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Sermonette: Each in His Own Order
#1892s
Craig Sablich
Given 05-Sep-26; 17 minutes
2026-09-05
summary: Scripture reveals that God's plan for humanity unfolds through an appointed order of resurrections, each serving a distinct purpose. Once the biblical truth about death is understood, Paul's statement that "each one in his own order" becomes significant: Christ, the firstfruits, is followed by those raised to reign with Him, while later resurrections extend God's work to those who have not yet truly known Him. Ezekiel 37 portrays the whole house of Israel restored to physical life, receiving God's Spirit and coming to know Him, while Revelation 20 reveals a final judgment in which each person faces an informed choice between life and death. The resurrections therefore are not merely events after death; they demonstrate God's orderly, merciful purpose to bring every person to genuine understanding, choice, and ultimately judgment—revealing a God whose plan for mankind is faithful and complete.
transcript:
You know, brethren, when we first start walking in the way of God, it doesn't take long before we butt heads with the ideas of almost everything we grew up believing. But in our defense, the cultures we grew up in and are filled with so many false notions that no one could ever sort through them alone. Without the spirit of God opening our minds, we'd stay tangled in the same deceptions as everybody else. Last time we talked, we looked at one of those hard truths. We saw how Satan twisted the knowledge of death and slipped a lie right into its place, a lie that's wrapped itself around almost every religion and civilization since Eden. And even though God has begun clearing that fog from our minds, most of humanity is still buried within it. But as I went back and heard myself talk in that message, something seemed to be hanging in the air. We exposed the lie. You shall not surely die. But I found myself wondering what else becomes harder to see once that lie is believed. You know, there is an old saying, if somebody goes through all the trouble to make a counterfeit, the original must be pretty valuable. So today, I want to step out a little further and see if we can look a little deeper into the plan of God and see if we can find evidence that his plan becomes much harder to see once death itself is misunderstood. So far we've seen the evidence of two identifying marks that reveals the system Satan has pushed across the world. His attack on God's authority and his corruption of the truth about death. But once we understand that the dead really do sleep in the grave, waiting for resurrection, another question kind of jumps out on its own. Why does Scripture speak of more than one resurrection? Wouldn't it be simpler for God to just raise everybody at once? At first that sounds like a prophecy question. But the longer you sit with it, the more it becomes a question about God's character and purpose. Because if God chose to resurrect mankind in stages, those stages aren't random. They belong to an order. And maybe that order reveals something about how God is carrying out His purpose for mankind. Sometimes a simple phrase in scripture just stays with you until you finally stop and look at it. For this subject, it was Paul's quiet statement in I Corinthians 15. But each one in his own order. He doesn't defend it. He just lays it out, almost like he assumes we already know God works according to an order. Paul could have easily written, all will be made alive in Christ, and that would have been true, yeah. But under inspiration, he said, each one in his own order. So the order matters. Then he explains it. Price, the first fruits, and that's already happened. Afterward those who are Christ at His coming. That still lies ahead. Then comes the end. Paul is not describing one resurrection. He's showing God's order. But he hasn't told us why the order exists. Before we can understand God's reason, we have to recognize that scripture presents a pattern. Once we see that, the next question almost asks itself, why did God establish it? Now, before we go farther, we need to keep something clear. Scripture speaks not only of multiple resurrections, but also of two deaths. The first death is the one all humanity experiences through Adam. But Revelation speaks of the second death. God's final judgment after his work with mankind is complete. So keeping those separate helps us understand why Scripture presents more than one resurrection. Now let me ask you this. Why did Paul call Christ the first fruits when others had been restored to life before Him? Think about the miracles of Elijah and Elisha. Jaris's daughter and especially Lazarus. Well, the evidence shows that Christ was not just the first to be raised to immortal life. He became the first complete example of the designed pattern. Bryce lived as a man, died, slept in the grave, and was raised to eternal life. He became the first full picture of where God's purpose for mankind is heading. But then where does Lazarus fit in? He lived, died, slept, and was raised. But not to immortality. He woke up still mortal, returned to his family, continued living, and eventually died again. So now we have two witnesses, Christ and Lazarus, both experiencing death, sleep, and resurrection. But not raised to the same kind of life. And that difference is important, yeah. Scripture is not simply teaching that people are raised, it's showing us why the order matters. God doesn't accomplish the same thing through every resurrection. Let's look at Christ again. God's work with him did not begin at resurrection. He was born, called, obedient, submissive, and then died. His resurrection completed that phase of God's work. Now look at Lazarus. He died, was raised, and came back to physical life. He walked out of that grave, still mortal. God's work with Lazarus was not finished. His resurrection was not the end of anything. It was just another step in what God was doing with him. So when you look at both stories together, the discovery becomes clearer. In each case, resurrection served something larger. Well, now we have to ask another question. What is God accomplishing through each resurrection? Well, the best way to find the answer is to let scripture walk us through the evidence. Paul has already shown us that God works according to order. So what is God's purpose for the first resurrection? Well, the first clue is in the word Paul uses for Christ. First fruits. Now think about that for a moment. God could have inspired Paul to simply say Christ was the first raised to immortal life. But he did not He chose a word tied to harvest. And here we are with this first harvest on our minds as we approach the fall holy day season. First fruits aren't the whole harvest, they are the beginning. The first portion gathered before the greater harvest still ahead. Let's go take a look at Revelation chapter 20. By calling Christ the first fruits, God is already hinting that His resurrection is the beginning of something much larger. John adds another layer in Revelation 20:6. Blessed and holy is He who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with Him a 1000 years. Now hold on a minute here. John doesn't describe the first resurrection as though eternal life is the end of the story. Those raised are immediately given responsibility. They become priests. They reign with Christ. So Paul calls those in the first resurrection first fruits. And John shows what those first fruits are being prepared to do. Can you see it, brethren? The first resurrection is not only about receiving eternal life, it's also about God preparing the first fruits for service in His kingdom. But now again, there is another question. If they reign with Christ for 1000 years, who are they serving? Kings govern people. Priests teach people. God wouldn't prepare the first fruits for work that did not exist. So that means there must be other people still included in God's plan. So once again, brethren, we let scripture answer. Let's turn over to Ezekiel chapter 37, as Scripture takes us right into a valley filled with dry bones, people long dead, no breath left in them, no strength, and no hope. And God asked Ezekiel in verse 30, in verse 3. Can these bones live? Ezekiel answers the only way a man can when he's standing in front of something like that. He says, oh Lord God, you know. Then God begins to show him. Bones come together. Sinews form. Flesh covers them. Breath enters them. They stand on their feet, an exceedingly great multitude. But they are not raised as immortal beings. They're restored to physical life. And right there, the connection to Lazarus comes back again. Lazarus came out of the grave still mortal. And that's exactly the kind of resurrection Ezekiel is witnessing. But God doesn't leave the meaning open to interpretation. He says plainly in verse 11. These bones are the whole house of Israel. Not a remnant, not a handful. The whole house. Then he says in verse 12, I will open your graves and cause you to come up and bring you into the land of Israel. Notice he doesn't say they immediately receive eternal life. He restores them to physical life and brings them back into the land. Then he says in verse 14, I will put my spirit in you, and you shall live. And finally he thunders out that purpose. Then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it and performed it. I'll sit with that for a moment. Why would God say, then you shall know me. Unless he's describing people who never truly truly knew him in the form of a real relationship. So what are we seeing here? God opens their graves. He restores them to physical life. He brings them into the land. He gives them His Spirit, and then. Then they come to know him. That's the order God Himself gives. It is not the picture of a finished work. It's the picture of God continuing his work with people he has brought back to life. And now we can begin to see why God has prepared the first fruits for service. There will be an enormous work still ahead. Now, Daniel gives us another glimpse of that same pattern. He says in chapter 12 verse 2. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. He doesn't pause to explain what determines those outcomes. He just lays the picture down. So we keep following the witnesses. John tells us in Revelation 20:11 that he saw a great white throne and then in verse 12 he sees the dead, small and great, standing before God. Books are opened. Then the book of life is opened. Only after that does John begin speaking of judgment. The order matters, brethren. The dead stand before God. Something is open to them. Something is revealed, and then Their works are judged. John says they are judged according to their works by the things written in the books. So again, What are we seeing? God brings mankind to the place where every person is judged with full knowledge of his truth and according to the choices they make. From the garden onward, God has always placed a choice before mankind. In Eden, it was choose blessings or cursings. At Sinai, he said, I have set before you life and death. Therefore, choose life. And here at the great white throne, that same purpose continues. Every person is finally brought to the moment where they can knowingly choose between God's truth and the lie, between life and death. The scripture also shows us that not everyone chooses life. John continues in verse 14. Then Death and Hades were cast into the Lake of Fire. This is the 2nd death, and anyone not found written in the book of life was cast into the Lake of Fire. Now Daniel's two outcomes make sense, yeah. Some awaken and ultimately receive everlasting life. Others knowingly reject God and face the second death, eternal death. That is the final judgment. Not because God failed to give them opportunity, but because after being brought to the knowledge of truth, They still chose death rather than life. So the second resurrection reveals God continuing his work. The final resurrection reveals God bringing that work to judgment and completion. So brethren, once the serpents lie convinced mankind that death was not really death. The purpose of resurrection became much harder to see. But when we let scripture speak, a different pitch rises. When we began today, it seemed like we were asking a question about resurrection. Why are there multiple resurrections? But after listening to these witnesses, that was not really the question at all. The real question is what kind of God would establish such an orderly plan. And what do we see? A God who has never abandoned his purpose for mankind, from Eden to Sinai to the great white throne, he continues bringing humanity to the place where each person can knowingly choose between his truth and the lie, between life and death, according to his perfect timing. So the resurrections aren't simply telling us what happens after death. They reveal how faithfully God carries His purpose to completion. They were never the destination. They are God's appointed means of completing His work with mankind. And brethren, if that is the kind of God we serve. Then we can trust him completely with our place in that plan.
CLS/aws+/
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