2.
This Mortal Must Put On Immortality
Once
we come into the proper Scriptural understanding of death, we will come to
appreciate how absolutely essential it is for believers, and ultimately all
mankind, to be changed, or as Paul declared, for this corruption to put on incorruption and this mortal to put on immortality. For those who have trusted
in Christ, this will occur in the twinkling of an eye in the presence of the
Lord at the end of our present eon. Whether we have fallen asleep (dead) in
Jesus or are alive and remain at His presence (coming), we will be transfigured into the body of His
glory, for when He is manifested or revealed, we shall be like Him.
Incorruption means to be beyond decay, that is, to have a body
that no longer is subject to decay. Immortality
means to be beyond death, that is, to be in a body like our Lord’s that is no
longer subject to the power of death. Transfigured
means to be changed in form or appearance, that is, to be like Him. Let us be
reminded that we are new creations in
Christ (2 Corinthians 5.17; Galatians 6.15), and as new creations our
destiny is grounded in all is new (Revelation 21.5).
This is our hope or
expectation. Our hope is not in
death. [1] The dead know nothing whatsoever (Ecclesiastes
9.5) sums up the whole matter of
death. Death is the last great enemy of mankind and only in the One who is the
Resurrection and the Life will mankind ultimately come out of death, never to
face it or be held by its power again, for we know that the One having
raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also by means of Jesus and will present us
all together, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing (see 2 Corinthians 4.14;
Ephesians 5.27).
Although
death is more like sleep, it still is not something that is looked upon favorably,
nor is it something to be glorified or immortalized. Death is associated with
evil (Deuteronomy 30.15, 19) and is an enemy (1 Corinthians 15.26); God has no
pleasure in the death of those who die (Ezekiel 18.32); death is surrounded
with sorrows (Psalm 116.3) and terrors (Psalm 18.4; 55.4). The dead know
nothing, but the ones they leave behind are often left grieving and lonely.
Our
hope is not in death and “going to
heaven” (or, for others to go “to hell”) in some temporary body or even as a
bodiless spirit, as some would have us believe. Some confuse the matter further
by declaring that the soul goes to heaven or to hell. [2]
What is the source of this error? It is founded on the lie of the serpent of
old: “You surely will not die”
(Genesis 3.4). In other words, the big lie is that man’s soul is immortal. If
it is immortal, then it can never die even in
death; therefore, it must go to some place to live in death. This lie has been incorporated into pagan myths and
fables, or what could be called pagan theology, which has infiltrated the
theology of Christendom to the point that the lie of Satan is preached from
many of the pulpits of Christendom.
Without
doubt, teaching on what happens to the dead, both those who die in Christ and
those who do not, runs the gamut to the point of confusion. However, all
confusion is cleared up if we follow what Scripture teaches and not hold to
doctrines of demons. It is rather simple; all the dead are in death. The body of the dead returns to the soil from whence it
came; the soul, which cannot exist apart from the body and the spirit, returns
to the unseen from whence it came; and the spirit of life returns to God from
whence it came (see Job 10.9; 34.15; Psalm 16.10; 30.3; 35.7; 38.17; 49.14, 15;
86.13; 89.48; 146.3-4; Ecclesiastes 3.19-20; 12.5-7). All the dead or asleep in
Christ have no knowledge. They simply are in a state of death, which is likened
to sleep, awaiting the shout of the Lord Himself and the blast of the trumpet
of God to awaken them from sleep as the One who has conquered death descends out of heaven (see 1 Thessalonians
4.13-17). One-thousand years later, the rest of the dead will be raised to face
the great white throne judgment (see Revelation 20.5, 11-15). While in the
state of death no one is in heaven or in a fictitious place called hell.
If we do not understand the true
nature of death, we will not understand and appreciate the true nature of the
glory of the resurrection, transfiguration and immortality.
Let
it be indelibly etched into our minds and written on our hearts that man is not
immortal and, as such, does not possess a soul that is immortal. We must put
off mortality and put on immortality, which places us forever beyond the power
of death. The only way to achieve immortality is through the resurrection from
[among] the dead and the transfiguration into the glory of His [Jesus’] body,
which only comes about when our Savior comes out of heaven to rescue us from death. This is the Scriptural
expectation of every true believer. Thus, the Scriptural order of our
expectation is first resurrection (if
we fall asleep in Jesus), and then transfiguration
into His likeness, which makes us immortal.
Can
you imagine anything more glorious than the moment when all the conquering saints in Christ stand up from the grave and,
along with all the conquering saints
in Christ that are alive and remain, walk together on this earth and then rise
to meet the Lord? What a cloud of witnesses! What glory!
In
order for us to clearly understand this matter, there are four foundational truths
that must be stressed.
Death
is lording over Him no longer.
Now if we died
together with Christ, we believe that we shall be living together with Him
also, having perceived that Christ,
being roused from among the dead, is no longer dying. Death is lording it over Him no longer, for in that He died, He
died to Sin once for all time, yet in that He is living, He is living to God.
(Romans 6.8-10 CV)
First, it must
be stressed that Christ was roused from among the dead and that death has no
more power over Him. He has conquered death or is beyond death, never to be
subjected to it again. In other words, He has immortality. If we do not start
with this truth, then we have no foundation upon which to build.
Christ
alone has immortality.
He is King of kings
and Lord of lords, Who alone has
immortality, making His home in light inaccessible, Whom not one of mankind
perceived nor can be perceiving, to Whom be honor and might eonian! Amen! (1
Timothy 6.15b-16 CV)
Second, it must
be stressed that, as the King of kings and Lord of lords, Christ alone has immortality. We need to be
reminded that Paul penned these words many years after
This one truth—Who
alone has immortality—should settle the whole issue of where the dead are
today. Christ, the second Man, alone is beyond death; to date, no one from
among mankind has moved beyond death.
I
am the Way!
“Let
not your heart be disturbed. Believe in God, and believe in Me. In My Father’s
house are many abodes; yet if not I would have told you, for I am going to make
ready a place for you. And if I should be going and making ready a place for
you, I am coming again and I will be taking you along to Myself,
that where I am, you also may be. And where I am going you are aware, and of
the way you are aware.” Thomas is saying to Him, “Lord, we are not aware
whither Thou art going, and how can we be aware of the way?” Jesus is saying to
him, “I am the Way and the Truth and
the Life. No one is coming to the Father except through Me.” (John 14.1-6 CV)
Third, it must be stressed that Jesus is the Way in all
respects of death and life. He is the only way out of death and into immortal
life. In fact, His resurrection is the pattern for our resurrection. All others
who have died and were resurrected were raised to mortal life, not to immortal
life. When their days came to an end they simply returned to death.
These words spoken by Jesus to His disciples are often
used to preach that when a believer dies he or she immediately goes to heaven
to live in heavenly mansions. I have stressed elsewhere that this is not
according to Scripture, so it will not be repeated here. However, it is needful
to understand that the emphasis of Jesus’ words is on Him coming again and
taking His disciples along to Himself, implying that they would be with Him at
some future time. As a side note, Jesus also implied that He would return to
them soon in the form of the spirit of God that would be sent to them when He
was glorified after His resurrection and ascension.
Thomas, in particular, was puzzled by what Jesus stated
and acknowledged that he did not understand the way that Jesus was going.
Simply, he did not know where Jesus was going and the way in which He would get
there. Please understand that Jesus was not establishing a doctrine of going to
heaven, living in mansions and walking on streets of gold, as some preach.
Jesus was declaring that He is the Way to life and that
His way to life was through the death of the cross and the resurrection from
among the dead. Thomas did not understand this truth until Jesus revealed His
nail scarred hands and side to Thomas after He was resurrected and before His
final ascension to the throne of God (John 20.26-29). Only then could Thomas
declare: “My Sovereign and my Elohim!”
(John 20.28 TSS). However, Thomas was not alone in his doubt, for the
other disciples did not understand that the Way to life was through the death
of the cross either (see Mark 9.32).
Consequently, Jesus’ death and resurrection are our
pattern for life as well. We must go the same way that He went. I am the Way, the Resurrection and the Life
(John 11.25) sum up the heart of the matter. Whether we are speaking of
spiritual life or immortal life, the only way to achieve either is through
death and resurrection life, and this is only achieved through the One who has
conquered death and now possesses immortal life. He is the Way!
Christ Jesus abolishes death.
You may not be
ashamed, then, of the testimony of our Lord, nor yet of me, His prisoner, but
suffer evil with the evangel in accord with the power of God, Who saves us and
calls us with a holy calling, not in accord with our acts, but in accord with
His own purpose and the grace which is given to us in Christ Jesus before times
eonian, yet now is being manifested through the advent of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, Who, indeed, abolishes death,
yet illuminates life and incorruption through the evangel of which I was
appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher of the nations. (2 Timothy
1.8-11 CV)
Fourth, it must
be stressed that Christ Jesus abolishes death. Some translations state that He abolished, but abolishes is the more accurate verb tense. He conquered death when
He was roused from among the dead, but He also abolishes death because, as Paul
taught the Corinthians, Christ must be reigning until He should be placing all
His enemies under His feet and the last enemy is abolished, that is, death (1
Corinthians 15.25-26 CV). In other words, abolishing
death is something that continues until the consummation of the eons. Scripture
reveals that the first resurrection will lead to the conquering, blessed and
holy saints being the first to move beyond death (Revelation 20.4-6).
Through the evangel entrusted to Paul, life and
incorruption are illuminated or brought to light in Christ. With the word incorruption, Paul introduced another
facet of the hope of the dead in Christ that leads to immortality. Incorruption is not quite the same as immortality, for incorruption means “incapable of corruption.” The word corruptible, the adjective form of corruption, means “subject to decay.”
The human body, which is a body of death, is corruptible, which means it is subject
to decay. However, it is recorded that Jesus’ body did not see corruption when
it was wrapped in linen and placed in the tomb for three days. It is quite
different for all mankind. When all of us die, our bodies remain in the grave
beyond three days, at which time decay sets in until all flesh is consumed;
therefore, no one, not even believers, is beyond the corruption of the body
brought on by death. Simply, all decay and return to the soil.
There is only one way to overcome corruption and that begins
with resurrection.
Resurrection.
Death
is the enemy of every living person and the only thing that can reverse death
is resurrection or being roused from the state of being dead. Death is not
merely the enemy of our body but of our entire being (the person), for the dead
(the person) know nothing whatsoever.
As Peter declared to the
sons of
Now, resurrection reverses what took place at death. The Greek word
for resurrection is anastasis, which means “up-standing,”
implying that the body will stand up. Following the concordant approach to
translation, resurrection refers to
the body standing up from death, rousing
[3] refers
to the soul awakening as from sleep, and vivification
[4] refers
to the return of the spirit. Which comes first is most likely similar to how
Adam was created. The body is formed, the spirit enters the body to give it life,
and the soul is awakened once there is life in the body. However, instead of
being a living soul in a soilish and soulish body, the resurrected saint, as a
new creation in Christ, will be roused a spiritual body, wearing the image of
the Celestial One (see 1 Corinthians 15.42-49 CV).
Paul clearly explained the process to the believers in
Notice how Paul stressed that it is the spirit that makes the body
alive, which means that resurrection is totally dependent on the spirit of God.
For the believer, the whole process will take place in the twinkling of an eye,
which is pretty fast, so the order of the change really does not matter. What
matters is that it only comes because of His spirit, and when it does come, we
will all be changed.
It
is needful to be reminded that resurrection was not a new idea that surfaced
with
Job saw ahead to the day
in which he would be resurrected. “As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the
earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God; whom I myself shall behold, and
whom my eyes shall see and not another. My heart faints within me!” (Job
19.25-27 NASB). He has waited
in silence and unconsciousness a long time, but his day may be coming soon.
Consider
the words of two Hebrew prophets.
Thy dead shall come
to life again, my dead body they
shall arise, awake and shout for joy, ye that dwell in the dust, for a dew
of light is thy dew, and earth to the shades shall give birth. (Isaiah 26.19 REB)
“From those sleeping in the soil of the ground many shall awake, these to eonian life
and these to reproach for eonian repulsion.” (Daniel 12.2 CV) [5]
Or, consider the words of the Lord Jesus Himself.
Marvel not at this,
for coming is the hour in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice,
and those who do good shall go out into a
resurrection of life, yet those who commit bad things, into a resurrection of judging. (John
5.28-29 CV)
And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him,
“When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your
brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite
you in return and that will be your repayment. But when you give a reception,
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed,
since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
(Luke 14.12-14 NASB)
And, answering,
Jesus said to them, “The sons of this eon are marrying and are taking out in
marriage. Yet those deemed worthy to
happen upon that eon and the
resurrection from among the dead are neither marrying nor taking out in
marriage. For neither can they still be dying, for they are equal to messengers,
and are the sons of God, being sons of
the resurrection.” (Luke 20.34-36 CV)
Consider Jesus’ response
to Martha who, like some of the Jews of her day, knew that there is a future resurrection.
Jesus is saying to
her, “Your brother will be rising.” Martha is saying to Him, “I am aware that
he will be rising in the resurrection in
the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I
am the Resurrection and the Life. He who is believing in Me, even if he
should be dying, shall be living. And everyone who is living and believing in
Me, should by no means be dying for the eon. Are you believing this?” (John
11.23-26 CV)
Notice that Jesus first declared that He is the
Resurrection and the Life. Believing in Him does not mean that the person
bypasses death, for He went on to acknowledge that such a one dies, but the
believer will not be dying for the eon. In other words, the believer will have
eonian life or life in the oncoming eon. How will the believer achieve such
life? There is only one way and that is through resurrection that will lead to
immortal life, as well as eonian life; life in the eon to come.
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, received
revelation directly from the Lord about the resurrection. He was encouraged by
the Thessalonians who were waiting for His Son out of the heavens (1
Thessalonians 1.10 CV). He encouraged their
hearts when they were concerned over the fate of their dead loved ones (died
believing on Jesus). Thus, he taught them what the risen Lord had revealed to
him about the resurrection of those asleep in Christ and the snatching away to meet
the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4.13-18). Later, in writing to the Corinthians,
Paul went to great lengths to defend the resurrection of Christ, as well as the
believer’s resurrection.
For if the dead are
not raised not even Christ hath been raised; and if Christ hath not been
raised to no purpose is your faith, yet are ye in your sins! Hence also they who are fallen asleep in Christ are
lost: if in this life in Christ we have hoped—and that is all we are of all
men most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15.16-19 REB)
Paul retorted with the truth!
But now hath Christ
been raised from among the dead,—a
firstfruit of them who have fallen asleep; for since indeed through a man
came death through a man also cometh the raising of the dead; for just as in
Adam all die so also in the Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own
rank (class): a firstfruit Christ, after that they who are the Christ’s in his
Presence,—afterwards the end (consummation)—whensoever he delivereth up the
kingdom unto his God and Father. (1 Corinthians 15.20-24 REB)
Christ is the firstfruit of all that have fallen asleep,
which means that other fruit must follow Him into life. In fact, according to
Paul, in Adam all die and in
Christ shall all be made alive.
Who can dispute that all mankind die? All mankind is born of Adam’s race and
all die. This is indisputable. But the good news is that just as all mankind is
in Adam, so will all mankind be in Christ, and in Christ shall all be made alive; that is, all mankind shall one
day be made alive as well. This will not occur all at once, for mankind is
divided into classes or ranks (anointed firstfruits, those who are His in His presence,
and the remainder of mankind at the consummation of the eons). Each will be
made alive in their own class and in their own era or proper time (see 1
Timothy 2.6).
Finally, John, the beloved apostle, was given great
revelation of Christ and the final days of this eon as Christ takes the scepter
of the kingdom over this earth and reigns for a thousand years. Near the
closing of the vision given on
Blessed and holy is he
that hath part in the first resurrection:
on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of
Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Revelation 20.6 KJV)
Happy and holy is
he who is having part in the former
resurrection! [6] Over
these the second death has no jurisdiction, but they will be priests of God and
of Christ, and they will be reigning with Him the thousand years. (Revelation
20.6 CV)
Unfortunately,
the resurrection has become a secondary, if not totally ignored or lost tenet (teaching,
doctrine) throughout Christendom. As in Paul’s day, there are some who even
deny that there will be a resurrection (2 Timothy 2.18), and others make it entirely a spiritual happening that
occurs in the life of the believer. In either case, a literal and physical resurrection
that brings about the redemption of the body is denied (Romans 8.23).
Why
the avoidance or ignorance of the resurrection? Perhaps there are many reasons
for this, but one answer lies in the unfortunate view of death, which places
the believer in a blissful life in
death (i.e., immediately upon death). After all, if in death one does not really die but goes into the glory of heaven,
of what value is resurrection to the believer? With this thinking, the
resurrection becomes something secondary, even meaningless, so there is no
reason to teach about it.
A
pastor-teacher, who has a world-wide radio and Internet ministry, recently told
his audience that when believers die, they immediately receive a body in
heaven. Again, this begs for an answer to the question: If this is true, then
of what value is the resurrection to all who are asleep in Christ? Well, this
pastor has no problem with this question, for he also has believers receiving
another body in the resurrection. But what value is it to receive another body
in the resurrection (third one, if you are counting) if dead saints already
have lived in new bodies for however long they supposedly have been in heaven?
This defies logic and, most of all, is not discovered in Scripture. The only
way one could possibly accept such a thought is to believe that once believers
die, they are immediately resurrected, which is, in fact, what some teach.
Again, no such teaching is discovered in Scripture. Paul proclaimed that we will not all sleep (that is, die, for
some will be alive and remain to the presence of the Lord), but we will all be changed, in a moment, in
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and
the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed (1 Corinthians
15.51-52 NASB). The fact that some are dead and some are alive
when the trumpet sounds indicates a future event. Thus, Paul placed this grand
event at a moment in time, not every time a saint dies.
Another
reason for the loss of the greatness of resurrection to the believer is the
thought that the resurrection only involves the body. Such thinking can easily
lead to the mistaken idea that the soul is immortal in death. It also can lead to the misunderstanding that
resurrection (or, perhaps immortality) is not out of death but out of some
other form of life in some other place. It is true that resurrection is about
the redemption of the body, but resurrection is about more than the body because
a body must have spirit to come alive. But let us be clear that mankind was
created as spirit, soul and body (1 Thessalonians 5.23). Take one of these
components away, especially the body and the spirit, and we cease to exist
(die) as God created us to be. Put them all back together and we are made alive
as God created us to be.
Paul
referred to the deliverance of our body from the slavery of corruption and death
(see Romans 8.18-25 CV). In the resurrection, our bodies of death will be
conformed to the body of His glory. They must be transfigured if they are to
put on immortality. However, a body has no life without the spirit of life
breathed into it (Genesis 2.7; James 2.26). The spirit, which in death returned
to God who gave it in the first place (Ecclesiastes 12.7), must return to the
body. But when it returns, it will bring about a major change in our constitution.
As Paul wrote, it is sown a soulish body, but it will be roused a spiritual
body. “The first man, Adam, became a living soul;” the last Adam a vivifying
Spirit. The first man was out of the earth, soilish; the second Man is the Lord
out of heaven. We will be wearing the image of the Celestial (see 1 Corinthians
15.45-49 CV). The resurrection, rousing, vivification and
transfiguration will truly bring forth a new creation in Christ.
Now,
many might agree with the matter of the body and the spirit; however, the soul
is seen in an entirely different light. The soul is often viewed as a distinct
part of man that can operate separately from the body and spirit, and because
of this thinking many hold that the soul departs into some other place to live in death. I realize that people do not
state it this way; but this is what their thinking means, regardless of their
words. However, the soul has no life apart from the body and the spirit.
Dear
brethren, if you have fallen prey to the orthodoxy of Christendom, come out of
it and seek the Lord to open the eyes of your heart to understand and come into
the true joy of your destiny.
A
true bona fide death of the whole person must take place, and a true bona fide
resurrection and vivification of the whole person is essential to overcome
death, and this is all in the power of the One who is the Way, the Resurrection
and the Life.
The
two resurrections.
Before
moving on to the transfiguration, we need to see that there are at least two major resurrections that occur about 1,000
years apart. In his
As
we look at this topic, there are varying views on who participates in which
resurrection and even when the resurrections occur. In what follows, I offer
some thoughts on the matter as I see Scripture, recognizing that with most, if
not all, interpretation of Scripture, there are gaps in our understanding. I
often say that it seems we can get about 90% of the way in our understanding,
but there always seems to be another 10% that remains elusive to our
understanding. Perhaps this is by the design of God, as if He has purposely
built a tension into Scripture. In the final analysis, whichever view one
holds, what matters most is that, as believers, we seek to be ones who, by His
grace, faith and love, overwhelmingly conqueror through Christ who loves us (Romans
8.37).
To
understand these two resurrections, it is best to start with the second or
latter one. The fact of the matter is that the Jews in Jesus’ day expected a
general resurrection. We see this expectation in Martha’s response to Jesus
regarding her brother’s death.
Jesus is saying to her, “Your brother will be
rising.” Martha is saying to Him, “I am aware that he will be rising in the resurrection in the last day.”
Jesus said to her, “I am the Resurrection and the Life. (John 11.23-25 CV)
For
Martha, the last day referred to when there will be a general resurrection of
all the dead. Jesus Himself referred to this day.
Marvel not at this,
for coming is the hour in
which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice, and those who do good shall go out into a resurrection of life, yet
those who commit bad things, into a resurrection of judging. (John
5.28-29 CV)
Paul also referred to this hour in his defense before
Felix the governor.
But this I confess
unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of
my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the
prophets: And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that
there shall be a resurrection of
the dead, both of the just and unjust. (Acts 24.14-45 KJV)
Both Jesus and Paul concur that there is a resurrection of
ones who do good, the just, and a
resurrection of the ones who do bad things, the
unjust.
Most
commentators see these as two resurrections separated by 1,000 years; that is, the resurrection of life is the first resurrection, and the resurrection of judging is the second resurrection. Perhaps there is
another way to look at this. Jesus said that coming is the hour, which is a figurative way of expressing a short period of
time having a common characteristic. A search of Scripture will reveal that hour is used in this manner in most
cases, which would mean that the hour
would not indicate a millennial gap between the two. Jesus declared that all
who are in the tombs shall hear His voice, which seems to indicate that all at
once will hear it. Paul referred to it as a resurrection, as if there is
one resurrection that raises the just and the unjust. This is also the
same resurrection that was revealed to Daniel (Daniel 12.2).
Consequently,
it is more likely that Jesus and Paul (and what was revealed to Daniel) referred
to one resurrection occurring at the same time; and it is the second
resurrection that John saw in his
Then I saw a great white
throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away,
and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were
opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which
were written in the books, according to their deeds. (Revelation 20.11-12 NASB)
Interestingly, Job referred to the small and the great in
death, and wondered why he had not joined them in death when he was first born.
“Why did I not die
at birth, come forth from the womb and expire? The small and the great are there….” (Job 3.11, 19 NASB)
Book of life.
Many
commentators assume that when the book of life is opened, no one’s name of
those standing before the throne will be recorded in the book, and that it is
opened only for verification of this alleged fact. Thus, they conclude that all
will be judged and cast into the lake of fire. I too thought this way, but upon
further study, I have some doubts that we can make such an assumption.
It
is more likely that the book of life is opened because the ones having done
good, the just, and the ones having
done bad things, the unjust, will be
standing before the great white throne, and the book will be used to separate
the two groups. The just (believers) will be resurrected to immortal life and
enter God’s day as His people (resurrection of life). The unjust (unbelievers)
will be resurrected to face the judgment of the lake of fire with the purpose
of chastening and cleansing them, so that they too will have immortal life, either
during God’s day, or at the consummation of the eons when death is abolished
forever (resurrection of judging).
But
the question arises as to why the just would appear before the great white
throne and not be resurrected in the first resurrection 1,000 years prior? Are
they not saved? Yes; they are saved. First, during the Kingdom Age, birth and
death will be operative, and it is quite possible that some of the just will
die during this period. Second, these are believers that lived before the
Kingdom Age that failed to conquer while in their bodies of humiliation, and
because of this, they are chastised along with the unbelievers. We see an
illustration of this in Jesus’ parable on the faithful and unfaithful stewards
or servants.
And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise
steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their
portion of meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he
cometh shall find so doing. Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him
ruler over all that he hath. But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord
delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and
to eat and drink, and to be drunken; the lord of that servant will come in a
day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint
him his portion with the unbelievers. (Luke 12.42-46 KJV)
The
unfaithful servant in this parable is contrasted with an unbeliever, which
means that the unfaithful one must be a believer.
To
add further clarity to this, we must understand the character of the first
resurrection, and to do this we need to turn to Paul.
Out-resurrection,
first resurrection, better resurrection.
In order that I might come to know Him in an
experiential way, and to come to know experientially the power of His
resurrection and a joint-participation in His sufferings, being brought to the
place where my life will radiate His likeness to His death, if by any means I
might arrive at the goal, namely, the
out-resurrection from among those who are dead. (Philippians 3.10-11 WAET)
Truly,
Paul desired above all things to live as if he were radiating the very life of
Christ in his body, even in suffering and death. Paul’s desire was based on a
goal set before him; it was to arrive at what he called the out-resurrection, which comes from the
Greek word exanastasis. This is the
only place in Greek Scripture that this particular word is discovered.
Unfortunately, practically all versions of Scripture simply translate it as resurrection.
Before
looking at this word, it is important to see that Scripture uses two expressions
in relation to resurrection. The first expression is the resurrection of the dead (e.g., Matthew 22.31; Acts
17.32; 23.6; 24.21, 13; Hebrews 6.2), which to most Jews referred to a general
resurrection of the good (just) and the bad (unjust). According to their
understanding, a day would come when all would be resurrected and judged. We
discover this in the three disciples’ response to Jesus’ order as He came down
the mountain after being transfigured. This leads to the second expression—rising from the dead or resurrection from the dead.
As they were coming down from the mountain, He gave them
orders not to relate to anyone what they had seen, until the Son of Man rose from the dead. They seized upon that statement, discussing with one another what rising
from the dead meant. (Mark 9.9-10 NASB)
As Israelites, the disciples knew that all the dead would
be resurrected as expressed in the
resurrection of the dead, but they did not understand that there
would be a resurrection from the
dead. In other words, not only did they not understand that Jesus, as the
Son of Man, was to die on the cross, but that He would also be raised from the
dead. There is only one other place in the Gospels that this expression is used;
it is used in reference to Jesus raising his friend Lazarus from the dead (John
12.1, 9). Thus, the expression the
resurrection from the dead refers to a select group that is
resurrected out from among all the dead while the rest remain dead. Notice how
Paul used both expressions in his defense of resurrection.
Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do
some among you say that there is no resurrection
of the dead? (1 Corinthians 15.12 NASB)
Out of twenty-two references in Greek Scripture to being raised from the dead, twenty-one
of them refer to Jesus (John 2.22; 12.1, 9; 21.14; Acts 3.15, 4.10, 13.30, 34;
Romans 4.24; 6.4, 9; 7.4; 8.11; 10.9; 1 Corinthians 15.12, 20; Galatians 1.1;
Ephesians 1.20; Colossians 2.12; 1 Thessalonians 1.10; 1 Peter 1.21), and one
refers to Lazarus (John 12.17). Out of seven references in Greek Scripture to the resurrection from the dead,
five refer to Jesus (Acts 14.2; 26.23; Romans 1.4; 1 Corinthians 15.12; 1 Peter
1.3) and two refer to man (Luke 20.35; Philippians 3.11). The Luke reference is
particularly telling.
Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age [eon] marry and
are given in marriage, but those who are
considered worthy to attain to that age [eon] and the resurrection from
the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; for they cannot even die
anymore, because they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. (Luke 20.34-36
NASB [CV])
The point in all this is that there are only two main
expressions in Scripture related to the resurrection, one of which almost
exclusively is used in reference to Jesus being raised or resurrected from the dead. The CV adds the word among to this expression—raised or resurrected from among the
dead—to make it more emphatic. This expression lays the foundation for the
fact that some will also be resurrected from among the dead at some future
time.
Now, returning to the goal that Paul sought to attain; he
did not merely use the expression resurrection
from the dead, but he added something to it.
If by any means I
might arrive at the goal, namely, the
out-resurrection [exanastasis] from
among those who are dead. (Philippians 3.11 WAET) [7]
Exanastasis is made up of two words. It is comprised of anastasis, which means “standing up
again.” This is the most commonly used word in Greek Scripture to refer to the
resurrection. However, Paul added the prefix ex, which “denotes origin or the point from whence motion or
action proceeds, or out of a place, time or cause.” It can mean “out among,”
which seems to be the most appropriate meaning to Paul’s goal. The Concordant
Greek Text, English Sublinear, translates this expression as “out-up-standing
of the out-of-dead-ones.”
Thus,
Paul sought to stand up again from among the dead. In other words, Paul saw a
resurrection in which only some will stand up; others will remain dead.
Obviously, this cannot refer to the general resurrection of the just and the unjust,
for they all will stand up at the same time, in the same hour.
Having
been a devout Pharisee, Paul knew that all the dead will be resurrected one
day. As we have seen, he knew of the second resurrection, but this was not
Paul’s goal. He sought to arrive at or to attain to a very special goal. Attain (Greek katantao) means “to arrive at.” In other words, Paul’s goal was to
one day arrive at the resurrection from
the dead, the same resurrection that his Lord had attained. In desiring to die
as his Lord died, Paul was seeking to rise from among the dead just as the Lord
rose as the firstfruit of those who have fallen asleep (1 Corinthians 15.20).
We
could say that Paul sought for a
firstfruit resurrection that he called the
out-resurrection. How do we know that there is a firstfruit resurrection? Because
Paul tells us so!
But now hath Christ been raised from among the dead,— [1] a firstfruit of them who have fallen asleep;
for since indeed through a man came death through a man also cometh the raising
of the dead; for just as in Adam all die so also in the Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own rank
(class): [2] a firstfruit Christ, [3]
after that they who are the Christ’s in
his Presence,—[4] afterwards the end
(consummation)—whensoever he delivereth up the kingdom unto his God and
Father. (1 Corinthians 15.20-24 REB [numbers added by writer])
The
numbers have been added in these verses to highlight four different groups or
classes. The first thing that we need to see is that Christ is in a class all
by Himself, for He is a firstfruit of them who have fallen asleep ([1] in above
verse), that is, the dead. Christ alone has immortality. In Adam all die. However, the good news is that
in Christ shall all be made alive, but
not all at the same time; there is an order to their resurrection. Paul gives
us this order, and it starts with a class that is also a firstfruit.
Now,
most commentators see a firstfruit Christ
([2] in above verse) in one of two ways. Some see this as referring to those
who were resurrected after Jesus rose from the dead. This group was raised to
mortal life; thus, they died again and did not enter immortal life. Some see
this as referring to Christ Himself. I disagree with both views.
If
we follow Paul’s logic, we discover that each
in his own order refers back to in
Christ shall all be made alive. In other words, it refers to all mankind
that die, not to Christ Himself. It only follows that if Christ Himself is a
firstfruit, then there are other firstfruits to follow. During harvest time the
farmer does not pick just one piece of fruit and considers it is his
firstfruits; rather, he harvests a group of fruit that he considers his
firstfruits.
According
to the English Sublinear of the Concordant Greek Text, the first group that
Paul lists is simply “firstfruit anointed.” The word Christ can also be translated as the word anointed. Thus, the first group could be called “anointed
firstfruits.” We could say that the cream of the crop is resurrected first from
among mankind. There will be a group of believers that will be counted worthy
to attain to the oncoming eon to reign with Christ; they are sons of the
resurrection (Luke 20.34-36).
I
believe that this is the out-resurrection
to which Paul sought to attain. It is the first
or former resurrection that John saw
in his
And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was
given to them, and the souls of the ones having been beheaded because of the
testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and who did not prostrate
themselves in worship before the beast nor his image and did not receive the
mark on forehead and on their hand. And they
lived and reigned with Christ [for] thousand years. And the rest of the
dead did not live until the thousand years are completed. This [is] the first resurrection. Happy and holy
[is] the one having a part in the first
resurrection; over these the second death does not have power, but they
will be priests of God and of Christ, and they
will reign with Him [for] a thousand years. (Revelation 20.4-6 ALT)
Happy
and holy are those who participate in the first resurrection, for they will
reign with Christ for a thousand years. The second death will have no power
over them. This group is made up of believers only, which is a vital point to our discussion. Unbelievers have
no part in this resurrection and some, perhaps many, believers will be
excluded as well. Only ones found worthy of the oncoming eon are the sons of
the resurrection; they are the only ones in the first resurrection. In other
words, it will take more than being justified (the just) to be in the first resurrection;
one must be a conqueror. The rest of the dead, which includes the just not
deemed worthy of the next eon and the unjust, must remain dead for a thousand
years. They will miss receiving an inheritance in the coming
Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others
were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others
experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They
were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death
with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute,
afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in
deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. And all these, having gained approval through their faith,
did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better
for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. (Hebrews 11.35-40 NASB)
The
ones who will be considered worthy of the first
or better resurrection, the out-resurrection, are ones who will have
conquered while they lived in their bodies of death. How will they have
conquered? They will have conquered through grace, faith and love. Hebrews 11
lists the many that walked by faith and conquered in their day. Paul declared: We are more than conquering through Him Who
loves us (Romans 8.37 CV). How do we conquer? We do it through love―love
for our God and Savior, love for one another, and love for our enemies. If we
love, we also forgive, including our enemies that do us much harm, for this is
what we are commanded to do (Matthew 5.44; 6.14). If we want to be in the
out-resurrection, then we must love and forgive, and this is done by laying
down our lives, even unto death if necessary.
They
conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for
they did not love their lives in the face of death. (Revelation
12.11 HCSB)
These
are the ones who overwhelmingly conquer through the One Who loves us, and who
will be priests of God and of Christ that will reign with Christ for 1,000 years.
Well,
much could be written about conquering, but we must press on.
The
second group to be resurrected is the rest of mankind that must appear in the
presence of Christ ([3] in above verse). If the firstfruits resurrection is the first
resurrection, and this occurs at the end of our present eon, then this
resurrection must occur 1,000 years later. It is the second resurrection of the
just and the unjust, when most of mankind must stand in the presence of the
Judge. In other words, this group includes believers (the just) that were not
included in the first resurrection or out-resurrection. The just will have believed
in Jesus but did not conquer through His life; thus, they were not anointed
firstfruits. They will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Corinthians 3.15),
and they will enter into immortality. The unbelievers (the unjust) will be cast
in the lake of fire and will not enter immortality at this time. They will be
brought in at the end or perhaps before ([4] in above verse).
Paul
declared then comes the end. A more
literal rendering is thereafter the consummation.
In other words, at the consummation of the eons, the rest of mankind that did
not receive the benefit of immortality from the second resurrection must be transfigured
into immortal life when death is abolished. I do not see these ones going
through a third bodily resurrection, because they were resurrected to appear at
the great white throne judgment. What they require is immortality, but to receive
this, they must be chastened and purified in the lake of fire, which represents
God’s divine law, the standard by which their sin and works will be judged. To
me, brought back to life to live in mortal bodies for an undetermined time is
chastisement enough, especially as they will see that others are immortal,
living in glorified bodies. They will enter into a second type of death (not
physical and definitely not for torture) that is designed to purify them, so
that one day they too can enter into immortality. If they are not brought out
of this second death, then it cannot be declared that death is abolished, and
Christ will not have accomplished the work given to Him by His Father; and thus,
His work of the cross will have been a failure.
But
how do we know that the unjust one day will be resurrected to life? We know it
because Paul declared that Christ must reign until He has subjected all things
to Himself. The ones being subjected to Christ are the unjust or the wicked,
unrighteous.
For HE HAS PUT ALL
THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put
in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in
subjection to Him. When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself
also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God
may be all in all. (1 Corinthians 15.27-28 NASB)
In other words, His
purpose of reigning is to subject all things in heaven and on earth to Himself,
so that He can then subject all things, including Himself, to His Father, so
that God may be All in all. Notice
that the mission of the Son of God is not to destroy all things but to subject
all things, for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but
to save them (Luke 9.56 NASB). It is not His purpose to destroy or annihilate the
unjust, but to subject them, so that the word of God, which does not return void,
is fulfilled.
For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed
on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are
in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory
of God the Father. (Philippians 2.9-11 NASB; also
Isaiah 45.23)
Notice that every knee and every tongue will be involved
with this declaration. Every means all!
Jesus declared: “Now is
[the] judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.
“And I, if I am lifted up from the earth,
I will draw [or, drag] all to
Myself.” (John 12.31-32 ALT)
Truly,
Jesus must judge the world and subject all to Himself, and He will do this,
even if He must drag all to Himself. This is the meaning of drawing all. Jesus will not fail to drag
all mankind to Himself, and this must include the unjust that will be purified
in a second type of death, the lake of fire, so that in Christ shall all be
made alive. To God be all the praise, honor and glory!
Once we are clear on the resurrection, we need to be clear
that resurrection in itself does not lead to immortality. A transfiguration or
dramatic change of the person must take place in order to become immortal.
Transfiguration―we shall all be changed.
Behold, I show you a mystery [secret]; we shall not all
sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at
the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed. For this
corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall
have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then
shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in
victory. (1 Corinthians 15.51-54 KJV [CV])
Paul brought the entire matter of incorruption and
immortality to an apex in his defense of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15.
In his first epistle to the Thessalonians, Paul comforted their hearts that
their dead loved ones would not miss the presence of the Lord, for they would
be raised from among the dead and snatched away with brethren in Christ who
will be alive and remain on earth on that glorious day (1 Thessalonians
4.13-18). Paul wrote of this same event in the above verses that not all will
sleep or die, which reiterates the fact that when Christ comes there will be
believers alive on earth that consequently will never experience the unconsciousness
of death. However, Paul revealed a mystery or secret (something hidden in the
past but now revealed) to the Corinthians that was not made clear to the
Thessalonians—we shall all be changed;
that is, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump, all the dead brethren and all
the alive brethren shall all be
changed.
Now, notice to whom Paul referred when he used the word incorruptible. The dead shall be raised
incorruptible. Why just the dead and not the alive ones? The answer lies in the
fact that only the dead see corruption or decay of the body. The ones who are
alive and remain may have experienced the slow process of dying in their bodies,
but they will never see corruption; this only comes when the life of the body
departs. When the dead are roused, they will move beyond decay or corruption.
For this reason, Paul first declared that the change occurs with the dead as
they put off corruption and put on incorruption.
Next, Paul declared that the change is from mortality to
immortality. Mortality means “being
subjected to death”; therefore, immortality
means “not being subjected to death.” [8] [9] Immortality comes from the Greek word athanasia, which means “un-death” or “deathlessness.”
First, the dead move beyond corruption (decay), and then
they, along with those who are alive and remain, together move beyond death. It is then that death is swallowed up
in victory and that Christ will no longer be the only one who has immortality.
The ecclesia, which is His body, will be immortal as He is, for we know that
when He is revealed, we (the body) shall be like Him (1 John 3.2 NKJ), for He will transfigure the body of our humiliation, to
conform it to the body of His glory (Philippians 3.21 CV). Christ loves His body as a husband is to love his wife
as his own body. When Christ comes again, He
should be presenting to Himself a glorious ecclesia, not having spot or wrinkle
or any such things, but that it may be holy and flawless (Ephesians 5.27-28
CV).
We put on immortality after the resurrection of the last
trump and in the twinkling of an eye! No one, except Christ, has immortality
until then, contrary to the teaching of so many in our day.
If
after the cross of
This
mortal must put on immortality. This glorious change is totally dependent on
Christ who is the Resurrection and the Life, and the resurrection of the saints
that will occur in the presence of the Lord at the end of our present eon.
As
stated earlier, the resurrections that occurred while Jesus walked this earth,
and later occurred on the day He was resurrected, and also later occurred
through His apostles shortly thereafter, did not lead to immortality for any of
the ones who were resurrected. Even Lazarus, who Jesus called forth from the
tomb after four days, did not become immortal, for according to history he died.
He, along with all the others, undoubtedly died again, for they were raised to
mortal life, which meant that they were still subject to corruption.
Now,
this is based on two points. First, as already stressed, the word of God
declares that today there is only One who has immortality. To date, only one
resurrection has led to immortality of one Person. Second, resurrection must be
followed by a transfiguration or change of the person into the likeness of
Christ. There is no Scriptural evidence that those who were resurrected at
Jesus’ first coming or any who have been resurrected since, even to this day,
have become like Christ. [10] To
this latter point, I have read that in our day resurrections of the dead are
occurring. I am not going to offer a judgment on whether this is in fact true,
but I have not read of any case in which the resurrected person was changed
into the likeness of Christ; that is, the person was transfigured into the body
of His glory. Surely, if this were occurring in our day, then it would be
blasted across the media that these people are totally different from any
humans walking on the face of the earth today.
Logic
demands.
Before moving on, there
is another point to be made regarding the illogical and unscriptural view of
death held by many. According to many preachers, the only difference between
dead unbelievers and dead believers is where they go in death and what they face in these places. On the one hand, the
dead unbeliever supposedly goes to a place called hell, which is like an eternal oven that torments the so-called lost soul with fire, worms and every
imaginable torture. On the other hand, the dead believer goes to heaven to be
in the presence of God and to walk on golden streets and enjoy the eternal
bliss of glory. Whether those who hold this view state so or not, the logical
conclusion of such teaching is that the dead unbelievers and the dead
believers are all beyond death.
Think about it; neither
truly dies in the sense of Scripture but merely enters another form of life,
one that is good and one that is bad. However, if both never truly die, then it
only follows that both are beyond death as well. Perhaps some will counter this
by declaring that being beyond death refers to the body alone, and since
neither has a resurrected body, technically, they are not beyond death. But
logic demands that if neither truly dies, then both must be beyond death,
unless one redefines death as something other than death, which is what most do
who hold this view; whether they admit it or not.
If this leaves your head
spinning trying to make any logical sense out of all of this, then you are not
alone because it leaves my head spinning as well. As I see it, such erroneous
teaching leads to immortality being treated just like resurrection; both are
generally ignored, except perhaps at funerals.
Conformed
to the body of His glory.
It
cannot be stressed enough that immortality only comes with being transfigured
into the likeness of Christ or, as Paul wrote to the Romans, conformed to the
image of God’s Son (Romans 8.29). Immortality is found in Christ, and our way into immortality is in Christ.
Paul encouraged the Philippians that a great change is
coming for those who are waiting for the Lord to come out of heaven.
For our realm is
inherent in the heavens, out of which we are awaiting a Saviour also, the Lord,
Jesus Christ, Who will transfigure the
body of our humiliation, to conform it to the body of His glory, in accord
with the operation which enables Him even to subject all to Himself.
(Philippians 3.20-21 CV)
And Paul reminded the Colossians: Be disposed
to that which is above, not to that on the earth, for you died, and your life
is hid together with Christ in God. Whenever Christ, our Life, should be
manifested [revealed], then you
also shall be manifested [revealed]
together with Him in glory (Colossians
3.2-4 CV [ALT]).
When will Christ be manifested or revealed? Not at the
death of the believer, but after His people are transfigured and He [Christ]
comes out of heaven. But Paul was not alone in this expectation, for John also declared the
expectation for believers when Christ is revealed.
Beloved, we are now children of God, and it has not yet been revealed
what we will be. But we know that when it [or, He] shall be revealed, we
will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is! And every one having
this hope [or, confident expectation]
in Him, purifies himself, just as that One is pure. (1 John 3.2-3 ALT)
Even David, the man after God’s heart (Acts 13.22), had a similar
expectation: As
for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness [form] when I awake [i.e., in resurrection]. (Psalm
17.15 NASB).
Studying Scripture will
unveil one undeniable fact—the hope or expectation given for the dead in Christ begins with the resurrection from among the dead that leads to the
presence of the Lord. Those resurrected from
among the dead and those alive and remain to the presence of the Lord will
be changed in the twinkling of an eye; that is, all will be transfigured. It is
at this point that this mortal will put on immortality.
Unveiled glory.
There are two sets of Scripture that give us a prophetic view
of the coming of the
Then Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud covered
the mountain. The glory of the LORD
rested on
“For the Son of Man
is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN
REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS. Truly I say to you, there are some of
those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” Six days later Jesus took with Him
Peter and James and John his brother, and led
them up on a high mountain by themselves. (Matthew 16.27-28; 17.1 NASB)
And He was
transfigured before them; and His
face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light.
(Matthew 17.2 NASB)
As Christ is our pattern of resurrection so is He our
pattern of transfiguration.
In a prophetic view of the Son of Man coming in His
kingdom and the glory of His Father, six days later, presumably on the seventh
day, just as the glory of the Lord appeared to Moses on the seventh day, Jesus
took His disciples up to a high mountain and was transfigured in their sight.
In Scripture, mountain typifies a kingdom. Seven is a number of divine perfection and refers to the sabbath
rest that comes after six days of work. In the restoration of this earth,
Elohim rested on the seventh day. Thus, after 6 days (6,000 years) on the
seventh day (7th millennium), the kingdoms of this world will become the
kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (Revelation 11.15).
While Jesus walked this earth as a Man, His glory was
veiled to all around Him. Undoubtedly, He had the treasure of glory hidden
within His earthen vessel. On the mountain His glory broke forth; it was
unveiled before the eyes of the three disciples. It was such an amazing sight
that they truly did not know what to do or how to react, other than to be
terrified in their earthly, carnal minds (Mark 9.10).
But there is more to this story than the Son of Man coming
in His kingdom. It is also a preview of the glory, which is within every
believer, that will break forth in the transfiguration that awaits us. Paul
picked up this theme in his second epistle to the Corinthians in which he
compared the fading glory of the old covenant as revealed to Moses to the
unfading glory of the new covenant in Christ.
For indeed what had glory, in this case has no glory
because of the glory that surpasses it. For
if that which fades away was with glory, much more that which remains is in
glory. Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech,
and are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons
of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away. But their
minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant
the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. But to this
day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; but whenever a person
turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and
where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of
the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just
as from the Lord, the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3.10-18 NASB)
Moses had to veil his face, for his glory was fading away;
however, for those who believe in the Lord, the veil is taken away, and with
unveiled face they behold the glory of the Lord, and in so doing, they are
transformed from glory to glory. The glory of the Lord is a glory that will not
fade, for it is formed in the one who has turned to the Lord. It is a treasure
hidden in earthen vessels.
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels…. (2
Corinthians 4.7 NASB)
We cannot see this treasure of glory, but by God’s word we
can be assured that it is being formed in us who believe. We are being
transformed into the image of Christ, going from glory to glory. Paul confirmed
this fact in his epistle to the Colossians.
The mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and
generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to
make known what is the riches of the
glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of
glory. (Colossians 1.26-27 NASB)
Christ in you
and His glory that is being formed in you is truly the treasure. This is the
hope and expectation of all who have turned to the Lord.
I believe that the conquerors of Christ will be so full of
glory that in His presence they will be like ripe fruit that from their inner
man will burst forth glory, for glory will not be able to be contained in that
day.
A
physical, spiritual, celestial body.
Now,
both Paul and John tell us that in immortality we will be like our Lord, and we
have a picture of Christ being transfigured; but what does this mean to those
who believe? As we say, what does it look like? Will we have a physical body,
or will we be like a spirit without form? The answer is that we will be both.
In fact, using Paul’s terms, we will have a body that is physical, and that is spiritual
and celestial; a body that will be capable of freely moving in and out of the
physical and spiritual or celestial realms. The spiritual body in the image of
the celestial is clearly presented in Paul’s defense of the resurrection.
There are bodies
celestial as well as bodies terrestrial. But a different glory, indeed, is
that of the celestial, yet a
different that of the terrestrial, another glory of the sun, and another glory
of the moon, and another glory of the stars, for star is excelling star in
glory. Thus also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it
is roused in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor; it is roused in glory. It is
sown in infirmity; it is roused in power. It is sown a soulish body; it is roused a spiritual body. If there
is a soulish body, there is a spiritual
also. Thus it is written also, The first man, Adam, “became a living soul:”
the last Adam a vivifying Spirit. But not first the spiritual, but the soulish,
thereupon the spiritual. The first
man was out of the earth, soilish; the
second Man is the Lord out of heaven. Such as the soilish one is, such are
those also who are soilish, and such as
the Celestial One, such are those also who are celestials. And according as
we wear the image of the soilish, we
should be wearing the image also of the Celestial. Now this I am averring,
brethren, that flesh and blood is not
able to enjoy an allotment in the
Notice
that Paul refers to spiritual and celestial and declares that flesh and
blood cannot enjoy an inheritance or allotment in the
Before
proceeding along this line, it might be helpful to explain the use of the words
spiritual and celestial as used by Paul. He speaks of the Lord out of heaven and
then refers to Him as the Celestial One. Most translations do not use the word celestial, but rather the word heavenly.
The Greek word from which celestial
is translated is epouranion, which
refers to that part of the universe that is on, or higher than. The concordant
method has chosen the word celestial
to distinguish it from the word heaven,
which comes from the Greek word ouranos.
Heaven implies what is seen when
looking up, and celestial implies
what is beyond the heavens; thus, it is higher
than.
At
the end of his natural life, Paul wrote Timothy that the Lord will be saving
him for His celestial (epouranion) kingdom (2 Timothy 4.18 CV). Again, most translations call it the heavenly kingdom.
So,
what does celestial actually mean? Is
it merely a place further out in the universe, or is it something more than
material matter or physical space? To understand the answer, we must step
outside our physical box and seek spiritual
to spiritual.
Paul
clearly joins the spiritual with the celestial. Consequently, I believe that
when he referred to that which is higher than, he was looking to the spiritual
realm, which is something far greater than merely a physical location in the
vast far reaches of the universe. It is as if Paul looked through the portal
that separates the spiritual from the physical and saw that the celestial (or,
what most call heaven) is actually
the spiritual realm of God. (Paul in fact did have an experience that could be
viewed as such as recorded in 2 Corinthians 12.2-4). The celestial realm is not a location but rather a dimension, the very
dimension in which God resides. Those who dwell in the celestial realm must be spiritual
in nature, for God is spirit. However, we will not be without form, for we will
have a spiritual body. We could say that our new body will be a joining of the
spiritual and the physical in the way that it was always intended to be for
mankind. This is glory!
Further,
when the Lord comes out of heaven, it is not as if He will have traveled
trillions of light years to get here from some far distant galaxy, which is how
many actually view it; but He will merely step through that portal that
separates the spiritual and the physical. He is with us today; we await the
manifestation of His presence and appearing. As Paul wrote: For our realm is inherent in the heavens, out of which we are waiting a Savior
also, the Lord Jesus Christ (Philippians 3.20 CV).
Christ
as the second Man, the last Adam, is the Lord out of heaven who is the
Celestial One, and those who become immortal also will be in His likeness as
ones wearing the image of the Celestial. Thus, Paul revealed that the spiritual
body is a celestial body, out of the realm of the heavens, which will not be
energized by blood. The physical body comes first and then the spiritual; but
notice that Paul did not present the physical body and the spiritual body as mutually
exclusive, as if once we have a spiritual, celestial body we will not have a
physical form or body as well. Once we put on immortality we will have bodies
like Jesus that are suited for the physical and spiritual realms. We will be
able to walk on the dusty streets of this terrestrial ball called earth, and soar among the celestials, and throughout God’s vast
spiritual realm. We will not be hindered by the space-time continuum.
The
fact of the matter is that Jesus revealed to His disciples that the resurrected
body will have both, for it will have flesh and bone, but evidently not blood. As
stated earlier, Christ is our pattern for the resurrection, and He is also our only
pattern for our new glorified body.
And they got up that very hour and returned to
After He was resurrected, Jesus appeared to His disciples,
much to their surprise. They thought they were seeing a spirit, which meant
that He would have had no bodily or physical form. They thought they were
looking at a ghost or an apparition. To prove that He was no such thing but
that He, in fact, had a physical body, Jesus directed their eyes to His hands
and feet that had been pierced. He then asked for something to eat and ate it
in their presence. An apparition could do no such thing, so He proved to them
that He had a physical body, one which He described as flesh and bones.
Although He manifested Himself in flesh and bones, Jesus also proved that He
was not held by the physical world, but that He could freely move into the
spiritual realm by appearing and disappearing from among His disciples. He
could also change His looks, so that His disciples could not immediately
recognize Him as He did on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24.13-35) or on the beach
(John 21.4).
Sons of Zadok.
Perhaps we discover a type of this in the sons of Zadok as
presented by Ezekiel.
“But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who kept
charge of My sanctuary when the sons of Israel went astray from Me, shall come
near to Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer Me the
fat and the blood,” declares the Lord GOD. “They shall enter My sanctuary; they
shall come near to My table to minister to Me and keep My charge. It shall be
that when they enter at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed
with linen garments; and wool shall not be on them while they
are ministering in the gates of the inner court and in the house. Linen turbans
shall be on their heads and linen undergarments shall be on their loins; they
shall not gird themselves with anything which makes them sweat. When they go out
into the outer court, into the outer court to the people, they shall put off
their garments in which they have been ministering and lay them in the holy
chambers; then they shall put on other garments so that they will not transmit
holiness to the people with their garments.” (Ezekiel 44.15-19 NASB)
Prophetically speaking, the sons of Zadok speak of the
holy and blessed ones of the first resurrection who will receive immortality
and eonian life in the oncoming eon and who will be priests of God and of Christ.
But notice how the sons of Zadok are commanded to wear linen when they minister
to the Lord in the sanctuary, but when they minister to the people they are to
put off their linen and put on other garments made of wool. In other words, in
type they must take on different garments, one to be in the presence of the
Lord and one to be in the presence of man. In the antitype, the priests of the
millennial eon will put on their spiritual form when they enter the spiritual
realm to be in the presence of the Lord among the celestials, and they will put
on their physical form when they enter the physical world to be in the presence
of mortal man.
Can you imagine anything more glorious than to live
unhindered in all God’s creation? This is our hope, and it is all based on Christ
in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1.27). Heaven, as most view it,
is not our hope. A glorified, immortal body is our hope, to be clothed with our
dwelling out of heaven, when this mortal is swallowed up by life (see 2
Corinthians 5.1-4).
I find it very interesting that what has been presented
regarding our hope of being transfigured and what it will look like seldom seems
to be stressed among those who love the thought of the appearing of the Lord,
even among those who want to see Jesus face to face. Instead, the emphasis
seems to be entirely on escaping from this world, entering heaven, walking on
streets of gold and living in heavenly mansions. The emphasis is often on
location and time.
Well-meaning brethren who love Jesus sing of “flying away,”
“taking the gospel ship,” “leaving this old world behind,” as if the Lord is
only interested in removing His people from this earth, so that they can walk
on streets of gold in heaven forever and ever. Forget the billions of people
who will be left behind. It is as if many are saying (without actually saying
it): “After all, they are ‘going to hell’ anyway, and this is by their own
choice, so they deserve what they get.” Oh, we need to repent if we have been
deceived into thinking this way.
Never mind that God is love, and He loves this old world created
through His Son and loves every person that He has breathed the spirit of life
into since Adam was first formed from the soil of the earth. Never mind that
God was in Christ conciliating the world
to Himself, not reckoning their offenses to them (2 Corinthians 5.19 CV)! Never mind that through Christ, God is reconciling all in the heavens and on the earth to Himself,
making peace through the blood of His cross (Colossians 1.20). Never mind that
God’s purpose of the eons is to save all
mankind because He is the Savior all mankind, especially, but not exclusively, of believers (1
Timothy 4.10). Never mind that God has purposed that His Son, the King of kings
and the Lord of lords, take the scepter of the kingdom of the heavens and rule
over this earth, and permanently establish His Father’s kingdom in all
creation. And never mind that God has purposed that the saints are, in fact,
called to judge this world and the angels one day (1 Corinthians 6.2, 3). The
saints are destined to reign with Christ in both the heavens (among the celestials) and on the earth (among the mortals).
So why does it seem that some believers are more
interested in leaving this old world behind and the billions who have not come
into the light of Christ yet, as if they will never have anything to do with
the world once they fly away? To balance out this thought; there are others who
see the church and Israel as two separate entities that will be on earth and
living alongside each other in Jerusalem during the Messianic kingdom. This is
fraught with flaws as well. Regardless of the view held, there is confusion
because God’s people lack vision of God’s purpose and plan as revealed through
His Son and in the eons made by the Son.
I love the thought of one day being in the presence of the
Lord, but I must confess that I have grown weary of the emphasis on what is
commonly call the rapture, because I
believe the emphasis is in the wrong place and reveals a great lack of vision among
so many.
What many call the rapture
is not about escaping this earth but about coming into God’s purpose in His Son,
and that is to gather up or sum up all in the heavens and on the earth. It is
about a called and chosen people (chosen by the grace of God) being
transfigured into the likeness of the beloved Son of God and meeting Him in the
air, and then escorting Him to this earth, so that the real business of
changing this world into one of righteousness and justice can be done in
earnest, so that all mankind will eventually know God is love and be reconciled
to God. The Son is on a mission; He has a work to accomplish, and He will do it
through His body, which will have no spot or wrinkle. It might make for good
singing and happy feelings to sing of walking on streets of gold and living in
heavenly mansions, but if we are honest with ourselves, it reveals the
self-centeredness that is in the heart of carnal man, and not the sacrificial, self-less
love of God. Christ has a work to do in the oncoming eon, and He has a called and
chosen vessel that He is preparing to work with Him to bring about God’s
purpose. Righteousness and justice must be and will be the foundation of the
kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (Psalm 89.14). The nations must hear the
evangel of the kingdom and be taught righteousness and disciplined according to
God’s divine law and His grace.
All of mankind must eventually be brought into the holy of
holies, and the spiritual realm must truly become one with the physical realm. To
apprehend all this according to God’s word takes spiritual sight or vision,
something that seems to be in great need in our day.
So, let us briefly look at the presence of the Lord and
the so-called rapture.
His appearing.
In his last testament before his martyrdom, Paul wrote to
his beloved Timothy that a reward awaited him, not in death, but in a future day associated with the appearing of the
Lord.
Finally, [there] is
laid up for me the victor’s wreath [or,
crown] of righteousness which the Lord, the Righteous Judge, will give
to me in that Day, but not only to
me, but also to all the ones having
loved His appearing. (2 Timothy 4.8 ALT)
And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of His return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to His
appearing. (2 Timothy 4.8 NLT)
In the
future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing. (2 Timothy 4.8 NASB)
The Greek word for appearing
is epiphaneia, which is a special
term used by the Greeks for the appearance of the gods. It is variously
translated as advent, brightness, coming and manifestation,
and is used exclusively by Paul six times (2 Thessalonians 2.8; 1 Timothy 6.14;
2 Timothy 1.10; 4.1, 8; Titus 2.13) to refer to when Christ comes to establish
His kingdom on the earth. To Timothy, Paul wrote: I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who
is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom (2 Timothy 4.1 NASB).
Paul’s testimony should clear up any confusion over when
believers are rewarded. It is not in death but at the appearing of the Lord, a
future day. The question is: Do you eagerly look forward to His appearing?
To the presence of the Lord.
Greek Scripture uses another word in reference to the coming of the
Lord. The Greek word parousia, which
means “being beside,” is translated as presence
or coming, and is used sixteen times
in reference to Christ (Matthew 24.3, 27, 32, 39; 1 Corinthians 15.23; 1
Thessalonians 2.19; 3.13; 4.15, 23; 2 Thessalonians 2.1, 8; James 5.7, 8; 2
Peter 1.16; 3.4; 1 John 2.28). Paul uses this word in his often- quoted passage
about the rapture.
Now we do not want
you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are reposing, lest you may
sorrow according as the rest, also, who have no expectation. For, if we are
believing that Jesus died and rose, thus also, those who are put to repose,
will God, through Jesus, lead forth together with Him. For this we are saying
to you by the word of the Lord, that we, the living, who are surviving to the presence of the Lord, should by
no means outstrip those who are put to repose, for the Lord Himself will be
descending from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the Chief
Messenger, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall be rising first…. (1 Thessalonians 4.13-16
CV)
In this verse, the presence of the Lord is not the same
thing as the Lord appearing for all in the world to see. This is more of a
personal encounter with the dead in Christ who will be resurrected and those in
Christ who are living at that moment.
Thereupon we, the
living who are surviving, shall at the same time be snatched away [harpazō] together
with them in clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. And thus shall we always
be together with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4.17 CV)]
All will be transfigured
into the body of His glory. Is this not what we desire the most? To be
resurrected and remain to the presence of the Lord! To be beside our Beloved
Lord as He returns to this earth in His own kingdom and glory (1 Thessalonians
2.12)!
Now, within this one verse, there are four important words that need
some explanation. The words are snatched
away, clouds, meet and air.
Snatched away.
First, the Greek word which
is translated snatched away (or, rapture as referred to by most people)
is harpazō, which means “to
seize with a sudden grasp and carry away.” The word is found in Matthew 11.12;
13.19; Luke 16.16; John 6.15; 10.12, 28; Acts 8.39; 23.10; 2 Corinthians 12.2,
4; 1 Thessalonians 4.17; Jude 23; and Revelation 12.5.
According to Paul, the asleep (dead) in Christ will be raised from among the dead and along with the
living in Christ will be snatched away in clouds to meet the Lord
in the air. This is what is called the rapture,
which is not an incorrect word, but given all the emphasis and implied meaning of
it in our day, I prefer to use the expression snatched away, which is more literal anyway.
In clouds.
Second,
Paul tells us that the snatching away
will be in clouds. Some translations
add the definite article the, but
this is not in the Greek. It should read in
clouds. The entire group that are in Christ and standing on the earth alive,
at this point in time, will be snatched away together in clouds.
For a long time, I have
pictured a day when many clouds appear in the sky and the Lord’s people are pulled
up into clouds. It is nice for day dreaming, but I doubt that this is the
picture that Paul was trying to paint for the brethren.
The epistle to the
Hebrews gives us the clue to the meaning of clouds.
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding [encompassing] us, let us
also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and
let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…. (Hebrews 12.1 NASB [CV])
It
is amazing how often this verse is presented as if living believers are in the
arena of a big stadium, and all the dead saints are in the bleachers of this
stadium, looking down and cheering them on. This might help to bolster one’s
view that all the dead in Christ go to heaven in death, but this is not what the writer of the Hebrews epistle
meant. The witnesses are all those mentioned in the previous chapter of the
epistle from Abel on down to the wanderers in the caves. All gained approval
through their faith, but not one of them received what was promised. These
saints are dead and awaiting the better
resurrection; none of them is watching from heaven.
The
English Sublinear of the Concordant Greek Text has the phrase about-lying for the translated word encompassing [surrounding in the NASB]. A cloud is lying about;
meaning they are dead in the grave. The origin of the word cloud indicates that it refers to a mass of rock, signifying a mass
of anything. In this context, a cloud is merely a figure of speech for a mass
of witnesses that have gone before us. A witness is one who testifies. Their
testimony is the testimony of their lives of faith. This is what encompasses us
today—the witness of their faith that conquered.
This fits perfectly with the snatching away in clouds.
Those who are snatched away are all the conquerors in Christ who hold to the
testimony of Jesus. When all are snatched away, they are like a cloud (a mass) of
witnesses. Whether actual physical clouds are involved is not the issue. The
fact of the matter is that this great mass of people is a witness based on
their faith exercised during their lives. The clouds are symbolic of their
witness.
We see the same thing with our Lord Jesus as He was taken
up and received in a cloud.
And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while
they were looking on, and a cloud
received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the
sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them.
They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This
Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same
way as you have watched Him go into heaven.” (Acts 1.9-11 NASB)
No words are insignificant in God’s word; thus, the fact
that a cloud received Him indicates something of importance. He is the faithful
and true Witness. A cloud signifies this fact.
The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God…. (Revelation
3.14 NASB)
To meet
the Lord.
Third,
those snatched away will meet the Lord.
The word meet comes from the Greek word apantêsis, which refers to a friendly
encounter in which a person goes out to meet another and then escorts the
person back from whence he came. It does not imply that one meets a person and
then continues on with that person to another place. This word is used in two
other places; the first is in reference to the ten virgins going out to meet
the Bridegroom and escorting Him to the wedding (Matthew 25.6), and the second
place is in reference to brethren going out to meet Paul (Acts 28.15) and
escort him to Rome, the seat of power in that day. In like fashion, it is just as likely that when the
Lord comes, His body of conquerors will be snatched
away to meet Him in the air, and then they will escort Him back to the
earth to take the great commission to the nations. They will do exactly what
Philip the evangelist (Acts 8.38-40) was compelled to do, and that is to preach
the gospel of the kingdom to the nations in fulfillment of the kingdom
commission that must go forth to the end of the eon (Matthew 28.18-20).
Now, we can connect this
thought to the cloud of witnesses in John’s declaration.
BEHOLD, HE
IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even
those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So
it is to be. Amen. (Revelation 1.7 NASB)
What (who) are the clouds? They are the ones who are
snatched away to meet the Lord and escort Him back to the earth for every eye
to see Him, when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day (2
Thessalonians 1.9-10).
In the
air.
Fourth,
the meeting is in the air. Paul never mentions being taken up to the throne or
to heaven. Instead, he has believers rising and meeting the Lord in the air,
which is related more to the lower atmosphere of our earth. In Scripture, air often refers to the area around us,
close to the ground (see Acts 22.23; 1 Corinthians 9.26; 1 Corinthians 14.9).
There is also a chief of the jurisdiction of the air, the spirit now working in
the sons of stubbornness (Ephesians 2.2). [11]
As stated elsewhere, Scripture does not state that Elijah was taken up
to heaven; but rather, he was caught up in a whirlwind, which is a weather
phenomenon associated with the air. But there is another story in Scripture
that uses the same word harpazō, and this
is found in the account of Philip and the eunuch. Perhaps this one
account is a type of the snatching away
that Paul described to the Thessalonians. After he shared Jesus with the eunuch
and baptized him, Philip was snatched
away (harpazō) to another place on
earth. Presumably, Philip was caught up in the air by the spirit of the Lord
and transported to another city, or he simply transcended time and space.
And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went
down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him. When
they came up out of the water, the
Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away [harpazō]; and the eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way
rejoicing. But Philip found himself at
Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel to all the cities
until he came to
To emphasize the point again, notice that snatched away comes from the same Greek
word harpazō and that Philip was not removed from the earth; he
was merely transported to another place on earth. Could we not assume that he
was caught up in the air?
When?
It is safe to state that today there are many views on
when this glorious event will occur. Many declare that there are no prophetic
events to be fulfilled; Christ could come any day at any time, and when He does
come, both the resurrection and the snatching away will occur immediately
back-to-back in the twinkling of an eye. However, this cannot be so. Consider
this: all the events surrounding Jesus’ life and crucifixion coincide precisely
with the events prophesied by the Hebrew prophets, as well as the spring feasts
celebrated by
The Feast of Trumpets corresponds with the resurrection of
the dead. The Day of Atonement corresponds with a call for the ecclesia of
Christ to repent for remaining in the wilderness and never entering into the
promised land, that is, the fullness of the Holy Spirit. The Feast of the
Tabernacles corresponds with the transfiguration of the conquerors in Christ
when they receive their spiritual, celestial bodies of glory.
Perhaps, we can expect that in some year during
September–October, the last trumpet will sound at the Feast of the Trumpets and
the dead in Christ will rise. The snatching away will not occur immediately,
for the ecclesia must enter into the Day of Atonement ten days later. Five days
after this is the Feast of the Tabernacles when the saints receive their
glorified bodies. The snatching away must occur with the Feast of the
Tabernacles, and Christ must come within this feast, possibly in the middle of
it (Leviticus 23; John 7.14).
Regardless of how one views the timing of these events,
let us not lose sight of the fact that it is the transfiguration into the
likeness of Christ that will allow His body to traverse the universe, to move
freely back and forth between the physical realm and the spiritual, celestial
realm. It is this very change that will allow His prized possession to be snatched away to meet Him in the air; to
enter into His realm, which is spiritual and celestial, and to escort Him back
to the physical realm of the earth. Also, it is this very change that will
allow His body, which is His complement, to work with Him in the coming eons
as He sums up or gathers up all in the heavens and on the earth (Ephesians 1.10).
After all, Christ is Head over all, to
the ecclesia which is His body, the complement of the One completing the all in
all (Ephesians 1.22-23 CV).
What should bring great delight to our hearts and
encourage us to conquer is that a day is coming when we will be resurrected and
transfigured to be like our Lord in glory. When we see Him we will be like Him.
Can you imagine anything more glorious than when our Beloved looks into our
eyes He sees a reflection of Himself? This is the very heart of our expectation
and of our Lord’s as well. Let us hold fast to this hope, and let us wait
patiently. Our hope is to be at home with the Lord, and this comes with the transfiguration,
for then we shall be like Him and will always be together with the Lord, which
leads us to the last point before concluding this chapter.
To be at home with the Lord.
There is one verse that many use as their proof-positive
text that in death believers, in
fact, receive a new body and go to be with the Lord in heaven, as if immortality
does not come through transfiguration, but it comes in death, which is an oxymoron. Oxymoron is defined as “a figure of speech in which
opposite or contradictory ideas or terms are combined.” Truly, combining
immortality with death is an oxymoron; yet, this combination is preached from
the pulpits of Christendom as if it were a fact with no contradiction. Just in
case you missed the point, immortality is about life not death; the two are on
opposite ends of the spectrum, as far as the east is from the west.
Listening to preaching coming over the airwaves, I periodically
hear preachers declaring to their listeners that Paul taught “to be out of the
body is to be at home with the
Lord (2 Corinthians 5.8); therefore, when you die you immediately go to heaven.”
If we allow Scripture to speak, it will become obvious
that Paul never taught such a thing. The fact of the matter is that many
actually misquote Paul, for he placed and
not is between out of the body
and at home with the Lord. Interestingly, the ones who misquote Paul are also
ones who are quick to declare that Scripture must be interpreted in context,
and yet, for this one verse, they totally ignore the context and text of Paul’s
words. The error does not stop here either, for they hold to something that is
contrary to what Paul taught in all his epistles.
To prove this point, let us look at 2 Corinthians
4.13-5.10 and interject passages from Paul’s other epistles.
Now having the same
spirit of faith, in accord with what is written, “I believe, wherefore I speak
also,” we also are believing, wherefore we are speaking also,
being aware that He Who rouses the Lord Jesus will be
rousing us also, through Jesus, and will be presenting us together with
you. (2 Corinthians 4.13-14 CV)
Notice Paul’s emphasis
on being roused or raised from among the dead just as Jesus was roused. This is
in line with his encouragement to the Thessalonians, which, according to Paul,
occurs when Jesus descends from heaven.
For this we say to you by [the]
word of the Lord, that we, the ones living, the ones being left to the Arrival
of the Lord, by no means shall precede the ones having fallen asleep [fig., who have died]. Because the
Lord Himself with a shout of command, with [the] voice of an archangel and with [the] trumpet of God, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first,
then we, the ones living, the ones being left, will be caught up together with
them in [the] clouds to a
meeting of the Lord in [the]
air, and so we will always be with the Lord! (1 Thessalonians 4.15-17 ALT)
With this glorious event, we will all
be caught up together (snatched away)
and God will be presenting us together,
for if we are believing that Jesus died
and rose, thus also, those who are put to repose [died], will God, through Jesus, lead forth together with Him (1
Thessalonians 4.14 CV). Read this carefully; it does not state that
the ones who died are alive in death,
as if living in the presence of God. Simply, Paul was assuring the brethren
that those who had fallen asleep (dead) in Christ will also be brought forth
with Him or through Jesus. The resurrected, along with the alive and remaining
ones, will all be led forth through Him. This is the tenor of Paul’s
encouragement.
Next, Paul introduced
the thought that the body is decaying, even as the spiritual man is being
renewed each day.
For all is because
of you, that the grace, increasing through the majority, should be
superabounding in thanksgiving to the glory of God. Wherefore we are not
despondent, but even if our outward man
is decaying, nevertheless that within us is being renewed day by day. (2
Corinthians 4.15-16 CV)
Through affliction, Paul
and his associates were suffering in the body, but inwardly they were growing
in the Lord with a view to the eons to come.
For the momentary lightness of our affliction is
producing for us a transcendently transcendent eonian burden of glory, at
our not noting what is being observed, but what is not being observed, for
what is being observed is temporary, yet what is not being observed is eonian.
(2 Corinthians 4.17-18 CV)
The coming eons cannot be seen with the physical eye, for
the eons of the eons are yet future. However, we endure momentary afflictions
as spiritual proof that the glory of the eons to come is our destiny. As Paul
had written previously to the Corinthians:
“What [things] an eye did not see and an
ear did not hear and did not enter into the heart of humanity, [fig., no person thought could happen],
which [things] God prepared for
the ones loving Him” [Isaiah 64.4] (1 Corinthians 2.9 ALT).
Now, within the context of the eons, Paul introduced the expectation
of being clothed or dressed with a habitation which is out of heaven.
For we are aware
that, if our terrestrial tabernacle house should be demolished, we have a
building of God, a house not made by hands, eonian, in the heavens. For in this
also we are groaning, longing to be dressed
in our habitation which is out of heaven, if so be that, being
dressed also, we shall not be found naked. (2 Corinthians 5.1-2 CV)
This is not the only
place that Paul made reference to a heavenly habitation that we will receive
when Christ comes from heaven. We wait for our Savior to come; we do not wait
to die to go to Him.
For our realm is
inherent in the heavens, out of which we are awaiting a Saviour also, the Lord,
Jesus Christ, Who will transfigure the
body of our humiliation, to conform it to the body of His glory, in accord
with the operation which enables Him even to subject all to Himself.
(Philippians 3.20-21 CV)]
Paul was not alone in
this expectation; John had the same expectation.
Beloved, we are now children of God, and it has not yet been revealed
what we will be. But we know that when it [or, He] shall be revealed,
we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is! (1 John 3.2 ALT)
Then, in the context of being dressed with a heavenly habitation, Paul
brought into focus the end of mortality.
For we also, who
are in the tabernacle, are groaning, being burdened, on which we are not
wanting to be stripped, but to be dressed, that
the mortal may be swallowed up by life. (2 Corinthians 5.3-4 CV)
As a reminder, this
verse is joined with Paul’s defense of the resurrection previously made in his
first epistle to the Corinthians. When mortality is swallowed up by life, we put
on immortality.
We shall
all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for
the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we
shall be changed. For this corruptible
must put on incorruption, and this
mortal must put on immortality. (1 Corinthians 15.51b-53)]
As another reminder, this leads to the verses most often erroneously
quoted as proof that in death believers go to heaven to be with the Lord. For
comparison, two translations are presented.
Now He Who produces
us for this same longing is God, Who is also giving us the earnest of the
spirit. Being, then, courageous always, and aware that, being at home in the body, we are away from home from the Lord (for by
faith are we walking, not by perception), yet we are encouraged, and are delighting
rather to be away from home out of the body and to be at home with the Lord. (1 Corinthians 5.5-8 CV)
Now the One having prepared us for this same [thing is] God, the One having given to us the down payment [or, guarantee] of the Spirit.
Therefore, being confident at all times and knowing that being at home in the body we are away from the Lord―for by
faith we walk about [fig., conduct
ourselves], not by sight―but we are confident and prefer rather to be away from the body and to be at home
with the Lord! (2 Corinthians 5.5-8 ALT)
Paul made no mention
that being away from the body leads to being at home with the Lord in death. In fact, as seen in verse 5.4,
Paul has mortality being swallowed up in life, and this comes about only when
Christ comes and changes or transfigures His saints in the twinkling of an eye.
If we allow Paul’s words to stand as written, we must conclude that he was
groaning in his body of death as he longed for one day, not in death, but a future resurrection day
in which he will be raised up to be with the Lord, and then and only then will
he, along with all the saints, be at home with the Lord.
Paul did not state that
to be away from the body is to
be at home with the Lord. He placed the conjunction and between the two thoughts, which means that he was merely
contrasting the two conditions, not making a theological statement about death.
Paul then proceeded to contrast the two thoughts of at home and away from home.
Wherefore we are
ambitious also, whether at home or away from home, to be well pleasing to
Him. (2 Corinthians 5.9 CV)
In this verse, Paul
referred back to the previous verse: Being, then, courageous always, and aware
that, being at home in the body, we
are away from home from the Lord (2
Corinthians 5.6 CV). We could reword verse 9 as: Wherefore we are
ambitious also, whether at home in the
body or away from home from the Lord,
to be well pleasing to Him. Our pleasing the Lord is to be done in this life in
our bodies of humiliation, which is what Paul wrote to the Ephesians: As children of light be walking (for the
fruit of the light is in all goodness and righteousness and truth), testing
what is well pleasing to the Lord (Ephesians 5.10 CV).
The
judgment seat of God.
Why are we to be well
pleasing to Him in this life? It is because we must all appear before our Lord
at His judgment seat or bema. This will occur in the presence of the Lord,
whether it is at the first or second resurrection.
For we must all
appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be
recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether
good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5.10 NASB)
For all of us must
be manifested in front of the dais [bema]
of Christ, that each should be
requited for that which he puts into practice through the body, whether good or
bad. (2 Corinthians 5.10 CV)
This verse is often interpreted to mean that every
believer will stand before the Lord at the same time. This cannot be the proper
view if one holds, as previously presented, that some believers will rise in
the second resurrection to appear at the great white throne judgment with
unbelievers.
The judgment seat of Christ is also described as the
judgment seat of God in Romans 14.10: We will all stand before the judgment seat
of God.
We need to be reminded that the verse that follows reads: Being aware, then, of the fear of the Lord, we are persuading men. Paul saw the
judgment seat as a very serious matter, and so should we. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God
(Hebrews 10.31 KJV). But to balance this
thought we also need to be reminded of John’s word in reference to God is love:
By this, love is perfected with us, so
that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also
are we in this world. There is no fear
in love; but perfect love casts out
fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected
in love. We love, because He first loved us (1 John 4.17-19 NASB). Let us never forget that love conquers all, even fear.
If we love as God loves us, then there will be no fear even at the judgment
seat because love never leads to punishment; it leads to glory.
However, no one is exempt from judgment, and as such, the
great white throne judgment is the same as the judgment seat of God. The Greek
word for seat is bema, and it refers to a raised platform or a throne. The great
white throne surely will rise above all that will appear in the presence of the
Judge and Lord of all.
David also saw his judgment coming in the presence of the
Lord.
Let my
judgment come forth from Your presence; let Your eyes look with equity.
(Psalm 17.2 NASB)
Consequently, we must please Him through our practices
while at home in the body and away from the Lord. The believer’s manifestation
before the Lord does not come in
death, for it comes in life; resurrection,
immortal life that is our hope.
So that the import of what has been presented is not lost, let us
recap the significant points of this section of Paul’s epistle.
Paul began with the expectation that we all together will be roused from the dead, just as Jesus was roused
from the dead, and our rousing is in reference to what is eonian, that is, what
is of the coming eons. This alone lays the foundation for what follows.
It is at this time (in the rousing) that we will be dressed with our
habitation out of heaven, when the mortal is swallowed up in life (immortal
life). As we wait for that glorious day, we groan in our bodies because we are
away from the Lord, for we prefer or long to be with Him just as the
Thessalonians were encouraged that, when He comes out of heaven and snatches us
all together, we will always be with
the Lord. Until then, we walk by faith, knowing that it will come about one day,
and as we do, we desire to be well pleasing to Him, because in that day, we
will be manifested before His bema to be requited for what we have done while
in the body, both good and bad. Simply, it is our fondest expectation to be
away from our home in our body of death and to be at home with the Lord in our
new glorified, spiritual body just like our Lord’s body, and this comes about
when our Lord steps out of heaven at the conclusion of our present eon.
In
conclusion, the ultimate goal for mankind is to pass out of death into immortality
or a life beyond death. The only way to reach this goal is through Christ who
is the Way, the Resurrection and the Life.
Life only comes through God’s Son who was resurrected from among the dead. When
Christ comes a second time and is revealed, His sanctified and happy people,
whether asleep or alive, will put off mortality and put on immortality, to
become like Him and to enjoy the blessing of the oncoming eons, all in accord
with the purpose of the eons.
Thus, this mortal must
put on immortality!
[The
following chart presents the glorious and absolute success of the Son of God in
eventually bringing all mankind out of death and into immortality. It is not presented
as an exact timeline.]
