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CHAPTER SEVEN Real Hope for Your Loved Ones Who Have Died How do we know that the resurrection will really happen? How does Jehovah feel about resurrecting the dead? Who will be resurrected? What enemy pursues all of us, and why will considering what the Bible teaches bring us some relief? IMAGINE that you are running away from a vicious enemy. He is much stronger and faster than you are. You know that he is merciless because you have seen him kill some of your friends. No matter how hard you try to outrun him, he keeps getting closer. There seems to be no hope. Suddenly, though, a rescuer appears at your side. He is far more powerful than your enemy, and he promises to help you. How relieved that makes you feel! 2 In a sense, you are being pursued by such an enemy. All of us are. As we learned in the preceding chapter, the Bible calls death an enemy. None of us can outrun it or fight it off. Most of us have seen this enemy claim the lives of people dear to us. But Jehovah is far more powerful than death. He is the loving Rescuer who has already shown that he can defeat this enemy. And he promises to destroy this enemy, death, once and for all. The Bible teaches: “As the last enemy, death is to be brought to nothing.” (1 Corinthians 15:26) That is good news! 3 Let us take a brief look at how the enemy death affects us when it strikes. Doing this will help us to appreciate something that will make us happy. You see, Jehovah promises that the dead will live again. (Isaiah 26:19) They will be brought back to life. That is the hope of the resurrection. WHEN A LOVED ONE DIES (a) Why does Jesus’ reaction to the death of a loved one teach us about Jehovah’s feelings? (b) Jesus developed what special friendship? 4 Have you lost a loved one in death? The pain, the grief, and the feelings of helplessness can seem unbearable. At such times, we need to go to God’s Word for comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3, 4) The Bible helps us to understand how Jehovah and Jesus feel about death. Jesus, who perfectly reflected his Father, knew the pain of losing someone in death. (John 14:9) When he was in Jerusalem, Jesus used to visit Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, who lived in the nearby town of Bethany. They became close friends. The Bible says: “Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.” (John 11:5) As we learned in the preceding chapter, though, Lazarus died. (a) How did Jesus respond when he was with Lazarus’ grieving family and friends? (b) Why is Jesus’ grief encouraging to us? 5 How did Jesus feel about losing his friend? The account tells us that Jesus joined Lazarus’ relatives and friends as they grieved over this loss. Seeing them, Jesus was deeply moved. He “groaned in the spirit and became troubled.” Then, the account says, “Jesus gave way to tears.” (John 11:33, 35) Did Jesus’ grief mean that he had no hope? Not at all. In fact, Jesus knew that something wonderful was about to happen. (John 11:3, 4) Still, he felt the pain and sorrow that death brings. 6 In a way, Jesus’ grief is encouraging to us. It teaches us that Jesus and his Father, Jehovah, hate death. But Jehovah God is able to fight and overcome that enemy! Let us see what God enabled Jesus to do. “LAZARUS, COME ON OUT!” Why might the case of Lazarus have seemed hopeless to human onlookers, but what did Jesus do? 7 Lazarus had been buried in a cave, and Jesus asked that the stone sealing its entrance be taken away. Martha objected because after four days, Lazarus’ body must have begun to decay. (John 11:39) From a human standpoint, what hope was there? 8 The stone was rolled away, and Jesus cried out with a loud voice: “Lazarus, come on out!” What happened? “The man that had been dead came out.” (John 11:43, 44) Can you imagine the joy of the people there? Whether Lazarus was their brother, relative, friend, or neighbor, they knew that he had died. Yet, here he was (a) How did Jesus reveal the Source of his power to resurrect Lazarus? (b) What are some of the benefits of reading the Bible’s resurrection accounts? 9 Jesus did not claim to perform this amazing miracle on his own. In his prayer just before calling out to Lazarus, he made it clear that Jehovah was the Source of the resurrection. (John 11:41, 42) This was not the only time that Jehovah used his power in this way. The resurrection of Lazarus is just one of nine miracles of this kind recorded in God’s Word. * To read and study these accounts is a delight. They teach us that God is not partial, for the resurrected ones include young and old, male and female, Israelite and non-Israelite. And what joy is described in these passages! For example, when Jesus raised a young girl from the dead, her parents “were beside themselves with great ecstasy.” (Mark 5:42) Yes, Jehovah had given them a cause for joy that they would never forget. 10 Of course, those resurrected by Jesus eventually died again. Does this mean that it was pointless to resurrect them? Not at all. These Bible accounts confirm important truths and give us hope. LEARNING FROM THE RESURRECTION ACCOUNTS How does the account of Lazarus’ resurrection help to confirm the truth recorded at Ecclesiastes 9:5? 11 The Bible teaches that the dead “are conscious of nothing at all.” They are not alive and have no conscious existence anywhere. The account of Lazarus confirms this. Upon returning to life, did Lazarus thrill people with descriptions of heaven? Or did he terrify them with horrible tales about a burning hell? The Bible contains no such words from Lazarus. During the four days that he was dead, he had been “conscious of nothing at all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5) Lazarus had simply been sleeping in death. Why can we be sure that the resurrection of Lazarus really happened? 12 The account of Lazarus also teaches us that the resurrection is a reality, not a mere myth. Jesus raised Lazarus in front of a crowd of eyewitnesses. Even the religious leaders, who hated Jesus, did not deny this miracle. Rather, they said: “What are we to do, because this man [Jesus] performs many signs?” (John 11:47) Many people went to see the resurrected man. As a result, even more of them put faith in Jesus. They saw in Lazarus living proof that Jesus was sent by God. This evidence was so powerful that some of the hardhearted Jewish religious leaders planned to kill both Jesus and Lazarus. What basis do we have for believing that Jehovah really can resurrect the dead? 13 Is it unrealistic to accept the resurrection as a fact? No, for Jesus taught that someday “all those in the memorial tombs” will be resurrected. (John 5:28) Jehovah is the Creator of all life. Should it be hard to believe that he can re-create life? Of course, much would depend on Jehovah’s memory. Can he remember our dead loved ones? Countless trillions of stars fill the universe, yet God gives the name of each one! (Isaiah 40:26) So Jehovah God can remember our dead loved ones in every detail, and he is ready to restore them to life. As illustrated by what Job said, how does Jehovah feel about bringing the dead back to life? 14 How, though, does Jehovah feel about resurrecting the dead? The Bible teaches that he is eager to raise the dead. The faithful man Job asked: “If an able-bodied man dies can he live again?” Job was speaking about waiting in the grave until the time came for God to remember him. He said to Jehovah: “You will call, and I myself shall answer you. For the work of your hands you will have a yearning.” 15 Just think! Jehovah actually yearns to bring the dead back to life. Is it not heartwarming to learn that Jehovah feels that way? But what about this future resurrection? Who will be resurrected, and where? “ALL THOSE IN THE MEMORIAL TOMBS” The dead will be resurrected to live in what kind of conditions? 16 The Bible’s resurrection accounts teach us much about the resurrection to come. People who were restored to life right here on earth were reunited with their loved ones. The future resurrection will be similar How extensive will the resurrection be? 17 Who will be resurrected? Jesus said that “all those in the memorial tombs will hear his [Jesus’] voice and come out.” (John 5:28, 29) Similarly, Revelation 20:13 says: “The sea gave up those dead in it, and death and Hades gave up those dead in them.” “Hades” refers to the common grave of mankind. (See the Appendix, pages 212-13.) This collective grave will be emptied. All those billions who rest there will live again. The apostle Paul said: “There is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Acts 24:15) What does that mean? Who are included among “the righteous” who are to be resurrected, and how may this hope affect you personally? 18 “The righteous” include many of the people we read about in the Bible who lived before Jesus came to the earth. You might think of Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Ruth, Esther, and many others. Some of these men and women of faith are discussed in the 11th chapter of Hebrews. But “the righteous” also include Jehovah’s servants who die in our time. Thanks to the resurrection hope, we may be freed from any dread of dying. Who are “the unrighteous,” and what opportunity does Jehovah kindly give them? 19 What about all the people who did not serve or obey Jehovah because they never knew about him? These billions of “unrighteous” ones will not be forgotten. They too will be resurrected and given time to learn about the true God and to serve him. During a period of a thousand years, the dead will be resurrected and given an opportunity to join faithful humans on earth in serving Jehovah. It will be a wonderful time. This period is what the Bible refers to as Judgment Day. What is Gehenna, and who go there? 20 Does this mean that every human who ever lived will be resurrected? The Bible says that some of the dead are in “Gehenna.” (Luke 12:5) Gehenna got its name from a garbage dump located outside of ancient Jerusalem. Dead bodies and garbage were burned there. The dead whose bodies were thrown there were considered by the Jews to be unworthy of a burial and a resurrection. So Gehenna is a fitting symbol of everlasting destruction. Although Jesus will have a role in judging the living and the dead, Jehovah is the final Judge. (Acts 10:42) He will never resurrect those whom he judges to be wicked and unwilling to change. THE HEAVENLY RESURRECTION (a) What other kind of resurrection is there? (b) Who was the first ever to receive a resurrection to spirit life? 21 The Bible also refers to another kind of resurrection, one to life as a spirit creature in heaven. Only one example of this type of resurrection is recorded in the Bible, that of Jesus Christ. 22 After Jesus was put to death as a human, Jehovah did not allow His faithful Son to remain in the grave. (Psalm 16:10; Acts 13:34, 35) God resurrected Jesus, but not as a human. The apostle Peter explains that Christ was “put to death in the flesh, but . made alive in the spirit.” (1 Peter 3:18) This truly was a great miracle. Jesus was alive again as a mighty spirit person! (1 Corinthians 15:3-6) Jesus was the first ever to receive this glorious type of resurrection. (John 3:13) But he would not be the last. Who make up Jesus’ “little flock,” and how many will they number? 23 Knowing that he would soon return to heaven, Jesus told his faithful followers that he would “prepare a place” for them there. (John 14:2) Jesus referred to those going to heaven as his “little flock.” (Luke 12:32) How many are to be in this relatively small group of faithful Christians? According to Revelation 14:1, the apostle John says: “I saw, and, look! the Lamb [Jesus Christ] standing upon the Mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand having his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads.” 24 These 144,000 Christians, including Jesus’ faithful apostles, are raised to life in heaven. When does their resurrection take place? The apostle Paul wrote that it would occur during the time of Christ’s presence. (1 Corinthians 15:23) As you will learn in Chapter 9, we are now living in that time. So those few remaining ones of the 144,000 who die in our day are instantly resurrected to life in heaven. (1 Corinthians 15:51-55) The vast majority of mankind, however, have the prospect of being resurrected in the future to life in Paradise on earth. What will be considered in the next chapter? 25 Yes, Jehovah really will defeat our enemy death, and it will be gone forever! (Isaiah 25:8) Yet, you may wonder, ‘What will those resurrected to heaven do there?’ They will form part of a marvelous Kingdom government in heaven. We will learn more about that government in the next chapter. ^ par. 9 The other accounts are found at 1 Kings 17:17-24; 2 Kings 4:32-37; 13:20, 21; Matthew 28:5-7; Luke 7:11-17; 8:40-56; Acts 9:36-42; and Ac 20:7-12. ^ par. 19 For more information on Judgment Day and the basis for judgment, please see the Appendix, pages 213-15.
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SEDMO POGLAVLJE Istinska nada za tvoje voljene koji su umrli Kako znamo da će doista biti uskrsnuće? Kako Jehova gleda na uskrsavanje umrlih? Tko će uskrsnuti? Koji neprijatelj progoni sve nas, i zašto će nas razmatranje onog što Biblija uči utješiti? ZAMISLI da bježiš od okrutnog neprijatelja. On je puno jači i brži od tebe. Znaš da je nemilosrdan jer si vidio kako ubija neke tvoje prijatelje. Koliko god se trudio trčati što brže, on te ipak stiže. Čini se da ti nema spasa. No odjednom se pojavi tvoj spasitelj. On je daleko snažniji od neprijatelja i obećava ti da će ti pomoći. Kakvo bi samo olakšanje osjetio! 2 U neku ruku, tebe doista progoni takav neprijatelj. Zapravo, on progoni sve nas. Kao što smo naučili u prethodnom poglavlju, Biblija smrt naziva neprijateljem. Nitko od nas ne može joj umaći niti je izbjeći. Većina nas vidjela je kako taj neprijatelj oduzima život nama dragim osobama. No Jehova je daleko moćniji od smrti. On je Spasitelj pun ljubavi koji je već dokazao da može pobijediti tog neprijatelja. Isto tako, on obećava da će uništiti tog neprijatelja, smrt, jednom za sva vremena. Biblija uči da će ‘kao posljednji neprijatelj biti uništena smrt’ (1. Korinćanima 15:26). To je divna vijest! 3 Najprije ćemo se nakratko osvrnuti na to kako se osjećamo kad umre netko koga volimo. Tako ćemo lakše razumjeti obećanje koje nas raduje. Naime, Jehova obećava da će mrtvi oživjeti (Izaija 26:19). Bit će vraćeni u život. Dakle, uskrsnuće je nada za umrle. KAD UMRE NETKO KOGA VOLIMO (a) Zašto Isusova reakcija na smrt voljene osobe otkriva Jehovine osjećaje? (b) S kim je Isus bio prijatelj? 4 Je li ti smrt oduzela neku voljenu osobu? Možda osjećaš nesnošljivu bol, tugu i bespomoćnost. U takvim trenucima utjehu trebamo potražiti u Božjoj Riječi (2. Korinćanima 1:3, 4). Biblija nam pomaže da saznamo kako Jehova i Isus gledaju na smrt. Isus, koji je bio savršen odraz svog Oca, znao je koliko boli kad nam netko umre (Ivan 14:9). Kad je bio u Jeruzalemu, imao je običaj posjetiti Lazara i njegove sestre, Mariju i Martu, koji su živjeli u obližnjem gradu Betaniji. Postali su bliski prijatelji. Biblija kaže: “Isus je ljubio Martu, njezinu sestru i Lazara” (Ivan 11:5). Međutim, kao što smo saznali u prethodnom poglavlju, Lazar je umro. (a) Kako je Isus reagirao kad je bio s Lazarovom ožalošćenom obitelji i prijateljima? (b) Zašto Isusova tuga na nas djeluje ohrabrujuće? 5 Kako se Isus osjećao kad je izgubio svog prijatelja? Izvještaj nam kaže da je otišao k Lazarovoj rodbini i prijateljima koji su tugovali zbog njegove smrti. Kad ih je vidio, to ga je jako pogodilo. “Bio je duboko dirnut i potresen.” A onda, kako kaže izvještaj, “Isus je zaplakao” (Ivan 11:33, 35). Je li Isusova tuga značila da za Lazara više nema nade? Daleko od toga. Ustvari, Isus je znao da će se dogoditi nešto divno (Ivan 11:3, 4). Pa ipak, osjećao je bol i tugu koje smrt donosi. 6 To što je Isus tugovao na nas zapravo djeluje ohrabrujuće. Uči nas da Isus i njegov Otac, Jehova, mrze smrt. No Jehova Bog može se suprotstaviti tom neprijatelju i pobijediti ga! Da vidimo što je Bog omogućio Isusu da učini. “LAZARE, IZAĐI!” Zašto je Lazarov slučaj ljudima izgledao beznadno, no što je Isus učinio? 7 Budući da su Lazara nakon smrti stavili u jednu pećinu, Isus je rekao da odmaknu kamen koji se nalazio na ulazu u nju. Marta se usprotivila. Prošla su četiri dana otkako je Lazar umro i njegovo se tijelo sigurno već počelo raspadati (Ivan 11:39). Je li za njega s ljudskog gledišta bilo ikakve nade? 8 Kad su odmaknuli kamen, Isus je povikao na sav glas: “Lazare, izađi!” I što se dogodilo? “Umrli je izašao” (Ivan 11:43, 44). Možeš li zamisliti kolika je radost zavladala među prisutnima? Svejedno je li im Lazar bio brat, rođak, prijatelj ili susjed, znali su da je umro. A sad je taj isti dragi čovjek stajao među njima. Mora da im se to činilo prelijepo da bi bilo istinito. Sigurno su mnogi radosno zagrlili Lazara. Bila je to prava pobjeda nad smrću! (a) Kako je Isus pokazao tko mu je dao moć da uskrsne Lazara? (b) Kako nam koristi čitanje izvještaja o uskrsnućima o kojima se govori u Bibliji? 9 Isus nije tvrdio da je to zadivljujuće čudo učinio vlastitom snagom. Kratko prije nego što je pozvao Lazara da izađe, u molitvi je jasno ukazao na to da Jehova stoji iza tog uskrsnuća (Ivan 11:41, 42). To nije bio jedini put da je Jehova tako upotrijebio svoju moć. Uskrsnuće Lazara samo je jedno od devet takvih čuda zapisanih u Božjoj Riječi. * Pravi je užitak čitati o tome i proučavati te izvještaje. Oni nas uče da Bog nije pristran jer je uskrsnuo mlade i stare, muškarce i žene, Izraelce i ne-Izraelce. A kolika je samo radost opisana u tim odlomcima! Naprimjer, kad je Isus uskrsnuo jednu djevojčicu, njeni su roditelji ‘bili izvan sebe od ushićenja’ (Marko 5:42). Da, Jehova im je dao toliki razlog za radost da to nikada nisu zaboravili. Naravno, osobe koje je Isus uskrsnuo kasnije su ponovno umrle. Znači li to da nije imalo smisla uskrsnuti ih? Daleko od toga. Ti biblijski izvještaji potvrđuju važne istine i u nas ulijevaju nadu. ŠTO UČIMO IZ IZVJEŠTAJA O USKRSNUĆIMA Kako izvještaj o Lazarovom uskrsnuću potvrđuje istinu zapisanu u Propovjedniku 9:5? Biblija uči da mrtvi “nisu svjesni ničega”. Oni nisu živi, nisu pri svijesti niti nastavljaju postojati negdje drugdje. Izvještaj o Lazaru to potvrđuje. Je li Lazar, nakon što se vratio u život, oduševio ljude opisujući im kako je na nebu? Je li ih uplašio strašnim pričama o paklenoj vatri? Nije. U Bibliji nema takvih Lazarovih riječi. Tokom četiri dana, koliko je bio mrtav, on ‘nije bio svjestan ničega’ (Propovjednik 9:5). Lazar je naprosto umro. Bilo je to kao da spava (Ivan 11:11). Zašto možemo biti sigurni da se uskrsnuće Lazara doista dogodilo? Iz izvještaja o Lazaru također učimo da je uskrsnuće nepobitna istina, a ne puka izmišljotina. Isus je uskrsnuo Lazara pred mnoštvom očevidaca. Čak ni vjerski vođe, koji su mrzili Isusa, nisu porekli da se to čudo zaista desilo. Umjesto toga, rekli su: “Što da radimo? Ovaj čovjek [Isus] čini mnoga čuda” (Ivan 11:47). Mnogi su došli vidjeti uskrsnulog Lazara. Tako je još više ljudi počelo vjerovati u Isusa. U Lazaru su vidjeli živi dokaz da je Isus poslan od Boga. Taj je dokaz bio toliko snažan da su neki nemilosrdni židovski vjerski vođe planirali ubiti i Isusa i Lazara (Ivan 11:53; 12:9-11). Zašto možemo vjerovati da Jehova uistinu može uskrsnuti umrle? Je li nerealno prihvatiti uskrsnuće kao nepobitnu istinu? Nije, jer je Isus rekao da će jednog dana “svi koji su u grobovima” uskrsnuti (Ivan 5:28). Jehova je Stvoritelj sveg života. Zar je onda teško povjerovati da može iznova stvoriti život? Naravno, puno toga ovisi o Jehovinom sjećanju. Može li se on sjetiti naših voljenih koji su umrli? U svemiru postoji toliko zvijezda da ih ne možemo ni izbrojiti, a Bog svakoj daje ime! Prema tome, Jehova Bog može se sjetiti svakog detalja o našim voljenima koji su umrli i spreman je vratiti ih u život. Kako prema Jobovim riječima Jehova gleda na vraćanje umrlih u život? A kako Jehova gleda na uskrsavanje umrlih? Biblija nas uči da on to željno iščekuje. Vjerni Job je upitao: “Kad čovjek umre, može li se u život vratiti?” Job je govorio da će čekati u grobu dok ne dođe vrijeme da ga se Bog sjeti. Jehovi je rekao: “Zazvat ćeš, i ja ću ti se odazvati. Djelo ruku svojih poželjet ćeš” (Job 14:13-15). Zamisli! Jehova žarko želi vratiti umrle u život. Zar nije divno znati da to Jehova osjeća? No što je s uskrsnućem koje će uslijediti u budućnosti? Tko će uskrsnuti i gdje? “SVI KOJI SU U GROBOVIMA” U kakvim će uvjetima živjeti uskrsnuli? Izvještaji o uskrsnućima o kojima se govori u Bibliji uče nas mnogo o uskrsnuću koje će se odvijati u budućnosti. Oni koji su bili vraćeni u život na Zemlji ponovno su se sastali sa svojim voljenima. Uskrsnuće u budućnosti bit će slično — no puno bolje. U trećem poglavlju naučili smo da je Božji naum da cijela Zemlja bude pretvorena u raj. Dakle, mrtvi koji budu vraćeni u život neće se naći u svijetu punom ratova, zločina i bolesti. Imat će priliku vječno živjeti na Zemlji u miru i sreći. Tko će sve uskrsnuti? Tko će uskrsnuti? Isus je rekao da će “svi koji su u grobovima čuti glas njegov i izaći” (Ivan 5:28, 29). Slično tome, Otkrivenje 20:13 kaže: “More je predalo mrtvace koji su bili u njemu i smrt i grob predali su mrtvace koji su bili u njima.” “Grob” (u izvorniku “had”) odnosi se na simbolično zajedničko mjesto gdje se nalaze umrli ljudi. (Vidi Dodatak na 212-213. stranici.) Taj zajednički grob bit će ispražnjen. Milijarde ljudi koji počivaju u njemu ponovno će živjeti. Apostol Pavao je rekao: ‘Bit će uskrsnuće i pravednih i nepravednih’ (Djela apostolska 24:15). Što to znači? Koga se sve ubraja u ‘pravedne’ koji će uskrsnuti, i kako ta nada može djelovati na tebe? Izraz ‘pravedni’ odnosi se na mnoge ljude o kojima čitamo u Bibliji, a koji su živjeli prije nego što je Isus došao na Zemlju. Možda ti na pamet padnu Noa, Abraham, Sara, Mojsije, Ruta, Estera i mnogi drugi. Neke od tih muževa i žena koji su imali jaku vjeru spominje se u 11. poglavlju Hebrejima. No u te ‘pravedne’ ubrajaju se i Jehovini sluge koji umiru u naše vrijeme. Budući da gajimo nadu u uskrsnuće, ne bojimo se smrti (Hebrejima 2:15). Tko su ‘nepravedni’, i koju će im priliku Jehova s ljubavlju pružiti? Što je sa svim onim ljudima koji nisu služili Jehovi niti mu bili poslušni jer ga nikada nisu ni upoznali? Te milijarde “nepravednih” neće biti zaboravljene. I one će uskrsnuti te će imati vremena učiti o pravom Bogu i služiti mu. Tokom perioda od tisuću godina mrtvi će biti uskrsnuti i dobit će priliku pridružiti se vjernim ljudima na Zemlji koji služe Jehovi. Bit će to predivno vrijeme. Biblija to razdoblje naziva Sudnji dan. Što je gehena, i tko tamo odlazi? Znači li to da će svaki čovjek koji je ikad živio biti uskrsnut? Ne znači. Biblija kaže da se neki umrli nalaze u ‘geheni’ (Luka 12:5). Gehena je ime dobila po smetlištu smještenom izvan drevnog Jeruzalema. Tamo se spaljivalo leševe i smeće. Mrtve čije se tijelo tamo bacilo Židovi su smatrali nedostojnima ukopa i uskrsnuća. Zato je gehena prikladan simbol vječnog uništenja. Iako će Isus imati određenu ulogu u suđenju živima i mrtvima, Jehova je Sudac koji donosi konačnu presudu (Djela apostolska 10:42). On nipošto neće uskrsnuti one za koje zaključi da su zle osobe koje se ne žele promijeniti. USKRSNUĆE U NEBESKI ŽIVOT (a) Kakva još vrsta uskrsnuća postoji? (b) Tko je prvi uskrsnuo u duhovni život? Biblija spominje još jednu vrstu uskrsnuća. To je uskrsnuće prilikom kojeg osoba kao duhovno stvorenje uskrsava u nebeski život. U Bibliji je zapisan samo jedan primjer takvog uskrsnuća, a to je uskrsnuće Isusa Krista. Nakon što su Isusa ubili kao čovjeka, Jehova nije dozvolio da njegov vjerni Sin ostane u grobu (Psalam 16:10; Djela apostolska 13:34, 35). Bog ga je uskrsnuo, ali ne kao čovjeka. Apostol Petar objašnjava da je Krist “ubijen u tijelu, ali je oživljen u duhu” (1. Petrova 3:18). To je bilo veliko čudo. Isus je vraćen u život kao moćno duhovno stvorenje (1. Korinćanima 15:3-6). Bio je prvi koji je doživio tu veličanstvenu vrstu uskrsnuća (Ivan 3:13). Ali nije bio jedini. Tko sačinjava Isusovo “malo stado”, i koliki je njihov broj? Isus je znao da se uskoro treba vratiti na nebo, pa je svojim vjernim sljedbenicima rekao da će im tamo ‘pripremiti mjesto’ (Ivan 14:2). One koji idu na nebo nazvao je svojim ‘malim stadom’ (Luka 12:32). Koliko će osoba biti u toj razmjerno maloj grupi vjernih kršćana? U Otkrivenju 14:1 apostol Ivan kaže: “I pogledao sam, i gle — Janje [Isus Krist] stoji na gori Sionu i s njim sto četrdeset i četiri tisuće onih koji imaju ime njegovo i ime Oca njegova napisano na čelima svojim.” Tih 144 000 kršćana, uključujući i Isusove vjerne apostole, uskrsavaju u život na nebu. Kada se odvija njihovo uskrsnuće? Apostol Pavao je napisao da će to biti za vrijeme Kristove prisutnosti (1. Korinćanima 15:23). Kao što ćeš saznati u devetom poglavlju, mi živimo u tom vremenu. Stoga preostali od 144 000, kojih je još malo, kad u naše vrijeme umru, odmah uskrsavaju u život na nebu (1. Korinćanima 15:51-55). S druge strane, velika većina ljudi u budućnosti će uskrsnuti u raju na Zemlji. Što ćemo saznati u sljedećem poglavlju? Da, Jehova će doista pobijediti našeg neprijatelja, smrt, koji će zauvijek nestati! Pa ipak, možda se pitaš: ‘Što će raditi oni koji uskrsnu na nebo?’ Oni će biti dio veličanstvene vladavine Kraljevstva na nebu. Nešto više o njoj saznat ćemo u sljedećem poglavlju. ^ odl. 9 Izvještaji o ostalim uskrsnućima nalaze se u 1. ^ odl. 19 Nešto više o Sudnjem danu i o tome na temelju čega će se suditi ljudima možeš pročitati u Dodatku na 213-215. stranici.