Red Clothing and Resurrection: Jesus Christ's Second Coming

The scriptures teach that when Christ comes again to the earth, that he will be wearing red apparel. Why red? They also teach that at Christ's coming, many of the dead will become resurrected. Will this only include members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Not by a long shot, no matter what some Mormon might tell you.

Do you picture that when Christ comes again to earth that he will be robed in white? There exists a popular painting in Mormondom (included at the top right of this article, as a matter of fact) that conveys this impression. But according to the scriptures, this will not be so. The Doctrine and Covenants indicates that when Christ returns, his clothing will be red:

And it shall be said: ^aWho is this that cometh down from God in heaven with dyed ^bgarments; yea, from the regions which are not known, clothed in his glorious apparel, traveling in the greatness of his strength?

And he shall say: ^aI am he who spake in ^brighteousness, mighty to save.

And the Lord shall be ^ared in his apparel, and his garments like him that treadeth in the wine-vat.

The Book of Revelation is slightly more descriptive of what the color red indicates:

 And he was ^aclothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his ^bname is called The ^cWord of God.

Christ's garments will be red--or "dipped in blood"--in order to remind us that he sweat great drops of blood as he suffered for all of our sins and weaknesses in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the Cross of Calvary.

When Christ comes again soon in the last days of this earth, many will be resurrected. 

And the ^agraves of the ^bsaints shall be ^copened; and they shall come forth and stand on the ^dright hand of the Lamb, when he shall stand upon ^eMount Zion, and upon the holy city, the New Jerusalem; and they shall ^fsing the ^gsong of the ^hLamb, day and night forever and ever.

This will be just as it was when Christ rose from the Garden Tomb in the meridian of time, as many were resurrected at that time.

And the ^agraves were opened; and many ^bbodies of the ^csaints ^dwhich slept ^earose,

And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the ^aholy city, and appeared unto many.

The Doctrine and Covenants gives a little bit more detail as to those who were resurrected just after Christ became the first in human history to be resurrected.

Yea, and ^aEnoch also, and they who were with him; the prophets who were before him; and ^bNoah also, and they who were before him; and ^cMoses also, and they who were before him;

And from ^aMoses to Elijah, and from Elijah to John, who were with Christ in his ^bresurrection, and the holy apostles, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, shall be in the presence of the Lamb.

The Doctrine and Covenants is marvelous as to the detail that it provides that we cannot find in the Old and New Testaments. Who are those that will be resurrected at the second coming of the Savior?

And there were gathered together in one place an innumerable company of the spirits of the ^ajust, who had been ^bfaithful in the ^ctestimony of Jesus while they lived in mortality;

And who had offered ^asacrifice in the ^bsimilitude of the great sacrifice of the Son of God, and had 

suffered ^ctribulation in their Redeemer’s ^dname.

All these had departed the mortal life, firm in the ^ahope of a glorious ^bresurrection, through the ^cgrace of God the ^dFather and his ^eOnly Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.

It is a great misnomer that only those who have been members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in this life will come forth in the first resurrection. Once again, the Doctrine and Covenants comes to the rescue, clearing up that misconception held by many Latter-day Saints.

All who have died ^bwithout a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be ^cheirs of the celestial kingdom of God;

Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who ^awould have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom;

For I, the Lord, will ^ajudge all men according to their ^bworks, according to the ^cdesire of their hearts.

In other words, like many other religions, we do believe that our Church is the "only [completely] true church". But unlike many other religions, we do not believe that you will burn in hell if you don't accept it.