God Go Bring People Wey Don Die Back to Life!

1-3. Na which prison all of us dey, and how Jehovah go take free us from that prison?

IMAGINE sey you no do any bad thing, dem come put you for prison. Dem talk sey na there you go dey till you die, dem no go ever release you. You no get any hope, and you no fit do anything about the matter. But as you dey think sey your own don finish, you come see person wey get power to comot you from the prison and the person come promise you sey e go help you! How you go feel?

² Na death be the prison wey all of us dey. We no fit do anything to comot from inside this prison. But Jehovah get power to free us from death. And e don promise us sey ‘death wey be the last enemy, no go dey again.’​—1 Corinthians 15:26.

³ How you go feel when you no go dey worry about death again? No be only death Jehovah want comot o! E go still bring people wey don die come life again. Think about the hope wey you come get. Jehovah promise sey ‘people wey don die’ go come back to life. (Isaiah 26:19) Bible call this one resurrection.

WHEN PERSON WEY YOU LOVE DIE

4. (a) Wetin fit make our mind come down when our friend or our family member die? (b) Which people be Jesus tight friend?

⁴ When our friend or family member die, e dey pain us well well and e no dey easy to bear. We no fit do anything, we no fit make am come back to life. But ­Bible fit make our mind come down. (Read 2 Corinthians 1:3, 4.) Make we see one example wey show sey Jehovah and Jesus really want bring our people wey don die come back to life. When Jesus still dey this earth, e dey go visit Lazarus for house. Lazarus get two sisters, Martha and Mary. Three of dem na Jesus tight friend. Bible talk sey: ‘Jesus love Martha and im sister and ­Lazarus.’ But one day, Lazarus come die.​—John 11:3-5.

5, 6. (a) Wetin Jesus do when e see as Lazarus family and friends dey cry? (b) As we know how Jesus feel about death, how that one take make our mind come down?

⁵ Jesus help Martha and Mary, make their mind fit come down. As Martha hear sey Jesus dey come, e go meet Jesus for outside the city. E happy to see Jesus, e tell am sey: ‘If to sey you dey here, my brother for no die.’ Martha think sey Jesus no quick come. After, Jesus come see Mary as e dey cry. E really pain Jesus to see as Martha and Mary dey cry, Jesus self cry. (John 11:21, 33, 35) E feel the pain wey we dey feel when person wey we love die.

⁶ E dey make our mind come down to know sey e dey pain Jesus as e dey pain us when our person die. And Jesus just be like im Father. (John 14:9) Jehovah get power to comot death, and na wetin e go soon do for us be that.

“LAZARUS, COME OUT!”

7, 8. Why Martha no want make dem comot the stone wey dem take cover Lazarus grave, but wetin Jesus do?

⁷ When Jesus reach the place where dem bury Lazarus, e see sey dem use one big stone cover the place. Jesus come talk sey: ‘Make una comot the stone.’ But Martha no want make dem comot am, because e don reach four days wey dem bury Lazarus, so e go don dey smell. (John 11:39) Martha no know wetin Jesus want do.

⁸ Jesus come sey: ‘Lazarus, come out! The man wey don die waka come out. Dem use cloth wrap all im body.’ (John 11:43, 44) E really surprise Martha and Mary. Lazarus don come back to life! Im friends and im family gather round am. Dem fit touch am, hold am and dem fit talk to am. This one na big miracle! Jesus don bring Lazarus back to life.

‘SMALL GIRL, I SEY MAKE YOU GET UP!’

9, 10. (a) Who give Jesus power to bring people wey don die come back to life? (b) Why e good sey we know the story about people wey Jesus bring come back to life?

⁹ Na Jesus get the power wey e take bring people come back to life? No. E first pray to Jehovah before e bring Lazarus come back to life. Na Jehovah give am the power wey e use. (Read John 11:41, 42.)No be only Lazarus Jesus bring come back to life o. Bible still tell us about one small girl wey dey 12 years. The girl sick well well. Im papa name na Jairus, the man really want make im pikin well, and na the only pikin wey e get be that. Jairus run go meet Jesus and e beg Jesus sey make e come heal im pikin. As e still dey talk to Jesus, some men come meet am, dem tell am sey: ‘Your daughter don die! Why you still dey disturb the teacher?’ But Jesus tell Jairus sey: ‘No fear, just get faith, e go well.’ Jesus come follow Jairus go im house. As dem near the house, Jesus see people dey cry. E come tell dem sey: ‘Make una no cry again, e no die but e dey sleep.’ The girl papa and mama fit dey think about wetin Jesus mean. Jesus tell everybody sey make dem comot for the room wey the small pikin dey, but e let the girl papa and mama stay. Jesus hold the girl hand and e tell am sey make e get up. Imagine how the girl papa and mama go happy reach as dem see sey their small pikin don stand up dey waka! Jesus don bring their pikin come back to life! (Mark 5:22-24, 35-42; Luke 8:49-56) From that day, anytime wey dem see their pikin, dem go dey remember wetin Jehovah don use Jesus do for dem.a

¹⁰ The people wey Jesus bring come back to life still later die. But e good as we dey read about their story because e dey make us get hope. Jehovah really want make people wey don die come back to life, and e go do am.

WETIN WE LEARN FROM ALL THIS STORY

11. Wetin Ecclesiastes 9:5 teach us about the death of Lazarus?

¹¹ Bible talk sey ‘people wey don die no sabi anything at all.’ Na so Lazarus be when e die. (Ecclesiastes 9:5) Jesus talk sey, Lazarus just be like person wey dey sleep. (John 11:11) When Lazarus dey grave, e ‘no sabi anything at all.’

12. How we take know sey Lazarus really come back to life?

¹² Many people dey there when Jesus bring Lazarus come back to life. Even Jesus enemy know sey na miracle Jesus do. This one show sey Jesus really bring Lazarus come back to life. (John 11:47) Many people still visit Lazarus, and dem come start to believe sey na God really send Jesus. Jesus enemy no like wetin Jesus do, dem come dey plan how dem go take kill Jesus and Lazarus.​—John 11:53; 12:9-11.

13. Why we dey sure sey Jehovah go bring people wey don die come back to life?

¹³ Jesus talk sey ‘all the people wey dey inside grave’ go come back to life. (John 5:28) This one mean sey all the people wey don die wey dey Jehovah mind go come back to life. But before Jehovah go fit bring the person come back to life, e mean sey Jehovah go remember everything about that person. E fit really do am? We no fit count the stars wey dey up. Bible talk sey Jehovah know all of dem, e even know their name, one by one. (Read Isaiah 40:26.) If Jehovah dey fit remember all the star name one by one, na im be sey e easy for am to remember everything about all the people wey e go bring come back to life. The one wey matter pass be sey, na Jehovah make everything, so we know sey e get power to bring people wey don die back to life.

14, 15. Wetin we learn from wetin Job talk?

¹⁴ For Bible, one man wey be God servant, wey im name na Job believe sey people wey don die fit come back to life. E ask one question sey: ‘If person die, e go fit come life again?’ E come tell Jehovah sey: ‘You go call me, and I go answer you. You go want see wetin your hand don make.’ Job know sey e really dey hungry Jehovah to bring people wey don die come back to life.​—Job 14:13-15.

¹⁵ E no make you happy to know sey people wey don die go come back to life? You fit dey think sey, ‘What of my people wey don die, dem go still come back to life?’ As we know sey Jehovah really want make dem come back to life, e dey make our mind come down. Make we see wetin Bible talk about people go come back to life and where dem go stay.

DEM ‘GO HEAR IM VOICE AND DEM GO COME OUT’

16. Which kind life the people wey God go bring back to life go enjoy?

¹⁶ For Bible time, the people wey come back to life happy well well to see their family and friend dem again. Na so e go still be for future, this one wey dey come go even better pass that time. Why? Because the people wey God go bring back to life for future, go fit get life wey no go end, and dem no die again. And the kind world wey dem go live no go be like this one wey we dey now. War no go dey, people no go sick, and bad things no go dey happen again.

17. Who go come back to life?

¹⁷ Who go come back to life? Jesus talk sey ‘all the people wey dey inside grave go hear im voice and dem go come out.’ (John 5:28, 29) Revelation 20:13 still tell us sey: ‘River bring people wey don die for inside come out, and death and Grave bring people wey don die for inside dem come out.’ We no go fit count the people wey go come back to life. Apostle Paul still talk sey ‘people wey dey righteous and people wey no dey righteous’ go come back to life. (Read Acts 24:15.) Wetin this one mean?

18. Who be the ‘righteous people’ wey God go bring come back to life?

¹⁸ People wey serve Jehovah well before Jesus come this earth na part of the ‘people wey dey righteous.’ People like Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Ruth, and Esther. God go bring dem come back to life for this earth. You fit read about some of dem for Hebrews chapter 11. What of people wey dey serve Jehovah well, wey die for this our time? Dem still dey ‘righteous,’ so God go bring dem come back to life.

19. Who be the ‘people wey no dey righteous’? Which chance Jehovah go give dem?

¹⁹ Many many people dey wey no get any chance to learn about Jehovah before dem die, na this kind people be the ‘people wey no dey righteous.’ Na true sey dem don die, but Jehovah no go forget dem. E go bring dem come back to life, and dem go get chance to learn about Jehovah and serve am.

20. Why God no go bring everybody come back to life?

²⁰ E mean sey na everybody wey don die go come back to life? No. Jesus talk sey some people no go come back to life. (Luke 12:5) Who go judge whether person go come back to life or e no go come? Na Jehovah be the final Judge, but e don still give Jesus power to ‘judge people wey don die and people wey dey alive.’ (Acts 10:42) Anybody wey no gree change and wey God judge sey na wicked person no go come back to life.​—Check Endnote 19.

WHAT OF PEOPLE WEY DEY GO HEAVEN

21, 22. (a) How God go take bring people wey dey go heaven back to life? (b) Na who be the first person wey God bring back to life, wey go heaven?

²¹ Bible still tell us sey some people go go heaven. When person wey dey go heaven die, God no go bring am back to life with human being body. E go bring am come back to life as spirit for heaven.

²² Na Jesus be the first person wey God bring come back to life like that. (John 3:13) Three days after dem kill Jesus, Jehovah bring am come back to life. (Psalm 16:10; Acts 13:34, 35) Jehovah no bring am come back to life with human being body. Apostle Peter talk sey dem kill Jesus ‘as human being but God bring am come back to life as spirit.’ (1 Peter 3:18) When Jehovah bring Jesus come back to life, Jesus na spirit wey get power well well. (1 Corinthians 15:3-6) But Bible tell us sey no be only Jesus go come back to life as spirit.

23, 24. Who be the ‘little flock,’ and how many dem be?

²³ Before Jesus die, e tell im disciples sey: ‘I want go ready the place wey una go stay.’ (John 14:2) E mean sey some of Jesus disciple go dey heaven with am. How many people dey go heaven? Jesus talk sey dem no plenty, e call dem ‘little flock.’ (Luke 12:32) Apostle John tell us how many dem be. For vision, e see Jesus ‘as e stand on top of Mount Zion with 144,000 people.’​—Revelation 14:1.

²⁴ Which time God go bring the 144,000 people come back to life? Bible talk sey na after Jesus start to dey rule for heaven. (1 Corinthians 15:23) Jesus don dey rule for heaven now, and nearly all the 144,000 people don dey heaven. For the ones wey still dey this earth, as dem dey die, God go bring dem come back to life as spirit for heaven. But the ones wey plenty pass na the people wey God go bring come back to life to enjoy Paradise for this earth.

25. Wetin we go learn for the next chapter?

²⁵ Jehovah go soon free all of us from death and nobody go die again! (Read Isaiah 25:8.) But wetin people wey dey go heaven go do for there? Bible talk sey dem go join Jesus rule for one Kingdom. For the next chapter, we go learn other better things about God Kingdom.