THE FIRST RESURRECTION AND THEN THE SECOND RESURRECTION

Someone from the nation of Philippines requested me on 11^th March 2013 to share with her on the topic of: “The First Resurrection and Then the Second Resurrection” since she wanted an insight on this topic for she has a scheduled Sunday service session where she will be preaching on this topic. So The LORD is going to help not only the people of Philippines but also the other nations of the earth to understand this very very critical topic.

This moment in time we are going to share on a very very important topic which is best summarized by what is stated in the book of Hebrew 9:27 “Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment”

This essentially means that every human being must be transformed from the mortal to the immortal at one point in time and this is a onetime event in each and every body’s life either through death or rapture. Every human being ever created by God Almighty is an eternal being and so is transformed from the mortal (the human form) to the immortal (spiritual form); and then depending on the choices made by each individual will determine which of the two eternal destinies they will spend their eternal life in i.e. either Heaven or Hell (The Lake of Fire).

For those who will be in Heaven, they will be victorious over death and second death will not befall them. Second death is the eternal death in the lake of fire. 

Whereas those in the lake of Fire will be facing the second death which is eternal separation from God Almighty, those in Heaven will be facing eternal life which is the life in the presence of God Almighty in His Kingdom.  This victory over second death is well captured and stated in the book of 1st Corinthians 15:54-57 which states: “When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death is your victory? Where, O death is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” This essentially means that those whose sins have not been washed by The blood of The Jesus Christ must suffer the sting of death experienced in the second death which is eternal suffering, pain and torment in the Lake of Fire. The second death is specifically described in the book of Revelation 20:14-15 “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.”

This also means that those who are victorious over the second death will as stated in the book of Revelation 3:21 “To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.”

The question that then comes is, How can I be victorious over the second death so that I can be able to sit at the throne of The LORD Jesus Christ? The answer to this question is right in the book of Revelation 3:19 “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.  Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”

At this juncture, we are now going to describe very explicitly the meaning of The First Resurrection and then we will also have a look at what entails the second resurrection. 

So the first resurrection refers to the rapture of the bride of Christ. The Rapture of the bride of Christ essentially means: Being caught up suddenly; Being transformed suddenly from the mortal to the immortal; Being snatched away; Being delivered and rescued; The rising up of the dead body from dust and the live body from the earth; Being changed in a twinkle of an eye. During the first resurrection, the people who had long died in Christ will have their bodies arise and will immediately be transformed to the immortal body, while those who will be alive at that time will also be caught up together with the long died saints and they will immediately be transformed as well into the immortal body as they move into Heaven. This first resurrection is what Isaiah was shown in the book of Isaiah 26:19-26 “But your dead will live, Lord; their bodies will rise—let those who dwell in the dust wake up and shout for joy—your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead. Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the bloodshed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer.”

This first resurrection is also well explained in the book of Revelation 20:4-6 and here you will note that those who had been raptured before the onset of The Great Tribulation together with those who went through the Great Tribulation and were beheaded for refusing to take the Mark of The Beast (The RFID Micro-Chip) and also for their testimony about The LORD Jesus Christ will come back to the earth to reign with Christ for 1,000 years. The book of Revelation 20:4-6 states: “I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.”

The second resurrection on the other hand refers to the other dead who had not come to life during the rapture and so had not also come to reign with Christ for 1,000 years on the earth arising. This second resurrection will happen after the 1,000 years reign of Christ on the earth together with the redeemed saints. It is very very important to note here that after the rapture of the bride of Christ, there will be a 7-year Great Tribulation on the earth and then immediately thereafter there will be the millennium reign of Christ on the earth together with the redeemed saints, and then immediately after the millennium reign then the second resurrection will occur. 

During the second resurrection, all those who had not died in Christ will resurrect to face their judgment. This second resurrection is well captured in the book of Revelation 20:4 “They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.”

But it is also very important to note that Daniel was shown the first resurrection and the second resurrection. In The revelation of The LORD to him, he actually was shown the first resurrection and the second resurrection in one vision. He saw the first resurrection occurring and the saints going to everlasting joy. He then was shown the second resurrection and he saw the dead who had not died in Christ arising to be judged and their shame being exposed and then finally being through to the lake of fire to face everlasting contempt and shame in the lake of fire. And so Daniel recorded what he was shown in the book of Daniel 12:1-3 “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.  Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.

Therefore, there will be The Great White Throne of Judgment where the dead who are in hell will arise to face judgment. The verdict of The Great White Throne of Judgment will be based on what they have done as recorded in the books and then the dead will be thrown into the second death which is the Lake of Fire. This second resurrection of the dead and their judgment at The Great White Throne of Judgment and their eventual throwing into the lake of fire is stated in the book of Revelation 20:11-15 “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.”

The LORD Jesus Christ actually summarized this whole episode of: The first resurrection; The second resurrection; The Great White Throne of Judgment; and The second death (The Lake of Fire) in the book of John 8:48-56. So the book of John 8:48-56 states as follows: “The Jews answered him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you are a Samaritan and demon-possessed?” “I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honor my Father and you dishonor me. I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.” At this they exclaimed, “Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that whoever obeys your word will never taste death. Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?” Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.”

The rapture is also very well described by apostle Paul in the book of 1st Corinthians 15:50-58 “I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

NOTE:

1-We are at the moment at the verge of the First Resurrection occurring. This is based on the signs to look for that The LORD God Almighty, The LORD Jesus Christ and The Holy Spirit stated to be the signs that would indicate the very imminent moment when The First Resurrection will occur. So those who are wise as was shown to Daniel are now preparing the way for the coming of The LORD Jesus Christ to rapture His bride through absolute Repentance, Righteousness, Holiness, Truth and Complete Surrender to The LORD Jesus Christ. This wisdom is explained very eloquently by Job in the book of Job 28:28: ‘“And he said to the human race, “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”

2-Those who are foolish and who will partake of the second resurrection whereby as shown to Daniel will awake to everlasting shame and everlasting contempt are currently not preparing the way for the coming of The LORD Jesus Christ. These are they who have rejected The LORD Jesus Christ by refusing to accept His blood sacrifice that He paid at the cross of Calvary by dying a very painful death on the cross so that those who believe in Him may not perish (Through the second death in the Lake of Fire) but have eternal life (Through the first resurrection).

May Those Who Have Ears Hear What The Spirit of The LORD Is Saying. And May They Prepare The Way For The First Resurrection.

SHALOM!!!

PREPARE THE WAY IN ABSOLUTE REPENTANCE, RIGHTEOUSNESS, HOLINESS, TRUTH AND COMPLETE SURRENDER TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST (YAHUSHUA HA MASHIACH). TIME IS ABSOLUTELY OVER; THE MESSIAH JESUS CHRIST IS IMMINENTLY COMING TO PICK HIS BRIDE!!!    

REPENTANCE PRAYER  

Precious Jesus, 

I acknowledge today that you are LORD and savior of all mankind, 

and today I have recognized my shortfall,

I repent and turn away from all sin. 

Please cover me with your precious blood, 

and establish your word in my life, 

that I may be found in righteousness and holiness 

and write my name in your book of life 

and baptize me with the power of the Holy Spirit 

in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. 

Amen.   

Shalom!!! Shalom!!! Shalom!!! 

Kevin Mirasi