JEFF TURNER

Jesus spoke plainly about a coming day when everyone who has died will be raised, some to life and some to judgment. This statement points toward distinct future events tied to humanity’s ultimate destiny.

For those who belong to Christ, resurrection unfolds in stages: first the church at the moment of the rapture, followed later by believers who endured tribulation, and finally Old Testament saints raised at the conclusion of that period. These together represent the resurrection of the righteous, leading ultimately to eternal glory.

For those who rejected God, however, there is a single resurrection still to come, described in Revelation as the great white throne judgment. This event marks the final reckoning for all who lived apart from God, occurring just before the present heaven and earth give way to a new creation.

Every person who stood against God’s truth will appear before this throne and face eternal condemnation. Christ himself presides over both the resurrection of the righteous and the judgment of the unrighteous.

And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.

Revelation 20:12