“Period Of Peace”

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

In Revelations 20:6 it talks about a first resurrection.  My question is: who is going to take part in the first resurrection, and has this taken place yet?  Also, is there a time period between the two?

Sincerely,
Reveling in Revelation

Dear Reveling in Revelation,

It is very difficult to give a comprehensive answer to your question in such a brief forum as AskYourPreacher.  To truly understand the depths of what is being discussed in Revelation chapter 20, you would need to have a full study of the book.

With that said, the first resurrection is not a bodily resurrection; it is a resurrection of victory over persecution.  The first resurrection happened at the same time as the thousand years of peace began (Rev 20:5).  The thousand-year-reign (which is not a literal thousand years) began when Christianity defeated Rome and was saved from Roman oppression.  During that reign of peace, the devil no longer has the authority to persecute christians to death like he did in the days of Rome (Rev 20:2).  After the time period of peace, the devil will once again be loosed for a short time to do much harm and severely persecute christians by deceiving the nations (Rev 20:7-8).  Most theologians do not believe that time of severe persecution has begun yet.

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