The first resurrection of believers is broken down into three categories: the firstfruits, the main harvest, and the corners and gleanings.
Les Feldick teaches that the resurrection of the just — all believers of all ages — is not one single event for every group. Instead, it unfolds in three stages pictured by Israel's grain harvest: first the firstfruits (Christ and those raised with Him), then the main harvest (church-age believers at the rapture), and finally the corners and gleanings (Old Testament and tribulation believers).
1 Corinthians 15:20-23 — This passage frames the resurrection in a defined order — Christ the firstfruits, then they that are Christ's at His coming.
Revelation 20:5-6 — This is the biblical statement of the first resurrection and shows the rest of the dead are not raised until after the thousand years.
The Bible speaks of the first resurrection and of a definite order of resurrection. In 1 Corinthians 15:20 and 23, Paul declares, 'But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept... But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.' Matthew 27:52-53 records that when Christ rose, 'the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.' Daniel 12:2 likewise speaks of a resurrection of 'many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth,' and Daniel 12:13 promises, 'But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.' Revelation 20:5-6 states, 'But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.'
Les Feldick explains that the first resurrection of the just — the believers of all ages — is broken down into three categories, pictured by Israel's harvest of grain. First comes the firstfruits: Christ Himself, along with those who came out of the graves at the time of His resurrection as recorded in Matthew 27. Like the sampling taken from a Jewish grain field, this was the representative first portion of the resurrection harvest. The second category is the main harvest, which Les identifies with the church-age believers. Christ and the firstfruits having already risen, the next great group to experience resurrection is the body of Christ — the largest group in the first resurrection — which takes place at what we call the Rapture, the great resurrection day of the body of Christ. Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 15:23 — 'afterward they that are Christ's at his coming' — refer to these believers of the church age. The third category is the corners and the gleanings. Just as the Jewish harvesters left the corners and gleanings for last, Les teaches that the Old Testament saints and the tribulation believers are resurrected last — likely 75 days after Christ's Second Coming, after the kingdom has been set up. They are more or less the wedding guests at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Together these three categories — the firstfruits, the main harvest, and the corners and gleanings — complete the resurrection of the just of all the ages, while the lost are not resurrected until after the kingdom has ended.
The firstfruits are the first category. Les teaches that Christ Himself is the firstfruit, along with the Jewish believers who came out of the graves after His resurrection as described in Matthew 27 (Clip 6). It was the first part of the Jewish harvest — the sampling taken out of the grain field before the main harvest (Clip 3, Clip 7).
The main harvest is the church-age believer — the largest group in the first resurrection (Clip 4). After Christ and the firstfruits, those who are in Christ, who are part of the bride and the body of Christ, are the next to experience resurrection (Clip 1). This group is raised on the great resurrection day of the body of Christ — what we call the Rapture (Clip 4, Clip 2). Les connects this to Paul's words 'afterward they that are Christ's at his coming' in 1 Corinthians 15:23 (Clip 6).
The corners and the gleanings are the final category. Les teaches that these are the Old Testament saints and the tribulation believers (Clip 5). Just as the corners and gleanings were left for last in the Jewish harvest, this group is raised last — in resurrection bodies 75 days after the Second Coming, or after the kingdom has been set up (Clip 3). They will be part and parcel of the Kingdom, pictured as the wedding guests at the marriage supper of the Lamb (Clip 3, Clip 2).
In Les's teaching, the order is: the firstfruits rose at the time of Christ's resurrection (Clip 4); the main harvest of church-age believers is raised at the rapture (Clip 4); and the Old Testament and tribulation believers are raised about 75 days after Christ returns, after the kingdom has begun (Clip 3, Clip 4). Every man is raised in his own company — church-age saints are not resurrected with the Old Testament saints, and believers today are not part of the firstfruits since that has already happened (Clip 7). The lost are not resurrected until after the kingdom has ended (Clip 2).
Three Categories Introduced via the Grain Harvest
Les introduces that the first resurrection of the just is broken into three categories, pictured by Israel's harvest of grain, beginning with the firstfruits.
Church-Age Believers Are the Next Group
After Christ and the firstfruits, the next to experience resurrection are the church-age believers — the body of Christ.
The Three Categories Summarized
Les names all three categories — firstfruits, the main harvest (church-age believers), and Old Testament saints — as comprising the first resurrection, while the lost wait until after the kingdom.
Firstfruits, Main Harvest, and Gleanings Explained
Les connects the three parts of the Jewish harvest to Christ and those raised at His resurrection, the rapture of the church, and the Old Testament and tribulation believers raised 75 days after the kingdom begins.
The First Resurrection Was in Three Parts
Les reiterates the three parts, calling the rapture the largest group and placing the Old Testament and tribulation believers' resurrection 75 days after Christ returns.
Corners and Gleanings Are OT and Tribulation Saints
Les likens the Old Testament and tribulation believers to the corners and gleanings left in the Jewish harvest.
Firstfruits from 1 Corinthians 15 and Matthew 27
Using 1 Corinthians 15, Les shows the firstfruits are Christ and the Jewish believers who came out of the graves in Matthew 27, and that 'those who are Christ's at His coming' are the church-age believers.
Every Man in His Own Order
Les explains that each category is resurrected within its own company — church-age saints are not raised with Old Testament saints, and the harvest order is firstfruits, main harvest, then the corners and gleanings.
1 Corinthians 15:20: But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
Paul identifies Christ as the firstfruits of the resurrection — the foundation of the first category.
1 Corinthians 15:23: But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
This verse states the divine order of resurrection: Christ first, then those who are His at His coming.
Matthew 27:52-53: And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.
This records the Old Testament saints who came out of the graves after Christ's resurrection, forming the firstfruits group.
Daniel 12:2: And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
Daniel speaks of many sleeping in the dust of the earth awakening — the Old Testament resurrection.
Daniel 12:13: But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.
Daniel is promised he will stand in his lot at the end of the days — the Old Testament saint's resurrection.
Revelation 20:5-6: But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
This identifies the believers' resurrection as the first resurrection, with the rest of the dead raised after the thousand years.
The three categories are the firstfruits (Christ and those raised at His resurrection), the main harvest (church-age believers raised at the rapture), and the corners and gleanings (Old Testament and tribulation believers raised after the kingdom begins). Together these comprise the first resurrection of believers of all ages.
Les teaches that the Old Testament saints will be resurrected after the kingdom has begun — approximately 75 days after Christ's Second Coming. They are the final part of the harvest, pictured by the corners and the gleanings.
Yes. Les teaches that tribulation believers, along with Old Testament saints, are the corners and the gleanings of the resurrection harvest. They are resurrected about 75 days after Christ returns, completing the resurrection of the just.
The Rapture is the main harvest of the first resurrection. After Christ and the firstfruits, the church-age believers are the next and largest group raised at the great resurrection day of the body of Christ.
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