First Resurrection

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 thousand years. Revelation 20:6

Those Christians who will rule and reign with Jesus in the millennium are called “blessed” and “holy.” These saints will be kings and priests with the Lord. Most of all, they will qualify for the first resurrection (Rev. 20:6). The apostle Paul says in Philippians 3:10-11, “That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” The deepest cry in Paul’s heart was to qualify for the first resurrection. There are two specific resurrections in the Bible:

• the first resurrection, which takes place at the second coming of Christ, and
• the general resurrection, which takes place after the 1,000-year reign of Christ on the earth. In Philippians 3:10, Paul gives us four qualifications that must be worked out in our lives in order for us to have a part in the first resurrection:

1. That I may know Him. To really know the Lord, you have to know what He is like. This involves knowing His attributes. Five of God’s attributes are mentioned in Exodus 34:6, “And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth.’” In Matthew 11:29, Jesus mentions two more of His attributes—gentleness and lowliness: “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will fi nd rest for your souls.” For you to really know these attributes, they must be worked out in you experientially. The more the nature of God is worked out in your life, the more you can know Him.
2. That I may know the power of His resurrection. Ephesians 1:17-22 says that we need to have a revelation of “what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church.” When it comes to such glorious power, mental assent will not do. You need to experience it tangibly in your life.
3. That I may know the fellowship of His sufferings. The Bible tells us that if we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him (2 Tim. 2:12). Jesus suffered physically, emotionally, and spiritually. He suffered reproach in the area of His reputation. He experienced betrayal and was forsaken by His loved ones. In the same measure that you suffer with Him, to that same degree you will reign with Christ.
4. That I may be made conformable to His death. This means to experience the crucified life. We must carry our cross and, as Jesus says, “die daily” (1 Cor. 15:31) to ourselves.