The Consummation of Our Salvation - Genesis Part 31

Well you know three weeks ago we began a four-part miniseries entitled all our salvation in Jesus Christ and in part one, we talked about how our salvation works and we saw that the answer was imputed righteousness, which means that when we believe in Jesus Christ, we don't really become righteous tummy were still sinners through and through but God credits to our account.

God imputes to us righteousness, not a righteousness that we have earned by our own effort but rather the righteousness that the Lord Jesus purchased for us on the cross and the God credits to our account as a gift and then impart to we saw that once we trusted Christ our imputed righteousness, our salvation, our place in heaven is eternally secure. Regardless what we do or don't do. From that point on a par three we answered some practical questions about eternal security. And then last week, in part, for we looked at two great results of our salvation, namely peace with God and access to God because we are children of God, you missed any of this.

I urge you to pick up the CD in the lobby before you go or go online to our website and downloaded podcast.

Did but you know this miniseries is supposed to be over except when I was thinking this week about where to go onto. It occurred to me there was one more thing we needed to talk about in order to make our treatment of the subject.

Our salvation in Christ really complete and that is the consummation of our salvation. At the end of our lives in eternity. So impart five of our four-part series, which is what were doing today we're going to talk about the consummation of our salvation. Are you ready Reading are here we go. Our passage is Luke chapter 24 a little bit of background.

Jesus is risen from the dead. He's appeared to two men walking on the road from Jerusalem to the little village of Emmaus they've immediately turned around and gone back and found the disciples, Peter, James, Don, and said we just seen the Lord and he's a lot that's where we pick up the story. Verse 36 now as they were talking about these things, Jesus himself appeared in the midst of them and said to them, peace be with you in John's Gospel account.

We learned a very important fact about this gathering where Jesus suddenly appears. John tells us in chapter 20 verse 19 that the doors were locked where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews and why is that important well because it explains what happens next. Verse 37, but the disciples were terrified and frightened supposing they were seeing a ghost. Remember every way into this room was locked and yet suddenly it was the Lord Jesus standing in the middle of the room.

I and he didn't come through the door and he didn't come through the window. He just appeared out of nowhere Jesus said to them, why are you afraid and why do doubts arise in your heart, look at my hands and my feet and know that it is touch me and see for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see I have and when you said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. Now what was so special about Jesus's hands and his feet. Well, if this really was Jesus's tangible body that had been crucified three days before then there should have been nail holes in his hand and in his speed and folks there were we all remember the story of doubting Thomas in John chapter 20 Thomas said unless I see it in his hands, the Prince of the nails. I will not believe in Jesus that Thomas put your finger here, and see my hands to finger right at all. If you want to Thomas and Thomas didn't even need to do that just seeing the hole in Jesus's name from the nails on the cross. Thomas immediately exclaimed, my Lord and my God. The point, my friends, is that after the resurrection. Not only did Jesus have a real tangible body, but it was his body. The same lawn that had been nailed to the cross or was is that we need was well here's our question was this the exact same body. The Jesus that had while he was here on earth before he died on the cross and rose from the dead will be answer to that question is not quite. I mean this body. The Jesus now had could pass through walls and doors, as we just saw in Luke 24 we know from other passages in the Bible that this body. Jesus now had could appear and disappear at will. John chapter 20 that it could levitate and fly through the sky asked chapter 1 that it shine with the brilliance of the sun, Revelation, chapter 1 and also in Revelation chapter 1 were told that this body was a body that would live forever more.

It was an immortal body, a body that would never die. The point is that the body Jesus had after his resurrection was his all right except it was different.

It had been transformed.

It had been transmuted.

It had been transmogrified.

Philippians 321 calls it now a glorified body first Corinthians 1540 calls it a heavenly body for first Corinthians 1546 calls it a spiritual body.

And here's the best part of all best part of all is that as believers in Jesus Christ. The Bible says that one day in eternity. God is going to consummate our salvation in Christ by giving you and me a body just like this. Listen first John three verse two beloved, we are now the children of God, and we know that when he the Lord Jesus is revealed in the second coming. We shall be like him. That is, with a glorified body. The apostle Paul makes it even more clear.

Philippians 320, he says, for our citizenship is in heaven, from which we eagerly await our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ who will watch now transform our lowly bodies into into what that they may be like his glorified body. So this is what the future holds for us. This is the consummation of our salvation is receiving one of these new glorious body in your Bible goes on to tell us a little bit about these bodies.

Not a lot, but a little bit. For example, we don't know all the details.

We are you going to get your ball body of the one that had hair tell you that are you going to get your free or post pregnancy body can answer that question for you, but I can tell you five things about these bodies that the Bible does tell us and I want to do that quickly. So here we go five things about these new bodies number one. The Bible tells us that they're going to be heavenly bodies. First Corinthians 1540. Is there a bodies that are heavenly as well as bodies that are earthly right now we're living in earthly bodies, bodies of that are designed for living here on this planet and ask God. We are subject. These bodies are to all the laws of Newtonian physics were subject. These bodies are the gravity and inertia in the second law of thermodynamics, which is why these bodies.

Over time, age, and they break down, but our new heavenly bodies will be different. They will be designed for life in heaven and in heaven. The laws of Newtonian physics do not apply and this is why Jesus is glorified heavenly body could do what it did, it could fly around it could go through walls it could appear or disappear. It will now according to the laws of Newtonian physics. This is impossible, but remember Newtonian physics describes life in an earthly body.

This was not an earthly body anymore. Jesus said it was a heavenly body and man are these bodies going to be fun, yeah is really cool guy number two. The Bible also tells us that our new bodies are going to be powerful bodies.

First Corinthians 1543 says our earthly bodies are so in weakness. That is when they die when you're buried in the ground, but they are raised in power are earthly bodies are perishable there breakable there. We but not our new bodies.

Friends are new bodies. They are powerful bodies. They will be vulnerable to bacteria and viruses and disease. The dictate they won't be susceptible to injury and exhaustion in a and pains their powerful bodies and this is why in heaven there will be no wheelchair, and in heaven there will be no crutches, and in heaven there will be no handicap parking spaces in heaven there will be no doctors, no nurses, no ambulances, no hospitals, no emergency rooms.

No trauma centers no. 911 in heaven will be no respirators, no hearing aids no insulin no pacemakers, no antibiotics, no anticonvulsants, no radiation, no chemotherapy friends in heaven there will even be Tylenol because were not gonna need it. Were going to have powerful bodies.

Praise God, how cool is that. Number three. These new bodies were getting your spiritual bodies. First Corinthians 1544 says our earthly body is so that is buried a natural body, but it is raised a spiritual body know what that means is Romans chapter 5 tells us that every one of us in these bodies have a sin nature that we inherited from our parents, Adam, any but first Corinthians 15 is telling us that our new bodies won't have that sin nature and just think what that's going to mean it'll mean our glorified bodies won't want to do wrong all the time don't want to do right all the time. It means with it. When we try to obey God that our bodies will cooperate instead of fighting us. How pleasant will that be in means no toddler in heaven will ever say no.

How pleasant will that be.

These are bodies that are spiritual body. Number four. These bodies are going to be incorruptible bodies. First Corinthians 1542 bodies are sold in corruption, but there raised in incorruption.

Verse 52 for the trumpet will sound, and the dead in Christ will be raise. Why in the corruptible are earthly bodies are corruptible. Their mortal they die, but our new bodies that God is going to give us are utterly and totally incorruptible. In heaven there are no cemeteries either.

And there are no funeral homes either. And there are no person either because nobody is dying and there you don't need these. And finally number five. These new bodies are bodies we must have in order to live in heaven. First Corinthians 15 verse 50. No, I say to you rather than flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God and corruption that is our earthly bodies cannot inherit incorruption. That is heaven for this corruption. The earthly bodies we now live in must put on incorruption, and this mortality must put on immortality.

The Bible is telling us that only an incorruptible immortal body can live in an incorruptible immortal place like heaven. This is the great news of the Bible is that if you are a born again justified by faith regenerated believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, God's going to give you one of these bodies.

First Corinthians 1551, for we, that is, believers in Christ shall all be changed or for the trumpet will sound, and we shall all be raise in the corruptible with the body that we need to live in heaven without one of these can't live there like taking this body going try to live on Jupiter can't be done, and people outside of Christ don't get one of these funds and therefore they can't live so to summarize what we learn we learn that the Bible says that in eternity. God is going to consummate our salvation in Christ by giving us a brand-new body glorified body. Just like the one the Lord Jesus God after his resurrection, number one, it's going to be a heavenly body no longer subject to the physical laws of this world number two going to be a powerful body no longer susceptible to the infirmities of this world number three it's going to be us marital body no longer in rebellion against God number four it's going to be an incorruptible body no longer subject to mortality and death, and number five it's going to be a body designed to live eternity with Christ in heaven. The bottom line here. This is what I want to see today is that as followers of Christ, the gospel of Jesus doesn't end up with our salvation on earth. It ends with our glorification in eternity. We praise God for that. Yes, amen.

All right, now at the stars will go in our treatment of this subject because were going to stop now and after most important question in all of you loud and Prince William and Bethesda. Down in the edge and around the world. The Internet here Tyson we know? So ready. Okay deep breath helps ready recover nicely present to go one Joe pray on this. The timing of the present when the good okay was tried again. Come on now, would you really do at this time, ready want to pray that is nylon you know I appreciate this cool but I don't have a glorified body right now you know on the Beltway. I can't just lie up overtop the cars you know in the and when my boss is yelling at me just disappear. I can do that kind of stuff. So what good is any of this to me right now. Well, let's talk about that your week. You know my son James, my oldest son went to the US Naval Academy and he was a plea there in 1995 and as you know during your plebe summer in Europe leave year I'm either trying to break you down so they can rebuild you the way they want to and the people in charge of this are called detailers. The other ones and yell actions rematch in an and just make your life miserable.

Well anyway I tried to write my son Jamie a letter almost every day just to encourage them and I would always send along the far side cartoon because I figured he needed a young you know what I'm saying going through this. I found the far side cartoon. Once the bed how birds see the world, but I scratch that out to send it to him and wrote down how detailers see leaves the and so he put it on his bulletin board outside his room and said he could hear it sometimes at night detailers come walking down the hall. Stop permitted read the cartoon to break out laughing out in the hallway, which no one else. One other thing I sent my son every time I wrote them. I sent them a verse of Scripture early in the summer I sending this verse. Second Corinthians 417 for our momentary light affliction is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory and later my son told me that he take this verse in the top of his hat so he could look at it every day, sometimes more than once a day and remind himself that plebe summer would one day be over and plebe year one day be over, and he would just stay faithful and run and keep his eyes on the finish line that once he got through with he would be really glad that he did and he brought hope and encouragement to now that's an okay application of practical application of second Corinthians 417 let me show you never got second Corinthians 4 verse eight it says he Paul writes this, even though we are hard pressed on every side and persecuted and struck down and constantly exposed to death for Jesus to say we know that he who raised up the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us up with Jesus and give us glorified bodies and since we know this.

Therefore, we do not lose heart.

Here comes my first for our momentary, light affliction here on earth is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory in heaven.

While we do not focus on the things which are seen here on earth but on the things which are unseen things the Lord as promised us in eternity for the things which are seen are temporary, the things which are unseen are eternal folks in context.

Second Corinthians 4 verse 17 is not talking about making a complete summer is not talking about making it to plebe year is not talking about making it through plebe anything without losing heart. It's talking about making it through life making it through life without losing heart and what what these verses are telling us is that the way we do this is by keeping our focus on eternity.

The things that are unseen for new bodies. The Lord's going to give us the new world, the Lord's going to take us to the glorification he's going to perform on us.

This is why Paul said in Romans 818 for I consider that the sufferings of this present world are not even worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in us that friends there a lot of us here today who are discouraged to have you know that friends. I know that because that's what this world does to us.

There a lot of us here today I think were struggling not to lose heart. As the apostle Paul said well friends. The apostle Paul right here in second Corinthians 4 tells us that he's right where we are. He talked about being hard-pressed and being persecuted and being struck down, and even being asked those to death and he says but we don't lose heart. He said because we don't focus on the things which are seen on our momentary, light affliction here on earth but we focus on things that are unseen for the things that are seen are temporary. Paul says with the things which are unseen are eternal. Paul is saying to us the way I keep from losing hope and losing heart is that I keep my eyes on heaven and on all the glorious things that the Lord has promised me there and I understand that this is just temporary, but that's going to be eternal now friends. This is how we do it to. And don't get me wrong I'm not saying we shouldn't pray about our troubles and pray about our difficulties and pray about the tough things in our life and ask God to intervene and to help us here on earth to lighten our load and many times God does that. And that's great and it lifts our spirits for a few a few moments for a few days and it gives us hope here on earth within the world needs is down again and we find ourselves struggling again not to lose heart.

That's just the way it is here on earth.

And that's why the Lord has offered us something to give us eternal, he didn't have to tell us about these glorified bodies. He didn't have to tell us what awaits us in heaven. He didn't have to tell us how different life is going to be putting did, and once he told us he said now that'll give you hope the transcends the things of this world, keep your eyes on sat in my son John, my youngest son was very athletic little guy and he loves competing in the presidential fit