12.1 What does the Bible mean by resurrection?
ANSWER:
Dead people coming to life again, as the Lord Jesus did when he rose from the dead. See Revelation 1:5; Colossians 1:18; Acts 26:23; 1 Corinthians 15:20.

12.2 When will the resurrection take place?
ANSWER:
When the Lord Jesus comes back to the earth. See 1 Thessalonians 4:16; John 5:28-29; 1 Corinthians 15: 23.

12.3 Will those who rise from the dead come out of their graves immortal?
ANSWER:
No. First they must appear (in their bodies of flesh and blood) before Christ, the great Judge of all. He will decide who are worthy of everlasting life and who are unworthy. See Romans 14:10; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 1 Peter 4:6; Daniel 12:2; Revelation 20:11-15.

12.4 Will everyone who has ever lived be raised from the dead and judged by Christ?
ANSWER:
No. Only those who have learned the truth of the Gospel and know that they should obey Christ. See John 12:48; Deuteronomy 18:18-19; Matthew 25: 14-30; Romans 2:12, 16.

12.5 What will happen to those who are not raised from the dead?
ANSWER:
They will never rise from their graves, but will remain dead for ever. See Psalm 49:20; Proverbs 21:16; Isaiah 26: l4; Isaiah 43:17.

12.6 What will happen to those who are alive at the Coming of the Lord?
ANSWER:
Those who have to face judgement will be gathered by the angels to meet Christ, like those who have just been raised from the dead. Then the judgement will take
place.
See 1 Corinthians 15:51; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Matthew 25:31-32.

12.7 What will happen to those whom the Lord accepts at the judgement?
ANSWER:
They will be given everlasting life, which they will spend upon the earth, in Christ's kingdom.
See Daniel 12:3; Matthew 25:20, 21, 34; Daniel 7:27; Revelation 5:10; Matthew 5:5.

12.8 Does the Bible promise that faithful Christians will go to heaven?
ANSWER:
No. As we have just seen, the Bible promises that faithful followers of Jesus will live for ever on earth. The Bible also says that nobody has gone to heaven, except Jesus. See Psalm 115:16; Acts 2:34; John 3:13.
Note:
A few Bible passages are sometimes thought to teach that Christians are promised eternal life in heaven. But they can all be shown to agree with the teaching of the rest of the Bible. For example, "my Father's house", of John 14:2 is not in heaven. God's house is the temple, as John 2:16 shows. The greatest of all temples is a spiritual temple, and the believers are living stones in that great house that is still being built.
(See 1 Peter 2:5). God's house is therefore on earth, and because of this the Lord Jesus says (in the next verse - John 14:3), "I will come again and receive you unto myself".

12.9 What will be the fate of those whom the Lord rejects?
ANSWER:
They will hear Christ condemning them. They will see the righteous going into Christ's Kingdom, while they themselves are shut out. Finally they will receive everlasting death - the "second death" of Revelation 2:11 and Revelation 20:14, from which there will be no awakening. See Luke 13:28; Matthew 22:13; Matthew 25:46; Psalm 145:20.

12.10 Why do some passages say that those who are rejected by Christ will be cast into a lake of fire?
ANSWER:
Revelation 20:14 tells us that the lake of fire is the same as the second death. Men use fire to destroy rubbish. In the Bible, God speaks of fire in a kind of parable, to show that those whom He finds worthless will be completely destroyed. See Psalm 37:20; Psalm 68:2; Matthew 3:11-12;2 Thessalonians 1:7-9.