Lessons in the Small Catechism of Dr. Martin Luther For the Senior Department of Lutheran Sunday-Schools and for General Use · George Mezger
LESSON 37.
The Third Article The Resurrection Of The Body And Life Everlasting. Which is the Third Article? _I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting._ What does this mean? _He_ [the Holy Ghost] _will at the Last Day raise up me and all the dead and give unto me and all believers in Christ eternal life. This is most certainly true._ 1. _We believe the resurrection of the body,_ so we confess. We believe that _God will raise up me and all the dead,_ so that our bodies which have died shall again be made alive and come forth from their graves. Our bodies _die_ and are buried, and in the grave they decay. _These same bodies_ will live again. It is true, we cannot _understand_ how this is possible. To unbelievers it seems ridiculous, they laugh and mock at this doctrine. Still we _believe_ it; we are assured by the Word of God that our dead shall live again. And _"the Word of the Lord is right."_ Ps. 33,4. Our Lord says: _"The hour is coming in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice and shall come forth."_ John 5,28. Our God is _almighty,_ with Him nothing is impossible. Luke 1,37.
2. God will raise _me and all the dead. All_ that are in the graves shall hear His voice and shall come forth from their graves. Christ will not only raise His own, His believers, but all men, those, too, who did not believe in Him, but died in their sins.--_"The hour is coming,"_ our Lord says: it is coming on _the Last Day_ of the world. On that great day, when our Lord will come again to judge the quick and the dead, all the dead shall hear the almighty voice of the Son of God and whether they will or not, shall come forth from their graves to meet their God and Lord at His judgment-seat. 3. All the dead will be raised from death and the grave; _but there will be a great difference in their resurrection._ Our Lord says: _"They that have done good_ [shall come forth] _unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation."_ John 5,29. Those who here on earth believed in Christ, and by the power of His grace served Him in His kingdom, and died in the Lord trusting in Him, will come forth to life everlasting and go with their Lord to His eternal glory. _They that have done evil,_ those who rejected their Savior and died in their sins, will rise unto _the resurrection of damnation._ They will be thrown into _hell,_ into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. Matt. 25,41. May our heavenly Father keep us steadfast in the true faith and preserve us from hell and damnation!
4. _They that have done good,_ those who believed in Christ and died in the Lord, shall come forth unto _the resurrection of life. At the Last Day the risen Lord will raise all that fell asleep in Him, and will give them life everlasting, life without end._ We confess that the Lord will "give _me_ and all believers eternal life." The Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, by His grace I believe in my Savior, by grace He has kept me in the faith, and so _I am assured_ that He will give _me_ eternal life. _"Whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."_ John 3,16. To me and all believers the Lord will give eternal life, but _to believers only. "He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life, and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him."_ John 3,36.
5. God will give us believers _eternal life._ Christ will lead His own, His believers, soul and body, into His heavenly kingdom, there to live and reign with Him in everlasting joy and glory. In heaven there will be _no sin;_ in perfect holiness we shall serve our Lord. There will be no more _death,_ nor _sorrow,_ nor _crying,_ nor _pain._ Rev. 21,4. All these things shall have passed away. There will be pure and _true joy and happiness forever and ever._ We shall be _with God:_ we shall see Him, our heavenly King and Father, and His wondrous ways. _"We shall see Him as He is."_ 1 John 3,2. We shall _see our dear Lord and Savior,_ whom we love now even without having seen Him. We shall see Him _in His glory,_ in the glory which His Father has given Him. What unspeakable joy to see God, our Lord and Savior, to be and live with Him! _"In Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore."_ Ps. 16,11.--Our _bodies_ will share this joy. They will come forth _glorified, freed from all sin, sickness, and infirmity, fashioned_ like unto the glorious body of our risen Lord.
Text from Project Gutenberg, public domain in the United States.