Cheryl Schatz

Craig,
You asked:

If the apostle Paul were alive today, and he knew my grandmother before she died, do you believe he would be happy to say
“She ‘was saved’ when she believed the gospel, was justified, was forgiven for all her sins and became a child of God.

I think he would be happy to say that she was saved and is safe in the arms of the Lord.

She ‘will be saved’ from God’s wrath in the future judgement and for the rest of eternity (not because of anything she has done to deserve it, before or after she died, but because of God’s mercy, forgiving her sins through the death of Christ).”

Neither Paul nor any of the apostles talked like this about the dead for it was the living who were concerned about making it through and being accepted by God. The Bible says that we were children of wrath but as saved people we have already been rescued from the wrath to come.

1 Thessalonians 1:10 (NAS)
10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.

1 Thess 1:10 is “rescues” is present tense and this rescue will carry into the future so of the living we can say that we will be kept safe, but of the dead, they are already there. Although I can see the assurance that we who are alive will be saved from God’s wrath (just as we are saved now), since the dead are already with God in His presence, I have a difficult time seeing how one can talk about a future salvation for them.

I have just never seen this kind of talk about the dead since they are either lost or in the presence of God. Perhaps there is a Bible verse that would communicate a future salvation for the righteous dead that I have missed. If you know of anything like that I would be willing to look at it. Perhaps there is something in the Scripture that talks about future salvation for those who are in the realm of the dead. If I can see in the Scripture what you are trying to say, I can have another look at it. Otherwise I just say that the righteous dead are safe with God.