^{There Will Be a Resurrection of the Dead, Both of the Just and the Unjust}

The warfare over what constitutes a human soul has often exploded onto the stage in U.S. national political debate in the early 21^st century. On August 24, 2008, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi fired a shot that provoked an immediate and blistering counter-attack from the other side. She, on NBC’s “Meet the Press” program, “attempted a theological defense of her support for abortion rights.”¹ Her verbal gun had hardly cooled when numerous Roman Catholic Bishops began spraying her with intense moralistic firepower.

Brendan Daly, a spokesman for Pelosi, said in a statement defending her remarks that she “fully appreciates the sanctity of family” and based her views on conception on the “views of Saint Augustine, who said, ‘The law does not provide that the act [abortion] pertains to homicide, for there cannot yet be said to be a live soul in a body that lacks sensation.’”²

The Rev. Douglas Milewski, a Seton Hall University theologian who specializes in Augustine, said Pelosi seems to be confusing church teaching on abortion with the theological debate over when a fetus receives a soul. “Saint Augustine wondered about the stages of human development before birth, how this related to the question of ensoulment and what it meant for life in the Kingdom of God,” Milewski said.³

In a certain sense, the whole plant is in the seed — the acorn contains the oak tree in rudimentary form. Therefore, it is correct to state that even an early stage human embryo (zygote) is a person in the most rudimentary stage of development. Clearly then, abortion kills a human being, but is that human being merely a soulless biological organism?

To state it simply, the human body does not receive a soul. There is no such thing as “ensoulment.” According to the Bible, the human soul is the whole person — body, personality and vital life force. “And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”(Genesis 2:7) Notice that God did not add a soul to the body, rather God put three ingredients together and they together constitute a living soul. The Bible actually teaches that human souls can die. “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.”(Ezekiel 18:20) This leads to one of the most profound questions of life, which is, “What will happen to me when I die? Will I, as a unique personality, simply cease to exist forever?”

The aborting (killing) of unborn human beings is the hot-button issue House speaker Pelosi (herself a Roman Catholic) and the American Catholic bishops were battling over. So, in the heat of the dispute, we ask, “What is the eternal fate of each of the millions of little souls which have been aborted throughout history?”

We should hesitate to speculate on a subject about which the Bible remains silent. We can trust that God understands the case of each individual aborted infant and that He will handle each case in a manner consistent with both His merciful nature and His wisdom. I have personal convictions on this subject based on years of experience in relationship with God; you too can come to know Him in such an intimate way as to have a sense of how He might handle aborted babies. But what about infants who “naturally” abort because of accident or illness of the mother? And what about children who die in infancy?

Anguish grips the heart of the loving mother whose baby is stillborn or whose infant is torn from her in death. Will the faithful praying mother who loses her baby in miscarriage or during infancy never see her baby again? The Bible gives us clues to answer this question. For example, the faith of the believing parents covered their children in the great Passover story of Exodus when God warned that He would kill all of the first-born males of Egypt not dwelling in a house with the blood of a lamb sprinkled on the doorpost. It was the parent’s responsibility to sprinkle that protecting blood.

The faith of the believing parents covers the children, as when God sent His judgments upon the first-born of the Egyptians. The word of God came to the Israelites in bondage to gather their children into their houses and to mark the doorposts of their houses with blood from a lamb, slain. This prefigured the slaying of the Son of God and the efficacy of His blood, which was shed for the salvation of the sinner. It was a sign that the household accepted Christ as the promised Redeemer. It was shielded from the destroyer's power. The parents evidenced their faith in implicitly obeying the directions given them, and the faith of the parents covered themselves and their children. They showed their faith in Jesus, the great Sacrifice, whose blood was prefigured in the slain lamb. The destroying angel passed over every house that had this mark upon it. This is a symbol to show that the faith of the parents extends to their children and covers them from the destroying angel.⁴(See Exodus 11:4 – 12:1-13, 21-23)

The Egyptians had endured nine severe plagues under the judgment of God for their oppression of the Israelite slaves. They had witnessed God’s merciful protection of the Israelites during plagues four through nine. Every Egyptian father was free to cover the doorpost of his house in faith with the blood of a lamb and receive the very same protection from plague ten that the Israelites received. Some actually did, but the majority hardened their hearts and refused to deal with reality and exercise faith in the loving, all-powerful God of Israel.

“God is love.”(1^st John 4:8) Love is the very nature of God, the very heart of God. “I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”(Jeremiah 29:11) God, being love, will do the loving thing and cover the beloved children of a praying mother or father. His very nature testifies to that expected end or conclusion.

The Prophet Isaiah foretold the deliverance of the children of Israel who were scattered in foreign lands and held in bondage to oppressive masters. His prophecies are also a figure of the oppression of Satan who has, through death, taken captive many children of faithful believers. These precious beloved children have been “taken to the land of death” and held as captives in their graves. But Satan’s apparent victory is only temporary. Through Isaiah, God asks a rhetorical question concerning the ultimate fate of these “captive” children (captives of the grave), and then answers it with a thrilling promise that may be claimed by faithful parents today:

“Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered? But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children.”(Isaiah 49:24-25)

The New Testament Apostle Paul, looking forward to the ultimate resurrection of the dead at the second coming of Christ virtually shouts a triumphal note when he says,

“The dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal [must] put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where [is] thy sting? O grave, where [is] thy victory?”(1^stCorinthians 15:52b-55)

Are you a bereaved parent? These are your promises, claim them for your children. God is faithful; He always keeps His word. The nail scars on the palms of Jesus’ hands are eternal testimony of His faithful love. He has a tender care for you and your children.

“Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of [my] hands.”(Isaiah 49:15-16a)

“Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put [his] hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”(Matthew 19:13-14)

We may be surprised at the number of children raised on resurrection day. There may be more children than adults in the resurrection. The prophet Isaiah, looking forward to the New Jerusalem, proclaims, “The streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.”(Isaiah 8:5; See also Revelation 21:1-5; Isaiah 65:17-25)

At the time of Christ’s birth in Bethlehem, King Herod, jealous of a rival, ordered the killing of all male babies in the region of Bethlehem from two years and under.

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: [‘A voice was heard in Ramah,] [Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,] [Rachel weeping for her children,] [Refusing to be comforted,] [Because they are no more.’"] (Matt 2:16-18 NKJV)

Matthew reminds us that this horrible massacre was foretold in an Old Testament prophecy of Jeremiah. When we read that heartrending prophecy, we discover that a comforting promise is also recorded — God’s pledge to eventually resurrect back to life the babies of faithful mothers of Bethlehem. Jeremiah refers to the mothers under the figure of Rachel, Jacob’s (Israel’s) beloved wife.

“Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, [and] bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they [were] not. Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own border.” (Jeremiah 31:15-17)

God sent a word of comfort to the bereaved mothers of Bethlehem that the weeping Rachels should see their children coming from the land of the enemy.⁵

Even as the godly mothers of Bethlehem who had brought up their little ones in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, were given full confidence in once again seeing their infants who were slain by Herod, so godly mothers [today] can in true faith look forward to seeing their departed babes on the resurrection day.⁶

In Jeremiah’s words “thy work shall be rewarded,” God tenderly promises that the believing mother’s prayers and faithful obedience will be rewarded in the salvation of her little one who had not reached the age of personal accountability to God. Comforted with this assurance, let’s move on now to the larger question of the fate of all dead souls.

John Frith, one of the great sixteenth century Protestant martyrs, when stating his understanding of where the souls of dead people rest, said, “I dare be bold to say that they are in the hand of God.” Frith could not have stated this truth more fittingly. Just as you are holding in your hands a bite-sized book filled with information, just so is God, in a sense, holding very special “books” securely in His strong, protective “hand.” God holds vital information in His celestial books. The Bible promises that God keeps the “names” of those destined for eternal life recorded in His “book of life.”(See Philippians 4:3; Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27; 22:19; Exodus 32:32-33; Daniel 12:1-2)

Of course, in this age of digitized books, we can keep a lot of information on tiny microchips. I could fit thousands of copies of this booklet on a tiny flash drive on my automobile key-chain. Surely, God has technology far in advance of this. It is no great feat for Him to keep a perfect record of every soul that has come into this world. Indeed, He keeps complete records in His own infinite memory. Nevertheless, according to the texts we noted above, celestial record books do exist. God keeps record books for the investigative judicial work of intelligent created beings.

Speaking of books, and of judicial activity, let’s turn our attention for a moment to two major prophetic books of the Bible. The Old Testament prophecy book of Daniel is a companion book with the New Testament book of Revelation. In a certain sense, we could say that Daniel is the Revelation of the Old Testament. Both books portray many of the very same chronological and end-time prophetic scenes, with each adding additional information over the framework. With that in mind, please notice that Daniel 7:9-10 and Revelation 20:11-15 both present a judgment scene in which record books are opened. Let’s take a look at those passages now.

“I watched till thrones were put in place, And the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, Its wheels a burning fire; A fiery stream issued And came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, And the books were opened.” (Daniel 7:9-10 NKJV)

“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened.”(Revelation 20:11-12a NKJV)

Daniel and John, though they lived more than 600 years apart, were obviously given a vision of the very same magnificent judgment scene in heaven. However, John was given additional information as we are about to see. That information is for us to read and understand — “Blessed [is] he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time [is] at hand.”(Revelation 1:3) Now let’s read the rest of John’s intense description of that awesome heavenly judgment scene.

“And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”(Revelation 20:12b-15 NKJV)

You may have noticed different phases of judgment in the Revelation passage. The Revelation passage indicates intensive investigative phases followed by a devastating punishment phase for those whose names are “not found written in the book of life.” The first phase, involving investigation of people whose names are in “the book of life,” has already begun in heaven. “For the time [is come] that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if [it] first [begin] at us, what shall the end [be] of them that obey not the gospel of God?”(1^stPeter 4:17)

A second phase of investigation is yet future. It will take place in heaven after the second coming of Jesus. In that second phase, the saints will sit in judgment of the unrepentant people of all ages whose names are not in “the book of life.” The saints will also judge the rebellious angels during the second phase. “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? . . . the world shall be judged by you. . . Know ye not that we shall judge angels?”(1^stCorinthians 6:2a, 3a)

The saints will not be determining the salvation or damnation of anyone — that will have already been determined by God’s judgment. But the saints will be investigating the lives and choices of those God has condemned to the second death. We will also investigate the lives of those who, with us, are among the redeemed. This judgment is very important in God’s plan to settle fully the issues raised by Lucifer as he began his great controversy over God’s jurisdictional authority. (See chapters 2 & 3 in this, A Fly in the Ointment series) The investigative phase of judgment will satisfy every question concerning the perfect blending of justice and mercy in God’s judgment.

Some among the unrepentant never had their names in “the book of life.” However, some lost people did have their names in “the book of life” for a time, but during the first phase of investigation it is determined that they are not truly repentant and therefore their names are “blotted out” of the book. Only those who remain trusting, faithful, and obedient will keep their names in the book of life during the soon-to-end investigative phase of the judgment which is going on right now in heaven. “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”(Matthew 24:12-13) We will see what the Bible says about being “blotted out” of “the book of life” shortly.

As we learned in chapter 5 a devastating final judgment phase will take place when the wicked (those who do not have their names in the book of life) are raised for punishment, which includes gut-wrenching mental and corporal punishment, followed by a fiery execution. “And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell [grave]delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell [grave]were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”(Revelation 20:13-15)

For the sake of simplicity, we will usually refer to the judgment as a general concept without emphasizing the three phases

The judgment scene that you read about in Daniel 7 and Revelation 20 revealed that record books are involved in the judicial proceedings. The necessity of minutely detailed documentation books is perfectly logical since finite beings are involved in the judgment.

Daniel 7:10 and Revelation 20:12, 15 both refer not only to “the book of life” but also to other “books.” The context of those passages indicates that there are other record “books,” at least one of which contains each un repentant lost person’s name and life record. Therefore, at least one of the other “books” stands in contrast to “the book of life.” We can approximate a general classification of the books.

The special “book of remembrance” stands open in the heavenly courts as a memorial for people who have promoted God’s name and honor and who have meditated on His character. (See Malachi 3:16-18)

Another book contains the records of the specific sins of human beings. (See Daniel 7:9-10 and Revelation 20:12-15)

When the first phase of the investigative judgment is complete, the sin record of un repentant people will remain on the books, while repentant people will have the record of their sins blotted or edited out of the records. What a wonderful thought, that every sin you have ever committed will be not only forgiven, but also removed from the records and never thrown back in your face again.

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”(Acts 3:19-21)

The words “that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord” refers to the culmination of the intensive judgment scene going on in heaven now. This first phase of the judgment will end immediately prior to the second coming of Jesus to rescue His living followers and resurrect every sleeping person who died with a repentant heart. When you think it through, the first phase of the investigative judgment has to be completed before Jesus comes. The Bible is clear that when He comes He will separate the good from the bad, the sheep from the goats, and the saved from the lost. In order to do that the decision on each soul’s destiny by necessity has already been made. (See Matthew 13:47-50; 25:32-33; 24:40-42; Luke 17:34-36)

When this first phase of investigative judgment is completed, probation will close for the entire living human race. At that time, “the book of life” will be sealed shut. No more names will be added to the book of life. Revelation 22:10-12 alludes to this general close of probation just prior to Jesus second coming. What an awesome and fearful time that will be. The very thought of it should sober us right up! Oh my friend, when that door slams shut you don’t want to be on the outside! Please listen to me; you don’t want to be on the wrong side of that closing door! And what about your loved ones? Can you help them to get in now before that door finally shuts never to open again?

“These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, . . . he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth.” “the time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.”(Revelation 3:7b; 22:10-12)

God defines sin by a specific standard. That standard is God’s Law, which the Bible records and expounds upon. “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.”(1^stJohn 3:4) God commands obedience to His immutable Law in both the Old and New Testaments.

Jesus stated in plain, straightforward language “If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.”(Matthew 19:17) This does not indicate that obedience is legalism or that it merits salvation — Oh no! Frankly though, a repentant person, someone truly sorry for past Lawbreaking, will start keeping the Law. To continue willfully breaking the Commandments would indicate that you aren’t truly sorry. It would make a farce out of the definition of repentance. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh [them] shall have mercy.”(Proverbs 28:13)

Just as a toddler wobbles and falls at times when learning how to walk, just so a truly converted person may be wobbly as he or she learns how to “walk the new Christian way.” For example, you might habitually tend to have instant Un-Christ-like reactions to certain situations. It may be frustrating for you to say or do something roughly or abruptly and then immediately realize that you have unwittingly failed to behave like a Christian. At a time like that, you can ask forgiveness and if possible, retrace your steps re-saying or redoing the thing in the appropriate manner. Then you can accept Christ’s forgiveness and move forward forgetting the past failure.

“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship [is] with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for [the sins of] the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.”( 1^stJohn 1:3-10; 2:1-6)

You can have peace of mind that Christ will never throw back up into your face a past sin you have repented of. The only way the guilt of that sin could ever come back upon you would be if you turn from following Christ and return to willful sin.

“When the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, [and] doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked [man] doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.”Ezekiel 18:24

The third book, which we’ve already mentioned, is known as the “book of life” or “Lamb’s book of life.” (Philippians 4:3; Revelation 13:8; 21:27) We will mention the “book of life” frequently in our study.

The Bible indicates that not everyone’s name gets recorded in “the book of life.”(See Revelation 13:8b; 17:8b; 20:15) On the other hand, some who may never have even heard of the true God may have their names recorded in “the book of life” because they obey the imperceptible leading of the Holy Spirit in their lives by faith. (See Romans 2:11-16; 10:20; Isaiah 65:1; Psalm 87:4-6; Zechariah 13:6; Acts 10:34-35 )

There is, of course, great advantage for those who have learned about Christ; the vast majority of people ignorant of Christ will never find salvation. (See Ephesians 2:11-13; Romans 3:1-3; 10:8-14)

Christ is the only door to salvation, the only way. (See Acts 4:12; John 10:9) Even faithful ancient Hebrews were saved through Christ by looking forward to Him in faith. They were not saved by works of merit, but by faith just as we are. (See Romans 4:6-25) We are not saved by saying some magic words about believing in Christ; we are saved as we obey His Spirit, which is the evidence of saving faith.

“So with faith; if it does not lead to action, it is in itself a lifeless thing. But someone may object: ‘Here is one who claims to have faith and another who points to his deeds.’ To which I reply: ‘Prove to me that this faith you speak of is real though not accompanied by deeds, and by my deeds I will prove to you my faith.’ You have faith enough to believe that there is one God. Excellent! The devils have faith like that, and it makes them tremble. But can you not see, you quibbler, that faith divorced from deeds is barren? Was it not by his action, in offering his son Isaac upon the altar, that our father Abraham was justified? Surely you can see that faith was at work in his actions, and that by these actions the integrity of his faith was fully proved. Here was fulfillment of the words of Scripture: ‘Abraham put his faith in God, and that faith was counted to him as righteousness’; and elsewhere he is called ‘God’s friend’. You see then that a man is justified by deeds and not by faith in itself. The same is true of the prostitute Rahab also. Was not she justified by her action in welcoming the messengers into her house and sending them away by a different route? As the body is dead when there is no breath left in it, so faith divorced from deeds is as lifeless as a corpse.” (James 2:17-26 NEB)

Now let us briefly review the point we made earlier that God will blot some names out of the book of life. God has always known, even “from the foundation of the world,” who’s names will remain in the book of life after the first phase of the investigative judgment is completed. (See Revelation 17:8b) It is possible that profession of faith in God is sufficient to get your name into the book of life temporally, even if God knows that your name will eventually be deleted from the record. God allows all professing believers to have their names initially recorded in the book of life. But that is no guarantee that every name will remain there after the investigative judgment. Some get in there but are later “blotted out.” The implication is that you can enter into a saving relationship with Christ, or at least to claim to, and yet later prove to be either insincere all along, or to have a reversion back to a rebellious heart. Some who may appear outwardly to be true followers of God may upon close investigation of the records prove to be untrue. (See Hebrews 6:1-8; Revelation 22:19) If you remain faithful and obedient, you will have your name retained in the book of life. (See Revelation 3:5)

The record books are not kept for God’s sake but for the sake of intelligent beings to whom God will make a full disclosure concerning the reasons behind every person’s eventual fate. “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? . . . The world shall be judged by you. . . . Know ye not that we shall judge angels?”(1^stCorinthians 6:2a, 3a)

Once the life record of every human being that has ever lived is fully exposed, we (the glorified redeemed) will be able to see how someone we might have thought would be lost actually had a true heart of faith toward God and was therefore redeemed. On the other hand, there may be some people scheduled for execution that we thought were true believers, and we will examine the books for ourselves and see just when and how those persons turned from the path of right and lost their eternal inheritance. Imagine judging the very people who, during this temporal life, either hurt you or loved you. Imagine, looking deep into their life experience in order to understand how they came to be who and what they ultimately became. Yes, if your name is retained in the “book of life,” you will “judge the world”!

Of course, the “names” in the heavenly “books” are not the souls themselves, but they are the Bible’s way of saying that God holds a perfect detailed record of each person’s identity — those destined for “eternal life” and also those destined for judgment and “second death” extinction. Let me say it again; a “name” is not a soul, but each name does represent the blueprint record of a soul’s unique traits.

Jesus stated this same principle of God’s perfect record keeping with different language in Luke 12:6, 7: “Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.” Comforting assurance that God will remember each individual soul who died in faith; He will raise them every one to eternal life, whole and complete.

God’s record books are a complete and flawless “blueprint” containing the precise details of every person who has ever lived on planet earth. These books are the basis upon which “there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust.”(Acts 24:15 NKJV) The only redeemable part of a man is his unique individuality, his character. Speaking of the “just,” we have assurance that at the resurrection, Christ will faithfully restore the unique characteristics of each individual who has died trusting in Him, except without the taint of sin’s corrupting, disfiguring, and aging effects.(The Bible does not address the issue of skin color and racial ethnicity in the resurrection. But we are all of one original family. See Acts 17:26a)The Apostle Paul says,

“The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal [must] put on immortality.” (1^{stCorinthians 15:52b-53)}

Dear friend, if you trust Christ and agree to obey the constitution of His government, you can rest assured that your name will be retained in the “Lamb’s book of life.”(Revelation 21:27) Just as you are holding in your hands a book filled with information, just so is God, in a sense, holding a very special “book” securely in His strong, protective “hand.” Is your name in that “book of life”? If it is not, “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.” (Acts 3:19a)

Perhaps you aren’t ready to repent of your sins. It is true that you cannot receive forgiveness without first repenting. But the Bible does not teach that you must repent before you can heed the invitation of Christ,“Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”(Matthew 11:28) You cannot repent without the Spirit of Christ to awaken your conscience. Jesus has said, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me.”(John 12:32) You, a sinner, must see Jesus Christ as your Saviour dying for your sins; and as you behold the Lamb of God upon the cross of Calvary, the mystery of redemption will begin to unfold to your mind and the goodness of God will lead you to repentance.

In dying for sinners, Christ manifested a love that is unfathomable; and as you, a sinner, behold this wonderful love, it will soften your heart, impress your mind, and inspire you to repentance. Keep reading about His love, ask Him to give you a repentant heart and meditate on Him. If you continue steadfastly and do not resist you will discover love and repentance welling up in your heart — you will find everlasting life and freedom from the control of sin.

Billions of people have lived on planet earth over the course of history. In order to keep an error-proof record of each person’s “works” there would obviously have to be an accurate, detailed, “blueprint” record of each unique individual to whom specific “works” are attributed. Otherwise, there would be the potential for a disastrous mix-up in the heavenly justice system. Such a tragic mix-up could cause a loyal follower of God, perhaps even a young child, to suffer execution by hellfire. On the other hand, an identity mix-up could allow a heinous unrepentant criminal such as a Nero, Hitler, Stalin, or Bin Laden to enter the gates of God’s eternal kingdom of peace. God will not allow any such horrible mix-up to occur. We can be certain that the records God keeps in heaven are accurate and complete — absolutely!⁷

1^st Corinthians 15:22 says, “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” That passage not only refers to repentant people but is also refers to unrepentant people! As we’ve already noted Acts 24:15b says, “there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.” Let’s add some important detail to our understanding of that awesome truth.

By living a perfect life of obedience, paying every person’s death penalty debt to God’s broken law, and then rising back to life, Christ has earned the right to raise every single person that has ever lived back to life and to pass judgment upon them. And every person that chooses to accept the gift with its conditions of faith and repentance will be saved.

“The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) Moses declared to Israel: “I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil.” (Deuteronomy 30:15) The death referred to in these scriptures is “the second death” that is placed in contrast with everlasting life.

In consequence of Adam's sin, the whole human race must sleep in death. But Christ will raise all from their graves. “There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust;” “for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” (Acts 24:15; I Corinthians 15:22) But two distinct classes are brought forth. “All that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.” (John 5:28, 29)

Those who come up in the resurrection of damnation will “stand before God” bodily. (Revelation 20:12) They will then suffer punishment varying in duration and intensity, “according to their works,” but finally ending in the “second death.” (Revelation 2:11; 20:6, 14; 21:8) God will not save the sinner in his sins. That would be inconsistent with His just and merciful nature. So He deprives the unrepentant sinner of the existence which his transgressions have forfeited and of which he has proved himself unworthy. “Yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.” “They shall be as though they had not been.” (Psalm 37:10; Obadiah 16) The lost will sink into hopeless, eternal oblivion.

Sin will come to an end, with all the woe and ruin, which have resulted from it. Pointing to eternity future Scripture says, “Thou hast destroyed the wicked, Thou hast put out their name forever and ever. O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end.” (Psalm 9:5, 6)

John, in the Revelation, points us to the future eternal state when, there will be a universal anthem of praise undisturbed by one note of discord., “Every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, [be] unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.” (Revelation 5:13) There will then be no one blaspheming God as they writhe in never-ending torment; no wretched people in hell will mingle their shrieks of agony with the songs of the saved.

By rejecting the voice of the Holy Spirit, unrepentant people throw away never-ending life that is within their very grasp. How awful! Do we understand? My friend, Jesus has laid eternal life in your lap. Every sin we have ever committed will be blotted out if only we repent.

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.” Acts 3:19-22

In summary, the destiny of each individual depends on which book his/her name remains in at the conclusion of the investigative judgment. (See Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27; 22:19; Exodus 32:33)

It is clear from Revelation 20:12 that the dead are “judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” Verse 15 then says that those whose names are “not found written in the book of life[will be] cast into the lake of fire.”

Those who trust in God to overcome sin have their “names” recorded and retained in the “book of life.” (See Job 21:23-32; Jude 1:6-15; Philippians 4:3; Revelation 3:5)

On the other hand, those who finish their lives in rebellion are “reserved to the day of destruction” “in the tomb” till “the Lord cometh,” after which “they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath.” They, along with wicked angels, will face “the judgment of the great day.” (Job 21:30; Jude 1:6, 14)

Those whose sins are blotted out and whose names remain in the book of life will awaken in the first resurrection and receive a glorified new spiritual body in perfect harmony with their spiritual mind. They will be granted access to the tree of life and live forever. This includes tiny babies who died, leaving behind grieving parents. What a thrilling reunion for loved ones long separated by death! “O death, where [is] thy sting? O grave, where [is] thy victory?” (1^st Corinthians 15:55)

But those who cling to their sins will have their names blotted out of the book of life. They will awaken in the second resurrection, “the resurrection of damnation”, retaining their old sin-corrupted body, which corresponds with their sin-corrupted mind. (John 5:29b) They will be denied access to the tree of life; they will experience the second death and cease to exist. Angels “shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” as they “perish” (Matthew 13:42; John 3:15-16)

I had a lot of fun putting together the front cover to this booklet. Elvis “the pelvis” Presley, gorgeous, curvaceous Marilyn Monroe, iconic Mother Theresa and perhaps the greatest public figure of the 20^th Century, Winston Churchill all will live again. Booker T. Washington, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein and Mahatma Gandhi will all be resurrected back to consciousness at the return of Christ. The miserable man trying to drown his sorrows with alcohol, the self-absorbed girl combing her hair, the cruel and insane Nero and the silly jester will live and breathe and think once more. The enigmatic John Paul II, beloved yet adulterous Franklin Roosevelt, Abe Lincoln, perhaps the greatest public figure of the 19^th Century, and the faceless Muslim woman known only by her eyes, each of these will see, hear, speak and feel once more.

They all lie in silence now. All their thinking has ended. They don’t know anything about what’s going on in the world today. They are experiencing neither the bliss of heaven nor the horrors of hell — they are asleep awaiting the return of Jesus Christ. They are completely unaware of the passing of time. When resurrected their thoughts will take up once again right where they left off at the moment of death. Even though many years may have gone by it will seem as though only an instant has passed. The moment between death and resurrection will seem like only a quick flash of time.

They, along with all the billions of other human beings who have lived and died throughout history will rise again. Some will gloriously arise in the first resurrection, the resurrection of life and eternal blessings. And some will tragically arise in the second resurrection, the resurrection of judgment and damnation.

Those arising in the first resurrection will never die again. They will arise with brand new glorified bodies which will never grow old or be afflicted with disease or pain.

But many, indeed most, will arise in the second resurrection, the wrong resurrection, the resurrection of damnation! They will “stand before God.” (Revelation 20:12) They will arise with an old sin sick body just viable enough to enable them to function consciously and actively in the closing scenes of the executive judgment. Then they will be executed, blotted out of existence and live no more forever and ever.

What an awful scene it will be when each damned person fully realizes what he or she has lost, when the mental impact of the totality and finality of the loss slams down as a merciless inescapable reality.

¹² “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is[the book] of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. ¹³. . . and they were judged every man according to their works. ¹⁴ And death and hell[the grave] were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. ¹⁵ And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Rev 20:12-15; Bracketed text supplied

¹ “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. ² And I John ³ And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God ^{[is] with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, [and be] their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” Rev 21:1-8}

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