@Jim, good morning.
I think for this discussion we need to leave God out of the talk because only an idiot would think that God has a body. He is spirit, and what His spirit looks like was have no way to know .
If we defer to the book of Enoch we are told that Enoch does not provide a detailed description of God's appearance, but he mentions seeing God's face and describes God's throne as being surrounded by fire and glory. In 1 Enoch, it is noted that no human can look directly at God due to His splendor and glory.
But we can discuss Jesus because when He walked the earth He had a real body that I believe functioned just like ours.... with a few perks like waling on water, bringing people back from the dead, and feeding multitude.
I was always told, therefore believed that Jesus ascended to heaven in a physical body, and he continues to have a glorified body there. And that His resurrection involved the same physical body that died.
Mary saw Him when she was clinging to his feet... but only after she first did not recognize Him, but did recognize His voice.
John
20:13 And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”
20:14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.
Why do you think she did not recognize Him?
20:15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”
He speaks and she still does not know Him. Possibly her tears were blurring her vision?
20:16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher).
It was His voice she recognized
20:17 Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”
20:18 Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.
This is all we are told in John and for me I see that something had changed in Jesus' physical appearance for Mary to not recognize Him on sight.
I see that she ran ahead to tell them Jesus would be coming..... but why the delay in his coming, if only for a brief moment or two because he could have walked with her... or being a man could have gotten there first.... ( women understand this) but He had said he was in the process of ascending to the Father...
Vs 17
but go to My brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”
For me this entire telling says that Jesus was in the process of actually transitioning and when he came back to earth to the men, he was in his glorified body able to walk through closed doors, but was physical enough that Thomas could touch him.....
There are many who will say He appeared to the disciples that very same day. Maybe so. It is just that he told Mary he was ascending and be the same day or not for His appearance to them is of little matter for He was in a body and with them for 40 some days....
What happened after those 40 days..... Acts is clear.
Acts 1:9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.
The disciples literally
watched Him rise into heaven.
Acts 1:10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them.
Then these two who are assume to be angels explained what it meant:
Acts 1:11 They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
So Jesus:
Ascended bodily~Went into heaven~ and Will return the same way
We, you and I are told that we WILL receive "Glorified Bodies"
We receive our glorified bodies at the resurrection, which occurs at the second coming of Christ, not immediately upon death. This means there is a waiting period until that future event when the dead in Christ will rise and be transformed into their eternal bodies.
At our death ( believers) our Spirits go back to God who gave them!!!!!
“We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,
in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable,
and we will be changed.”
—
1 Corinthians 15:51–52
That verse tells us
exactly when glorified bodies are received:
At the last trumpet, At the resurrection, When Christ returns
Not at death. Not immediately when we go to heaven. But
at the resurrection.
Paul says it again even more plainly:
“Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body.”
I do not know, nor can I guess what the new, glorified body is or even why it is needed. I do not care, honestly... but I am comfortable knowing this is a promise to us, and someday, century, or eon it will happen.
