The hope of all Christians is the resurrection of the dead. It is a fundamental part of Christian belief ¹, and without it Christianity would not exist.² The fact that Jesus Christ is the only man ever to be raised from the dead to live forever with a body that will never get old makes Christianity unique. And it is the hope of all Christians that Jesus will return someday, and give this same life and body to all of those who put their faith in Him.

The apostle Paul called the resurrection of dead the blessed hope ³, the one hope ⁴, the hope of His calling ⁵, the hope of eternal life ⁶, and the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.⁷ The apostles Peter and John told us to fix our hope completely on this promise from God.⁸ Jesus, Himself, even said, "And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him, may have eternal life; and I Myself will raise him up on the last day." ⁹

One might ask, 'When will the resurrection of the dead occur? Who is going to be resurrected, and what will it be like?' Actually, the resurrection of the dead has already begun.¹⁰ On the third day after Jesus' death and burial, He was resurrected from the dead. He appeared to literally hundreds of people over the next forty days, and then was taken up into heaven in glory. And like the tipping of the first domino in a string of dominoes, Jesus' resurrection set in motion an unstoppable life force that will continue until death no longer exists anywhere. The final phase of the resurrection of the dead will occur when Jesus returns to the earth, which could happen at any time, and is generally know as the Second Coming of Christ. ¹¹

Interestingly, Scripture teaches us that not only will Christians be resurrected on that day, but also non-Christians as well.¹² That's good news if you're a Christian. However, if a person did not come to faith in Jesus in this life then their resurrection will be one of judgment and condemnation because they broke the laws of God's kingdom, lived in rebellion to God's authority and commandments, and sinned against their Creator. They will spend eternity alive, but as a prisoner of destruction in complete darkness, and will live away from the life and presence of God.¹³ So therefore, the question is not, "Will you have eternal life?", but "Where are you going to spend it?".

For those of us who in this life put our faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord will not be disappointed. We will finally have victory over all of the things that were against us in this life including death. We will be sons of God. Scripture tells us that when Christ returns not everyone will be dead, but in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet the dead will be raised first, and then those of us who are alive will be resurrected with them in the very likeness of Jesus.¹⁴ In other words, Jesus will change our current body into a body just like His.¹⁵

Because we are going to be like Jesus when he was resurrected, Scripture gives us more insight into what the resurrected body will be like. We will be recognizable by others.¹⁶ We will be able to eat and drink food (we'll even know how to cook).¹⁷ We will be able to appear and disappear, if that's even necessary.¹⁸

More importantly, our lives will be powerful, honorable, and will never die. And our bodies will never get tired, sick, or grow old.¹⁹ If you will, we will be perfect. We will belong to a family of people like us, and God Himself will be our Father. We'll be able to see His face, reign with His authority, and continually serve and worship Him in the fullness of His presence.²⁰ The apostle Paul sums it up by writing, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ, and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.²¹ Now that's something to hope for!

 1. Hebrews 6:2
 2. 1 Corinthians 15:13-17
 3. Titus 2:13
 4. Ephesians 4:4
 5. Ephesians 1:18
 6. Titus 1:2
 7. Philippians 3:14
 8. 1 Peter 1:13, 1 John 3:2-3
 9. John 6:39-40
 10. 1 Corinthians 15:20-21
 11. Matthew 24:30-31, 1 Corinthians 15:22-24
 12. John 5:28-29, Acts 24:15
 13. 2 Thessalonians 1:9
 14. 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18
 15. Philippians 3:21
 16. Luke 24:31
 17. Luke 24:41-43, John 21:9-12
 18. John 20:26, Luke 24:31
 19. 1 Corinthians 15:42-44
 20. Revelation 22:3-5
 21. Ephesians 2:4-7

© Copyright 2001 Lighthouse Ministries. All Rights Reserved.

Return to the top