Text: 1 Corinthians 15:35-49, 1 Corinthians 13:8-12
If you’ve ever stared at the giant map in the mall, you’re familiar with the red dot. Like a North Star for shoppers, the red dot shows you where you are in relation to the retail world orbiting around you. It has a singular, important message to deliver to cartographically-challenged shoppers like myself: you are here.
The red dot is not the destination. No one wants to stay at the red dot, but we need to know where we are in order to figure out how to get where we’re going. The same principle applies to our eternal destiny.
If that word “destiny” just caused a switch in your brain to flip to off, flip it back on. Like so many of God’s ideas, the concept of destiny has become distorted.
Forrest Gump said it this way: “I do not know if we each have a destiny, or if we are all just floating around accidental-like on the breeze.” But destiny is not some cosmic tailwind that keeps us from floating willy-nilly. It’s not what we’d see if we could look into a crystal ball. It’s not a future sprinkled with moondust by a fairy godmother.
Our destiny is simply our destination.
When we think of eternal life, we can’t help but see it through the lens of the temporal (1 Corinthians 15:35). We ask questions like:
Am I going to look like this in heaven?
Will people still be married to their spouses?
Will children still know their parents?
Will my pets be in heaven too?
It’s hard to wrap our flesh-covered minds around eternity. Since we don’t know exactly what life will be like there, we tend to fixate on what life is like here. We park at the red dot, to which Paul’s response is, Don’t be foolish! Where you are now is not where you’re headed (1 Corinthians 15:36-37, my paraphrase). Instead of being the final destination, our current circumstances work like the red dot to orient us toward our destiny. Paul breaks it down for us in verses 42-44.
Our red dot is corruption, but that’s not where we’re heading.
Our destiny is to be raised in bodies that can never decay (1 Corinthians 15:42).
Our red dot is dishonor, but that’s not where we’re heading.
Our destiny is to be given “the unfading crown of glory” (1 Corinthians 15:43, 1 Peter 5:4).
Our red dot is weakness, but that’s not where we’re heading.
Our destiny is to experience the same resurrection power that raised Christ from the grave (1 Corinthians 15:43, Philippians 3:10).
Our red dot is a natural body, but that’s not where we are heading.
Our destiny is to spend eternity in a spiritual body, finally set free from the limits and decay our bodies know this side of eternity (1 Corinthians 15:44).
What a hopeful truth! The red dot isn’t the finish line—it’s just the beginning. All of the things that scream, “You are here!” at us today, are reminders that we are destined to end up somewhere unfathomably better.
The bodies we’re in now will someday be laid in the ground. But six feet under is not our destiny. God’s Word invites us to lift our eyes and look ahead because where we are now is not where we’re going!
“For now we see indistinctly, as in a mirror,
but then face to face.
Now I know in part,
but then I will know fully,
as I am fully known.”
-1 Corinthians 13:12
Erin Davis is a popular author, blogger, and speaker who loves to see women of all ages run to the deep well of God’s Word. When she’s not writing, you can find Erin chasing chickens and children on her small farm in the Midwest.
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66 thoughts on "Our Eternal Destiny: What Is Resurrected Life?"
I am so grateful for this.
I loved this word especially!! It reminded me of the saying “Where you are now is not where your gonna be later” it reminds me that yes…we will always have the last he with us but we also have a chance to move away from that and make your past ancient history and make what your doing now the present.
Wow loved this mornings lesson. The red dot does not define us! We have hope in our eternal destiny! We are reaching our destination as we navigate through our earthly lives! I’m so grateful that we get to have hope at all!!
My mind have been bugging me about what will happen if i die. The thoughts will keep me up at night. I am not afraid to die, i am afraid of leaving my little girl but then I realize that one day is going to happen. That motivated to start reading The Bible after not opening one for 10+ years. I have found answers to my questions and feel at ease now. Thanks a lot for this devotional.
My husband & I were just talking about this yesterday! How it’s so hard to explain that the resurrection doesn’t involve our bodies or how we look on this earth, that our eternal bodies are more like beings and that we have NO IDEA what that will be like but are excited! Thank you for this devo today. It totally put scripture context to the concept I’ve been trying to articulate for some time!
Loved this devotional! Really needed this perspective today.
After seeing the Grand Canyon, you know a photo does not describe the beauty. Heaven can be imagined from biblical descriptions but only by experience will we truly know.
So very true!
I recently lost a daughter to suicide. Thank you Erin for these daily readings….
I’m so so sorry, Mlisa. Praying for you and your loved ones.
Praying for you that you find comfort in our Saviors loving arms.
Praying for comfort for you!
Praying for you MLisa. My college roommate took his life- I can sympathize with your pain, it’s never going away but with God’s help you can walk through this fire and come out alive on the other side. I will pray for your healing heart.
I have been struggling lately with a sin that is really getting to me. I have had the priviledge to start this bible study and I am really thrilled about I it. Thank you for making this!
As i was reading this i was reminded of the sin I continually commit even after asking and asking for forgiveness and deliverance from it, this sin is my red dot. I’m here now but i’m going somewhere better. Although I believe I’m stuck where I’m at God has something better
Today was a bad day for me. My emotions turned my focus on just me and made me annoyed. Then I remembered the Shane & Shane lyrics, “You have made my day, and you make bad days.” (You Make Bad Days Better) Bad days are merely a reminder that this is just the red dot; that God’s desire is more for me than the red dot. Even though this life has its nice moments, it will never be eternal. So thankful for our destiny today.
The red dot is not the destination. No one wants to stay at the red dot, but we need to know where we are in order to figure out how to get where we’re going. The same principle applies to our eternal
I don’t want to stay at the red dot! Love thisdestiny.
Thank you Erin. I have been struggling lately. I was laid off and have been paralyzed about moving forward because I can’t see what I should be doing, I have so many roads I could choose. This helped me see I really need to focus on my true future and not sweat the small stuff (this current life). Whichever choice I make my true future is going to be awesome, this temporary one will pass. Thanks so much.
Oh Holly! You took the words right out of my head. I too have been seeking to know, “what’s next” in this life. I so often get wrapped up in the here and now that I forget this place is not my home. I’m so grateful that my future home is heaven and I don’t have to be concerned about that. Thank you for your openness!
Right there with you girls……a lot of changes….a lot of decisions…..seeking direction…
Beautiful devotion today. I’m incredibly grateful for SRT and the community of women this week. It’s been an incredibly hard and emotionally draining week for me this week. I’m thankful for this week’s devotions and how they have been a reminder of all the blessing we have to look forward to in heaven. Sometimes life on earth is just plain hard, and I am experiencing that right now. Thank you SRT for being a light and source of encouragement to always look to God.
Thank you that was just what I needed for today :)
Thank you Erin! This is quite possibly the best description of “destiny”. I’ll admit once I read the word “destiny” I cringed. Because you’re right. The description and thought of destiny has absolutely become distorted. Thank you for bringing me back to God’s design of destiny! This was a joy to read today!
http://www.littlelightonahill.com
Today the message from God is just what this doubtful believer needed to hear. Glory glory glory
Thanks for joining us today, friend! Grateful to read Truth with you this morning.
xoxo-Kaitlin
I loved this!
Let us not continue to stay at the red dot, but to press toward the destination. In the busy day, let me not forget my purpose in raising children for the Lord, in spreading the gospel, and in loving like Jesus loved.
Wow! The red dot. I LOVE that visual! This is one of those visuals that will stay with me always!
Loved your devotion today, Erin. The red dot only locates me in that ‘standing right here’ position. If I want to get “there,” I have to look for other landmarks, making more of stores or kiosks that are nearby my destination. I am here. Heaven is there. And my mentors, church community, SRT and oh so many others are landmarks to help me enjoy and persist in the journey and get me there. So grateful this morning!
It’s so hard to wrap my mind around it all, but I can’t wait for the day when I get to meet my Heavenly Father face to face
http://Www.In-due-time.com
I LOVED everything about today’s devotional.
“The red dot isn’t the finish line…” I’m going to try very hard to meditate on that all day today. I’m going to try to remember God has my destiny in His control. There has been a struggle within me over the last or 4 weeks as I complete an internship. God has called me to be a preschool teacher but the women that I work with make me like I’m inept, as well as that maybe I’m not cut out for this. God gently reminds me in subtle ways, that this is His plan for me.
April, I have been a teacher for 24 years and it is a most rewarding career. I’m sorry that these women are treating you poorly, but do not be discouraged, press on with the leadings of Christ that are stirring within you. And you will be blessed. :)
This brings me such comfort today as I am in a season of challenges. A reminder to focus on the destination, to long for it, as things will be whole then. And in the meantime, to seek your face Jesus you are always by my side. May your light shine.
What a blessing to know where I am today is not my destiny. My purpose is far greater than where I am today. I will never look at another red dot without thinking of this lesson and reminding myself this is temporary and soon I will be blessed with an eternity with Christ.
Amen Patti. ..where I am today is not my destiny…
Every blessing. .xx
Me too! Whenever I see the red dot from now on I will always be reminded that Christ has plans and purposes for me always beyond the red dot where I am now standing. So thankful for Him who is well able to do more than I could ever think or imagine!
I have been struggling with my red dot lately – an unsatisfying job that, I feel, has lost it’s value and debating on moving or stay in my current apartment, worried I won’t find the one (some of my friends are engaged while I’m in graduate school part time). I keep reminding myself to let God lead me where he needs me most and that this is just my temporary home. Listening to God’s cues on where to go next can be difficult to interpret or follow when we think we know best for ourselves.
A beautiful image of our heavenly life from The Valley of Vision, “Heaven Desired”:
“As praise in the mouth of thy saints is comely, so teach me to exercise this divine gift, when I pray, read, hear, see, do, in the presence of people and of my enemies, as I hope to praise thee eternally hereafter.”
If anyone is looking for more in-depth teaching on Heaven (and hell), Louie Giglio has a series called A Matter of Life and Death. Super good.
Jess, I believe you will hold your babies in your arms! Right after the awful videos came out about selling aborted baby body parts, I was praying about that whole situation. My heart was breaking and I was praying about the babies , and I believe I had a vision. I saw Jesus on a beautiful hill, arms open wide and laughing. Toddlers were laughing and running to Him and climbing on Him. It was wonderful! It was powerful, so powerful I have never told anyone about it because it was so personal to me…..but you needed to hear it. Our God is so personal, I believe He will make heaven for us just what it needs to be for us! Bless someone today! xo
That is such a beautiful vision. I hope it is true! <3
Thank you so much for sharing this, FH. This image brings tears to my eyes and gives me great hope and comfort.
SO thankful for the hope that where we are now is not where we will be. In our world where we are constantly reminded that death, decay, and loss are all around us, fixing our eyes on where we are headed gives such comfort.
Yes! So grateful for these truths, Laura! Thanks for joining us today!
xoxo-Kaitlin
Beautiful devotional. The question of whether children will know their parents in heaven is an important one to me, as the mama of two babies lost to miscarriage. Just as Peter and John recognized Moses and Elijah during Jesus’ transfiguration even though they’d never met, I believe that I will know my two little ones in their resurrected bodies in heaven – we will know fully as we are fully known. God will redeem the pain and grief of these horrible losses, and there will be an overjoyed meeting in heaven one day. Jesus come now that this day may be soon!
Absolutely Jess…! ..We will know fully as we are fully known…looking forward to that day…but until then..knowing that I have a place in eternity. .how wonderfully awesome is that…
Lifting prayers up for you dear heart.. God is with you.. always…xxx
Have you read the book Heaven is for Real? The little boy has an experience where he goes to heaven for a time and when he returns to his body on earth the stories of what he experienced slowly come out. One of them is that he saw his ‘sister’ in heaven. That baby had been miscarried and there was no way that this little boy would have known that. If you believe that this book is true then you will have a hope that you can hold onto. And if you haven’t read the book, I highly recommend it. Blessings…
Hi Jess, I believe that you will know your two babies also. I am reading a lot about Heaven these days. From what I have read (and from my experience), pastors hardly ever teach about Heaven in church any more. From what I have read, it is hardly ever taught in church because pastors did not learn about it in seminary. There is so much that we don’t know about Heaven because it’s not addressed in the Bible. But, I think there is still a lot we can learn about Heaven from the Bible. Randy Alcorn has a good book on Heaven, and I also just started one by Chip Ingram which, so far, is really good!! I pray that God will once again comfort your heart for the losses you have experienced.
I really like the images of what destiny is not that were used. Very empowering way to start my morning.
I loved this morning’s devo. I love the NIV version, but also like to check out the MSG version. Here is what stood out to me…
1 Corinthians 13:12C (MSG): “We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us.” <3
This is fantastic.! A Language I so very much understand…
Thank you Samantha for pointing to this version from the Msg. .
Blessings. .xx
I hope this song about the hope we have will encourage you, women of Christ, as much as it encourages me in the depths of life: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-1pl6ZJtj00
Thank you for sharing. Beautiful!,❤️
This encourages me a lot. As I look at the “red dot” where I find myself, in many ways it’s not where I want to be. This reminds me that it’s part of life to feel weak and imperfect and incomplete, to not understand. It also encourages me that this is not the end of the story, but to lift my eyes and focus on the fact that God has something far greater in store, beyond what we can imagine. Focussing on that gives me hope and strength to keep moving forward.
Carly, morning..hope you are feeling better and that your head is feeling more like your own…
Dearest, I wonder about that red dot too….agreed we are all at a red dot somewhere in our lives…but as one who has been where I would never choose to be, ever, I just wonder whether sometimes we need to get to that ‘red dot’ in order to find our way to where we need to be…Our spiritual compass perhaps…At that spot, we can find peace, we can find hope, and we can move forward and towards our destination, knowing we can make it through the trials, the wanderings, the ‘ where am I’s. ..’ The how did I get here’s. .’ God has a plan for each of us…Eternity with Him..One day..
Press on dear sister…He is with you..guiding, directing..Amen..
Every blessing Carly. .
Thanks for your encouragement, Tina. I know God has a good plan, even if it means we are in places we don’t want to be at times, and he can use our difficulties to draw us closer to him.
So, so true ladies…….praying with you
When I think of heaven several thoughts come to mind, of course I am at peace and know God is preparing an amazing place for us, this comforts me and gives me so much hope in a trying world! Then on the other hand there are so many people in this world where heaven is not their final destination and my heart aches for them. I think of close friends who are not saved and how I just want to scream in their faces about the goodness of the Lord and they will be saved, but I know this won’t work. Praying for patience and persistence to keep praying daily and not giving up on their salvation. Prayer is a powerful tool and I will continue to pray for those around me that still have not chosen heaven as their final destination.
Megan. .thinking about what you have said and what came to mind is the criminal alongside Jesus. ..who realised that the man next to him was the Son of God…
Jesus’ reply “…Today, you will be with me in paradise. ..”
Praise God that ‘today’ is a new day, every day…and the people for whom you pray, or we pray for…There is still hope..eternity is still within their grasp…everyday. .Our job is to pray for them..don’t let fear get in the way, of the truth. .God is faithful…Amen
Prayerful for all our unbelieving friends and family..
Blessings. ..xx
49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
I have always had an image of heaven having a meadow in a pine forest, lakes, streams, rivers, a beach,all the places I enjoy and feel the closest to God here on earth. I know these images are only a human perspective of the unknown, probably overly simplistic of the actual glory of heaven, but it is what I have, as an “earthly woman”, to imagine something that is beyond me.
The concept of a “heavenly woman” is even more beyond imagining. I can’t even begin to form a picture of what my Father has planned for me when I come home. The shape I will take as a gift from Him. But I like the sound of being a “heavenly woman” . This I can design my day around, live as an example of His love for me, do everything in His honor and to His glory.
TGBTG. .your idea of heaven has me in tears…This was the picture God gave me, when eventually I let Him into my grief of losing my daughter…she was running through a meadow, looking beautifully well and for sure liberated from all the pain and suffering she experienced this side of heaven, one I can only describe as you have…shouting to me as she ran, ‘ I am okay mum, I’m happy. ..
Thank you for the ‘ catch my breathe’ moment and the reminder to me, that God is for sure Home, and that for now, knowing what I have been gifted to live this life with the Blessed assurance that one day I will be in that meadow too..Amen..
Blessings to you TGBTG. .
Beautiful. ♥
Tina, I love your insightful words & how you share so much of your heart with us. Have a beautiful blessed day!
Tina, you have blessed me to share what my words communicated to you. Thank you.
This is beautiful!
So touched my heart this morning. Thank you