Raised From the Dead and Resurrected

by Pastor Matthew Norville, Sr.


When a dead person comes back to life they are said to be “raised from the dead.” But the person who was “raised from the dead,” will physically die again one day.

When a person is “resurrected,” they are also “raised from the dead.” But the difference between being “raised from the dead” and “resurrected,” is that when a person is “resurrected” they will never physically die again.

We know this is true because Jesus said in Luke 20:35–36,

“But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.”

When a person dies physically, their spirit and soul leave their body. If the person is a Christian (i.e. spiritually alive), their spirit and soul go to Heaven. If the person is not a Christian (i.e. spiritually dead), their spirit and soul go to Hell (Hades).

When a person is raised from the dead, their spirit and soul come back into their body and they become physically alive again. However, only people who are in Heaven can come back down and get into their bodies. People who are in Hell (Hades) cannot come up and get back into their bodies. People who go to Hell are damned for all eternity. They do not get raised from the dead to come back up from Hell and have a second chance. However, the wicked (as well as the righteous) will be resurrected in the end, but that is not until the days of judgment. The just (righteous) will then live forever in Heaven. The unjust (unrighteous) will then “live” forever in Gehenna (the lake of fire).

At this point and time in history, Jesus is the only person who has been resurrected. Jesus has been raised from the dead and resurrected. That is why some Scriptures say that Jesus was “raised from the dead,” and others say that He was “resurrected.”

There are some people—who are NOT Christians—who claim to have died and come back to life. Sometimes they don't remember anything, and sometimes they have all these stories about seeing a bright light or going through a tunnel or hearing beautiful music or seeing beautiful colors or feeling a peace or whatever.

If the people were not Christians, they never really died. Because had they died, they would have gone to Hell (Hades), and would not have been able to come back.

These people may have been near death, but they definitely did not die. They were just simply unconscious and dreaming or in some sort of a trance. These experiences and trances are sometimes demonic. The devil, with his supernatural power, makes people look like they are dead to the doctors or whomever, and then puts all these thoughts and dreams into these people's heads. Then, when these people wake up, they think that they were dead and came back to life. But the truth is, that they were never really dead.

This is all a trick of the devil to get these people to think that they are O.K. and that when they finally die everything will be wonderful. But if these people are unsaved (not Christians), when they finally die everything will not be wonderful, as they will wind up in Hell.

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This page last updated January 29, 2022.