What is meant by the “first resurrection?”

    "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished" (Revelation 20:5a). Now notice carefully, the Old Testament saints, the New Testament saints, and the Tribulation martyrs "live" at the beginning of the Millennium. And this is called "the first resurrection." While the words "second resurrection" or "last resurrection" do not occur in the text, it is made perfectly clear that there is another resurrection. John says, " But the rest of the dead did not “live” again until the thousand years were finished." The Scripture teaches two resurrections, separated by 1000 years.

    Now notice who is raised in the first resurrection: only believers! "Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years" (Revelation 20:6). They are the same group we met in verse 4: Old Testament saints, New Testament saints, and Tribulation martyrs.

    Now that raises a question. Are these all raised at the same time after the Tribulation? Please note this carefully: The first resurrection is not an isolated event. It is an order of resurrections including ultimately all the righteous dead who are raised before the Millennium begins. They are first in comparison to those who are last, the unbelievers who are raised after the Millennium to stand before the Great White Throne.

    There is an order to the first resurrection, and we need to remember that. First, there is Christ. And that resurrection was almost 2000 years ago. Second, the saints of this Church Age (1^st. Thessalonians 4:13-16) who shall be raised at the Rapture before the Tribulation. Third, Old Testament saints and Tribulation martyrs, who shall be raised at the end of the Tribulation to enjoy the Millennium.

    Now, just as there are two resurrections (first and last), so there are two deaths: physical death and what the Scriptures call the second death. The second death is defined for us in Revelation 20:13. It says, "And the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and hades delivered up the dead that were in them, and they were judged, every man according to their works. And death and hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast down into the lake of fire."

    The second death is a reference to eternal judgment. The lake of fire. So those who are a part of the first resurrection shall reign with Christ. Those who are a part of the second resurrection shall experience eternal agony in the lake of fire.

Now you don't have to wait for the second resurrection. That's the best news I have for you today. 

The 1000-year Reign

    Premillennialism, is the view that Christ will return before the Millennium. He will return to the earth before this 1000-year reign and He personally will establish it. While there are different approaches and different emphases among Pre-millennialists, the most widely held form understands the Millennium as a literal 1000 year period during which Christ will reign on earth as the supreme spiritual and political leader, fulfilling the many Old Testament promises concerning a kingdom on earth in which the nation Israel is prominent and the Gentile nations are blessed. I believe the Apostle John has inserted a chronological note at progressive stages through this revelation that makes the order of events conclusive, and unquestionably substantiates the doctrine of Premillennialism. That phrase is "And I saw." Look at its use at key intervals;

In Revelation 19:11, he saw heaven open and Christ return. In Revelation 19:17 and the following verses he saw the downfall of the beast and his armies. In Revelation 20:1, he sees Satan bound. In Revelation 20:4, he sees believers reigning with Christ. In Revelation 20:11 and 12, he sees a great white throne and the final judgment of unbelievers. These events build on one another, each succeeding event depending on the one that preceded it. Such chronological notes like “until the thousand years were finished” in Revelation 20:5 and “when the thousand years are ended” in Revelation 20:7 make it clear that John in relating the events in their proper order.

    There is no way to interpret or symbolize these words and say that these words do not mean what they say (yet that is what Amillennialists and Postmillennialists do). If you believe that these words mean what they say, then this demands a Premillennialist viewpoint. I believe firmly in the Premillennial point of view because I believe very strongly that the Scripture teaches it. There is no question that Christ is going to come back before the Millennium to establish His kingdom on earth. The repetition of the words "thousand years" six times over in Revelation 20:1-7 would leave no doubt but that God wanted us to understand this as a literal period of time.

    The Millennium is the subject of Revelation 20:1-6, and what we are told here is simply that during this Millennium, we shall reign with Christ. This is just the beginning. That reign will last forever. At the conclusion of the Millennium, time ceases and the eternal state begins. Of course, eternity is in existence today above the framework of time, but time will stop and the reign will go on forever. The book of Revelation says that. This is not contradictory. We're simply studying the initial phase on earth in time. But over in Revelation 22:5, we read concerning eternity, that there shall be no night and they need no lamp or have need for the light of the sun because the Lord God gives them light and they--there's that "they" again; --they shall reign forever and ever. More on this next week...

The Wedding Supper continues;

Who is the Bridegroom? The question has but one answer. The Bridegroom can only be "the king's son" of the Parable, the Lord Jesus Himself. In John 3:29, long after John the Baptist had introduced Jesus as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world", John was asked to identify himself. He made it clear that he was not the Christ, he referred to Christ as "the bridegroom," and to himself as: "the friend who attends the bridegroom [and who] waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice." Clearly Christ is here referred to as the Bridegroom as well at the Lamb. Thus, Christ is the Bridegroom at the marriage of the Lamb.

Who is the Bride? A verse of importance is found in Ephesians 5:32. The Apostle Paul, speaking to husbands and wives of their relationship together, likens the husband to Christ and the wife to the Church. He sums it up (in verse 32) by saying, "This is a profound mystery: but I am talking about Christ and the church", clearly indicating that the perfect picture of the relationship between the Lord Jesus and His Church is that of a bride and a bridegroom. Therefore, when a person accepts Jesus Christ, he or she becomes a member of the Church, the true invisible Church, and is automatically espoused or engaged to Christ. This engagement will be finalized at the marriage of the Lamb.

Where and When Will This Marriage Take Place? The marriage of the Lamb must take place in heaven, for in Revelation 19:11, after the marriage of the Lamb and the marriage supper of the Lamb, we find the Lord Jesus coming in what we call "the Glorious Appearing" to set up His kingdom. For this reason, we must conclude that the marriage and the supper have occurred in heaven. Their location in Revelation chapter 19, shows these events to have taken place at the end of the Tribulation, just before the millennial reign of Christ on the earth. Ephesians 5:27 indicates the manner in which the Bride will be presented to Christ: "a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." This condition will exist only after the judgment of Christ when believers have been completely cleansed and the Church is made whole. For that reason, I believe that the Judgment Seat of Christ, which will take place during the Tribulation, will precede the marriage supper of the Lamb, and immediately after the judgment of reward has been presented to believers, the marriage of the Lamb will take place. All Christians who have trusted in Christ during the age of grace, from the day of Pentecost to the Rapture of the Church, will make up His Bride.

The Identity of the Guests: Some invited to the wedding ceremony are guests and not the Bride. Obviously, a bride is never invited to a wedding supper, nor is a bridegroom. Those who are invited are the friends of the bride and groom. Who are these friends or guests? It cannot be the Church because the Church is the Bride. John the Baptist, one of the last Old Testament saints, indicated that he was a friend of the Bridegroom (John 3:29). These Old Testament saints will be in heaven and will have their rewards, but they are not the Church, not the Bride of the Christ. They are the friends of the Bride and Bridegroom, who at this point, can be seen as the ones invited as guests to the feast. So then, all the believing dead from Adam until the resurrection of Christ will be guests at this feast. In addition to them will appear those who have received the Savior during the Tribulation, both Jew and Gentile, many of who will have been martyred for the testimony of Christ.

What happens after the wedding? Join me next week...