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Jesus’ Resurrection Was the First of Many – Part 2
Remember from the earlier discussion, here the term “resurrection”
refers to the process by which those who have experienced death [the separation
of their “essence’ (their soul and spirit) from their physical bodies] and are
receiving their “new” incorruptible bodies fit for eternity. Our Lord Jesus was
the first to be so “resurrected”, and therefore the “First” of the “firstfruits”
in our analogy of the agrarian grain harvest.
As you might recall from that
discussion, next in order will be the resurrection of those who comprise / make up the “main harvest”. Now, returning to the Scripture of 1 Corinthians Chapter 15,
…
21 For since
by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in
Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
23 But every
man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's
at his coming. (Emphasis added) 24 Then cometh
the end, when he shall have delivered
up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule
and all authority and power. (1 Corinthians 15: 21-24) (Bold
and Underline added for Emphasis)
There are several important points that should be addressed in those
verses, but for the sake of brevity I will note only a couple. First, Verse 23 tells us that the resurrection of the dead
will take place in phases or stages, not involving all the dead at once. Secondly, following the resurrection of our
Lord Jesus and the “firstfruits”, sometime “afterwards”, those who
belong to the Lord will be resurrected. Thirdly, those resurrections will mark
the end of this World Age, as the Lord will then establish His Kingdom on the
Earth.
On close review, I noticed that the Scripture did not follow the details
of the agrarian analogy that I had been following. Although it did note that all the dead would
not be resurrected at the same time, there were insufficient details to group
the others beyond the firstfruits into the categories of “main harvest”, “corners”,
and “gleaners”. I then looked for
another example that would improve understanding of what will take place. Then the Spirit led me to words given by the
Lord Himself. I encourage you to read
the passage in Matthew 13: 34-44, but for the sake of brevity I’ll only highlight
the following verses:
“36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and
his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the
tares of the field. 37 He
answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of
man; 38 The
field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom;
but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the
end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40 As therefore the
tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of
this world. 43 Then
shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 44 Again,
the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when
a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he
hath, and buyeth that field. “ (Matthew 13: 36-40, 43-44)
I further recommend your review of the Scripture in Book of
Ruth. Note her position as a Gentile (Moabitess) being a “stranger”, “poor”
and a “gleaner”, intimately involved in the harvest. She would have been among
the last groups to be resurrected behind the firstfruits and the main harvest. But her marriage to Boaz, the rich owner of the field (a ”type”
of the Lord Jesus) in which she gleaned, blessed her future. She ultimately became part of the genealogy
leading to the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(Matthew 1: 5)
I think our Lord Jesus is explaining that in the final analysis,
He does not see the significance of my differentiating between the sub-categories of the “field /
world” being resurrected / harvested that I had addressed by distinguishing between
the “main harvest”, the “corners”, “gleanings”, etc. On further review, the Scripture reinforces
the concept that the final distinction in the significance of man’s
resurrection will be made between two groups, that is: “good seed” vs.
tares”; good vs. evil; “sheep vs. goats; etc. (Revelation 20:
11-15; Daniel 12: 1-3; Matthew 25: 31-46; John 5: 21-29)
In retrospect, as we review the Scripture noted above in 1
Corinthians 5: 23, seems clearer in the reference to what happens after the
resurrection of the firstfruits. The word “afterwards” does not
distinguish between the subgroups of the harvest because in the eyes of God we
are all members of the “Body of Christ”, whether we are Jew or Gentile. (1
Corinthians 12: 27-31; Romans 12: 4-5; Colossians 1: 18) We all belong to Him and He will determine
our future at the time He desires.
What we are to understand is a key lesson from the Bible,
especially as stated in the following verse as shared by the Apostle Peter,
when he wrote:
“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise,
as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing
that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance”. (2 Peter
3: 9) (Bold and Underline Emphasis
added)
For us today, that ‘repentance” (Strong’s Greek
Dictionary # 3341) is manifest when we believe the Gospel of God’s Grace as stated
by the Apostle Paul, when he wrote:
“Moreover,
brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which
also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in
memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you
first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our
sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he
was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:” (1
Corinthians 15: 1-4)
In another passage Paul re-stated that same concept, as the Holy
Spirit led him for emphasis. Further, he
added the significance of Christians being willing to verbally speak their
belief in their faith when he said:
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and
shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved.
10 For with
the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is
made unto salvation. 11 For the
scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
12 For there
is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is
rich unto all that call upon him. 13 For
whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:
9-13) (Bold and
Underline added for emphasis)
As I close this Part 2 segment, I’d like to emphasize an
important general point related to Bible study.
When we see the unfolding of the “Bible Timeline of events” over the
course of man’s history, we note there are many instances of God’s having given
specific dates and times for certain events to happen. (For example, see: https://www.lesfeldick.org/lestimel.html ) However,
that practice was limited to God’s dealings with the Nation of Israel, and did
not apply to this “Age of Grace”. Although
we can identify the date and time when the “harvest of the firstfruits” took place,
we cannot determine the specific timing when the key word “afterward”
will take place. As our Lord Jesus told
His Disciples just before His Ascension, “It is not
for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own
power. (Acts 1: 7) Only He will determine the timing of our resurrection.
Dr. W. A. (Bill) Robinson
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