EE
You apparently did not understand it the first time so I will repeat it, this time with a little more emphasis:
The clearest and most significant passage in all of Scripture teaching a general resurrection is the direct teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ, as recorded by the Apostle John:
John 5:28,29, KJV
28 Marvel not at this: for the HOUR is coming, in the which ALL that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
29 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.
This passage is very straightforward with nothing to indicate that it is to be interpreted any way other than literally. The word translated hour is from the Greek word hora and occurs 108 times in the New Testament. It is translated hour 89 times. The meaning of the word [from Thayer's Greek Lexicon] is as follows:
1 a certain definite time or season fixed by natural law and returning with the revolving year
1a of the seasons of the year, spring, summer, autumn, winter
2 the daytime [bounded by the rising and setting of the sun], a day
3 a twelfth part of the day-time, an hour, [the twelve hours of the day are reckoned from the rising to the setting of the sun]
4 any definite time, point of time, moment.
Now it is certain from Thayers definition of the Greek word hora that it could not possibly mean 1007 years or even 7 years.
Two passages in the New Testament where the usage of the word hora, obviously refers to a brief period of time or a specific time are as follows:
Matthew 26:40, KJV
40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour [hora]]?
Matthew 27:45, KJV
45 Now from the sixth hour [hora] there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour [hora].
Jesus Christ in the passage from the Gospel of John [5:28, 29] teaches that in the same hour [hora], this brief, specific period of time, ALL that are in the graves shall hear His voice, And shall come forth. What else can this mean but a general resurrection. I am not alone in this belief. The vast majority of Baptist Confessions throughout Baptist history also contend for a general resurrection and judgment.
I understand full well that the 20th chapter of the Book of Revelation speaks of a first resurrection, which implies a second. Keep in mind, however, that the language of Revelation is apocalyptic or highly symbolic, while the language in the passage from John is not, indicating that a literal understanding of the passage from John is appropriate. However, I do believe in two resurrections, the first resurrection was unquestionably that of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul in his sermon before King Agrippa while imprisoned at Caesaera declared:
Acts 26:22,23, KJV
22 Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come:
23 That Christ should suffer, [and] that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.
Jesus Christ, in prophecy and in history, was the first to rise from the dead to die no more. Those who have part in the first resurrection, His Resurrection, are those who have undergone spiritual resurrection [John 5:25; Ephesians 2:1-7] and have been justified through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. The second resurrection will include everyone, saved and lost, at the return of Jesus Christ and the end of the age.
Not that it will make any difference to the followers of Darbyism/Scofieldism/classic or ultra dispensationalism since they don't believe the Bible anyhow but according to John F. Walvoord the Baptist Faith and Message [Section VI] adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in Atlanta, Georgia on June 14, 2000 refutes the pre trib rapture.
John F. Walvoord, the preeminent dispensationalist theologian and former president of the Dallas Theological Seminary confesses that the validity of the pre-tribulation ‘rapture’ depends on the definition of the Church [Major Bible Prophecies, page 282]. Before presenting Walvoord’s remarks concerning this question it is worthwhile to consider the definition of the Church as presented in The Baptist Faith and Message [Section VI] adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in Atlanta, Georgia on June 14, 2000.
“The New Testament also speaks of the church as the Body of Christ which includes all the redeemed of all ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation.”
Walvoord writes, regarding the definition of the church, [Major Bible Prophecies, page 282]:
“If the question be asked: Will the church be raptured before end-time events? it becomes very important to define the church as an entity that is distinct from Israel or saints in general. In prophetic passages concerning the Tribulation, both Israelites and Gentiles are described, and some of them have faith in Christ and form a godly remnant. If they are part of the church, then the church is in the Tribulation, and the whole question as to whether the church goes through the Tribulation becomes moot.
