Devotion Booklets for Seasons of the Church Year Lent 2018 | Page 58

Waiting for Easter to Stick
Tuesday, April 3rd
1 Corinthians 15:54-57
“It’s not sticking!”
My daughter and I were building a model airplane from a kit. Tiny plastic molded pieces filled a
tabletop. A pamphlet of numbered instructions methodically (and confusingly) explained how to
transform the kit’s bits into an airplane by gluing them together.
Everything needed was here. We had the parts, the instructions and the glue. We applied the glue to
the parts as the instructions told us to do. But the glue took its time. It dried so slowly, in fact, that it
almost seemed it wasn’t doing any gluing at all!
As Christians wait for all God’s Bible promises to solidify, it may seem like heaven’s Word just isn’t
sticking. For example, if Jesus truly defeated death on Easter morning, why must I still die? Why did
my Christian church have funerals this year? Why do my parents have a gravesite reserved? Why can
I visit grandma and grandpa’s cemetery plot? After all, grandma was a Christian who followed Jesus,
the Lord of life! And yet she died and is currently dead and probably will be dead tomorrow too.
It’s as if Jesus’ victory over death didn’t really stick.
In 1 Corinthians 15:54-57, the Apostle Paul teaches us to change our expectations about death. The final
victory of life over death will happen…but it takes time. Like slow-drying glue, the final restoration of
life to those who die in Christ is a slow process, at least from an earthly perspective.
Jesus is working, and he’s not done yet. So far he has accomplished victory over sin’s condemning
power, by dying in our place on the cross. That step is completed. He has also accomplished victory
over the law’s power: he kept every good rule of God in our place. That step is completed. The Lord is
pleased with us and our lives, right now. Our salvation is complete. But the last gift, the final triumph
of the resurrection of the body is yet to come. That step is not complete.
So be patient, Christian. When your body aches because of age or illness… be patient. When your
heart hurts because your wife or husband, child, or friend is lowered in coffin or urn to their final
resting place… be patient.
Like building a model kit with many steps over time held together by a slow-drying yet strong adhesive,
God’s project, the rebuilding and restoration of life is not yet complete.
But make no mistake, once Resurrection Day arrives, no part of body or heart will ever come loose
again.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, give me patience with my body’s flaws and weakness as I looked forward to
that day when I will become immortal. Amen.
Activity: Test the limits of your current physical body by holding your arms straight ahead for as long
as you can. Time yourself. How long can you hold them before they droop down? Then, remember
that your resurrection body will never grow weak like your arms did.
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