If Paul had stopped before that final couplet, it would have saved 21 st - century Christians a lot of confusion. Paul is not speaking here of an immortal soul which escapes the prison house of the body and wings off to heaven like a Platonic homing pigeon. In raising Jesus Christ, God did something entirely new, and that's just the beginning, Paul assures us. In God's good time, we too shall share that resurrection life. All language to describe this reality is approximate, inadequate, and, if pressed too far, ridiculous.
Propositions fall short.
Pictures come closer. I picture the resurrection life as very much like the one we know now, but without the limitations and frustrations that plague us this side of glory. The resurrection life is Margaret Morrison playing her harp, which never goes out of tune. It's Bill Cramer never having any trouble rustling up a trombone ensemble. It's sitting around the dining table having a leisurely meal with the saints we love and miss so much, without anyone having to jump up and start doing the dishes.