The order is: first Christ and those with Him as the firstfruits; second, the Church (the body of Christ) at the Rapture as the main harvest; and finally, Old Testament and Tribulation saints as the corners and gleanings — all together comprising the first resurrection of believers.
Using the Jewish harvest as a pattern, Les shows how 1 Corinthians 15:23 ('Every man in his own order') identifies three separate resurrection groups. Christ was the firstfruits, the Church is the main harvest, and the Old Testament and Tribulation saints are the gleanings and corners. The lost are resurrected only after the kingdom, at the Great White Throne.
1 Corinthians 15:20-23 — This is the key passage where Paul describes the resurrection order: Christ the firstfruits, then those who are Christ's at His coming.
In 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, the apostle Paul writes, 'But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.' This plainly shows that there is an order: Christ first, then His people at His coming. Paul does not say everyone rises at the same moment; instead, each group rises 'in his own order.' In Revelation 20, the Bible describes a 'first resurrection' in which believers reign with Christ, and then after the thousand years, the rest of the dead are resurrected for judgment. Also, in Matthew 27, Scripture records that at the time of Christ's resurrection, many of the saints who had died came out of their graves after His resurrection and went into the holy city (Matthew 27:52-53). This is consistent with the pattern of Christ being the firstfruits and a sampling of Old Testament saints being raised with Him. The Bible also uses the harvest analogy in the Old Testament, instructing farmers not to reap the corners of their field nor gather the gleanings (Leviticus 19:9-10). This is the imagery that reveals the three stages: firstfruits, main harvest, and gleanings/corners.
Les teaches that the resurrection of believers is broken down into three categories that exactly match Israel's harvest process. Christ Himself and those who came out of the graves at the time of His resurrection are the firstfruits — a sampling of the harvest. Then the Church, the body of Christ, is the main harvest, raised at the Rapture when Christ meets believers in the air. Finally, the Old Testament saints and the Tribulation saints who are martyred are the corners and the gleanings — a smaller number — and they will be resurrected approximately 75 days after Christ sets up His kingdom, based on Daniel 12. Les emphasizes that 'every man in his own order' means each group is resurrected in its own company. Church-age believers are not resurrected with Old Testament saints, and the Tribulation saints are not part of the same resurrection. All three groups together comprise what the Bible calls the first resurrection of the just, and they will reign with Christ. The lost, in contrast, will not be resurrected until after the kingdom ends, at the Great White Throne judgment.
Les consistently teaches three categories in the first resurrection: (1) the firstfruits — Christ plus those who came out of the graves in Matthew 27; (2) the main harvest — the Church-age believers raised at the Rapture; (3) the corners and the gleanings — Old Testament believers and Tribulation saints raised after the Kingdom begins (about 75 days after the Second Coming). He points out that these three together make up 'the resurrection of the just of all the ages.'
Les explains that 1 Corinthians 15:23 says 'every man in his own order.' This means individual groups are resurrected in their own companies: Christ the firstfruits, afterward they that are Christ's at His coming. The main harvest is the Church age, and then 'cometh the end' after Christ puts down all rule and authority — which includes the resurrection of Old Testament and Tribulation saints. Les links Paul's words directly to the harvest picture: firstfruits, main harvest, then corners and gleanings.
Les teaches that Old Testament and Tribulation saints will be resurrected shortly after the Kingdom has begun, not at the Rapture. He points to Daniel 12:13 where Daniel is told he will stand in his lot at the end of the days. From the book of Daniel, Les understands that this resurrection takes place 75 days after Christ returns and the Kingdom is set up. These saints are the 'corners and gleanings' — a small fraction compared to the main harvest.
No. Les teaches that the lost are not resurrected until after the Kingdom has ended. While the first resurrection consists of all believers of all ages (firstfruits, main harvest, and gleanings), the unrighteous will be resurrected at a different time, which is the resurrection of damnation. Les uses this contrast to emphasise that every resurrection is either in the company of the lost or in the company of believers.
The Harvest Process as Resurrection Order
Les explains that every man is resurrected in his own order, using the three-step harvest (firstfruits, main harvest, corners/gleanings) to show that believers are raised in three separate stages.
Firstfruits, Main Harvest, and Gleanings Defined
Les lists the three groups: the firstfruits at Christ's time, the Church at the Rapture, and the Old Testament/Tribulation saints as the corners and gleanings 75 days after the Kingdom is set up.
Three Resurrection Groups in History
Les connects the three harvest categories to Christ, the Church Age, and Tribulation believers, noting the Church is by far the largest group.
1 Corinthians and Daniel 12
Les shows that the third group (Old Testament saints) is raised 'at the end' after Christ reigns, as indicated in Daniel 12 — not at the Rapture.
Resurrection Companies: Believers vs. Lost
Les distinguishes resurrection companies: the lost are one group, Old Testament saints another, the body of Christ another, and Tribulation saints a separate translation/resurrection.
The First Resurrection in Three Parts
Les explains that the first resurrection happens in three parts and that the Tribulation and Old Testament saints are raised about 75 days after Christ returns.
Three Categories Comprise the First Resurrection
Les again summarises the three categories — firstfruits, Church-age believers, and Old Testament saints — as together forming the first resurrection of believers, with the lost raised later.
Recap of the First Resurrection
Les reviews the three resurrection categories as mirrored by Israel's harvest: firstfruits, main harvest, and gleanings (Old Testament and Tribulation saints).
1 Corinthians 15:20: But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
This establishes Christ as the firstfruits, the first category in the resurrection order.
1 Corinthians 15:21: For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
Shows that resurrection comes through a man, Christ, just as death came through Adam.
1 Corinthians 15:22: For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
Guarantees that all who are in Christ will be made alive, setting up the order that follows.
1 Corinthians 15:23: But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
This is the central verse revealing that resurrection happens in an ordered sequence: Christ first, then His people.
1 Corinthians 15:24: Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
Indicates the end comes after Christ's resurrection work is complete, when the final resurrection group is raised.
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 raised with Christ, forming the firstfruits category along with Him.
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.
Les points to this verse to show that Old Testament saints like Daniel will be resurrected at the end of days, after the kingdom begins.
According to Les, the first resurrection is not a single event but three categories of believers raised in an order: the firstfruits (Christ and those raised with Him), the main harvest (the Church at the Rapture), and the corners and gleanings (Old Testament and Tribulation saints). All believers from Adam to the end of the age will be raised in this resurrection, while the lost wait until after the kingdom.
Les teaches that Old Testament saints, along with Tribulation believers, will be resurrected shortly after the kingdom is set up — about 75 days after Christ's Second Coming, based on Daniel's timeline. They are the 'corners and gleanings' of the resurrection harvest.
No. Les explains that 'every man in his own order' means believers rise in their own companies: the firstfruits, the Church, and the Old Testament/Tribulation saints. The lost do not rise until after the millennium, at the Great White Throne.
In Israel's harvest, the owner was to leave the corners of the field and any gleanings for the poor. Les applies this symbolically to the smaller number of believers who are saved in the Tribulation and to Old Testament saints — they are the final, smaller part of the resurrection harvest.
Watch the Teaching: The Three Stages of Resurrection — 1 Corinthians 15:22-23 Explained