1Cor 15:51 (51) Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed…
Our attention is now turned to the event that will bring about the glorification of the believer’s body… the resurrection (which takes place at the second coming of Christ).
Paul begins by saying that these things are a “mystery”. The Greek word for “mystery” means “to shut the mouth”. In other words, it cannot be fully explained, and when we learn of it, we are shocked and speechless.
When Christ comes back, the bodies of the vast majority of believers will be dead in the graves, however, some will still be alive on earth. In this verse, Paul describes the believer’s body that has entered the grave as being at rest or “asleep”.
The reason why Paul describes the Christian’s body after death as “sleeping” is because:
- Like sleep, death does not harm the body of a Christian, it actually aids the body (the body is changed at the resurrection). Vs 51
- Like sleep, the bodies of Christians will arise again. Vs 52
- Like sleep, no labor, nor work, is done by the physical body at death. It lies in the grave awaiting for the coming resurrection. (Eccl 9:10)
Please note: The Bible NOWHERE speaks of “soul sleep”. Whenever the Bible speaks of death as “sleeping” it is referring to the condition of the body in the grave, not the soul of the one who has passed away.)
What a wonderful blessing it is to know that, when we die, our spirit will go home to be with the Lord in heaven, while our bodies will sleep in the grave to be awakened at His 2nd coming!
May the Lord bless each one of us as we “Think On These Things”.
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