One Resurrection, Not Two

One of the most popular beliefs of our time is the premillennial doctrine of the second coming of Christ. It says there will be two resurrections of the dead—one resurrection of the saved when He comes to rapture Christians from the earth and the grave and another resurrection of the lost a thousand years after the alleged earthly reign of Christ over Israel.

In John 5:28-29, Jesus said, “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” In verse 28 Jesus said, "Do not marvel at this.” Do not be surprised. Do not be astonished at what I am telling you. Jesus had been talking about his authority, especially His authority to execute judgment. Then He said, "The hour is coming." The word hour means the time is coming in the future in which "All that are in the graves will hear his voice and come forth." All people who are in the graves will be resurrected. And when will this take place? It will occur at the time Jesus describes.

Jesus said there will be two classes of people in that day. There will be those that have done good and have died in that state. They will be resurrected to life, that is, to eternal life in heaven above. But on the other hand, those that have done evil and have died in sin will be resurrected to damnation, that is, eternal damnation in hell. Notice that He said all of these people will be resurrected at the last time. Now compare this to what many people today believe. The rapture idea is very popular. This theory says that the dead will be raised at different times. It teaches that the good dead, that is, Christians who have died, will be raised when Jesus returns. Then a thousand years later, the wicked dead will be raised at a different, second resurrection. Is that what Jesus said? Listen again to what He said: " Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” Does that sound like that there will be two separate resurrections? Or does it sound like all people will be raised at the same time, that is, at the last day? This is why Paul said in Acts 24:15 that there will be “a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and of the unjust.” It will all take place at the same last day, at the Day of Judgment, the resurrection day.

This whole theory is about Israel. National Israel. Political Israel. It misuses the Bible to accommodate the belief that God will someday elevate Israel above all the nations of the earth. It ignores what Jesus said to the Jews: “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it” (Matt. 21:43). Jesus is not coming to re-establish the nation of Israel. The kingdom or reign of God over Israel as His special, chosen people ended in the first century. The church is the Israel of God today (Gal. 6:15). Christians—those who have been baptized into Christ—are the true spiritual children of Abraham (Gal. 3:26-29).

Kerry

West End church of Christ • March 29, 2026