Resurrection – The Hope of a Believer

Main Text: 1 Corinthians 15

Foreword: Around the world today, most Christians hold the belief that their hope is to be Raptured, or simply to go to heaven, and live there forever, while the earth will be destroyed. But that’s not completely correct. There is more that God has promised ussuch that is sufficient to motivate us to pursue and maintain a deepening walk with Him. This is the burden of this bible study series – to, by God’s grace, clearly understand the Resurrection as what scripture reveals to be the true hope of a believer – true hope being the final goal we are looking forward to, at the end of our Christian race.

Study Path

What is Resurrection?

We would read through some scriptures that relate to resurrection and get a general idea of what the resurrection isas defined by the Lord Jesus and His apostles. This will generate questions and hopefully also answer some questions. Then after reading, we will move through the study following the path described below. The numberings 1a, 1b, 2, 3 show the different resurrection events that will take place, in the order they will happenthree to life, and one to eternal destruction. Among the first three, the first two bring us to the fullness of divine life, which is the level of life that Christ is right now, beyond the experience of Adam before he fell, while the third is to fullness of natural life, which Adam had before he fell.

The following are the bible readings: Hebrews 6:2, 1 Peter 1:3, John 5:25-29, Acts 24:15, Daniel 12:2, Philippians 3:10-12, 21, Luke 20:27-38 [same as Matthew 22:23-31, Mark 12:18-23], John 11:24-25, Acts 4:2, Acts 23:6-8, Romans 1:4, 1 Corinthians 15, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Revelation 20, 21, 22.

From the above scriptures: What is Resurrection? and Why should we study Resurrection?

Types and Order of Resurrection

John 5:25-29, Acts 24:15, Daniel 12:2

• Resurrection of life [Resurrection of the just] 1 Corinthians 15:35-58
  • Resurrection unto divine [celestial] life – to be the New Heaven The New Heaven is the spiritual government of the New World. They’ll be replacing the principalities and power, rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness that operate in heavenly places mentioned in Ephesians 6:12.
  • Revelation 21:1, 1 Corinthians 15:40-42, Genesis 22:17-18
    • 1. The First Resurrection
      • The Firstfruits of the First Resurrection
        • 1st Corinthians 15:22-24
        • For those that overcome as demanded by the Lord in Revelation 2 and 3
      • Resurrection of the Bride at the coming of the Lord [at the last Trumpet]
        • 1 Corinthians 15:22-24, 1 Corinthians 15:52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, [rewards for character, devotion: Luke 14:14, Luke 19:12-27, 1 Corinthians 15:41]
        • To be experienced both by the family in heaven and on earth:
        • Ephesians 1:10, Ephesians 3:15
        • The trumpet is a message:
        • Isaiah 58:1, Revelation 1:10, Revelation 4:1
        • The angels sounding the trumpet are human messengers – the firstfruits. It is a message delivered with divine power to gather the hearts of God’s people in readiness for His call into glory [Christ typified this in the manner with which He called Lazarus into life]:
        • Matthew 24:30-31, 25:6 Revelation 2:1 [and first verse of the other 6 letters]
  • 2. Resurrection unto natural [terrestrial] life – to be part of the New Earth
    • The New Earth are the people living on earth in the New World.
    • Revelation 21:1, 1 Corinthians 15:40-42, Genesis 22:17-18
      • Resurrection at the end of the 1000 years [those found in the book of life]
      • Revelation 20:11-15
      • To be experienced by those who lived through the 1000 years and didn’t rebel, and some in prison whose names are found in the book of life:
      • 1 Peter 3:18-20, 1 Peter 4:5-6
• Resurrection of damnation [Resurrection of the unjust] Acts 24:15, 1 Peter 4:5-6
  • 3. Sentenced to the second death [eternal destruction of the soul] in the lake of fire at the end of the 1000 years
    • To be experienced by all others in prison whose names are not found in the book of Life:
    • Revelation 20:11-15
• The New World Revelation 21–22:6
  • As opposed to the popular opinion that the New Jerusalem is heaven – an opinion expressed in some versions of Raptureverses 9 and 10 clearly show that it is a symbolic representation of the Lamb’s wife [the bride of Christ]. Verse 14 mentions that the city has 12 foundations with the names of the apostles written in them, which is what Paul said in Ephesians 2:19-22 concerning the Church. Peter in 1 Peter 2:5 reveals that the stones used to build the symbolic New Jerusalem are we, Christians, who are lively stones, while the Lord Jesus is the Chief Corner Stone of the city.

May the Lord in His infinite mercies bless our understanding, and motivate us unto righteous living in earnest expectation of attainting to the best resurrection – the Firstfruits Resurrection.
Amen.