When The Resurrection Becomes Personal

The Last Adam: Spirit That Quickens

1 Corinthians 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

Adams Juxtaposition

This statement presents one of Scripture’s clearest contrasts between Adam and Jesus Christ. It is not merely a comparison between two individuals. It describes two representative heads of humanity and, more profoundly, two different orders of life.

Adam represents humanity in its natural condition. Jesus v. Christ represents humanity in its redeemed and resurrected condition. Adam received life; Christ possesses life in Himself and gives life to others.

The Mechanism of Quickening

Christ's resurrection was not simply His personal victory over death, though it was that. It was the inauguration of a new order of existence. By becoming a quickening spirit, Christ positioned Himself as the source and fountain of spiritual life for all who would receive Him. This quickening operates at the deepest level of human existence, not merely resurrecting flesh, but transforming the soul itself, imparting the divine life that cannot be corrupted or diminished.

The Reversal of the Fall

The contrast between these two Adams encapsulates the entire drama of redemption. Through the first Adam, death entered the world. Through the Last Adam, life is restored and made available. The first Adam's disobedience placed humanity under a sentence of mortality; the Last Adam's obedience unto death and His resurrection issued an invitation to eternal life. What was lost in the garden is recovered in the resurrection and exaltation of Jesus Christ.

Two Adams, Two Conditions

The contrast can therefore be understood methodically.

Adam represents natural life.

Christ represents spiritual and resurrection life.

Adam represents the old creation.

Christ represents the new creation.

Adam is associated with sin and death.

Christ is associated with righteousness and life.

Adam could transmit the consequences of his fall.

Christ can impart the benefits of His victory.

The Living Reality of This Truth

The quickening spirit of Jesus Christ is not a distant doctrine but an immediate reality for those who believe. When the Spirit of God speaks of Christ as a quickening spirit, he is not describing a figure locked in the past or confined to a single moment in history. He is articulating the ongoing, present power of the risen Christ to impart life to the spiritually dead. This quickening occurs at conversion, when the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus Christ, brings the dead human spirit to life, awakening it to the knowledge and presence of God. 

But let me speak to you more personally, more urgently, about what this means for your own life.

You were born into the legacy of the first Adam, that living soul bound by time, weakness, and the inexorable pull toward death. You inherited not only his breath but his fracture, the spiritual separation that no amount of striving, accumulating, or achieving can close. You have felt this, perhaps. That incompleteness, that whisper of mortality, that sense that your own life, however vital it feels, is insufficient to itself. You know you are alive, but you also know, whether you admit it or not, that something essential is missing.

Jesus Christ, Light and Life

But there is One who is offered to you today, not as a relic of history, but as a present reality, Jesus Christ, the Last Adam, the quickening spirit. He does not offer you a new philosophy or a code of behavior to perfect yourself. He offers you His own life—the life that conquered death, the spiritual vitality that cannot decay, the eternal connection to God the Father that the first Adam lost and all his children have been searching for ever since.

When you turn to Him, something happens that no mere mortal could accomplish. You are not rehabilitated; you are regenerated. You are not improved; you are reborn. The Spirit of Jesus Christ enters into the deepest part of you and makes you alive not just temporarily, not just emotionally, but eternally. The sentence of death that has hung over your family line since Eden is broken. The separation from God that has haunted your existence is closed.

This is not a metaphor or a comforting story. This is the historical fact of the resurrection and its present application to your life. The same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead can raise you from spiritual death. The same quickening spirit that transformed Him can transform you. And it begins, simply, with believing in his death, burial and resurrection. Your salvation waits not in your own effort, but in Jesus Christ quickening. Receive it. Live in it, today.

In All Things He Might Have The Preeminence

Before All, Beyond All, The Almighty God 

Psalm 36:7 How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.

God's Superposition

In quantum mechanics, superposition refers to the principle that a quantum system can exist in multiple states simultaneously until it is measured. This concept can be metaphorically extended to theology where God's superposition is not just preeminent but implies that God exists in a state of infinite possibilities and potentialities, encompassing all aspects of space, creation and existence.

The Protection of the Lord

The passage from Psalm 36:7 highlights the trust and refuge that a Christian can find in God's word and promises. The imagery of putting their trust "under the shadow of thy wings" implies a sense of protection, care, and intimacy. The believer finds safety because the perfect God of the universe is everywhere and in every possible state and can help in every situation.

Science's Limitations

While science has made remarkable strides in understanding the physical universe, it often falls short in providing comprehensive explanations for certain fundamental aspects:

1. The Origins of the Universe: Science offers theories like the Big Bang, but it struggles to explain the initial conditions that led to the universe's creation. The concept of God's superposition suggests a God who transcends scientific explanation.
2. The Origins of Spoken Language: The emergence of spoken language in humans is a complex phenomenon that science has not fully elucidated. Theological perspectives might offer insights into the divine spark that enabled human communication.
3. Describing Consciousness: Consciousness remains one of the most enigmatic aspects of human existence. While neuroscience provides some understanding of brain functions, it does not fully capture the subjective experience of consciousness. The idea of God's superposition implies a deeper, spiritual dimension to consciousness that science cannot fully explain.

In conclusion, while science provides insights into the physical world, there are still significant gaps in its explanations, particularly concerning the deepest questions about existence, the origins of complex human language, and the essence of consciousness. 

Science, the floor is yours...