5. What will happen to the dead in Christ when Jesus returns? 1 Thessalonians 4:16. Compare 1 Corinthians 15:51-53.
NOTE: ‘Amid the reeling of the earth, the flash of lightning, and the roar of thunder, the voice of the Son of God calls forth the sleeping saints. He looks upon the graves of the righteous, then, raising His hands to heaven, He cries: “Awake, awake, awake, ye that sleep in the dust, and arise!” Throughout the length and breadth of the earth the dead shall hear that voice, and they that hear shall live. And the whole earth shall ring with the tread of the exceeding great army of every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. From the prison house of death they come, clothed with immortal glory, crying: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” 1 Corinthians 15:55. And the living righteous and the risen saints unite their voices in a long, glad shout of victory. All come forth from their graves the same in stature as when they entered the tomb. But all arise with the freshness and vigour of eternal youth. The mortal, corruptible form, devoid of comeliness, once polluted with sin, becomes perfect, beautiful, and immortal. All blemishes and deformities are left in the grave.’ Maranatha, page 299.
6. By contrast, what happens to the remainder of the dead? Revelation 20:5-6. Compare John 5:28-29.
NOTE: ‘At the close of the thousand years the second resurrection will take place. Then the wicked will be raised from the dead, and appear before God. Thus the Revelator, after describing the resurrection of the righteous, says, “The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.” Revelation 20:5.’ The Faith I Live By, page 184.