Our physical body. One of the primary goals of redemption is the immortalizing of the physical body. Eternal life in the body was lost in the garden of Eden. Salvation may be considered as our journey back to Eden, back to the tree of life.

God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son that whoever chooses to believe in Him may receive back his body in an immortal state.

While the eternal energies of love, peace, joy, righteousness, and strength will be issued to our entire personality, the focus of the New Testament is on our mortal body.

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. (I Corinthians 15:22)

The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (I Corinthians 15:26)

The destructive error of the pre-tribulation "rapture" of the believers has so confused the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead that the all-important concept of attaining immortality in the body has nearly disappeared from Christian teaching. The current emphasis is on ascension, which is not a scriptural emphasis. The emphasis of the Scriptures is on the resurrection—the restoring of bodily life to the saints so they may rule with the Lord on the earth.

The first resurrection, the resurrection that will occur when the Lord returns, will not just happen to the believers. Not by any means! The first resurrection must be attained. It is a goal—perhaps the primary goal—of redemption.

O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? (Romans 7:24)

And not only they [the material creation], but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. (Romans 8:23)

For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: (II Corinthians 5:2)

If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection [Greek, out-resurrection] of the dead. (Philippians 3:11)

The last enemy to be destroyed is physical death. All of the other enemies in our "land," our worldliness, the lusts of our flesh, our pride, our self-will, our treachery, our devious nature, must be dealt with by the Holy Spirit and destroyed. This is how we "attain" the first resurrection.

Resurrection life was given to us when we received Christ. Resurrection life, the "oil" of the Holy Spirit, is in us now. But we must maintain, develop, and perfect the inner resurrection life. If we do not, when the Lord comes the door will be shut against us.

No individual will be raised into eternal life on the basis of belief in doctrine. It is the position of many churches that belief in Jesus is sufficient for the obtaining of every aspect of salvation, but this is not scriptural.

We must attain the first resurrection, the resurrection to life in Jesus at His appearing, by living today in His Presence, by depending on His Life, His wisdom, His strength. No adamic nature accustomed to living in the flesh will be given back its body in glorified form on the basis of a profession of faith.

He who lives and believes in Jesus will never die. Although his body may die and be buried, it will be raised to glorious life in the Day of the Lord.

To be continued.