Past body, Present body, Future body
- Past body:
In the past, our body was the body of sin (Rom. 6:6).
The body of sin refers to the body of the old self (v. 6).
The body of sin originally became a living being
when God formed the first man, Adam, from the dust
and breathed life into his nostrils (Gen. 2:7; see also 1 Cor. 15:45).
However, due to Adam's sin, sin entered into the body.
Thus, the body of sin, which is our past body (the old self), is like Cain (Jn. 3:12),
a body that hates brothers and commits murder (v. 15).
- Present body:
Now, our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit,
in which the Holy Spirit resides (1 Cor. 6:19).
This present body is a new creation, the body of the new self (2 Cor. 5:17),
and the body of the slave to righteousness (Rom. 6:18).
The body of the slave to righteousness practices righteousness (1 Jn. 2:29).
In other words, the body of the new self, the slave to righteousness,
obeys the command to love one another
according to the Lord's commandments (Jn 13:11, 23).
Additionally, the body of the slave to righteousness,
as the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19),
is a body that produces the fruit of the Spirit, love (Gal. 5:22),
and is a body that cannot help but love.
- Future body:
In the future,
our bodies will undergo a transformation (resurrection) at the coming of Jesus.
Although our bodies are currently perishable,
on the day when Jesus returns,
our perishable bodies will be transformed into glorious bodies,
resembling the glorious body of Jesus Christ.
Therefore, we will enter into heaven.
This future body will be imperishable, glorious (spiritual),
and a body of the Spirit (1 Cor. 15:42-44),
resembling the body of those who belong to heaven,
just like the body of Christ, who comes from heaven (v. 48).
The Lord will transform our lowly bodies
so that they will be like his glorious body
(Phil. 3:21).
[The Lord will cleanse the church with water and make it holy by the word,
presenting it as a glorious church without spot or wrinkle or any other blemish
but holy and blameless before Him (Eph. 5:26-27)].
This future glorious body will fully obey the twofold commandment of the Lord in heaven,
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind”
and Love your neighbor as yourself" (Mt. 22:37, 39).