I Corinthians 15-16

“And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man” (15:49). After teaching the Corinthians about spiritual gifts (ch 14), Paul responded to their questions about the resurrection. First, if we have no hope beyond death, then our faith is useless (15:12-19). But because Jesus went ahead of us into resurrection life, we can be assured we will follow by faith in him (15:20-23; 47-49). Our earthly bodies are like “seed” which, with the ‘DNA’ of the Spirit, become something glorious when Jesus returns (15:35-41; 52).

Because our earthly lives are just the beginning, we can endure, knowing our “labor in the Lord is not in vain” (15:58).