John 5: 25-29 (RSVCE)
25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, 27 and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.”
First and foremost, Resurrection is real. In fact, the first resurrection had happened more than 2000 years ago. Those who died before Jesus died already resurrected. Matthew 27:50-53 stated this event; “50 And Jesus cried again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. 51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; 52 the tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many.”
It was mentioned there that bodies of saints resurrected but no mention was made about the resurrection of those evil ones. This is what is mentioned in Revelations 20:4-5 ; “ 4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom judgment was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony to Jesus and for the word of God, and 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 a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection.” (The first resurrection for sure includes John the Baptist.)
And the next resurrection will surely happen again in the time of coming of Jesus Christ which no one knows when. Our Lord Jesus Christ mentioned in John 5:28 that not only who are good, but even those who have done evil will also be resurrected. St. Paul had explained this very well in 1 Corinthians 15:51. Now, here are the records of the Holy Scriptures:
Jesus Christ Was Truly Resurrected (1 Corinthians 15:3- “3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas,[b] and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.”
The Resurrection Of The Dead (1 Corinthians 15:12-18, 51-55) “12 Now if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised;[a] 14 if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. 17 If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied.” 51 Lo! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 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. 53 For this perishable nature must put on the imperishable, and this mortal nature must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?”
But who are those guaranteed to go to Heaven? 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 says, “16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first; 17 then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord.”
Therefore, those who died and lived in Christ are surely bound to Heaven. They are those who are exempted of facing Judgement through the Grace of GOD. John 5:24 says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” Jesus said that if anyone hears His sayings and does not keep them, He does not judge him; for He did not come to judge the world but to save the world. But he who rejects Jesus Christ and does not receive His sayings has a Judge; the word that Jesus had spoken will be his judge on the last day. (John 12:47-48)
Going to Heaven to enter the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, required a seal of approval. Definitely, those who will be admitted there should be marked with the seal. And what is this seal? Ephesians 1:13-14 explains, “In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.”
This simply means, those who have not listened, believed, and lived in Jesus Christ’s words, will not have Eternal Life in Heaven. Only the holy ones will go to Heaven. But it is impossible for us to make ourselves holy. Only the Father GOD can sanctify us.. HE can purify us through His Son, His Word, the Truth. (John 17:17, Ephesians 5:26-27) Because there’s no impossible to HIM. AMEN
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