WE’RE LIKE HIM IN HIS GLORIFIED STATE 

Wednesday, May 29th

Pastor Chris

_*Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is (1 John 3:2).*_ 

When you read this epistle of John, you have to be careful to read everything; otherwise, you may conclude that there are contradictions. For example, in our opening verse, the epistle says, _*“…it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”*_ This therefore means we’re not yet like Him.

But when you go right to the next chapter, the Bible says, _*“Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world”*_ (1 John 4:17). I thought we just read that we shall be like Him later when He appears? But here, it says we’re like Him in this world now; we’re just as He is. Is this a contradiction? No, it’s not. 

The first one is about your appearance, your outward appearance. Look at it again, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God….” We’re already the sons of God in our spirits. The Bible says, _*“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new”*_ (2 Corinthians 5:17).

That recreation took place in your spirit when you were born again. You were born of the Word of God and with the life of God. So, he says, “now are we the sons of God.” Now, your spirit is like Him, but your physical appearance isn’t like Him yet. 

So when it says, _*“…it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is,”*_

he’s referring to the Rapture where, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, we shall be changed. We will be clothed with our celestial bodies, and we shall be like Him in appearance. Glory to God! 

Observe that 1 John 4:17 says, “as He is…,” not “as He was.” We’re like Him now, not as He was before His death. When He was raised from the dead, we were raised together with Him, and we came alive with a new kind of life: the resurrection life. So, as He is now, the glorified Son of God, so are we in this world!

CONFESSION

I’m born of God and have His nature of righteousness in my Spirit. Every fibre of my being, every bone of my body, every cell of my blood is replete with God. As Jesus is, in His glory and righteousness, so am I. Blessed be God!

FURTHER STUDY: || 1 Corinthians 15:48-49 As [is] the earthy, such [are] they also that are earthy: and as [is] the heavenly, such [are] they also that are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. *||* 

|| Colossians 3:3-4 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, [who is] our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. ||

IF YOU ARE NOT YET BORN AGAIN, KINDLY SAY THIS PRAYER TO RECEIVE SALVATION NOW!=>* https://bit.ly/RhapsodyEnlistment

*DAILY SCRIPTURE READING*

*1-Year Bible Reading Plan=>* John 14:15-31 & 1 Chronicles 1-2

*2-Year Bible Reading Plan=>* 1 Corinthians 14:10-19 & Proverbs 25

Pastor Chris Answers Your Questions

Question:

Greetings dear Pastor a couple of times in our Ministry I have heard it being said, one has gone to be with the Lord when they depart from this world through death. Why do we say that if we, both the living and dead, according to 1 Thessalonians 4:16 are all waiting to be with the Lord forever through the Rapture of the Church? Please assist me to understand.

Answer

So he’s asking when someone dies, why do we say he has gone to be with the Lord when He says, we’re only going to be with the Lord at the Rapture of the Church? When a Christian dies, his spirit goes to God, so in the Spirit, he is present with the Lord. That’s what the Bible says. Let me just read that scripture to you, 2 Corinthians 5:6 Therefore, we are always confident, knowing that whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

So when the man, the Christian is absent from the body, he is present with the Lord, no middle he’s out of the body, he’s present with the Lord. What does that mean, in the presence of the Lord, as we studied we saw some of those things in the book of Revelation, when a man’s spirit goes to God, he is present in heaven with the Lord but in a certain state, where he’s a disembodied spirit. He hasn’t put on a celestial body, he is in a sense, not clothed. So that’s why when you read in that place it says, would rather be clothed. So he is waiting, but he has a certain level of function in heaven in that state, waiting until he’s clothed, And the Bible says those who have gone to be with the Lord, will God bring with Jesus when he comes back at the Rapture. That’s the place you were referring to in 1 Thessalonians 4. So God will bring them with him So they come, but they’re not going to be visible to the world. And remember, at the Rapture of the Church, Jesus doesn’t come to the world. He remains in the air. But these spirits that have been disembodied will take up their bodies. Their bodies will be given life.

Suddenly at the sound of that trumpet, their bodies will receive life because the spirits will get into those bodies.And it doesn’t matter where those particles were. It doesn’t matter where the winds took them. Just like the bible tells us at the Valley of dry bones. It says bone came to its bone, every cell will be touched by the spirit of God and they will receive life and mortality will be swallowed up of life, the Bible tells us. And suddenly the bodies will be changed from the natural to the celestial. The dead in Christ will rise first, the Bible says.

So now they’ll be fully clothed with their celestial bodies. That’s why it is accurate to say when a Christian dies, he’s present with the Lord. He’s going to be with the Lord, It’s perfectly scriptural that’s what the Bible teaches.