It is my personal point of view that the dead in Christ will include all the righteous dead from the time of Abel. That is, they will constitute a tremendous host of God's true saints.

The "dead in Christ" does not refer to everyone who has taken the four steps of salvation but those who truly are abiding in Christ. To abide in Christ is vastly more than making an initial profession of faith and then living our own life as we see fit. It is speaking of being crucified with Christ so it is Christ who is living in us rather than our old personality.

"When Christ who is our life shall appear," Paul says in another place. There are the dead in Christ; then there are those who still are living physically on the earth but who at the same time are living in the heavenlies in Jesus.

"The dead in Christ will rise first." This is the first resurrection from the dead. This is the blessed and holy royal priesthood of God. They have lived a victorious life through Jesus Christ until the second death, the Lake of Fire, no longer has authority over them.

How could this be true of Abel, Abraham, and Moses? I do not know how they could be crucified with Christ and risen with Christ. But this is what it means to be born again; and until we are born again we cannot see or enter the Kingdom of God. So I guess some things take place in the spirit world that we will understand later.

In any case, the patriarchs cannot be made perfect apart from us but shall be made perfect together with us in the day of resurrection.

We see then, that we need to concentrate on what we shall face in the day of resurrection. It is certain only those who have been found abiding in Jesus Christ will be raised in the first resurrection (or transformed into immortality if they are alive on the earth at the time of the return of Christ). Such instantaneous transformation into glory requires that they have been judged prior to this time. They certainly cannot be transformed into immortality and after that stand before Christ and be judged! The transformation that shall take place at the first resurrection will be their sentence—a sentence based on a prior judgment.

(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:5,6—NIV)

The general resurrection of the dead will take place at the end of the thousand-year Kingdom Age.

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. (Revelation 20:12—NIV)

To be continued.