The First Resurrection - 2

Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:6 NIV)

There will be two resurrections. The first resurrection is the resurrection of life and the second resurrection is the resurrection of condemnation. But is the first resurrection a single event? I believe there are at least three first resurrections.

1. Firstfruits (Leviticus 23:9-11)
   But as it is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. (1 Corinthians 15:20 CSB)
   Jesus was the first man to be resurrected to life. All the other who was raised from the dead, like Lazarus, died again. But what about Enoch and Elijah?
   
   
2. Yom Teruah (Leviticus 23:24)
   Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, 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 incorruptible, and we will be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52 CSB)
   After Jesus was resurrected and at the sound of the last trumpet, all the saints since creation, those who have fallen asleep and those who are still alive will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17). These will include Old Testament saints, Christian saints and tribulation saints. They will reign with Christ for a thousand years (Revelation 20:6).
   
   
3. The Great White Throne Judgement (Revelation 20:11)
   I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God's throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. (Revelation 20:12 NLT)
   The last group of saints to be resurrected in the first resurrection will be the millennium saints. These are people who will be saved during the millennium rule of Christ. I could not find any Leviticus 23 Feast link to this resurrection. This judgement will have both the first and second resurrection.

The Last Trumpet and God's Wrath

The seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven saying, The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever. The twenty-four elders, who were seated before God on their thrones, fell facedown and worshiped God, saying, We give you thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. (Revelation 11:15-17 CSB)

At the seventh and last trumpet, the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of God and His wrath has come in the form of seven bowls.

The nations were angry, but your wrath has come. The time has come for the dead to be judged and to give the reward to your servants the prophets, to the saints, and to those who fear your name, both small and great, and the time has come to destroy those who destroy the earth. (Revelation 11:18 CSB)

Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, "Go and pour out the seven bowls of God's wrath on the earth." (Revelation 16:1 CSB)

Is the rapture of the church a separate event from the second coming of Christ to Jerusalem to rescue the Jews? I believe so. When will the rapture of the Church happen? I think the rapture will occur at the last trumpet. The church will not suffer from the wrath of God, but the Church has to go through the Great Tribulation with Israel. After all, the Church is grafted into Israel through the tribe of Ephraim.

Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, 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 incorruptible, and we will be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52 CSB)

He will send out his angels with a loud trumpet, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. (Matthew 24:31 CSB)

For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 CSB)

These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. (John 16:33 KJV)

But Israel will not believe until the nations surround Jerusalem.

Truly I tell you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God." (Mark 14:25 BSB)

For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord'!" (Matthew 23:39 CSB)

I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early. (Hosea 5:15 KJV)

Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son. (Zechariah 12:10 BSB)

When Israel repents, the Lord will come with the saints from heaven and land on mount Olives. He will defend Jerusalem against the nations that surround it.

Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations as he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that half the mountain will move to the north and half to the south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for the valley of the mountains will extend to Azal. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come and all the holy ones with him. (Zechariah 14:3-5 CSB)

It was about these that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied: "Look! The Lord comes with tens of thousands of his holy ones to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly concerning all the ungodly acts that they have done in an ungodly way, and concerning all the harsh things ungodly sinners have said against him." (Jude 1:14-15 CSB)

The First Resurrection And The Second Coming

And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2 BSB)

Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. (John 5:28-29 ESV)

We know that there are two coming of Christ and two resurrections. The first coming of Christ is to save the world and the second coming of Christ is to judge the world. The first resurrection is the resurrection of life and the second resurrection is the resurrection of condemnation.

But my question is how many first resurrections are there? I know of at least two. Christ's resurrection as the first fruits and then those at His second coming.

For since death came by man, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward, those who are Christ's at His coming. (1 Corinthians 15:21-23 MEV)

Then I know that all who were asleep will be resurrected before those who are still alive, but we can consider this as the same time, with the sound of the trumpet.

For we say this to you by a word from the Lord: We who are still alive at the Lord's coming will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel's voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 CSB)

And there will be the tribulation saints who will be martyred during the great tribulation. Their resurrection is clearly part of the first resurrection.

When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony they had held. They cried out with a loud voice, "How long, O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" Then a white robe was given to each of them, and they were told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers should be completed, who would be killed as they were. (Revelation 6:9-11 MEV)

Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no 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 ESV)

Finally, we will have those who are saved and died during the millennial reign of Christ. These should be resurrected after the millennium, together with those unsaved people, but still considered as first resurrection because theirs is a resurrection of life.

For those who believe that the seconding coming of Christ is divided into two phases, one in the air (the rapture) and another landing at Mount Olives, then there will be four first resurrections:

1. First fruits - Jesus;
2. Resurrection of all the saints both asleep and alive during the rapture;
3. The tribulation saints;
4. The millennium saints.

But for those who think that rapture and landing on Mount Olive happen at the same time sequentially (last trumpet), then there will be three first resurrection.

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall 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 shall be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52 MEV)

But if all the saints are resurrected during the seconding coming of Christ with spiritual bodies, then who will be left to populate the millennium?

Second Coming - Is There Two Parts?

The second coming of Christ is the most certain event of the future. But are there two phases, once in the air (rapture) and once landing on Mount Olives?

Rapture (resurrection) of the Church at the sound of trumpet
For we say this to you by a word from the Lord: We who are still alive at the Lord's coming will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel's voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 CSB)

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall 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 shall be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52 MEV)

Coming with the clouds, landing at Mount Olives, to save Israel
Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations as he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that half the mountain will move to the north and half to the south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for the valley of the mountains will extend to Azal. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come and all the holy ones with him. (Zechariah 14:3-5 CSB)

They said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven." (Acts 1:11 CSB)

I continued watching in the night visions, and suddenly one like a son of man was coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was escorted before him. (Daniel 7:13 CSB)

Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Matthew 24:30 ESV)

And Jesus said, "I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven." (Mark 14:62 ESV)

For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. (Matthew 16:27 ESV)

And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. (Mark 13:26 ESV)

And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. (Luke 21:27 ESV)

Look, 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 CSB)

Stupidity Masquerading as Wisdom

Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. (Colossians 2:8 NLT)

A Facebook friend of mine posted this:

Open-minded people don't care to be right, they care to understand. There's never a right or wrong answer. Everything is about understanding.

My response to his post:
"I will accept your view that 1 + 1 = 3 as long as you do not force me to give up my view that 1 + 1 = 6. With this, mathematics will never progress and there will be no modern technology but at least we have understanding at a primitive level."

I find it fascinating how people do not treat truth with priority. They are quick to embrace anything that sound philosophical and wise. They accept statements without thinking. This also answer the question why science and all the benefits of modern civilisation come from Europe and from not the other ancient civilizations such as China and India. Christian based European civilization learnt from the Bible to emphasize on truth and reaped the benefits of truth.

"Peace is such a precious jewel that I would give anything for it but truth" - Matthew Henry (1662-1714)

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6 KJV)

No Prophet Can Claim Credit for Prophecy Coming True

For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:21 ESV)

No prophet can know the future, unless God revealed it to him. Therefore, whatever God has revealed to the prophet, it is the word of God and the prophet cannot claim credit for knowing the future.

However, the maker of this YouTube video gave credit the prophet for knowing the future. Was he mistaken or was he taught by his prophet?

Is USA a Christian Country?

Someone asked me if USA a Christian country. So how do we define a Christian country?

Well, USA is the biggest exporter of pornography. USA is also the biggest exporter of missionaries and Christian literature. So what do you think?

If you are not sure what to think, maybe we can look into the Bible to see if we can get an answer. The Bible is a very biased book, biased from God's point of view. There is no neutrality in the Bible.

King David is a liar (1 Samuel 21:2-3, 1 Samuel 21:13, 1 Samuel 27:10), an adulterer (2 Samuel 11:2-5, 2 Samuel 11:26-27) and a murderer (2 Samuel 11:14-25). But God said that he is a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22).

So what can we conclude from this?

1. David is a sinner but God covered his sin retrospectively through the death of Jesus;
2. Since David is man after God's heart, so God must be a liar, an adulterer and a murderer.

Frankly speaking, a non-Christian may find conclusion 2 logical.