Stretching all the way back in sacred history to the beginning of creation, we see that in the Garden of Eden man and woman were created in the image of God, and were also formed after God’s likeness (Genesis 1:26). However, though humanity (the crown of God’s creation) was originally made in a blessed state of body and soul, the transgression of the Lord’s commandment would soon plunge the entire world into a fallen condition. For the very moment our first parents Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, death entered into their bodies and bled over into the rest of creation, and as a result mankind was expelled from Paradise. Fortunately, God promised us that one day a deliverer would be born to heal fallen man of his sin sickness and that the Messiah would also trample down death, a condition which is foreign to the very nature of God and which was also foreign to man’s initial spiritual and physical makeup. Through the birth, death, (and most importantly) the resurrection of the promised Messiah, have we all been given a chance at immortality. For just as Jesus Christ rose from the dead, so too will all people from all the ages be risen from the dead at the end of this world. Some will be raised to everlasting life, while others will be raised to eternal condemnation. That being said, let us now take a closer look into these Biblical passages concerning the resurrection of the dead.
In Hebrews 9:27, it is stated that, “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” However, in the eleventh chapter of the Gospel according to St. John it is written that Lazarus died and that Jesus raised him from the dead. Going further, we find in the seventh chapter of St. Luke’s Gospel that a widow’s son was also risen from the dead by Jesus. So since the Bible tells us that it is appointed unto men once to die, then why did Jesus raise people from the dead? We also know from holy tradition that Lazarus did indeed die again many years after his resurrection, so is there a contradiction here? Now it must be noted that Jesus loved Lazarus very much, and used the death and resurrection of His dear friend to foreshadow His own resurrection. As to the son of the widow of Nain, the Gospel tells us that Jesus had compassion on her, and so raised her only son from the dead. So it seems that even though God has established both spiritual laws and laws of nature, in His love towards mankind the Lord at times breaks these laws so that miracles may happen.
Concerning the resurrection of the dead and the second coming of Jesus Christ, the Bible tells us that, “the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). From this passage it would seem that some people living at the last day will not experience a physical death, but will instead be caught up in both body and soul to meet the Lord in the air. Now the Lord spoke unto Moses saying, “Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live” (Exodus 33:20). So when the Lord returns in all His glory, this most powerful manifestation of God may be so intense that those living at the time of the second coming may in fact experience a physical death by being overcome by the epic majesty of God. Speaking on this most awesome of experiences St. Paul has this to say, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:52). This change that the living will go through at the end of time, must be nothing else but the putting on of incorruption which St. Paul speaks about in 1 Corinthians 15:53. For if flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven, then a physical change is indeed needed to be able to withstand the awesome holiness of God. Though it appears that those living at the time of the resurrection will not die, there will definitely be a change in their bodies which in a form resembles a physical death, or that of a movement from corruption into incorruption.
Another instance where people have died, and then later are risen back to life, appears in the eleventh chapter of the book of Revelation. The two witnesses, believed to be prophets Enoch and Elijah, are the only two people in history who have not experienced a physical death, even though they have been alive for thousands of years. Their death will indeed fulfill Hebrews 9:27 which states that it is appointed unto men once to die. Though they are killed, they rise from the dead three days later and ascend into heaven, signifying that their resurrection must be one in which they are given new incorruptible bodies. For if they would have been risen without a change, their sinful flesh and blood could not have withstood the glory of God. Additionally, at the time of Christ’s resurrection the Bible tells us that saints from the Old Testament also rose from the dead, and came out of their graves and went into Jerusalem, and were seen by many (Matthew 27:52-53). However, the Bible is not clear as to the condition of the bodies of these saints who rose from the dead after Jesus. For instance, we know that Lazarus was raised from the dead, but not with an incorruptible body. Whereas the two witnesses are raised from the dead with an incorruptible body. So the nature of the resurrected bodies of the Old Testament saints is indeed a mystery. Going further, it has also been speculated that these risen saints still walk among us even to this very day.
The second coming of Jesus Christ and the resurrection of the dead at the end of this world, will be the most intense, and most awesome, and most dreadful day in history, for it will mark the end of history. Some of us will be resurrected to everlasting life, while others will be resurrected to eternal damnation. On Judgment Day none of us will be able to make excuses, for the truth will trump all efforts to cover-up our sins. Everything will be laid bare, both our good works and our evil deeds. God is not partial and will judge us all fairly, playing no favoritism towards anyone. But by living a life of repentance the Lord in His mercy will take pity on those who cry out to Him day and night. For as it is written in Luke 9:56, “…the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them…”