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Resurrection of the Dead "Christ has indeed been raised from the dead. The first fruits of those who have fallen asleep." (1 Cor.15:20 NIV) Why is a Resurrection Necessary? The Apostle Paul explains why a resurrection is necessary through stating a precious promise in vv.21‑22 "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam ALL die, even so in Christ shall ALL be made alive." The resurrection is made necessary because of the fall, and God is to recover the fallen human race. The Greek word in the Bible used for "resurrection" is "anastasis." "Ana" means "again," and "stasis" means "a standing." It has the meaning to be lifted up back to full and perfect manhood…back to perfection. The Old Testament does not state this word "resurrection"; it is only found in the New Testament. So can we find this term expressed in any way in the Old Testament? Let’s take a look at some Old Testament scriptures: "You turn people back to dust, saying, ‘Return to dust, you mortals." (Psalm 90:3 NIV) "The ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." (Isaiah 35:10) These verses from the Old Testament balance each other out. The Lord tells us that they will return to dust, but also provided a promise that they will have an opportunity to return. And in Isaiah 51:11 we read: "Therefore the redeemed of the LORD shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away." What a joyous and wonderful occasion this will be when all mankind will return, as compared to all the hard experiences of man in the present evil world. God doesn’t just want a blinded obedient creation, but one that will actually rejoice after returning from death! So the Old Testament does teach about our return from death. Let us take a look at a few more verses in the Old Testament about being raised back to life from death. In 1 Samuel 2:6‑8 we read: "The LORD killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust…" We also read in Daniel 12:2, "many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." These are promises about those that go into the dust or death, coming up and awaking; so God had promised that He will raise all mankind from the dust. Job confirmed this expectation of a resurrection in Job 14:13‑15, "O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me! If a man die, shall he live again?…Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands." Job expected to be remembered and restored. He believed he would be awakened, so much that he asked God to put him in the grave until all his trouble would pass! So, in the Old Testament there was the understanding of the concept of being re‑awakened from the sleep of death. When people die, their lifeless bodies go into the grave, which is a prison‑like condition, one they cannot come out until they are called out from the grave. When you are in prison you cannot get out. The whole purpose of the prison is to keep you in. Until the door of death is unlocked, there is no coming out. In Job 3:18 we read, "There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor." Also in Psalm 146:7 we also read."The LORD looseth the prisoners." The word "looseth" here means to be set free. Here we have the Lord’s wonderful promise that men (who are the prisoners) will be made free from the prison, which is the grave. In Isa.49:8‑9 we read, "I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; that thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness.Shew yourselves..." We see a glimpse of how this will be accomplished through Christ and his "body," the "elect." Through them the New Covenant will begin once they are complete. God will then unlock the prison house of the grave. Continuing in the Old Testament although we do not see the term "resurrection" we see the promise of it over and over again. In Hosea 13:14 (RV): "I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O death, where are thy plagues? O grave, where is thy destruction?" Here we have this question, and the answer is given in 1 Cor.15:54‑57 "Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." In the days of Hosea, the question could not be fully understood and yet we see, in due time, God revealed the answer and the hope. So, in order to unlock the hope of the resurrection we need to understand redemption, we need to understand that death will be defeated and in order to defeat death it required a ransom price. This thing was not understood in the Old Testament, but death will be destroyed. What a wonderful promise this is! Looking at the news and the things going around us, we realize this is not yet that time, but God has given us a beautiful promise that death will be destroyed. Will Mankind be Resurrected with the Same Mind? Yes, otherwise, those being resurrected would be a blank slate, like babies. There is a tremendous value in having the past experiences put back into the mind of the resurrected body. Only then can an individual have a personal knowledge of the effects of sin and compare it to the blessings of righteousness that they will experience in Christ’s earthly kingdom. Only God can accomplish this miraculous feat of restoring the mind for all of the billions who have ever lived. In Ecclesiastes 11:3 (RV) it says: "If a tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be." It is saying that when a tree falls over that is where it stays; the direction in which it fell is the direction in which it remains. This illustration provides an object lesson that the mind that goes into the grave is the mind that is restored in the resurrected body. Those who live righteously will have righteousness in their minds when they are resurrected. Those who die with corrupt minds will harbour corrupt thoughts when they are resurrected. This is the reason why God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah rather than letting them slide further into sin and degradation. He stopped the degradation of their minds before they would be irrecoverable in Christ’s earthly kingdom. The principle of sowing and reaping is used in the Scriptures to illustrate the restoration of the mind in the resurrection. In Job 4:8 we read: "They that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness.reap the same." The lesson is that what we sow, we will reap. In this present evil world.the wicked seem to prosper. But those who go into the grave with evil minds will have a lot more work to do to transform their characters into the likeness of God in Christ’s Kingdom when they are resurrected. As the way they go down, so they will come up, it will catch up with them as they will have to unlearn the unrighteousness and to sanctify themselves. "For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good, or...evil." (Eccl.12:14 RSV) As "The eyes of the LORD are in every place, observing both the evil and the good" (Proverbs 15:3 ISV), so the character man goes down with, will be the character that follows in the resurrection. Can God Restore a Mind? Yes! In Job 33:29‑30 "Lo, all these things worketh God oftentimes with man, to bring back his soul from the pit (sheol, grave) to be enlightened with the light of the living." The light of the living concerns the mind, the intellect. Resurrected humanity on earth will "be enlightened" again with the light of life. Their resurrection from the dead will be clear and convincing evidence to them of God’s wonderful blessing on their behalf. This itself will provide an opportunity for them to begin anew on a better footing than before, with faith in God and appreciation for His lovingkindness. This favourable new beginning for mankind, each one individually, being raised again on earth during the Millennium, will come through the reign of Christ with his "Bride," comprising of 144,000 members. (Revelation 7 14). Then evil will be restrained, rather than allowed to proceed, as at present. The Spirit of understanding from God will be poured out upon the hearts of humanity, starting with the nation of Israel. (Zechariah 12:10). The spirit of understanding will bring joy to mankind in doing what is pleasing to the Heavenly Father. They will seek after righteousness when they recognize the blessings that shall be gained in doing so. In Prov.21:21 (ESV) it says, "whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honour." In Jeremiah 31 we read about the Spirit of understanding coming to Israel when they finally recognize Jesus as the Messiah. "Behold, days come, saith Jehovah, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah (Darby)…This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbour and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." (ESV) (Jer.31:31‑34). After Israel has been inducted into this "new covenant," at the beginning of Christ’s Millennial Reign, they will be used by God to extend the same blessings outward to the remainder of the world. Then all will be able to receive the spirit of understanding from God. "And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest." (Heb.8:11) At the outset of the Millennial Age, the ransom will be applied for the world in order to remove the curse. The removal of the curse is the first necessary step in order to proceed with the resurrection. However, that does not mean the resurrected individuals are justified. They will be sinful people still because they will return back with the same thoughts. Many of those raised will be without faith, and far short of good works. Teaching people about God and the standards of righteousness will take time. Individually, the blessed influences of the Kingdom will bring people to repentance, faith, and obedience. Ultimately they will be righteous and holy. As this process continues, they will be blessed also by physical blessings of health and vitality, returning to the perfection of being that Adam enjoyed in the garden before his sin. God has the power of resurrection and there are examples of temporary awakenings to illustrate that. Here are the examples:
These were just temporary re‑standings to show the principle and to illustrate that there will be a permanent resurrection of all those in the grave. The Resurrection of the Overcomers The overcomers in the First Resurrection are the members of the Church. They have been begotten to a new life which is a spiritual life now and they are on trial in the present time. The Apostle Paul states in 1 Cor.15:51‑52 (RVIC): "Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall all fall asleep, but we shall not all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, in the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." Unlike the world of mankind our resurrection will be in a moment and instantaneous. If we are faithful unto death now, we will be changed at the moment of our death. When is the Resurrection Complete? The resurrection will be complete when all who have died are raised again. The curse will be lifted at the beginning of the age, by the application of the Ransom for the world, in order to allow the resurrection of the dead. The resurrection is the only hope for the dead. In conclusion John 11:23‑26 NKJV "Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to Him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’" How thankful we are to our Heavenly Father for such a perfect Plan that will result in eternal life for all. To Him be the glory and honour now and forever. Amen! FC |
