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The
Seventh-Day
Adventist
Church
teaches that a special resurrection will take place just before the second
coming of Christ, and will involve some believers and some unbelievers. The
first of the two groups to be raised at this time consists of those who have
accepted the third’s angel message which began to be preached about 1846
(this message requires the observance of the sabbath day), while the second
group consists of those who were responsible for the trial and crucifixion of
Christ. Ellen Gould White says: “Graves are opened, and "many of them
that sleep in the dust of the earth. . . awake, some to everlasting life, and
some to shame and everlasting contempt." Daniel 12:2. All who have died
in the faith of the third angel's message come forth from the tomb glorified,
to hear God's covenant of peace with those who have kept His law. "They
also which pierced Him" (Revelation 1:7), those that mocked and derided
Christ's dying agonies, and the most violent opposers of His truth and His
people, are raised to behold Him in His glory and to see the honor placed
upon the loyal and obedient’ (Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy Between Christ and Satan. The Conflict of the
Ages in the Christian Dispensation, [Mountain View, California: Pacific
Press Publishing Association, 1950. Revised edition first published, 1911.],
pages 637). According to this teaching, therefore, the faithful members of
the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, who have died since 1846 (and any others
who have been heeding this message since that time) will be granted a
singular blessing in the form of being raised in the special resurrection
before the glorious return of Christ and will thus have the privilege of
seeing Him come.
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The
Holy Scripture teaches that the saints who have fallen asleep will all be
raised from the dead at the coming of Christ, as it is written: “For the Lord
Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an
archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise
first …..” (1 Thessalonians 4:16
– NKJV). No one of the saints who have fallen asleep will be granted the
privilege of being raised just before the appearing of the Lord Jesus from
heaven, for all of them will be raised when the Lord descends from heaven.
Therefore the above mentioned privilege, which according to the Adventist Church will be
granted to those who have heeded the third’s angel message is without
biblical support, and consequently is to be rejected.
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As
for the special resurrection in which – according to the Adventist Church - those
who condemned and killed Jesus will have part, it must be said the same
thing, that is, it is without biblical support and consequently it must be
rejected. According to the Scripture the wicked will all rise again at the
end of the millennium (cf. Revelation 20:5, 11-15) in order to be judged and
cast into the lake which burns with fire and brimstone.
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