First Resurrection and Second Death-Lent 37, 2022

(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.)
This is the first resurrection.
Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection.
Revelation 20: 5-6

What “rest of the dead” and who was part of that first resurrection? 
I’m glad you asked. Let’s back up:

Revelation 20:4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They 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.

Big picture: There are martyrs who come to life (not just as ancient souls who predated Jesus under altar anymore or as those martyred in our day for their testimony about Christ, but now arguably, all of them are as whole beings not just their souls in heaven) as part of the first resurrection (which implies they have glorified bodies). 

Maybe martyrs are given special blessing because of the testimony of their sacrifice.

Big picture, next:  There are two earths outlined in Revelation: one as it is now (fallen, with evil), and a new heaven-new earth (holy, with only the redeemed). 

Is it possible this reign with Christ is happening with all of them from heaven as the spiritual realm, but taking effect (part 1) on the existing earth, until the close of history, then (part 2), eternally in the new heaven and new earth?

Let’s jump back to see the rationale behind that question.

Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.  10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

Made them (past) to be (future)…will reign (also future).  This is all still future in Revelation 5.  Already: kingdom and priests (a believer’s identity).  To come: their role of serving God and reigning on the earth. 

Stick with me. 
All this jumping around through Revelation will make sense.
Now, it’s important to remember that all of this which John currently sees
is in the context of the seventh angel and the seventh trumpet.   

Revelation 11:15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.”  16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign.

Revelation 11:18 The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small– and for destroying those who destroy the earth.” 19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.”

It’s in the context of these bowl judgments (the wrath of God) that the kingdom of this world’s rulership gets stripped from the beast and remains now with Christ.  Revelation is coming to its climactic close and it’s all still future, including the reign for a thousand years and the martyrs with Him.

Revelation 20:“6b 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.”

Big picture: These saints reigning already died once.  Arguably, they were recently just souls—but now at this point in Revelation—they are whole persons in heaven.  They will never die again but will reign with Christ… before the new heaven-new earth … a thousand years, because with the new heaven-new earth, it will become eternal from that point.

Thoughts for today:

Read back over the passages of Scripture until it makes sense.  I know it’s complicated.  It explains why theologians have argued for centuries about rapture of the saints and millennial reign of Christ. Important also to remember that until the new heaven-new earth, we’re still dealing with a spiritual realm and an earthly realm. Separate and distinct, yet what happens in one realm is as Jesus prayed, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10 NIV). Just let the words and lines of “Revelation in these 40 vignettes” speak to you.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.