- Nov 10, 2013
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Jesus didn't come to proclaim the good news of a physical bodily resurrection. He came to proclaim the good news that eternal life is in the living, not in oneself, and that self denial/self sacrifice was the path to eternal life. Biological bodies are not what are resurrected because they simply house the spirit. As Paul says, they are the temple for the spirit. 1 Corinthians 6:19
That spirit is in you, and that spirit is what is eternal. The body dies, and counts for nothing.
John 6:63 "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you-they are full of the Spirit and life."
There are two words in the Greek that can be translated as "life". They are "bios" and "zoe". There is no place anywhere in the bible where the Greek word "bios" is ever used in connection with eternal life.
This physical body must be discarded, crucified, etc. in order to truly live the resurrected life, and this is what the gospel narratives depict.
Jesus points out that "apart from me you can do nothing", and that he is in everyone down to the least in society. This is what his disciples discover after Christ points out that he must objectively leave so that he may be received subjectively within each of them. John puts it this way: "Jesus is come in the flesh". He is alive in everyone. He is what makes everyone alive.
Scholars note that the four gospel accounts differ. In one account Christ is encountered. In another account, messengers give them the news, and in yet another account a gardener gives them the news. They're all providing the same message, but like those holographic pictures that change when seen from different angles, as we switch from one to another, the ultimate reality begins to emerge. Angels are simply messengers, and the gardeners give them the message, but Christ is in them just like we see repeatedly in the Old Testament narratives where an angel of the lord appears, but the verses switch back and forth between the Lord speaking and the angel speaking.
Mary attempts to touch Christ, but he says she can't touch him. Why? Because Christ can't be touched by a physical body. Christ is seen "in their midst"(Luke 17:21). He suddenly appears to those on their way to Emmaus, and then suddenly disappears. Physical bodies don't do that, but Christ can be seen in physical bodies. Christ is seen when the love of Christ is manifested. The gospel writers call it "fruit", and it is the determining factor documenting this reality.
They sit down with a stranger, and meet Christ in them. Thomas is invited to probe the wounds of Christ, but he never does because he believes what he sees. The narrator then points out that those who believe without seeing are blessed because they're acting in accordance with reality.
The good news is that these lives we live are not our own, and when we let go of our identification with the body, we're free to live a life of abundance in, with, and through Christ.
Humanity is created to reflect God, but instead we idenfity with these physical bodies that can only dissolve into dust. When that arbitrary identification is discarded, there is only Christ.
That spirit is in you, and that spirit is what is eternal. The body dies, and counts for nothing.
John 6:63 "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you-they are full of the Spirit and life."
There are two words in the Greek that can be translated as "life". They are "bios" and "zoe". There is no place anywhere in the bible where the Greek word "bios" is ever used in connection with eternal life.
This physical body must be discarded, crucified, etc. in order to truly live the resurrected life, and this is what the gospel narratives depict.
Jesus points out that "apart from me you can do nothing", and that he is in everyone down to the least in society. This is what his disciples discover after Christ points out that he must objectively leave so that he may be received subjectively within each of them. John puts it this way: "Jesus is come in the flesh". He is alive in everyone. He is what makes everyone alive.
Scholars note that the four gospel accounts differ. In one account Christ is encountered. In another account, messengers give them the news, and in yet another account a gardener gives them the news. They're all providing the same message, but like those holographic pictures that change when seen from different angles, as we switch from one to another, the ultimate reality begins to emerge. Angels are simply messengers, and the gardeners give them the message, but Christ is in them just like we see repeatedly in the Old Testament narratives where an angel of the lord appears, but the verses switch back and forth between the Lord speaking and the angel speaking.
Mary attempts to touch Christ, but he says she can't touch him. Why? Because Christ can't be touched by a physical body. Christ is seen "in their midst"(Luke 17:21). He suddenly appears to those on their way to Emmaus, and then suddenly disappears. Physical bodies don't do that, but Christ can be seen in physical bodies. Christ is seen when the love of Christ is manifested. The gospel writers call it "fruit", and it is the determining factor documenting this reality.
They sit down with a stranger, and meet Christ in them. Thomas is invited to probe the wounds of Christ, but he never does because he believes what he sees. The narrator then points out that those who believe without seeing are blessed because they're acting in accordance with reality.
The good news is that these lives we live are not our own, and when we let go of our identification with the body, we're free to live a life of abundance in, with, and through Christ.
Humanity is created to reflect God, but instead we idenfity with these physical bodies that can only dissolve into dust. When that arbitrary identification is discarded, there is only Christ.
