The Two Resurrections

Sin, Death, and the Grave

What comes to all men as the result of the Fall?

“For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:22. (See also Romans 5:12.)

In what condition is man while in death?

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge or wisdom.”

 Ecclesiastes 9:10. 

Note – That is, man, when dead, has no use of powers of mind and body. He cannot, therefore, while in the grave praise God, or even think of Him (Psalm 6:5); for in the day he dies his thoughts perish. Psalm 146:2-4.

Ransomed From The Grave

What has been promised in order that man may be redeemed from this condition?

“I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction.” Hosea 13:14.

Through who will come this redemption from the grave?

“For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:21.22. 

What would have been the result to the dead had not Christ procured their release from the grave?

“For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.” Verses 16-18.

Why did God give His only-begotten Son to the world?

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16.  

What did the Sadducees in Christ’s time deny?    

“Some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus with a question.” Luke 20:27.  

How did Christ, from the Old Testament Scriptures, prove the resurrection?

“But in the account of the bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” Verses 37,38.

Note – That is, in view of the resurrection – of the fact that there is to be a resurrection – all who live unto God. In His purpose, all are alive.

Under what illustration from nature are the resurrection and the final salvation of the righteous taught?

“How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.” 1 Corinthians 15:36. “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” John 12:24.

Note – The seed dies to spring forth into new life. In this we are taught the lesson of the resurrection. All who love God will spring forth to life, and live again through endless ages in the earth made new.

Whose voice raises the dead?

“Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out – those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.” John 5:28,29. [Christ’s voice]

Two Distinct Resurrections

How many distinct classes will have a resurrection?

“And I have the same hope in God as these men, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.” Acts 24:15. 

When will the resurrection of the just occur?

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16. (See also 1 Corinthians 15:23.)

When is the righteous to be rewarded?

“And you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Luke 14:14. [Second Coming of Christ]

In what condition did the psalmist expect to rise?

“And I – in righteousness I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.” Psalm 17:15.

What great contrast will be seen between the present body and the one to be put on in the resurrection?

“So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.

1 Corinthians 15:42-44.

After whose body will these resurrected ones be fashioned?

“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”

Philippians 3:20,21. [Christ’s glorious body]

In what words is the ultimate triumph over death and the grave expressed?

“Where, O death is your victory? Where, O death is your sting.” 1 Corinthians 15:55.

How long will the righteous live?

“And they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection.” Luke 20:36.

How long do the other class wait after the first resurrection before they are raised?

“I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not taken the mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4,5.

What is to be their fate?

“They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.” Verse 9.

Who are to share this fate?

“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars – their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

What is the last enemy to be destroyed?

“The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” 1 Corinthians 15:26.

(See Revelation 20:13,14.)

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