Resurrection

Key Verse: John 11:25
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

Question: What does the key verse mean to you?

LESSON:

The only hope Christ ever gave for the possibility of living again was by a resurrection from the dead. Death in the Bible is referred to as the most hated enemy of mankind, therefore understanding what the resurrection is and how mankind can live again is critical knowledge that man needs to have. The first place we must begin is by a definition of the word "resurrection." Just what does it mean to be resurrected? The Greek word is Strong’s #386, “anastasis” and it means a standing up again, (literally) a resurrection from death or-- raised to life again.

All of mankind will come face to face with two monumental truths. One, we will all die and two, we will all be resurrected back to life again. Many people assume we go to heaven immediately after death, but Paul said clearly that Christ has been raised from the dead already but nobody else has yet (1 Corinthians 15:22-23). Jesus also stated that no man has gone to heaven (John 3:13). Many people assume that we live on after death as a disembodied soul, but the Biblical view is that we receive a resurrected body (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). The gospel also states that only God has immortality (1 Timothy 6:16). The third misunderstanding of Scripture concerns location. The gospels nowhere say, "Jesus has been raised; therefore, we are all going to heaven." Instead, it says that Jesus is coming here to resurrect the dead in Christ at His return (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

Actually, Christianity teaches not immortality but resurrection, and it goes like this: when a person dies, their whole being dies, every aspect of that person dies. Then, for those who have accepted God's grace, God, who gave them life in the first place, gives them life again. We all go to the grave completely expired, every part of us, 100 percent deceased. Then, in God's own time, He raises the faithful by giving the person a new resurrected body

Consider this, if man already has an immortal soul then why does he need God? He can simply trust that which he already has. This false teaching has caused many to think that they can get along just fine without God. The Bible teaches us that we must depend on Jesus for the resurrection. This dependence is based on a relationship with Him (John 15:14), and this relationship is determined by whether or not a person has received the Spirit of God (Romans 8:9).

The Bible speaks specifically about two resurrections. The first one occurs at the return of Christ, at the last trump. The ones who come up in this resurrection are the dead in Christ, the firstfruits, the called of God, the elect, the ones God is NOW offering a chance for salvation. After the millennium, there will be another resurrection. The ones who come up in this resurrection are referred to as the rest of the dead (Revelation 20:5). The ones who come up in this resurrection are the ones who never had a chance for salvation offered to them by God.