T h e F i n a l V i c t o r y

-- Part Three –

Important note: It is absolutely necessary that you read part one and part two before you continue. This teaching is a little bit involved and advanced in many ways. Please do not skip over one part before you have read the previous part.

Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. - I Corinthians 15: 24

“Then cometh the end [telos ] . . . What “end”? You need to know and remember that the Word of God interprets itself in one of three ways. One of these ways is in the context. The context here is talking about the resurrection. The word is telos. If that were any other Greek word, your Bible would fall to pieces. When the final end of the end is meant, the word telos is used. “Then cometh the end [telos, the end of the end, the final point, the end resurrection] . . .” In the book of Revelation, there are two resurrections: the resurrection of the just and of the unjust. These two resurrections are mentioned in Acts 24: 14 and 15 regarding the hope of Israel’s prophets. It is also found in John 5: 29. I Corinthians 15: 24 again says, “Then cometh the end [final point], when he shall have delivered up the kingdom . . .” This makes us ask, “What kingdom?“ Now pay attention because I told you that this teaching can get rather involved and you may need to read different parts several times. Now you need to understand the following:

We are not in Christ’s kingdom because we belong to the Church of the Body. Who belongs to Christ’s kingdom? Israel. Jesus Christ is going to deliver up “the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down . . .” The word “have put down” means “brought to naught.” At the very end which is the final victory all rule of the Adversary, all authority of the Adversary, and all the power of the Adversary shall have been brought to naught.

For the text literally reads, “Death, the last enemy, is destroyed.” You can take a look at Revelation 20: 14 and it says, “And death and hell [the grave] were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” When the prophecy of Revelation 20: 14 has come to pass, then I Corinthians 15: 26 will be fulfilled. Revelation 21: 4 says, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” This state of painlessness will exist after death is destroyed.

For he [Christ] must reign, till he [God] hath put all enemies under his [Christ’s] feet. - I Corinthians 15: 25

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

For he [God] hath put [subjected] all things under his [Christ’s] feet. But when he saith, all things are put under him, it is manifest [obvious] that he [God] is excepted, which [who] did put all things under him [Christ]. - I Corinthians 15: 27

“It is manifest [obvious] that he is excepted . . .” means that all things are under Christ’s feet with the exception of God Almighty who “. . . did put all things under him.”

If this is getting complicated for you, stay with it. God would not have me teach you this teaching unless you could understand at least most of it. When I first got involved in God’s Word, I was told that I should read my Bible every single morning and if there were any parts that I did not understand, just to skip over them. In time, God would explain them to me.

And when all things shall be subdued [subjected] unto him [God], then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him [God] that put all things under him [Christ], that God may be all in all. - I Corinthians 15: 28

The phrase “all things” means “over all things in all places” meaning supremacy. The Son of God, Jesus Christ will also be subject unto God that put “over all things in all places”. He gave Jesus Christ this power that God may be all in all.

This marks the end of the parentheses which began with verse 20. This entire parenthetical statement dealt with Israel, unbelievers, the return of Christ, and the resurrections. None of the subject matter pertained to the Church of the Body of which we are a part. Now we come to verse 29 which is the first verse after the parentheses.

Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead? - I Corinthians 15: 29

This is a verse which is very unclear in the Kings James Version. The subject deals with the resurrection and the pitiful state of man if there is no resurrection. Because then, there is no purpose to this life; we have believed a lie. Many pagan religions as were prevalent at Corinth, often had a ceremonial practice of baptizing people after they were dead. Now how sick is that? Yet such a practice cannot possibly give anyone eternal life. If we do not have the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the gathering together of the Church, and the future resurrections, the dead would simply remain dead bodies. Verse 29 is asking us why we should be baptized if we are going to remain dead anyway. Now I am going to give you a clear translation of verse 29 according to usage. Notice the difference in the clarity of the following verse as compared to the King James Version.

What is the use of being baptized if it is only to remain dead? Else what are they doing who are being baptized? It is for dead bodies if the dead rise not. Why are they then baptized? Also for the dead? - I Corinthians 15: 29 [literal translation according to usage].

In contrast to the pagan baptismal rites which, whether they were carried out before or after death, could promise nothing but a dead body. The baptism of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is assurance of eternal life. It gives us the positive hope of his return to gather the Church. The resurrection of Christ also gives us assurance of the future resurrections foretold in the Word of God.

That is the accuracy of the 29^th verse: “else what are they doing who are being baptized” has nothing to do with water, but with the teaching of the baptism of Christ within. Christ in you which is the hope of glory is of no purpose if you rise not from the dead. This is with the exception that you are already alive when Jesus Christ returns. But if the dead rise not why are they then baptized with Christ within?

And why stand we in jeopardy every hour? - I Corinthians 15: 30

If there is nothing to the resurrection, and if Jesus Christ has not been raised, then why do we every hour jeopardize our lives? Why do we expose ourselves to dangers for Christ’s sake? Then you must ask yourself concerning a teaching I did which is called “How Satan Defeats Himself”. When my personal adversary is coming at me mainly through people and trying to agitate me to no end, he is so stupid that he is telling me that I am doing something right. If I were not, he would leave me alone. In a way, we can look at this verse in this context. The question is, why should the devil be so busy with his trickery toward us if we are so totally wrong? He mainly leaves the people alone who are doing nothing for the true God. So when you receive tribulation, it means that you are doing something right which is defeating the devil and all his devil spirits. You can imagine that I go through this often. I had a hard time which was unknown to me, when it came to starting this part three of this teaching. The adversary started to get on my case one day, only a few days ago, and this motivated me to begin part three. The enemy is stupid and you are not to be afraid of him if, and that’s a big if, you stand on the Word of God. You need to remember this because it will help you in the future when you are dealing with tribulation. The enemy will work overtime to keep us in confusion about the Word so that we fail to walk in the accuracy and the power of it. Why? Because the Word of God is the only thing that will defeat the adversary.

I protest [affirm] by your [our] rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. - I Corinthians 15: 31

“I die daily” means that Paul stands in jeopardy every day. And in many cases, I can say that a strong believer also stands in some jeopardy every day. I had to realize about one year ago that I cannot turn to man for any of my needs. I need to turn to God for everything that I need and keep away from man because he will only deceive me and in turn, go against me.

If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die. - I Corinthians 15: 32

“If after the manner of men I have [delete “have”] fought with beasts at Ephesus”. This can be understood in two different ways and I will give you both ways. Then, to tell you the truth, we may have to wait for the Lord’s return to figure out which one is meant in verse 32. Either Paul was literally thrown into an arena with wild animals at Ephesus, or he refers here to those Ephesians spoken about in Acts 19 whom he called beasts. I am telling you that I do not know which one of the two it is. If it is literal, it is one thing; if “beasts” refers to men it is a figure of speech. I do not know which one it is, but either would be bad.

If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? . . . . . Paul is saying, why should I put my life in jeopardy every day if there is no resurrection and the dead are not going to rise? Where is the profit? If you want to act and believe like the Epicureans, then the latter part of the verse applies which is “let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we die.” In other words, if there is no resurrection then let us do as we please. A lot of people have this philosophy today.

Be not deceived [Don’t let anybody fool you.] evil communications [associations] corrupt good manners [ethics, morals]. - I Corinthians 15: 33

I have worked this Scripture for many, many years knowing that evil companionships corrupts good ethics. In simpler terms, you are not to fellowship with non-Christians who do not have the true hope of the return of Jesus Christ and do not believe in the resurrection, but live only for the day. I have learned this Scripture by heart and you should do the same. It will help you in more ways than you can imagine. This Scripture, is given to the believers by Paul, by revelation, from the true God.

Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame. - I Corinthians 15: 34

Awake or wake up to righteousness which simply means what is right, and do not sin. To sin in this circumstance is not to acknowledge or recognize the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Scripture says, “ . . . For some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.” Obviously, if people do not have the knowledge of God, they are ignorant. It is the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ that is the basis of all Christianity. The church at Corinth, as well as churches today, should have understood this and declared it to others. The failure to do this had the shameful result of leaving people ignorant of the greatest truth in the world. When God’s Word is available, there is no reason or excuse for people to be ignorant of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what [what kind] body do they come? - I Corinthians 15: 35

Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened [made alive], except it die: - I Corinthians 15: 36

And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare [naked] grain, it may chance [if it should happen] of wheat, or of some other grain; [such as oats, barley, or corn]. - I Corinthians 15: 37

This is always talking about the renewed mind and how it operates and grows. When you sow the naked grain of corn or barley or wheat, it is not that same grain which you sowed that comes back at the top of the stalk. It is not the original kernel, but it is grain that comes forth. When you renew your mind, you are actually unlearning what the world has taught you. You sow this new way of thinking and in your actions and your lifestyle, your habits change. This is a result of you studying God’s Word. To me, it is not that much of what you are learning, it is the results and application of what you are learning. The renewed mind is a difficult and long process. We will be doing that for the rest of our days or until Jesus Christ returns. The more we renew our mind, the greater power we have in this life and the more we prove God to ourselves. You cannot give up just because you have a little bit of tribulation in your life. This is a trick of the enemy. He will try to whisper in your ear and say to you “Gee, you’re studying all of this godly stuff and this is going wrong and that is going wrong.” He is a liar because many times when we think something is going wrong, it is actually God trying to teach us something and we are fighting it. Think about it.

But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him [as He purposed], and to every seed his [its] own body. - I Corinthians 15: 38

All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. - I Corinthians 15: 39

There are also celestial [heavenly] bodies, and bodies terrestrial [earthly]: but the glory of the celestial [heavenly] is one, and the glory of the terrestrial [earthly] is another. - I Corinthians 15: 40

This verse 40 may be somewhat difficult to understand, so I am going to give you a literal translation according to usage of the text of verse 40. This teaching is advanced and you should grasp as much as you can and reread it many times and God will show you more each time you read it. Now here is that literal translation of verse 40.

Literal translation according to usage:

And heavenly bodies there will be and earthly bodies, but of one kind will be the glory of the heavenly and of another kind that of the earthly. - I Corinthians 15: 40

That should make the verse a lot simpler to understand. But do you still know what this verse is talking about? After all that is accomplished in the Book of Revelation, there are going to be people on this new earth. Because how could a person sell his corn, wheat, and onions if there were no one to eat them? It is stated in the Book of Revelation that they are going to bring in their produce. But in this new earth there is going to be a little different experience, because in that land there will be no cursed thistles or death. Overall, what we need to see and understand is that verse 40 is talking about heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. One kind would be the glory of those that are heavenly, and another kind are those that are earthly.

There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. - I Corinthians 15: 41

So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown and corruption; it is raised in incorruption: - I Corinthians 15: 42

These verses should help you to understand what happens when a person dies and is raised from the dead with the return of Jesus Christ. In particular, we should focus on verse 42.

The dead can be raised incorruptible. You have to be dead to corrupt, and then that corruption can be raised in incorruption. That should not be difficult for you to understand and remember that this chapter 15 of I Corinthians may be somewhat difficult to understand, but think of all the things that you are learning about the resurrection. This chapter is loaded with renewed mind information that you need to eventually understand and realize why Jesus Christ died and was resurrected from the dead.

It [the body] is sown in dishonour [because it is going to corrupt]; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness [because of man’s frailty]; it is raised in power: - I Corinthians 15: 43

In the future third heaven and earth which will take place in the book of Revelation, we will have a body that’s fashioned like unto Jesus Christ’s glorious body. What a day that will be. There will be no sickness and no death and nothing negative or evil in the new world that we will live in. It’s like a dream – a dream that will become reality.

It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. - I Corinthians 15: 44

“It is a sown a natural body . . .” Because that is all that could go into a grave is a person’s natural body. The body is sown a natural body; but when it is raised it will be a spiritual body. Nobody knows all the particulars of that new body. The resurrected body of Jesus Christ was never taken into a laboratory, so no one knows what that body consisted of. However, we do know from the Word of God that Jesus Christ could be on the road to Emmaus one moment and the next moment he could be inside a room that had the door bolted. We cannot understand his resurrected body, but the Word explains this much: there is a natural body and there is a spiritual body.

And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening [life-giving] spirit. - I Corinthians 15: 45

When God breathed the breath of life into Adam, the Word says that Adam became a living soul. We know what the life is of the body and soul man; but we do not know what is the life of the resurrected body except that it will be a life-giving spirit like the last Adam, Jesus Christ, was given.

[End of Part Three]

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