The Return of The Lord

A Biblical Studies Class

Background

Where are the dead?

Gen. 3:17-19 Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return (cf. Rom. 6:23)

Job 21:13 They spend their days in wealth, in a moment go down to the grave (sheol)

Psalm 89:48 Shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave (sheol - gravedom)?

John 3:13 No man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven

Acts 2:34 David is not ascended into the heavens

Acts 13:36 David...fell on sleep...and saw corruption

Are the dead conscious?

Job 14:14, 21 His sons come to honor, and he knoweth it not (vs. 21)

Psalm 6:5 In death there is no remembrance of thee

Psalm 115:17 The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence

Psalm 146:1-4 His breath goeth forth ... In that very day his thoughts perish (vs. 4)

Eccl. 9:4-10 Their memory is forgotten [E. W. Bullinger: their faculty of remembering ceases to exist]
(vs. 5). No knowledge in the grave (vs. 10)

Isa 38:18 For the grave (FOS metonymy - those in the grave) cannot praise thee

Will they always be there?

Job 19:25-27 In my flesh shall I see God (And after my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see
God - NLT, vs. 26). Reins be consumed (vs. 27) - heart faints.

Psalm 16:10 Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (sheol)

Psalm 49:15 God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave (sheol)

Acts 2:27, 31 His soul (part put for the whole) was not left in hell (hades - gravedom)

Heb 9:27 It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement

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Do Christians die or perish?

John 3:16 Whosoever believeth in him should not perish (Greek apollumi: be destroyed, abolished,
put to an end), but have everlasting life

John 6:47-51 A man may eat thereof and not die - subjunctive (conditional)

John 8:51 never see death - absolutely not see death forever (but perhaps temporarily)

John 10:25-30 I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish (apollumi)

John 11:1-26 vs. 4: unto death - towards death (he was raised to life)
vs. 26: never die - absolutely not die forever (but perhaps temporarily)

Rom 14:8 Whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord

I Cor 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish (apollumi) foolishness

I Cor. 15:12-23 Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished (apollumi - vs. 18)

Heb. 2:14-15 Deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage (He
himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless
him who had the power of death, that is, the devil - NASB, vs. 14)

Some Difficult Verses

II Kings 2:9-12 Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven (sky - vs. 11) [No indication he died at that
time or stayed in the sky]

Eccl. 12:1-7 The spirit shall return unto God who gave it [Note the administration - spirit was upon
certain individuals, not born within] Orientalisms: keepers of the house: feet; strong
men: knees; grinders: teeth; those that look out of the windows: eyes; doors: ears;
daughters of music brought low: voice no longer strong; almond tree: in bloom looks like
a white head of hair; long home: grave; silver cord: the wife loosens the silver cord she
received as a bride and places it with her husbands body; golden bowl filled with coals:
broken to symbolize the soul departing the body.

Mat. 17:1-9 There appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him [Note vs. 9 - vision]

Mat. 27:51-53 The bodies of the saints which slept arose [vss. 52-53 do not appear in the earliest
patristic quotations of this section]

Luke 16:19-31 Lazarus in Abrahams Bosom [cf. Judges 9:7-16; Mat. 5:13-16. Some early Greek and
Aramaic sources add, And he said also another parable to the beginning of Luke 16:19.
Pharisees:They also believe that souls have an immortal vigour in them, and that under
the earth there will be rewards or punishments, according as they have lived virtuously
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 or viciously in this life, and the latter are to be detained in an everlasting prison, but that
the former shall have power to revive and live again - Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews
XVIII, i, 3. See also Luke 16:14-15; Acts 23:6-11.]

Luke 20:27-38 He is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him (vs. 38) [Context: at
the resurrection. Vs. 37 - now: but. Cf. Romans 4:17]

Luke 23:43 Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise [Hebrew idiom - I say
unto you this day thou shalt (sometime in the future) be with me in paradise. cf. Deut.
4:26, 39, 40; 5:1; 6:6; 7:11; 8:1, 11, 19, etc.]

Heb. 11:5 Enoch was translated that he should not see death [translated - conveyed to another place.
cf. Ps. 89:48; Luke 2:25-32 (same Greek words as Heb. 11:5); John 8:59; Acts 8:39-40;
Heb. 11:13]

Jesus Christs First Coming

Mat. 1:18-20 Conceived by the Holy Ghost

Luke 2:6-7 Born of Mary

Luke 2:21 Circumcision, Taken to the Temple

Mat. 2:23 Dwelt in Nazareth

Luke 2:42 Taken to Jerusalem

Luke 4:14-21 Opened his Ministry in Nazareth

Luke 7:22-23 Brought Deliverance to Gods People

John 19:30 Died on the Cross

Luke 24:1-9 Raised from the Dead

Acts 1:9-11 Ascended into Heaven

Jesus Christs Second Coming

Mat 24:3, 6 What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world [age]
For all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet

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The Gathering Together (Jesus Christ coming for his saints)

I Cor. 15:51-54 The dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed

I Thes. 1:1-10 To wait for his son from heaven

I Thes. 4:13-18 The dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them in the clouds (vss. 16-17)

II Thes. 2:1-4 vs. 1: our gathering together unto him

vs. 2: day of Christ - cf. I Cor. 1:4-8; Phil. 1:1-10; 2:14-16; I Thes. 5:1-5; II Peter 3:9-10
(willing - wishing, perish - apollumi); Rev. 1:9-10.
Mans Day - I Cor. 4:1-5 (by myself - against myself)
vs. 3: falling away - departure

The Resurrections (Jesus Christ coming with his saints)

Luke 14:12-14 Thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just

John 5:25-29 Resurrection of life...resurrection of damnation

Acts 24:14-15 A resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust

I Thes. 3:13 At the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints

II Thes. 2:8 The Lord ... shall destroy with the brightness of his coming

Rev. 20:1-6 First Resurrection (Death hath no more power, dieth no more)

Rev. 20:7-15 Second Resurrection (Some to second death)

Rev. 21:1-8, 23 New Jerusalem (first: former)

Paradise or Heaven - When?

Jesus Christ died, was buried, and was raised from the dead (not from heaven or paradise)

Mat. 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whales belly, so shall the Son of man
be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth

Luke 24:1-8 He is not here, but is risen

Acts 13:28-30 God raised him from the dead

I Cor. 15:3-4 Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose again (vss. 20-28 - death an enemy)
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Jesus Christ ascended into heaven (after the resurrection)

Luke 24:50-51 He was parted from them and carried up into heaven

Acts 1:6-11 A cloud received him out of their sight

Paradise

Gen. 2:8-10 God planted a garden (Greek: paradise) eastward in Eden

(The word paradise appears in the Greek Septuagint version in Gen. 2:8, 9, 10, 15, 16;
3:1, 2, 3, 8, 10, 23, 24; 13:10; Num. 24:6; II Chron. 33:20; Neh. 2:8; Eccl. 2:5; Song of
Solomon 4:13; Isa. 1:30; 51:3; Jer 36:5; Ezek. 28:13; 31:8, 9; Joel 2:3)

Gen. 3:22-24 He placed at the east of the garden (Greek: paradise) of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming
sword...to keep the way of the tree of life

II Cor. 12:1-4 How that he was caught up (caught away - by a vision) into paradise (third heaven: cf. II
Peter 3:5-13)

Rev. 2:7 I will give to eat of the tree of life...in the midst of the paradise of God

Rev. 22:1-2 On either side of the river, was there the tree of life

Rev. 22:14 That they may have right to the tree of life

There is no record in scripture of anyone dying and going directly to heaven or paradise.

Summary

Acts 26:22-23 That he should be the first that should rise from the dead

I Cor. 15:51-52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump

I Tim 1:1 Lord Jesus Christ our hope

Col 1:3-5 For the hope which is laid up (NIV: stored up) for you in heaven - vs. 5

I Pet 1:3-5 Begotten us again unto a lively hope be the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead -
vs. 3

For recordings of this and related classes, see www.cabsf.org.

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 Chronology – Final Administrations

1. Administration of the Grace of God (Eph. 3:2)

- People can become born again (Rom. 10:9-10), obtaining eternal life (Rom. 6:23), never to perish (I Cor. 15:18), and are
thus saved from the wrath to come (I Thes. 1:10)

- Ends with the gathering together – those born again (whether they wake or sleep) meet the lord in the air (I Cor.
15:51-58; I Thes. 4:13-18; II Thes. 2:1)

2. Appearing/Revelation Administration

- Starts with the gathering together, when Jesus Christ comes for his saints. Later, he comes with his saints to do battle,
to judge, and to reign.

- Referred to as the “day of Christ” (Phil. 1:10, 2:16; II Thes. 2:2), “day of the Lord” (Acts 2:20; I Thes. 5:2; II Peter
3:10), “day of the Lord Jesus” (I Cor. 5:5; II Cor. 1:14), “Lord’s day” (Rev. 1:10) “day of God” (II Peter 3:12), and “day
of God Almighty” (Rev. 16:14).

- Wrath, tribulation, antichrist, beast, false prophet – those who do not accept the mark of the beast are beheaded for the
witness of Jesus (Rev. 1-19)

- Satan is bound and shut up in the bottomless pit for one thousand years (Rev. 20:1-3)

- First resurrection: those who were beheaded for the witness of Jesus in Rev. 1-19 are raised to life. They live and
reign with Christ and the previously gathered born-again ones during the thousand years that Satan is bound (Rev.
20:1-6).

- Satan is loosed for a season (Rev. 20:7-9)

- The devil (Satan) is cast into the lake of fire, joining the beast and the false prophet (Rev. 20:10). No one else is said to
be tormented day and night forever.

- Ends with the second resurrection: the rest of the dead come to life and are judged according to their works at the great
white throne judgment. Those whose names are written in the book of life go on to eternal life. Those whose names are
not found written in the book of life are cast into the lake of fire, which is the second death. Death and hell (hades, the
grave) are cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:11-15; Rev. 21:7-8).

3. Final Glory Administration

- Former (second) heaven and earth melting with fervent heat (II Peter 3:10), being destroyed by fire (II Peter 3:12),
passes away (Rev. 21:1)

- New (third) heaven and earth established (Rev. 21:1). New Jerusalem comes down from heaven – no tears, death,
sorrow, crying or pain (Rev. 21:4).

- Paradise reestablished in the new Jerusalem with the tree of life (Rev. 2:7; 22:1-2, 14).

So shall we ever be with the Lord! (I Thes. 4:17)

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