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Resurrection to Mortal Life
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Isaiah 65:20-25  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Isaiah envisioned the final days of the judgment period when the resurrected billions will receive their call to participate in God's plan. These resurrected multitudes will be counted among God's elect—made participants in His Master Plan, and given the opportunity to enter God's Family (verses 22-23). They will they then have a close relationship with God the Father (verse 24). Imagine the astonishment of those resurrected at the beginning of this period of judgment. Each person will be in his first moment of consciousness since death. At first, some may think they are in heaven, hell, or purgatory. Most will simply be confused—bewildered. Nothing that many had been taught about an afterlife will turn out to be true. Faced with undeniable evidence that their old teachings and ways were false, they will be more willing to start over and be taught the truth. Untold millions who have not had any religious teaching whatsoever will start learning from scratch. Who will teach these thousands of millions? Millions of teachers who will have been born into God's Family in the first resurrection and during the Millennium! Those resurrected to mortal life will then undergo a process of conversion similar to that of Spirit-begotten Christians today. They will be taught God's laws and will learn they are guilty of sin and deserving of the death penalty. They will learn of God's mercy, and that Christ paid the penalty for them, if they will accept His payment. The vast majority will repent. Upon repentance and faith in Christ as their personal Savior, they will be forgiven, and God's Spirit will be given to them. Then they, as Spirit-begotten children of God, can begin growing spiritually—developing God's holy, righteous, and perfect character within them. Unlearning all the falsehoods learned in their first life and learning God's true ways will take time. And building character will take time, because character can be developed only through time and experience. The Last Great Day: God's Master Plan Completed!

Ezekiel 37:1-10  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Those in the second resurrection will be raised to life as physical, flesh-and-blood human beings. They will live in a peaceful, prosperous world free from the demonic influence of Satan. Evidently, God will grant them a hundred years of life to learn and accept His way. Staff Basic Doctrines: Eternal Judgment

Matthew 11:20-24  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Christ mentioned the people of Tyre and Sidon, Sodom, Nineveh in Jonah's time, and finally the Queen of the South. All of these examples of people who lived in different generations are compared to the citizens living in the cities and towns of Jesus' day, the vast majority of whom did not understand or believe Christ's message. Jesus tells us that they are all to be resurrected with the generation that lived during His time! Jesus gave enough examples of people living at widespread times to prove that most of humanity will be alive at the same time on this earth. There will be pre-Flood men and women, all twelve tribes of Israel, those who lived during the Middle Ages, and the vast majority living now. Even babies and children who died untimely deaths will be resurrected then. They will all rise in the second resurrection because they had not been called by God during their first lifetime. This group includes all people of all times except those who will have already been born of God, and those relatively few individuals who already had their opportunity to receive eternal life, but deliberately rejected it, having sinned willfully. Those few will be resurrected in the third and final resurrection to be cast into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:14-15). The ancient peoples Jesus mentioned in Matthew 11 and 12 would have repented if He had personally come to them in their day. And they will repent and receive the Holy Spirit when resurrected into a world that has been personally ruled by Jesus Christ for 1,000 years! The Bible shows that the vast majority of those who have ever lived will finally be born into God's Family at the end of their coming period of judgment. God's master plan of salvation for mankind will then be complete. How wonderful and reassuring is the truth of our all-wise, loving and merciful Creator God! Staff Is This the Only Day of Salvation?

Matthew 11:21-24  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Jesus spoke of a time of judgment when those ancient peoples would be given an opportunity to understand what He had been preaching to the people of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum. They, too, will hear the good news! Christ mentioned the people of Tyre and Sidon, Sodom, Nineveh in Jonah's time, and the Queen of the South. All of these examples of people who lived in different generations are compared to those who lived in the cities and towns of Jesus' day, the vast majority of whom did not understand or believe His message. Jesus tells us that they will all be resurrected with the generation that lived during His time! Jesus gave enough examples of people living at widespread times to prove that most of humanity will be brought back to life at the same time on this earth. There will be pre-Flood men and women, all twelve tribes of Israel, those who lived during the Middle Ages and the vast majority living now. Even babies and children who died untimely deaths will be resurrected then. They will all rise in the second resurrection because they had not been called by God during their first lifetime. This group includes all people of all times except those who will have already been born of God, and those relatively few people who already had their opportunity to receive eternal life, but deliberately rejected it and sinned willfully. Those few will be resurrected in the third and final resurrection, and they will be destroyed in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:13-15). The Last Great Day: God's Master Plan Completed!

Matthew 27:52  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Matthew 27:52 specifically states that the bodies of these saints were resurrected: "And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised." Notice that Matthew does not describe them as having any outstanding or remarkable appearance, as the spirit bodies of Jesus and various others are highlighted as having (Daniel 12:3; Matthew 13:43; Mark 9:2-3; see also Matthew 17:1-2; Revelation 1:13-16). Moreover, when these resurrected saints of ad 31 went into Jerusalem, they did not restrict their appearance to a comparative few as Jesus did after His spiritual resurrection. Rather, "they appeared to many." Like Lazarus, and all the others who had been brought up in physical resurrections, these saints lived for a while longer—no one knows for how long—served the purpose for which they were raised, and then died once again. There is no record of them living eternally after this resurrection. John Plunkett Resurrection AD 31

Hebrews 9:27  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Hebrews 9:27 says that all men are appointed to die once. Considering this, some have asked: How can one die a second death? How many times can one die? First, baptism is symbolic of death (Romans 6:2-11) and so is "dying daily," as Paul describes the sacrifices of the Christian life (I Corinthians 15:31). Paul mentions this latter death in the context of the resurrection chapter to emphasize our need to crucify the old self daily and renew or resurrect the inner man as symbols of actual death and resurrection (see II Corinthians 4:16-17). In this sense, we die every day of our lives. When speaking of great embarrassments, many have used the phrase, "I died a thousand deaths." That is just what God expects of us if we are to reach maturity of thought and conduct! Each of these deaths is just as difficult and excruciating as the one before, and thus Paul describes them as crucifixions (Galatians 5:24). These play a major role in overcoming, and it is never easy. Apart from symbolism, the general rule is that we each die physically at least once and then await the resurrection to eternal life. But some few humans have already died twice! Lazarus, Dorcas, Eutychus, those who came out of their graves when Christ died and others were physically resurrected and physically died again. It is conceivable that some few might even die three times! If those who were resurrected physically were converted and accepted for the Kingdom, they will be resurrected when Christ returns—changed "in the twinkling of an eye" into immortal spirit beings (I Corinthians 15:52). If they were not called and converted—not yet having had an opportunity for salvation—they will come up in the second resurrection to be alive a third time. At the end of that life they will then be either changed to spirit or die in the Lake of Fire, a third death. Why, then, does Revelation 20:14 call the Lake of Fire "the second death"? The emphasis is on the fact that it is a permanent death. Once a person experiences the second death, no hope remains for another resurrection. However, for a few it could represent a third physical death. The point is that all of us are appointed to die at least once! Even those "blessed and holy" individuals who are alive and changed at Christ's return will go through a kind of death. As Paul writes, "For this corruptible [body] must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality" (I Corinthians 15:53). Staff The Third Resurrection: What Is Its Value?

1 Peter 4:17  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) God judges His children today by evaluating how well they live by His written Word. Their rewards in God's Kingdom will depend on their character development during their mortal life. It is a process requiring time and opportunity for learning and growth. Those resurrected after the Millennium will be judged the same way. They, like Spirit-begotten Christians today, will be given enough time to prove they are willing to live God's way through a life of overcoming and obedience to God. In this period of judgment after the 1,000 years, not only will the Bible be opened, but the Book of Life will also be opened. These people will be given an opportunity to receive eternal life! God, in perfect fairness, will give them an opportunity for salvation, just as He gives to those He calls now. But, in this last great judgment, people will not be subject to Satan's influence as we are today, because Satan will have been put away (Revelation 20:10). With God's Spirit freely available, and freed from Satan's spiritual influences, they will be given their one and only opportunity for salvation through repentance, baptism, receiving God's Spirit, and growing in godly character during a second mortal life. They, like Christians today, will be required to act on the knowledge God will give them, to choose righteousness as defined by God's spiritual law, to quit breaking that law. Those who continue to live God's way of life will be changed from mortality to immortality at the end of this period of judgment. Those people who were born to physical life first—many before the First Coming of Jesus Christ and even those born before the Flood—have not yet had the opportunity to participate in God's plan. Their chance is coming, but they will be called last—in the Last Great Judgment. Those now being called into God's church, although born later, are being given their opportunity as God's firstfruits (James 1:18). Even people born during the Millennium will be called to participate in God's plan before the vast majority of mankind, who have lived in this first 6,000 years of human experience. Referring to this age, Jesus said: "The last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen" (Matthew 20:16). The Last Great Day pictures the completion of God's Master Plan—the Great White Throne Judgment period after the Millennium. Revelation 20:5 shows that a second resurrection will occur after the Millennium, and verses 11-12 reveal that those in this resurrection, who died not having been called to participate in God's plan of salvation, will then be given their opportunity to become members of God's divine Family. The Last Great Day: God's Master Plan Completed!

2 Peter 3:9  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Even as all men die, the same all will be made alive through Christ (I Corinthians 15:22). Everyone who has ever lived and died will be resurrected—first Christ was resurrected, then later the saints who lived before Christ's Second Coming will be resurrected at His return. But what about the vast majority who were not Christ's? Paul in I Corinthians 15:24 includes them all in "the end"—when Christ completes His job of conquering every enemy (verse 25). That will happen after the Millennium (Revelation 20:7-10). Those who have not heard or understood God's truth have not been irrevocably condemned to eternal death. They have not sinned willfully. They have not had a chance! Even if they lived up to the best they knew while alive, the Bible teaches that there is only one way to salvation—through belief in Christ and spiritual conversion and growth as defined in the Bible. Most of our loved ones who have died "unsaved" did not die eternally lost. They most likely were not called during this age, but their call will come later. After the Millennium they will be resurrected to mortal life and given spiritual understanding and the opportunity to become members of God's Family. The Last Great Day: God's Master Plan Completed!

Revelation 20:4-5  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) The Bible speaks of a "first" resurrection, implying that there will be more than one resurrection. The second resurrection will contain those who are not "the dead in Christ," but simply the dead—those millions who are not Christ's—who have not been converted, who have not heard the Gospel or understood it. The sentence, "This is the first resurrection," refers to the resurrection to immortal life of the firstfruits of God's plan, which will occur at Christ's return, just before the 1,000-year period begins (verses 4, 6). But notice the first sentence in verse 5: "But the rest of the dead [those who have not yet had an opportunity to understand God's truth] lived not again [would not come up in a resurrection] until the thousand years were finished." This resurrection, which will occur after the 1,000 years, is the second resurrection. It will be a resurrection to mortal life. The Last Great Day: God's Master Plan Completed!

Revelation 20:5  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) The first part of verse 5 is actually a parenthetical comment. The verse should read: "(But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.) This is the first resurrection. " The sentence, "This is the first resurrection," refers to the spiritual resurrection of the firstfruits of God's plan, which occurs at Christ's return, just before the 1,000-year period begins (verses 4, 6). But notice further the first sentence in verse 5: "But the rest of the dead [those who never had an opportunity to understand God's truth] lived not again [would not come up in a resurrection] until the thousand years were finished." This resurrection, which occurs after the 1,000 years, is the second resurrection. It is a resurrection to mortal life! Staff Is This the Only Day of Salvation?

 

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