John 11:20-27 KJV
20 Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the house.
21 Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
22 But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.
23 Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.
24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.

I watching a documentary over 20 years ago, when I seen an story about a church that did not believe in the resurrection, and I was so applaud at the thought this church knew not Christ was risen. They had only believed in a spiritual resurrection of Jesus. It was the first time I remember ever hearing false doctrine with spiritual truth and they called themselves by one of the more noted churches in America. I stop and wondered what was wrong here, that they were claiming to be mainstream christianity. It worried me about the church world but I was seeing something for the first time in my life that I was not familiar with. I seen some cultic groups and their documentaries. It caught me off guard. It was around I believe Easter time it was aired. We want to believe all Christians believe exactly the same thing, like we want to believe all Jews believe the same thing. I think personally we need to examine the Bible and either believe it as it is or realize that even with false ideas there is truth. Devil wants to entrap and spread the lies of faith, but the truth of faith is much guarded by God. God in his wisdom allows division in the church to teach the value of prayer, the value of trusting him to move in the hearts of the individual and to teach truth by God's Spirit alone. He separates the wheat from the chaff. His angels separate the weeds from the wheat. Meaning often two groups of people leave a church when falseness arise both the believer of faith and weeds. Division causes two things truth to reign and a lie to be retold.

The idea of resurrection was known to both Sadducees and Pharisees. Pharisees believed in resurrection but Sadducees did not. Both group of religious leaders perhaps had failed to study scripture. Elisha was placed in a hole for burying, when another man was placed in the same grave only to jump out alive. Old Testament story, In II Kings I believe it is. Point we see the idea of resurrection emerging in Biblical accounts even in the Old Testament. Then you have New Testament accounts in the Gospels of the resurrection. People dying and being brought back to life. Noah was probably the first resurrected man, when he came out of the ark. He may of been just resting, but the reality of what had happened was emerging from that ark.

This story in scripture passage above is when Jesus is about to raise Lazarus from the dead, after he been dead four days. Jesus delayed his coming by two days, either way Lazarus would of been dead. Yet Jesus tells his disciples he is going to go wake Lazarus. He not dead, he is asleep. Prehaps if nothing more it tells how God views are bodies in the grave, asleep waiting on the resurrection of both the dead in faith and dead without faith. Anyone with any knowledge knows that body decays even in the casket to some degree. Yet with this knowledge we know the body dies, is at a state of no longer being able to function internally,to keep the flesh alive. Even God spoke to Ezekiel in Ezekiel if these dry bones could live? And God told Ezekiel he could breath life back into them. I believe these were skeltons that Ezekiel seen. Now what does God need army like that for of dead bones, and people of faith? He needs them for the final battle, he needs to walk the earth to walk through fire, to not be hurt by scorpions and so forth. He needs people who have terminator bodies but without the ability to be wounded at all. Bodies like the incorruptible form of Christ in physical form. We as believers are not god, but we will be able to walk through the storms and not be hurt. A day like that is coming for the believer. Yet in this world we do get hurt, and we do die. We live, we breath and we feel the sting of life hardship and pain. Christ when he was crucified felt every bit of his pain, and everyone coming after him that follow his cross and died a maryters death.

Martha was mad at Jesus and said you know if you had been here my brother would not of died, but you ask anything of God he will give it to you. Jesus asked Martha if she believed in the resurrection. Martha said she knew that a time would come a time when they would be a resurrection. Even if dead if you believe in Jesus you will live. When does belief start and end here it begins when one first believes to the time of the resurrection and beyond. Let ask again when did belief in Jesus begin in scripture? It began when man began to believe God's word, though it exist before man believed. We know Noah believed God's word, we know Enoch believed God's word and we know Seth time period belief was happening because man first began to worship God. Who is Seth but the third son of Adam and Eve. Who is Enoch but a man said to have walked with God and was translated into heaven. Who was Noah but the one that obeyed God to building an ark of gopher wood. God said Noah was a just man for his generation. He declare mankind wicked at this time. Abraham was called righteous and a friend of God because he believe God and it was counted to him as righteousness. How much more was implied to Martha who heard the words eternal life from Jesus himself. How much did Martha grasp of the possibility her brother could live either now or/and even later, perhaps it seen right here in scripture. Yet her brother been dead four days. It takes more faith then most have to believe in a resurrection after four days. Yet resurrection happen all the time with CPR administer at the time of death.

Jesus tells Martha, he is the resurrection and the life. If anyone believes in Jesus will not die. Jesus asked Martha do you believe this. Martha said she did. Belief is maybe the hardest concept of faith. Faith can have action and not full belief. Faith starts as a tiny seed like mustard, and it grows into a tree. God wants to take the mustard seed of faith and to make it grow to a place the birds even nest in it and the squirrels come around and run under its branches. Maybe you could say this tree is bearing fruit which it gather by others. Then any branch that bears no fruit is cut off. How many branches does this tree have that was clipped. Enough to start a good fire.

Point being though we be dead we have the life bearing fruit within our bodies to rise again on the day of the first resurrection from the dead. Jesus is actually outside of Jerusalem in a place called Bethany when Lazarus is raise up from the dead after four full days. Read the whole chapter of John 11.

The question ask do you believe in the resurrection that is recorded in scripture, if you do you are heaven bound and New Jerusalem bound. Yet we are just waiting for Christ return. As time goes by in the world people will says Jesus is not coming, don't believe the lie, but believe in return of Christ. This is not just a physical doctrine of a return but also a spiritual doctrine. The word of God which is also Jesus, rise and falls in our society. Society tried to bury it only for it to rise again. It will rise again until Christ return and he is with us in the physical form of incorruptible form of Christ. How can we be asleep because the word declares it, but we are also have the ability to be waken by the power of Christ Jesus. This is where faith in the resurrection is necessary because God's word rises in our hearts. There times we just have to go a different course to only be drawn back to not belief, but into the power of the word of God. Much like the prodigal son, who seen the hope of return home at the minimum of being a servant in his Father's house, but instead given a ring, a garment and a fine feast with neighbors and friends. Can you believe? Keep studying scripture whether you read this site or not. God's word alone can convict your heart unto belief, because of the power of God's word within it.

Dear Heavenly Father, false doctrines rise in churches to divide but it scatters God's people and toss the weeds out of it when the church awakes to it. In Jesus precious name, Amen.

Continual Scripture Study: 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18 KJV
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Luke 10:18-19 KJV
18 And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.
19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Hurt how, you can not be hurt spiritually now. Jesus is able to keep you safe in truth as a believer. Luke and the verse below is not about physical harm at this time. You will still get a hang nail, a bruise if you kick a chair and so forth. This has to do with not being able to separate you from the love of God, as a believer.

Jude 1:1 KJV
1 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:

Romans 8:35-39 KJV
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.