This is my last message in a series about the Nicene Creed. Over the past 6 months, we walked through great truths of our faith, as summarized in the Creed: who God is, what Christ has done, and what we believe as his church.
The last line of the Nicene Creed says, “We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.” Today’s message is about two things: resurrection and our next life. At the end, let me also share thoughts about our current suffering, especially sickness.
First, let’s pray and then stand to recite the creed together.
[Recite the Nicene Creed]Resurrection is an essential belief
Resurrection of the dead is not a minor teaching but an essential belief for the Christian faith.
The apostle Paul makes this clear. He says, in 1 Corinthians 15:14, “if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” If there is no resurrection, there is no reason to believe what Jesus claimed about being the Son of God, etcetera.
Paul writes in the same chapter: “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive”—1 Corinthians 15:22. In other words, death came to humanity through Adam’s sin; but resurrection will come through Adam’s descendant, Jesus Christ. In another letter, Paul says, “the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus”—2 Corinthians 4:14. Jesus is just the first person to be resurrected and given a glorified body.
We, too, will be resurrected
Yes, we too, will experience resurrection and transformation of our bodies one day.
Christians often describe salvation as forgiveness of sins and our souls going to heaven. But resurrection of our bodies is also part of God’s salvation plan.
I listened to one podcast where a theology professor said, “If we just need forgiveness of sins, why wasn’t it enough for Christ to pay the price and die? Why did he have to rise physically again?” As an answer, he shared the thoughts of 13th century philosopher Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas commented on Paul’s writing about the resurrection: “When you die, your soul departs from the body, but it is not you; it’s only part of you. You are not fully you until the day of resurrection when soul is reunited to body.”
Christianity is a faith that deeply values the body. Genesis, the first book of the Bible, says that our physical bodies are good and pleasing to God (Genesis 1:31). This is unlike many ancient ways of thinking, which saw the body as bad, a burden, or a prison for our spirits.
But God intends to save our bodies, not just our souls. The body is not evil. God himself put on human flesh and dwelled among us—John 1:14. When Jesus came back to life, he had flesh and bones—Luke 24:39—he wasn’t just a spirit.
Jesus saves us not only from sin and separation from God (which is a spiritual problem) but also death (which is a physical problem). Sin separated us from God (Isaiah 59:2), who is the source of life. So, as a consequence of sin, we die. That’s why Romans 6:23 can say, “the wages of sin is death”. However, through Jesus’ resurrection, he has “destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light”—2 Timothy 1:10.
What will our resurrected bodies be like?
Now, what will our resurrected bodies be like? They will be similar to Christ’s resurrected body. Philippians 3:21 says, he “will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body”.
1 Corinthians chapter 15 has a lot more to say. I’ll just read two snippets of this chapter.
1 Corinthians, verses 42 to 44: “So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.”
And, verse 54: “When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’”
In other words: Our resurrected bodies will never decay and never die. They will be made suitable for a kind of life that never ends.
At the same time, there is some continuity between our old and new bodies. John chapter 20 shows that the resurrected Jesus still had marks in his hands from nails that pierced him to the Cross. Paul used an analogy of sowing seeds in 1 Corinthians 15. So, perhaps we can say that our current bodies are like a seed, while our resurrected bodies are the flower that has bloomed. They share a similar DNA, but the flower will be more glorious than the seed it came from.
What is eternal life?
Moving on: What kind of life will we live with these transformed bodies?
Many ancient philosophers in the tradition of Plato believed in some form of reincarnation. So do Hindus and Buddhists. But Christians do not hope to escape from a cycle of reincarnation and suffering. Rather, we hope for life—for true, full, and everlasting life with God. “With God” is an important detail here, because he is the source of all goodness.
Jesus gives one description of eternal life in John 17:3. He says, “this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent”. Interesting, isn’t it, that he describes eternal life not merely as living a long, long life but as knowing a person? Eternal life is close communion with God.
We can experience some of this relationship with God now but only have it fully in the life to come. Paul writes we will one day see God “face to face”—1 Corinthians 13:12. And John says, “we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is”—1 John 3:2. The effect of encountering God fully is to become more like Him.
What is the new heaven and earth like?
Revelation chapter 21 tells us a lot about the life to come. For example, verses 1 and 2 suggest that heaven and earth will no longer be separate. Rather than us leaving earth and going up to heaven to be with God, instead heaven will come down to earth. From what I understand, God will not erase our world and start again from nothing. Rather, we will live in our world—but one that is healed, renewed, made whole.
Verses 3 to 4 say, “God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” No more chaos, no more suffering.
The Old Testament also talks about this new heaven and new earth. When you have time, check out Isaiah chapter 65. I’ll just mention two examples from it.
Verse 22 says, “my chosen ones will long enjoy the work of their hands.” In our current life, we don’t always get to enjoy the results of our hard work. We work for money to live, but might not have time to enjoy living. Work sometimes feels meaningless, unnecessarily difficult, or unrewarding. This is part of the curse in Genesis 3 that God put on Adam and Eve after they sinned. However, in the life to come, we will have satisfaction.
My second example is Isaiah 65:25, which says, “‘The wolf and the lamb will feed together . . . They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,’ says the Lord.” All will be at peace.
This is not a temporary relief from suffering. It is a permanent transformation of all things. Paul encourages us in Romans 8. Verse 18: “ I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Jumping to verse 21: “. . . creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.”And the way to enjoy all this is to listen to the one God has sent, his son Jesus. Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).
“Already” and “not yet”
If you say to Jesus, “I believe you. I desire this life you promise,” then eternal life begins even now. You will begin to know God, he will begin to transform you, and you can look forward to more of it when Christ returns.
Right now, we are living between Jesus’ first coming and his second coming. Theologians call this transition period “already and not yet.” They call it “already” because Christ has already won victory over sin and death. They call it “not yet” because we still experience sin, suffering, sickness, and death. Full healing is not yet here.
Last month, a stomach flu went around my house for 3 weeks. The four of us took turns being sick. One day I had to lie in bed all day because standing made me want to throw up. Every 10 minutes I had stomach pains so severe that my wife said I moaned all day like a woman in labor. Her joke made me feel more miserable. My children added to the pain by playing around my bed and bumping into my tender stomach.
In that time, Psalms 77 comforted me. The writer of this song said, “my soul refuses to be comforted. When I remember God, I moan . . . my spirit faints . . . I am so troubled that I cannot speak” (verses 2 to 4). Will things ever get better again, he asks. But in verse 5, he says, “I consider the days of old, the years long ago.” Then he started to remember how God helped his people in the past.
When we are suffering, let’s try looking at the past, the present, and the future. First, let’s look back and remember how God helped us during our troubles before. Also, remember that God is near us now. He knows what it means to suffer and feel alone, as Jesus himself cried out on the Cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). Lastly, let’s try lifting our eyes to the future. The Nicene Creed says, “We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.”
During our stomach flu, my friend who is a physical therapist prayed for us this way: “Father, we thank you for your goodness. We acknowledge that we live in a broken world. We ask for healing and rest, and we look forward to the day when sickness will be no more in your new creation.”
This is a woman who sees people in pain every day, and they do not get well quickly. She didn’t pray, “See Huang, if you believe and have faith, you will be healed.” Instead, her prayer wasn’t focused on getting well now. She reminded me that, even if we continue to suffer, our suffering will end once and for all in the new heaven and earth.
Will God heal us?
Yes, God can heal us. But is that his guaranteed promise for our current time, or his promise for the life to come?
When we read Bible verses like Isaiah 53:5—which says “by his wounds we are healed”—it’s important that we check the context before saying that this is a promise that God will heal us today. In this case, Isaiah is not speaking of physical healing but spiritual healing from sin. Even when Jesus healed people, he often shifted their attention towards spiritual healing as the more important thing.
The apostle Paul was not healed from his ongoing ailment. He prayed multiple times but God’s reply in the end was, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”—2 Corinthians 12:9. God can use our suffering towards a good outcome.
Sometimes he doesn’t heal and he doesn’t save. If we say God can heal all believers now—as long as they have enough faith—then will he also stop all believers from dying as long as they have enough faith?
Many people pass away too young. Like the German pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who lived during the time when Hitler’s government pressured pastors to support his regime. Bonhoeffer resisted. So he was executed as an anti-Nazi dissident at the age of 39. I am turning 39 this year, so it struck me that he died so young. But at 39, his perspective of life was incredible. In prison, when he was called to exit his cell to be hanged, he said to another prisoner, “It is the end. For me, the beginning of life.”
Conclusion
As we come to the end of the Nicene Creed, we see that the Christian faith is not just about forgiveness of sins. It is also about resurrection and eternal life, which is to know God, and to enjoy him in the new heaven and earth. Our world is full of suffering and war right now. But Christ has won, and God is faithful. One day, he will raise the dead and make all things new. This is our hope. This is the faith we confess.
Let’s pray. Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord’s resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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