The nature of the first resurrection is the development of the Life of Christ in us and, when this has been accomplished, the extension of that Life into our mortal body. Attaining the out-resurrection is equivalent to attaining the fullness of eternal life (Romans 8:11).

Back to Philippians 3:10,11:

"Paul, you have attained. You are the Apostle to the Gentiles. You, of all people, are part of the resurrection from among the dead."

Paul responds, "Like you, I must press forward until the resurrection life in me has filled every aspect of my personality. The resurrection body will clothe only a resurrected personality.

"The Lord God of Heaven has no intention of clothing an infantile, self-centered, fleshly self-life with an eternal house having the capability of transcending all limitations of space and time. Let us not deceive ourselves along this line. What a believer sows he shall reap.

"I do not count that I have attained as yet."

"Paul, you are just being modest. You can't mean what you are saying. If you are pressing forward to attain Christ, to arrive at the resurrection from among the dead, where does that leave us? You are just saying the platitudes we have come to expect from religious leaders."

"No, I am not speaking platitudes. The fact is, I am not as yet perfect!"

Notice that resurrection and perfection are linked together in Paul's mind.

If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:11,12)

God has called us to a glorious resurrection rest in Him, both in our inner man and in our body as well—the two eventually must and shall go together. We must fight our way by faith into our possessions under the leadership of the Spirit of God. The fullness of the "Tabernacles experience" is the perfecting of the resting of the Father and the Son through the Holy Spirit in a transformed Christian personality.

The mortal body then will be "eternalized," shall we say, by being clothed with a heavenly body of truly magnificent capabilities. The heavenly body will have desires toward holiness rather than toward sin.

The inner perfecting and clothing-over is the true nature of the first resurrection from the dead. It is the reward of the overcomer. Changing one's location is of little spiritual significance. The royal priests, being clothed in immortal, glorified bodies, will be able to appear and disappear, and go from one point to another with the speed of thought. We shall have a body like that of the Lord Jesus.

The members of the Body, of the Wife of the Lamb, will be raised from the dead at the appearing of Christ. Then they will be caught up to meet Him at His coming. The resurrection and the ascension are a witness to the nations of the earth that the true government, the Kingdom of God, finally has come to bring righteousness, peace, and joy to the earth. The wicked nations will be destroyed. The righteous nations will enter eternal life.

The Lord Jesus is the Firstborn from the dead, the Beginning of the new creation. Our resurrection will be patterned after His.

To be continued.