Heidelberg Catechism: Lord’s Day 22

We don’t just believe in eternal life. We believe in resurrection. Not as metaphor, but as the glorious and bodily future of everyone united to Jesus.

The Catechism takes this final line of the Apostles’ Creed seriously—because the Bible does. What we believe about the end shapes how we live now.

Question 57

How does “the resurrection of the body” comfort you?
Not only my soul
will be taken immediately after this life
to Christ its head,
but even my very flesh,
raised by the power of Christ,
will be reunited with my soul
and made like Christ’s glorious body.¹

¹ Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:21–23; 3:20–21; 1 Corinthians 15:20, 42–46, 54

Question 58

How does the article concerning “life everlasting” comfort you?
Even as I already now
experience in my heart
the beginning of eternal joy,
so after this life I will have
perfect blessedness
such as no eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no human heart has ever imagined:
a blessedness in which to praise God forever.²

² John 17:3; Romans 14:17; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Revelation 21:1–4

Not Just a Soul, but a Body

For many, eternal life sounds vague—like floating in the clouds, shedding the physical, or losing our identity in some spiritual ocean. But Scripture gives us something better: resurrection.

Jesus didn’t rise as a spirit. He rose in a real, glorified body. And because we are united to Him, the same future awaits us.

The Catechism reminds us: my soul will be with Christ the moment I die—but that’s not the end of the story. One day, even my very flesh will be raised, glorified, and reunited with my soul. Not discarded, not diminished—redeemed.

Our bodies matter. And Christ will not leave a single part of us behind.

The Joy That Starts Now

Eternal life doesn’t begin when we die. It begins when we believe.

The Catechism affirms this: we already experience the beginning of eternal joy in our hearts. The Holy Spirit assures us. Peace grows where fear once lived. Hope rises in places shame used to rule. We know joy—not full, not yet complete, but real.

And one day? That joy will no longer be mingled with pain. The brokenness will be gone. The sin will be over. The tears will be wiped away.

What no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no heart has imagined—that is what’s coming. And we will not merely survive it. We will thrive in it. Forever.

A Hope That Changes Everything

Christian hope is not escapism. It’s resurrection. It’s the promise that the same power that raised Jesus from the grave is already at work in you—and will one day finish what it started.

That hope steadies you in grief. It strengthens you in suffering. And it reorients your life today.

You are not waiting for eternity to begin. You are walking toward it now. And Christ walks with you—not just as the One who saves you, but as the One who will raise you.

A Closing Prayer

Father, thank You for giving me a hope that is not vague or imagined, but rooted in the risen Christ. You have promised not only to take my soul to be with You, but to raise my body and make me like Him—whole, glorified, and free. Help me live in light of that future. When I grow weary, give me courage. When I fear death, give me peace. Thank You that even now I taste the beginning of eternal joy. And one day, I will see You face to face, and all things will be made new. Until then, keep me faithful and full of hope. Amen.

Daily Bible Readings

New Testament in a Year
June 1 – John 9:13–41
June 2 – John 10:1–21
June 3 – John 10:22–42
June 4 – John 11:1–27
June 5 – John 11:28–57
June 6 – John 12:1–26
June 7 – John 12:27–50

The Bible in a Year
June 1 – 2 Chronicles 7–9; John 9:13–41
June 2 – 2 Chronicles 10–12; John 10:1–21
June 3 – 2 Chronicles 13–16; John 10:22–42
June 4 – 2 Chronicles 17–19; John 11:1–27
June 5 – 2 Chronicles 20–22; John 11:28–57
June 6 – 2 Chronicles 23–25; John 12:1–26
June 7 – 2 Chronicles 26–28; John 12:27–50