Let’s walk step-by-step through Paul’s reasoning to prove this is about a physical, glorified body being raised, not just a spiritual or metaphorical idea.

The Resurrection of Christ is the Pattern for Ours #

“But now [as things really are], Christ has in fact been raised from the dead [and He became] the firstfruits [that is, the first to be resurrected with an incorruptible, immortal body] of those who have fallen asleep [in death].” — 1 Corinthians 15:20 AMP

Paul uses the term “firstfruits” here—Greek: ἀπαρχή (aparche)—which in Hebrew thought is deeply rooted in temple and agricultural language (see Leviticus 23:10-11). The firstfruits were the first part of the harvest, guaranteeing that the rest of the crop would follow.

Christ’s resurrection body is the prototype, not the exception. He was raised bodily, not as a ghost, but with a tangible body that could be touched and could eat (Luke 24:39-43). So too, our resurrection must be of the same kind.

“See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself! Touch Me and see; a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have.”
— Luke 24:39 NASB

So, when Paul says Christ is the “firstfruits,” he’s pointing to bodily resurrection as the type, not a spiritual abstraction.

The Analogy with Adam and Christ #

“For since [it was] by a man that death came, it is also by a Man that the resurrection of the dead has come. For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.” — 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 AMP

Here, Paul draws a theological connection between Adam’s fall, which brought physical death (Hebrew: maveth – מָוֶת), and Christ’s resurrection, which brings physical life. This is crucial: Adam’s sin affected the body, not just the soul or spirit.

If Adam’s sin resulted in bodily death, Christ’s resurrection must also bring bodily life. Otherwise, Paul’s comparison collapses. This refutes Gnostic ideas, which saw the body as irrelevant or evil.

The Nature of the Resurrected Body #

“So also is the resurrection of the dead. [The body] is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption;
it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory;
it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;
it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:42-44 AMP

This portion is often misunderstood. When Paul says “spiritual body,” he does not mean “non-physical.” The Greek word πνευματικός (pneumatikos) means governed by the Spirit, not made of spirit. The contrast is with ψυχικός (psuchikos)—a natural, soul-governed body.

• psuchikos: tied to soul (ψυχή – psuchē), weak and mortal
• pneumatikos: tied to spirit (πνεῦμα – pneuma), immortal and glorified

So, the resurrection body is still a body, but one transformed, glorified, and fully submitted to the Spirit, just like Christ’s after His resurrection (Philippians 3:20-21).

“…who will transform our humble body into the likeness of His glorious body…”
— Philippians 3:21 CSB

Victory Over Death – The Last Enemy #

“The last enemy to be destroyed and abolished is death.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:26 AMP

This is physical death, not merely spiritual separation from God. Paul speaks here not of an invisible defeat, but of the final visible fruit of Christ’s reign.

“He must reign [as King] until He has put all His enemies under His feet.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:25 AMP

Christ was already reigning (present tense) when Paul wrote this.

“Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
— Acts 2:29-36

Has Death Been Destroyed or Will It Be?

“The last enemy to be destroyed and abolished is death.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:26 AMP

Already Inaugurated, Not Yet Consummated #

From a Christ-centred, Spirit-governed view, death was decisively defeated at the resurrection of Christ:

“Christ has in fact been raised from the dead… the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:20 AMP

In His resurrection, Jesus broke the dominion of death (Hebrew: maveth – מָוֶת), which had ruled humanity since Adam. This victory was not merely personal but corporate, laying the foundation for all who are in Him.

AD70 as a Climax, Not the End #

The AD70 judgment marked the removal of the Old Covenant system, which Paul called a “ministry of death” (2 Corinthians 3:7). The temple, priesthood, and law—all of which testified to sin and its wages (death)—were abolished. This was a visible sign that the reign of death through Adam had been legally dismantled.

“The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:56 NASB

Once the law was passed away with the Old Covenant system, death’s power to accuse was nullified. Yet, this did not mean the final, visible transformation was complete.

Still Being Unfolded in the Saints #

Though death was judged and rendered powerless in Christ and signified in AD70, the full manifestation of life swallows death progressively in us:

“…we ourselves… groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for… the redemption of our body.”
— Romans 8:23 AMP

This is not escapism into a ghostly heaven but a transformation into the likeness of His resurrected body.

“…who will transform these humble bodies of ours into the likeness of his glorious body by means of that power by which he is able to subject all things to himself.”
— Philippians 3:21

The Church, as His Body, moves from mortality to life — “from glory to glory.”

“And we all, with unveiled faces reflecting the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, which is from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
— 2 Corinthians 3:18

Past, Present, and Future #

So, death has been judged and dethroned, but its total eradication in the body is still being outworked in and through the maturing sons of God.

Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in their humanity, so that through death he could destroy the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil)…”
— Hebrews 2:14

Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that whenever it is revealed we will be like him, because we will see him just as he is.
— 1 John 3:2

It is both an accomplished victory and a continuing transformation.

Resurrection: The Harvest is in Motion #

The resurrection of the dead is not a single future event but a divine process that began with Christ, unfolds through His Body, and culminates in the transformation of all who are in Him. This process is seen in the prophetic cycle of the Feasts of the LORD, which reveal God’s redemptive timeline — from Christ’s death and resurrection to the full ingathering of glorified sons.

Firstfruits – Christ the Beginning of Resurrection Life #

“But now [as things really are], Christ has in fact been raised from the dead [and He became] the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep [in death].”
— 1 Corinthians 15:20 AMP

Christ rose on the Feast of Firstfruits, the day after the Sabbath during Passover week. The firstfruits were the first part of the harvest, guaranteeing that the rest of the crop would follow.

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land that I am about to give to you and you gather in its harvest, then you must bring the sheaf of the first portion of your harvest to the priest, and he must wave the sheaf before the LORD to be accepted for your benefit – on the day after the Sabbath the priest is to wave it.”
— Leviticus 23:10-11

This was no coincidence. In the Hebrew mind, the “firstfruits” (Hebrew: reshith qatsiyr) signified the guarantee and pattern of the full harvest to come. His bodily resurrection was the initial sheaf offered to God, promising that the rest of the harvest (those in Christ) would follow in like manner.

“But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then, when Christ comes, those who belong to Him.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:23 ESV

Here, “order” is tagma in Greek, a military term meaning “division” or “company in rank”. It reveals that resurrection is staged, not all at once. Christ’s glorified body is the prototype. All others are raised in their appointed sequence.

Pentecost – The Empowered First Harvest #

The Feast of Pentecost (Shavuot), fifty days after Firstfruits, marked the early wheat harvest.

“You must observe the Feast of Weeks – the firstfruits of the harvest of wheat – and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year.”
— Exodus 34:22

In Acts 2, the Spirit was poured out on this feast — a sign that the resurrection life of Christ was now being distributed to His Body. The apostles declared that the same power that raised Jesus was now indwelling the saints.

“Moreover if the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will also make your mortal bodies alive through his Spirit who lives in you.”
— Romans 8:11

So, the first resurrection began: not of dead bodies rising from graves, but of believers being raised in spirit, made alive with Christ, seated with Him in heavenly places.

“…even though we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you are saved! – and he raised us up together with him and seated us together with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus…”
— Ephesians 2:5-6

This is why Paul writes:

“If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above…”
— Colossians 3:1 ESV

Pentecost signified the beginning of spiritual transformation — the outworking of resurrection life through the Church in the earth, not a flight to heaven but an infusion of heaven into mortal vessels.

“For we who are alive are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our mortal body. As a result, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.”
— 2 Corinthians 4:11-12

Trumpets to Tabernacles – The Final Ingathering #

The Fall Feasts begin with Trumpets, leading to Tabernacles — representing the final harvest (Leviticus 23:24–44). These symbolise the full manifestation of resurrection in the body, the transformation of saints into the image of the glorified Christ.

“…who will transform these humble bodies of ours into the likeness of his glorious body by means of that power by which he is able to subject all things to himself.”
— Philippians 3:21

This is the moment creation itself longs for:

“For the creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed…
…we ourselves groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons—the redemption and transformation of our body.”
— Romans 8:19, 23 AMP

This is not escapism to another realm but the clothing of mortality with immortality, the earth being filled with the glory of the sons of God, just as Christ was filled after His resurrection.

For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.
— 1 Corinthians 15:53

Resurrection Is Progressive — In Line with the Feasts #

Summary #

1 Corinthians 15 does not support a purely spiritual resurrection. It presents:

• A bodily resurrection, patterned after Christ’s
• A transformation from mortal to immortal, weak to powerful
• The final victory of Christ over physical death
• The continuation of resurrection life into a new, glorified humanity

This is not about going to heaven as a ghost/spirit. It is about being clothed with incorruptibility, where death, sin, and corruption no longer reign.

“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
— 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 AMP

Final Reflection: Christ Our Life #

Christ is not just the one who gives resurrection—He is the Resurrection. His very life now courses through those in union with Him. And this life is not a vague spiritual ideal, but a bodily reality that began with Him and flows through us.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even if he dies…”
— John 11:25

“When Christ, who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”
— Colossians 3:4 AMP

In Him, death is not the end. It is the seedbed for the fullness of life—glorified, incorruptible, and eternal.

In Christ,
Shaliach.