---

1. CHRIST’S RETURN

a. Three events—(l) genuine repentance and conversion is seen among Christ’s followers, (2) their confessed sins are blotted out in the investigative judgment, (3) they receive the “latter rain” in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in fullness—are to take place in these last days. What will be the fourth and most important event? Acts 3:19, 20; Psalm 50:3.

“The King of kings descends upon the cloud, wrapped in flaming fire. The heavens are rolled together as a scroll, the earth trembles before Him, and every mountain and island is moved out of its place.”—The Great Controversy, pp. 641, 642.

b. What will then happen to those who have died in Christ and have been approved in the investigative judgment? John 5:28, 29 (first part); 1 Thessalonians 4:13–16.

“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.”—Ibid., p. 644.

---

2. “RECOMPENSED AT THE RESURRECTION OF THE JUST”

a. What is written about the reward reserved for the patriarchs? Hebrews 11:13, 39, 40. When will the righteous be rewarded? Luke 14:14. What will they hear from many lips?

“The redeemed will meet and recognize those whose attention they have directed to the uplifted Saviour. What blessed converse they have with these souls! ‘I was a sinner,’ it will be said, ‘without God and without hope in the world, and you came to me, and drew my attention to the precious Saviour as my only hope. And I believed in Him. I repented of my sins, and was made to sit together with His saints in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.’ Others will say: ‘I was a heathen in heathen lands. You left your friends and comfortable home, and came to teach me how to find Jesus and believe in Him as the only true God. I demolished my idols and worshiped God, and now I see Him face to face. I am saved, eternally saved, ever to behold Him whom I love. I then saw Him only with the eye of faith, but now I see Him as He is. I can now express my gratitude for His redeeming mercy to Him who loved me and washed me from my sins in His own blood.’

“Others will express their gratitude to those who fed the hungry and clothed the naked.”—Testimonies, vol. 6, p. 311.

b. What did Christ say about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? When will they be rewarded? Luke 20:37, 38. And what about the prophet Daniel? Daniel 12:13. And King David? Acts 2:34, 35. Is there any proof in the Bible that they are already in heaven?

“The fact that David remains in the grave until the resurrection proves that the righteous do not go to heaven at death. It is only through the resurrection, and by virtue of the fact that Christ has risen, that David can at last sit at the right hand of God.”—The Great Controversy, p. 546.

c. There are three exceptional cases mentioned in the Old Testament. Genesis 5:24 (Hebrews 11:5); Jude 9 (Romans 5:14); 2 Kings 2:11 (Matthew 17:1–5). Explain.

---

3. NEW BODIES, NEW HOMES

a. Where are the saints who were raised at the resurrection of Christ? Matthew 27:52, 53; Ephesians 4:8; Revelation 4:4; 5:8, 9.

“As Christ arose, He brought from the grave a multitude of captives. The earthquake at His death had rent open their graves, and when He arose, they came forth with Him. They were those who had been colaborers with God, and who at the cost of their lives had borne testimony to the truth. Now they were to be witnesses for Him who had raised them from the dead. . . .

“They ascended with Him as trophies of His victory over death and the grave. These, said Christ, are no longer the captives of Satan; I have redeemed them. I have brought them from the grave as the first fruits of My power, to be with Me where I am, nevermore to see death or experience sorrow.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 786.

b. What is the evidence that the apostles are not in heaven? What is Christ preparing for them and for us? John 14:1–3. When will they, together with us, receive the promised reward? 2 Timothy 4:7, 8.

c. What do we know about the new bodies that the saints will have? 1 Corinthians 15:35, 38, 42–44; Philippians 3:21.

“Our personal identity is preserved in the resurrection, though not the same particles of matter or material substance as went into the grave. The wondrous works of God are a mystery to man. The spirit, the character of man, is returned to God, there to be preserved. In the resurrection every man will have his own character. God in His own time will call forth the dead, giving again the breath of life, and bidding the dry bones live. The same form will come forth, but it will be free from disease and every defect. It lives again bearing the same individuality of features, so that friend will recognize friend. There is no law of God in nature which shows that God gives back the same identical particles of matter which composed the body before death. God shall give the righteous dead a body that will please Him.”—Maranatha, p. 301.

---

3. CHRIST COMES TO “EXECUTE JUDGMENT”

a. Christ comes “to execute judgment.” John 5:27; 2 Timothy 4:1; Jude 14, 15. What destiny will be given to the two classes of people at the executive judgment? Matthew 25:31–46; 13:41–43.

“Christ on the Mount of Olives pictured to His disciples the scene of the great judgment day. And He represented its decision as turning upon one point. When the nations are gathered before Him, there will be but two classes, and their eternal destiny will be determined by what they have done or have neglected to do for Him in the person of the poor and the suffering.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 637.

b. What will the wicked, filled with terror, do on that great day? Isaiah 2:19–21; Revelation 6:15–17.

“At the coming of Christ the wicked are blotted from the face of the whole earth—consumed with the spirit of His mouth and destroyed by the brightness of His glory. Christ takes His people to the City of God, and the earth is emptied of its inhabitants. . . . ‘The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the Lord hath spoken this word.’ ‘Because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned’ (Isaiah 24:3, 5, 6).

“The whole earth appears like a desolate wilderness.”—The Great Controversy, p. 657.

c. How will the saints rejoice—and how soon? Isaiah 25:9.

“I have also been pronounced a deceiver because I have said, ‘The Lord will soon come; get ready, get ready, that ye may be found waiting, watching, and loving His appearing.’ But in the Revelation I read this statement, ‘Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.’ ‘Behold, I come quickly: Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.’ ‘Behold, I come quickly: Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown’ (22:12, 7; 3:11). Was the One who bore this testimony a deceiver, because the ‘quickly’ has been protracted longer than our finite minds could anticipate? It is the faithful and true Witness that speaks. His words are verity and truth.”—Manuscript Releases, vol. 16, p. 179.

---

4. CHRIST’S GLORY, A CONSUMING FIRE

a. What will become of the living saints at the coming of Christ? 1 Corinthians 15:51–53.

“The living righteous are changed ‘in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye’ (1 Corinthians 15:52). At the voice of God they were glorified; now they are made immortal and with the risen saints are caught up to meet their Lord in the air. Angels ‘gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other’ (Matthew 24:31). Little children are borne by holy angels to their mothers’ arms. Friends long separated by death are united, nevermore to part, and with songs of gladness ascend together to the City of God.”—The Great Controversy, p. 645.

b. What will happen to all others? Isaiah 66:15–18; 2 Thessalonians 1:6–8; 2 Peter 3:7, 10–12; Luke 17:28–30. Is there any proof that they will have a second chance to be saved?

c. Explain why the glory of Christ’s coming will destroy the wicked but not the saints. Philippians 3:18–21.

d. Where will the resurrected saints and the living righteous meet Christ? 1 Thessalonians 4:17. Where are their new homes? Psalm 15:1; Hebrews 12:22, 23; Revelation 21:2–4.

---

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. Describe in the right sequence the four events mentioned in Acts 3:19, 20.

2. When will the patriarchs and prophets receive their reward? What evidence shows that they are not yet in heaven?

3. Specify the exceptional cases found in the Bible.

4. What will be preserved in the resurrection, and what will not be preserved? Explain.

5. Explain why the glory of Christ’s coming will destroy the wicked but not the saints.