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A Fundamental Doctrine The General
Resurrection There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.—Acts 24:15 Michael Nekora Adam Clarke (1762-1832) was a British Methodist theologian and biblical ..scholar. He wrote a commentary on the Bible which took forty years to complete. This is what he said about the resurrection in endnote three, following 1 Corinthians chapter 15: “The doctrine of the resurrection appears to have been thought of much more consequence among the primitive Christians than it is now. How is this? The apostles were continually insisting on it, and exciting the followers of God to diligence, obedience, and cheerfulness through it. And their successors in the present day seldom mention it! So apostles preached, and so primitive Christians believed; so we preach, and so our hearers believe. There is not a doctrine in the Gospel on which more stress is laid; and there is not a doctrine in the present system of preaching which is treated with more neglect!” The word resurrection appears forty-one times in the King James Bible, and only in the New Testament. Although the word does not appear in the Old Testament, some Jews believed in a resurrection and some did not: “The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both” (Acts 23:8). That many Jews did believe in a resurrection is also suggested by the phrase “slept with his fathers” which occurs thirty-six times in the King James Old Testament. Here is one example: “So Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead” (1 Kings 22:40). It makes sense to call death a sleep only if there is a prospect of an awakening from that sleep (cf., Job 14:13-15). Notice in this example that the one “sleeping” is wicked king Ahab, which agrees with the New Testament that all the dead will be raised to life again, even the ungodly. Jesus used the word sleep to characterize the state of his friend Lazarus: “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. ... Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead” (John 11:11,12,14).
The Greeks, on the other hand, generally did not believe in a resurrection. When
Paul preached to the people of Athens on Mars’ Hill, he lost his audience when
he came to that subject: “[God] hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge
the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath
given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. And when
they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We
will hear thee again of this matter” (Acts 17:31,32). No Uncertainty Christians should have no uncertainty about the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead. In fact the apostle calls it a fundamental doctrine: “Let us leave behind us then all the elementary teaching about Christ and concentrate on its completion, without going over the fundamental doctrines again: the turning away from dead actions and toward faith in God; the teaching about baptisms and the laying on of hands; the teaching about the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment” (Hebrews 6:1,2, Jerusalem Bible). In his first letter to the church at Corinth, Paul expressed amazement that anyone could stop believing in a resurrection from the dead. He wrote that the reality of Christ’s resurrection proves that others will also be resurrected: “Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: ... And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. ... But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:12,13,17,20-22). Good and Bad Christians do believe that those who accept Christ will be raised to life after they die, but many do not think this blessing will be experienced by unbelievers. In this they are mistaken. Even the wicked Sodomites will be resurrected. That is what Ezekiel said long after Sodom had been destroyed: “When ... Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate ... then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate” (Ezekiel 16:55). Jesus taught that there would be a resurrection of the good and the not so good: “There cometh an hour in which all they in the tombs shall hearken unto his voice, and come forth,—they who the good things have done unto a resurrection of life; but they who the corrupt things have practised, unto a resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28,29, Rotherham). The King James translation says that those who have done evil things will have a resurrection of “damnation.” Some other translations say, “to be condemned.” The New English Bible says, “Will rise to hear their doom.” Such biased versions lead to the fantastic theory that what one does in this life seals one’s doom and that although one’s soul continues living somewhere after death, it is reunited with a body in the resurrection just long enough for a sentence of condemnation to be pronounced, after which the soul returns to wherever it was.
Understanding the nature and purpose of Christ’s kingdom answers every question.
The “resurrection of judgment” is a time of teaching, of training the human
family in righteousness: “When thy judgments are in the earth, the
inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness” (Isaiah 26:9). That was what
Paul said to the Athenians: “[God] hath appointed a day, in the which he will
judge the world in righteousness” (Acts 17:31). The world’s great
judgment day is not a time when mankind “rises to hear its doom.” It is a time
of instruction and great blessing (Psalm 96:10-13; Isaiah 25:6-9). Second Death As wonderful as the prospect of a resurrection is to those who believe the Bible, it is important to realize that a resurrection does not guarantee anyone everlasting life. Adam and Eve were created to live forever, but only under specific conditions. They had to follow God’s law and be obedient. This will also be true for the world of mankind in the kingdom. There will be rules; only those who follow them will live forever. Some believe that because God is all-powerful, he will see to it that not a single person is lost. Two Scriptures might actually suggest this. “[God] will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:17). Those who believe in universal salvation tell us that if God wants all men to be saved, they will be eternally saved. But God wanting something should not be understood as wanting it to the point of interfering with man’s free will. Unlike the lower animals, humans were created with the ability to choose good or evil. That means anyone can choose not to accept that salvation. Notice what Peter said to the throng listening to his words on that Pentecostal day: “Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people” (Acts 3:22,23). This was the view articulated by the prophet Jeremiah: “In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge” (Jeremiah 31:29,30). During this “present evil world” mankind is receiving instruction in unrighteousness at the hands of the great adversary of God, Satan. But in the kingdom that will not be the case. The world’s judgment day is designed to teach mankind about God and his righteousness. Once all truly know both good and evil, they will be tested in the “little season” that follows the work of the kingdom (Revelation 20:3). That those who choose unrighteousness will be destroyed is clear: “And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about ... and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them” (Revelation 20:9). What happens to the world in the kingdom is exactly what happens to those who are enlightened now, who are instructed in righteousness, and yet who deliberately turn their back on God: “If we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins” (Hebrews 10:26). Even the great apostle Paul did not consider his own salvation something that was absolutely guaranteed. He wrote: “I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be[come] a castaway” (1 Corinthians 9:27). The Greek word translated “castaway” appears eight times in the New Testament. Here is another example: “That which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned” (Hebrews 6:8). Clearly, Paul did not believe in universal reconciliation. However, the bulk of mankind will gladly return to the perfection lost in Eden, to be blessed by the seed of Abraham and to bless one another (Genesis 12:3; 22:18). “The ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away” (Isaiah 35:10, RSV). Summary The Bible says the resurrection from the dead is a fundamental doctrine. It is primarily a New Testament doctrine since the word itself is not found in the Old Testament. Although there will be a resurrection from the dead for all mankind, whether each continues living depends upon whether the person will voluntarily choose to obey God’s law, or not. Those who do not obey will die the second death from which there will be no resurrection. The remainder will live forever on a wonderful earth, in a wonderful society. |