(tm) The First and Second Resurrection
Back to The First and Second Resurrection
The first resurrection, that which will take place when the Lord Jesus returns from Heaven, is described as follows:
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (Revelation 20:4)
This is the first resurrection of the elect of all ages. There is no resurrection or ascension of the saints prior to this one, as we understand the Scriptures.
The next verse informs us that no person will be resurrected after the first resurrection until the thousand-year Kingdom Age has been concluded.
But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. (Revelation 20:5)
The expressions in the above passages "and they lived" and "lived not again" refer to the dead individual receiving back his body.
There are two resurrections from the dead, two periods during which those who have lost their bodies through physical death are reunited with their bodies.
The first resurrection of the dead takes place at the beginning of the thousand-year Kingdom Age, at the appearing of Christ (I Thessalonians 4:16). The second resurrection occurs after the thousand years have been concluded, after the present earth and heaven have been banished by the Lord (Revelation 20:11).
It is taught commonly among Christians that every person who is saved will participate in the first resurrection, the resurrection described in Revelation 20:4-6; I Thessalonians 4:13-5:3; the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew; and the fifteenth chapter of I Corinthians. The remainder of mankind, those who regain their bodies when "the thousand years were finished," will be assigned to eternal torment in the Lake of Fire.
This doctrine is in error, we believe.
There are two reasons why we think this commonly taught doctrine is incorrect. First, it gives rise to a serious problem with respect to the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation. Second, the twentieth chapter of the Book of Revelation, the chapter that describes the two resurrections, does not state or imply that the first resurrection is the general resurrection of salvation or that all who participate in the second resurrection will be cast into the Lake of Fire.
Let us discuss first the serious problem of consistency of doctrine produced by the belief that every person who is to be saved will rise to meet the Lord in the first resurrection. After this we will examine the statements found in Chapter 20 of Revelation that, to our way of thinking, do not support the belief that all the saved are in the first resurrection or that all who are in the second resurrection will be assigned to the Lake of Fire.
The second and third chapters of Revelation describe the seven churches "in Asia," the Christian churches on the earth, the golden lampstands of the Divine testimony.
It is clear from these two chapters that each of the churches had problems of behavior. Many of the members were not up to the Lord’s standard of discipleship. Jesus promised rewards to each believer who overcame the problems of conduct in the churches.
In this present booklet we intend to stress the role righteous conduct plays in determining the eternal destinies of both Christians and non-Christians alike. Therefore it is important to note in the second and third chapters of Revelation that the Lord Jesus did not speak as though the Christian faith of the believers would cause God to overlook their sins and shortcomings. Christ was judging their works and warning the believers of the consequences of failure to live righteous, holy, and obedient lives before Himself.
It seems evident that only a minority of each of these Christian assemblings qualified as victorious saints, becoming eligible for the rewards promised to the overcomer. As we shall see, this fact strikes a heavy blow to the doctrine that all the saved are in the first resurrection.