Imperishable
Scripture Reading — 1 Corinthians 15:35-58
He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:3
Today Christians celebrate Reformation Day, but for many people it is Halloween. In the Chinese culture, we have something similar called zhongyuanjie (Feast of the Hungry Ghosts) on July 13 of the lunar calendar.
It seems that similar festivals have existed in many cultures. The basic premise is that we believe there are ghosts, and they are usually bad. So we need to “treat” them to keep them from tricking, scaring, or harming us.
The Bible never talks about human beings transforming into dreadful-looking ghosts after death. As a matter of fact, it talks about the bodies of believers being transformed from perishable to imperishable, from weakness to power, from dishonor to glory. Just imagine how wonderful it will be when there are no more aches and pains, no more high cholesterol, no more cancer cells.
According to a survey done by Readers’ Digest among medical people who have worked with dying patients, the patients who are believers usually die peacefully, and sometimes with a smile. This may be because they are on their way to seeing the Savior, who “will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4).
If you believe in Jesus, you can have the same peace and hope that the Bible talks about.
Living God, thank you for raising Jesus from the dead as the guarantee of our resurrection. May the hope of living forever with you encourage us each day. In Jesus, Amen.
About the author — Jimmy Tai-On Lin
Rev. Jimmy Lin is the Chinese ministry leader of The Back to God Hour. With his staff in Palos Heights and Hong Kong, Rev. Lin has ministered to over 1.3 billion Chinese-speaking people around the world for 16 years through radio, literature, CD/DVD, Internet, and text message. His wife, Doris, is one of the translators of Today into the Chinese language, which now has a circulation of more than 45,000 copies.
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