Some will be raised to judgment and to condemnation. But those who trust in the merits of the Savior shall be raised to life eternal. A hope that is too small, too parochial, is hardly hope at all; but a hope that heralds the consummation of all things is a hope worth singing about.

Prayer for the Day
Holy, holy, holy God,
save us from preoccupation with ourselves.
Teach us to have hope the size of heaven,
and to trust that it will be fulfilled,
through Christ our Lord.
Amen.