1st Corinthians 15,42-49
So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is
raised an imperishable body; 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. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual
body. So also it is written, "The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING
SOUL." The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual
is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. The first man is from the
earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. As is the earthy, so also are
those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are
heavenly. Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the
image of the heavenly.
Commentary:
Adam
was familiar with the very presence of God; He visited Adam in the cool of the
day, so when Adam fell, he sinned knowing the very presence of God, just as
Lucifer did, which was a profound sin, suggesting that Adam may not be with us
in heaven. However, we have never seen God, so our sin is not as great as
Adam’s sin. Plus, Adam initiated the rebellion, whereas we were innocently born
into it. We live in a fallen creation based on our understanding of astronomy.
There is no life of any kind anywhere in the universe that we know, except here
on earth. All the planets are dead, probably being the case of every planet in
the universe. The stars themselves will eventually grow old and die, and so
basically it is a dying creation. It is a slow death, but it is dying just the
same. Despite these facts, there is no mention of God offering Adam and Eve the
universe, only the earth, and so there is no reason based on them that the
universe is cursed, and so God must have cursed the universe based on Lucifer’s
rebellion. Stars are still burning and so in that sense the universe is still
operating; God even cursed the earth at Satan’s rebellion. However, because it
is the future planet of God’s throne, the earth’s curse was repressed allowing
life to continue, though requiring the Garden of Eden as an oasis from the
curse. This describes the human body as well: it is cursed yet it still has the
capacity for life. Outside the garden the land was already cursed before God
made man, so when He evicted him and his wife, they were forced to make a
living among the thorns and thistles. The only way for man to reverse the curse
was within the garden; therefore, when God said to the man in Genesis 3,17-19,
“Cursed is the ground because of you,” He meant that Adam and his wife were
supposed to expand the garden throughout the earth to overtake the curse.
However, since they rejected God’s purpose for themselves, the land remained
cursed, and God made them accountable for it. This also means God made man from
dust that was cursed, and then breathed a perfect spirit into him that staved
off the curse from Adam’s body. It actually stands to reason that Adam’s body
was made from a cursed material, since God said to the woman that her pain in
childbirth would be greatly multiplied, meaning that it would have been painful
even if they had not sinned, only to a lesser degree, pain being an aspect of
the curse (Rev 21-4). This also is the exact scenario of Christ: He had a
perfect spirit but lived in a fallible body, being the reason Paul dubbed Him
the second Adam. We know from the above verse that there will be no sorrow or
pain in heaven. This suggests a couple things; first, what God offered Adam and
Eve does not hold a candle to what He offers us now that Christ has shed His
blood to offer us a new and better way into the Most Holy Place. Also, although
they lived in fallible bodies, Adam and Eve would have never died had they not
sinned, because their perfect spirits counteracted the curse. The same goes for
Christ. In fact, His death was a miracle, since He was without sin. Death
follows sin, but there was no clause mentioned in the law of sin that allowed
for a death without sin; thus, Jesus broke the law of sin through His death
(Rom 8-1,2). This means His death gained the victory over the curse and not His
resurrection; His resurrection was a mere reification of His endless life, like
a bobber that returns to the surface after the fish quits tugging on it.
