When do the dead rise?

No resurrection of the dead?  Is this a lie?  YES, it's a LIE. There IS a resurrection of the dead. Listen to what we are told.

1Co 15:12-23  Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:  And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.  Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.   If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.

 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.

There you go, the dead DO rise.

Now, we have to ask ourselves a few questions about all this.

WHEN are the dead resurrected?

We have to ask this question because most people that I personally know, believe the dead are resurrected immediately upon death. And not only that, they believe that resurrection is in the spirit form of the dead person. Then they believe that spirit form flies away to heaven to live with God and all the other spirit forms resurrected. So if most people believe in a spirit form resurrection what point is there to have a physical resurrection?  And this begs more questions still. How can a person sleep in death if they aren't even in their own bodies? They'd be a sleeping shell of nothingness, and why raise an empty husk. How could you wake up an empty husk?  And more importantly who would want to be returned to physical form after living in spirit form since they'd died?  Sleep implies what?  That you are STILL a part of the body.  Those ashes, that dust your body has returned to after decaying or cremation is still a part of the body you once were. After all, what was Adam created from? Dust, clay, dirt, he was formed out of the very thing we ultimately return to after dying.

All right now, let us consider some of the answers to these questions raised.  If I fall asleep right now you would expect me to wake up in a few hours or so. When I wake up you will expect me to be aware of the things that happened prior to my falling asleep wouldn't you?  Let's pretend I come home from shopping, put the groceries away, do a bit of housework, cook dinner, sit down to eat dinner with you, talk with you about your day, relax after cleaning up after dinner, then decide to take a nap.  When I wake up a few hours later would you expect me to know what I did before falling asleep? Would you expect me to still retain the memories of our earlier conversation about our days? Would you expect me to remember what we had for dinner?   The answers to those question are yes, yes, and yes.  You would not expect me to fall asleep and leave my body in some spirit form and fly around willy nilly.  You expect me to sleep and NOT know what you are doing while I’m sleeping.  Furthering our pretense, while I was sleeping you made a few phone calls, a next door neighbor dropped by, and you watched a television show.  Should I, who was sleeping, know that you did any of those things? No.  While I may in fact have a dream while I'm sleeping, you do NOT expect me to be awake and sleeping at the same time.

We are told specifically how the resurrection of the dead takes place, let's review--

1Co 15:20  But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.

Christ is risen from the dead- the FIRSTFRUIT of…..  THEM THAT SLEPT.

EVERY MAN in HIS OWN ORDER!

Christ.

The FIRSTFRUITS.

THEY THAT ARE CHRIST'S AT HIS COMING!

Exactly who were the firstfruits  that were raised after Christ…

Mat 27:50  Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

Mat 27:51  And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

Mat 27:52  And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,

Mat 27:53  And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

Did you read that? Read it again…  many BODIES of the saints which slept (IN THE GRAVE- DEATH IS A SLEEP) arose. They came out of the GRAVES after his resurrection and WENT into the holy city and appeared unto many.

Jesus DID NOT call spirit forms out of graves or pull spirit forms of people from heaven.  Jesus raised BODIES! These newly resurrected from the dead appeared to MANY.  These were the FIRSTFRUITS resurrected from death.  The dead resurrected.

And we are told that the REST of the DEAD will NOT be raised until when?

At Christ's second coming.

And believe me, Christ will not be commanding spirits to return to bodies we have NOTHING of that in the Bible, nothing at all! We are told the dead sleep right now.  And from what we have already established of sleep, those sleeping aside from perhaps a dream, know NOTHING of what is going on with those who are still awake.  The next thing all those who are Christ's, who have died will know is being woken up by Christ Himself and rising from their graves in their body form (changed as we are told) to meet Christ in the air!

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

The dead in their corrupted bodies will be raised incorruptible!  Just as Adam was formed of the dust of the ground, those who have returned to that dust will be given back a form of incorruptible flesh as they are resurrected, as they wake up from death's sleep.

There is a wonderful comfort in believing our loved ones are sleeping in mind and body, and not flying off to heaven where they can look down upon us and see all our trials, tribulations, our heartaches, our sinning, our sufferings.  What person truly wants their dead loved ones to watch them and know how they suffer? The dead loved one is sleeping and is spared from any more suffering.  Because if you try to tell me that the dead loved one is watching me suffer and is happy about my suffering I'll tell you that you have to be crazy. And seriously, why would ANY of us want our dead loved ones to suffer any more than they had to in this world while they were alive?

Thank You, heavenly Father, thank You for the knowledge, the comprehension, the truth of Your love for us revealed in even our death.  We would sleep in Christ, we would be raised incorruptible when Christ returns, or if we are blessed to be alive at Christ's return we would be found in Him and changed to immortality as we rise to meet Him in the air!  Thank You!

In the name of our Savior, our Lord, the First Resurrected, Jesus Christ our LORD forever and ever, amen!