Hey Mike,

Would you please clarify these verses for me when you can, because it’s different from what I have been taught. Thanks a lot.

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal [must] put on immortality.

Your answer, “We shall all be changed”, certainly includes Christ. His physical body was “changed’ into spirit; into a spiritual body “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and He was changed.”

I was taught this: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed.” That teaching meant that all those who are asleep in Christ, meaning still in the world, are asleep.

1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised…

And this meant that in the twinkling, a jerk (of the eye, that is, (by analogy) an instant: – twinkling), that those who were in the world rejecting Christ were going one way and heard Christ’s word and in the twinkling of an eyelike suddenly (jerked) a different path now and were changed as though resurrected from sleeping; and that the last trump was the word. But now that I’m studying this with spiritual eyes, I can’t see how this can pertain to someone just hearing the word and changing when this verse is here as well…

1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal [must] put on immortality….

So it cannot be physical when we cannot yet be in spiritual bodies because we are told…

Rom 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

I may be wrong, so just give me some clarity on the things which I’ve learned. I was actually fighting against my flesh when I read your answer on these verses because I was battling with what I learned in the past against the truth.

Thanks,
A____

Hi A____,

Thank you for your question. You ask what “asleep in Christ” means, and you say this:

I was taught this: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed.” That meant that all those who are asleep in Christ, meaning still in the world are asleep.

Here is this verse you are quoting:

1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

If the meaning here was as you state you were taught, “This means that all those who are asleep in Christ, means still in the world asleep”, then why is the emphasis here in 1 Corinthians 15 all on a future resurrection into a “spiritual body” which “shall be raised incorruptible”?

1Co 15:44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

If verse 52 is speaking of a spiritual body and a present reality, then what does this previous verse mean?

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

If this is speaking of a present reality, then what does the very next verse mean?

1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

By placing the Greek article ‘touto’ meaning “this” before “this [Greek: touto] corruptible”, and “this [touto] mortal” the holy spirit is informing us of our present condition and our present composition even as Christ dwells within our bodies of sinful flesh and blood (Col 1:27). The whole point in this verse is to demonstrate that we are at this time and in this age “waiting for the… inheritance of the purchased possession” while living in bodies of dying clay, and we are “expecting… the promise” of bodies which will be “immortal”.

Here is the true order of events as expressed here in 1Co 15 and again here in Eph 1:

Eph 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

This 14th verse speaking of “the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession” is the same “inheritance” spoken of in the verse which precedes the verse you are inquiring about in 1Co 15:51-52.

1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

If the “change” under consideration in these two verses is the change of conversion while yet in bodies of flesh and blood, then the previous verse would be of no significance at all.

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

But 1Co 15:51-52 are not speaking of an inward present conversion as much as they are concerned with a future resurrection as the hope of the dead.

This 14th verse of Eph 1 is one of the most overlooked, ignored and misunderstood verses of the entire Bible. It is right up there with Rom 2:28

Rom 2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither [is that] circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:

So a physical, “outward” Jew “is not a Jew” unless he is first an inward Jew, “a Jew inwardly”.

Rom 2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

So a physical, fleshly Jew “cannot inherit the kingdom of God”, and neither can the flesh and blood of anyone else, Gentile or Jew, inherit the kingdom of God. That is why the holy spirit inspired the use of the word “until” in Eph 1:14:

Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

“Earnest” is the English word for the Greek word ‘arrhabon‘, which means a pledge, or a down payment for a transaction which is expected to be completed sometime in the future. In this case, at the time of a resurrection from the dead, because that is the subject of this chapter:

1Co 15:35 But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come?
1Co 15:36 Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die:

Let’s examine this word ‘earnest’ as it appears, and as it is used in the original Greek. Here is Strong’s definition of this word.

G728
αρραβων
arrhabo n
ar- hrab- ohn’

Of Hebrew origin [H6162]; a pledge, that is, part of the purchase money or property given in advance as security for the rest: – earnest.

But the Greek word ‘arrhabon’ is of Hebrew origin. Here is the Hebrew word from which this Greek word originates:

H6162
a ra bo n
ar- aw- bone’

From H6148 (in the sense of exchange); a pawn (given as security): – pledge.

Here now are three verses in Genesis where this word is used.

H6162
a ra bo n

Total KJV Occurrences: 3
pledge, 3
Gen_38:17-18 (2), Gen_38:20

Let’s look at these three entries and see what this word ‘arabon‘ really means. It is used in the story of Judah defrauding his daughter-in-law, Tamar, of her lawful husband. This is the story of Tamar’s desperate actions to secure herself a seed in the physical bloodline of her dead husband. Now look at how this word is used, because this is how it is used in Eph 1:14. Here is that story. I will embolden the three entries of this Hebrew word ‘arabon‘.

Gen 38:13 And it was told Tamar, saying, Behold thy father in law goeth up to Timnath to shear his sheep.
Gen 38:14 And she put her widow’s garments off from her, and covered her with a vail, and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place, which [is] by the way to Timnath; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given unto him to wife.
Gen 38:15 When Judah saw her, he thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face.
Gen 38:16 And he turned unto her by the way, and said, Go to, I pray thee, let me come in unto thee; (for he knew not that she was his daughter in law.) And she said, What wilt thou give me, that thou mayest come in unto me?
Gen 38:17 And he said, I will send thee a kid from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send [it]?
Gen 38:18 And he said, What pledge shall I give thee? And she said, Thy signet, and thy bracelets, and thy staff that is in thine hand. And he gave it her, and came in unto her, and she conceived by him.
Gen 38:19 And she arose, and went away, and laid by her vail from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood.
Gen 38:20 And Judah sent the kid by the hand of his friend the Adullamite, to receive his pledge from the woman’s hand: but he found her not.

Judah had promised Tamar “a kid from the flock”, and Tamar required an ‘arabon‘ or a pledge until she was given the kid. Judah expected that the delivery of the “kid of the flock” would redeem his signet and bracelets and his staff. In the same manner God has given us the ‘arrhabon‘, “the earnest of the holy spirit of promise until the redemption of the purchased possession.” We are bought and paid for, but we will not receive the inheritance of the purchased possession until we are raised up from among the dead.

Now let’s look at the other two times this word appears in the Greek New Testament. Notice that promises of future blessings are once again the topic of discussion.

2Co 1:20 For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.
2Co 1:21 Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;
2Co 1:22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest [Greek: arrhabon – pledge, down payment] of the Spirit in our hearts.

2Co 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
2Co 5:2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
2Co 5:3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
2Co 5:4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
2Co 5:5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest [arrhabon, pledge, down payment] of the Spirit.
2Co 5:6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
2Co 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

It cannot be made any clearer that we, “while we are at home in the body, are absent from the Lord because we are walking by faith, not by sight”, and “we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.”

A “tabernacle” is a temporary temple, and while we are God’s temple, that has been accomplished by faith and not by things that are already possessed. Here is the very next verse”

2Co 5:5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.

Now let’s read the very next verse there in 1Co 15. It is verse 54. We will go back to the verses you have been taught about, and we will see if they are speaking of a present change and a present resurrection.

1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

“When this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then [and not until that time] shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.” Clearly the apostle Paul was not speaking of the fact that all of mankind is born into dying bodies of dust and clay, which are being converted, but he is speaking of a coming change from a physical body to a spiritual body. In this case in these verses here in 1Co 15, he is speaking of the ultimate resurrection from among the dead, into spiritual bodies which will then be incorruptible and beyond the grasp of death.

It is true that those who do not believe in the true Christ are spiritually dead. That is what these verses tells us:

Mat 8:22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.

1Jn 5:12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

So from a scriptural, Godly perspective and from Christ’s point of view, physical life apart from Christ is actually death. “Let the dead bury their dead… He that hath not the Son of God hath not life”.

But when we are speaking of scriptures, we must be careful to use “a pattern of sound words” because scriptural patterns are what let us know how the spirit communicates to us.

2Ti 1:13 Have a pattern of sound words, which you hear from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

So while it is true that physical life without Christ is nothing less than spiritual death, nowhere in scripture is the phrase “asleep in Christ” ever used to refer to being spiritually dead or not knowing Christ. Quite the contrary.

Luk 20:37 Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
Luk 20:38 For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.

1Co 15:17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith [is] vain; ye are yet in your sins.
1Co 15:18 Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.
1Co 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
1Co 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

“Them that slept” does not refer to them that are “the dead burying their dead”. It refers to the dead who are physically buried in the dust of the earth, awaiting a resurrection in which they will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye”.

Let’s look at two more examples of what “sleep” can mean in scripture:

Mat 9:24 He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.
Mat 9:25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose.
Mat 9:26 And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.

Christ deliberately brought scorn upon Himself by speaking spiritually to a carnal group, and He did so just so you and I could come to think as He thinks. This little 12 year old girl had been physically dead for hours, and everyone in that house was painfully aware of that fact. Yet Christ said “the maid is not dead but sleepeth”.

He said the same thing about Lazarus after Lazarus had been dead for four days:

Joh 11:11 These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
Joh 11:12 Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well.
Joh 11:13 Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
Joh 11:14 Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.

When speaking of physical death Christ said, “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth”. What did Christ mean when said “Our friend Lazarus sleeps”? The answer is “Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.”

Now does the “pattern of words” which says “sleep in the night”, mean spiritual death? Yes, “sleep in the night” does mean spiritual death:

1Th 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
1Th 5:5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
1Th 5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
1Th 5:7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
1Th 5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
1Th 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
1Th 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
1Th 5:11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

“Whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him” proves pbeyond any doubt that Christ is speaking of the salvation of all in this section of scripture, because He has just distinguished the elect from the rest of mankind saying “let us not sleep, as do others” to whom “the hope of salvation” is also coming “in their own order” (1Co 15:23). There is an order to “the redemption of the purchased possession”, and Paul is not contradicting himself in Eph 2:3 when He says “We are not appointed to wrath…” here in 1Th 5:9.

Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

The subject under discussion in 1Th 5:9 is all who are to “obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ…” The apostle Paul assures us “that, whether we wake or asleep, we should live together with Him”. In other words “all men, specially them that believe”.

1Ti 4:10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

The only reason “Ye, brethren are not in darkness” is because we have already confessed that we were in darkness, and we have already confessed that Christ came to us when we least expected it and dragged us to Himself:

Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw [Greek: drag] him: and I will raise him up [out of sleep] at the last day.
Joh 9:39 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40 And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41 Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Darkness, night and blindness are all the same thing; they are ignorance and rebellion against God and His Word and His ways. All mankind is “born blind [and in total] darkness, in the night”, and until we can admit to our cursed natural condition, we will remain under God’s wrath, in blindness, “our sin remaining”.

Joh 3:36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

God’s wrath is on the children of darkness, who we all are by birth and “by nature”:

Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

“Who were dead in trespasses and sins… they that sleep, sleep in the night” are both referring to being spiritually dead, and spiritually asleep. But it is also true that being asleep can, and does in many instances, refer to physical death, as the stories of both the dead 12 year old girl and the death of Lazarus demonstrate. “He told them plainly, Lazarus is dead”.

This is the ‘sleep’ referred to in the verse of which you inquire here in 1 Corinthians 15. This is the resurrection chapter:

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

You say:

So it cannot be physical when we cannot yet be in spiritual bodies…”

That is true, and it because “we cannot yet be in spiritual bodies”, that this is all yet future, and none of this is referring to our present converted, spiritually alive, nor our present unconverted, spiritually dead state. This chapter is referring to the fact that “we shall [future] not all sleep [meaning die and be buried in the earth], but we shall all be changed [from physical to spiritual bodies] in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.”

Romans 8, which we will quote shortly, proves that we are not yet “changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye”, and along with all the rest of the creation, we are “groaning and travailing in pain together until now.”

Rom 8:21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Rom 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

Yes, there are verses that speak of our present state as being either dead in sins, or being risen with Christ, but there are also sections of scripture, like 1Co 15: 50-54, and Rom 8:18-25, which say “we shall be changed” and which speak of “the earnest expectation of the creature waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God.”

Neither of these sections of scripture is instructing us concerning our present spiritual state of being either spiritually dead or spiritually alive in Christ in this age. Both of these sections of scripture are dealing with those things which are promised to those who are in Christ, and they are dealing with the hope we are to hold onto in those promises of future blessings. It is extremely dangerous to confuse and mix these messages and then conclude that “the resurrection is already past” and “the redemption of the purchased possession” is already here, when the truth of this matter is:

Rom 8:22 [That] we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit [in earnest, Eph 1:14] , even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. [“the redemption of the purchased possession”]
Rom 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
Rom 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

You say:

I was taught this: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed…” means that all those who are sleep in Christ, means they are still in the world are asleep.

As you and I can plainly observe with every evil thought against which we still struggle for control, you and I are still “groaning and travailing” in bodies of “corruptible flesh and blood”. The changes taking place in us at this time are “by little and little”, and they certainly are not “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye”, because 1Co 15:50-54 have nothing to do with being raised with Christ while still in physical bodies. Rather 1Co 15:50-54 have everything to do with a promise of hope we have of a resurrection which is not yet past:

2Ti 2:17 And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;

2Ti 2:18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

Exo 23:30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

Deu 7:22 And the LORD thy God will put out those nations before thee by little and little: thou mayest not consume them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon thee.

Forcing “changed in the twinkling of an eye” to mean a ten-second sinner’s prayer changing our way of life in the twinkling of an eye, is a gross twisting and perversion of the truth of God’s Word which makes clear that our lives are changed “by little and by little” only as we “die daily” (1Co 15:31). The doctrine of all of God’s Word is that it is only those “who shall endure to the end, [who] shall be saved”, and the doctrine of God’s Word is that “we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God”.

Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Act 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

The mistake that is made by so many is failing to see that the spiritual does not precede the natural, but it rather always follows the natural.

1Co 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam [was made] a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.

It is given to very few at this time to see that all we have been given while in these “vessels of clay” is the “earnest of the spirit… of promise”, and that “earnest of the spirit”, that pledge, that “hope by which we are saved”, that “promise of the spirit” is all we will have” until the redemption of the purchased possession”, which is the resurrection of the dead and a new spiritual body.

Eph 1:13 In whom [Christ] ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

A promise gives us hope, and “we are saved by hope”. But if we already have that which we hope for, then we would not yet be hoping for it. I am going to let the spirit itself conclude this discussion concerning the proper understanding of the meaning of being asleep in Christ, here in 1 Corinthians 15, and whether this is referring to spiritual or physical death, and whether the resurrection which is under discussion in that chapter is speaking of a present “being raised with Christ” from a life of dead works, or a future resurrection into an incorruptible spiritual body. Here is the Biblical truth of this matter while we are yet in these “earthly tabernacles”.

Rom 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
Rom 8:20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Rom 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit [in earnest, Eph 1:14], even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body [“the redemption of the purchased possession”].
Rom 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
Rom 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.

“Sufferings of this present time… [contrasted with the] glory which shall be revealed in us… the earnest expectation of the creature waits for the manifestation of the sons of God.” Does any of that sound like the fullness of “the redemption of the purchased possession”? Does “we are saved by hope” sound like Paul is speaking of a present possession in its fullness? I think not. Neither is 1Co 15:50-54 concerned with our present standing with God, whether being spiritually alive or spiritually dead, or “asleep”. This is all concerned instead with our faith and our hope in “the holy spirit of promise”.

I hope this all helps you to see that 1 Corinthians 15 is speaking of a future resurrection, while the “raised with Him” of Rom 6:1-4 and the “crucified with Him” Gal 2:20 are speaking of the death of our flesh at the hands of Christ and His Words doing their purifying work within us”, and a ‘resurrection with Christ into newness of life’ which at this time is only “the earnest [or pledge or down payment] of the spirit”.

Your brother in Christ,

Mike