Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit… The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. – 1 Corinthians 15:45, 47
The apostle Paul is drawing a contrast between Adam, the first man, and the Lord Jesus Christ, whom he describes as “the last Adam” (15:45). The contrast between them is that the first Adam was “from the earth,” while the second Adam was “from heaven” (15:47).
God formed the first Adam from the dust of the ground, so he is described here as “the man of dust” (15:49). All of us share in the life and the death of Adam: “You are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Gen. 3:19). We bear the image of the man of dust. The Bible uses two pictures to press this home and remind us of the shortness and uncertainty of our Adam-like lives.
The first is the picture of the grass. “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it” (Isa. 40:6-7). The grass grows up, and then it is cut down. The period in between is relatively short. When you see a lawnmower, remember how short your life is in this world.
The Bible uses a second picture to press this home: “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (Jas. 4:14). When you see mist in the morning, say to yourself, “This mist will soon be gone, and so shall I.”
We often talk and plan as if we will be here forever. But our life in this world is fragile and uncertain, and soon it will be gone.
How would your priorities change if you were more mindful of being like the grass and the mist?
