In my last four blogs, I covered Jesus' return with His Saints, the New Creations, as told in both the New and Old Testaments. A lot of what we saw were very devastating to the earth. We have to put things into perspective and realize that the God who spoke this world into existence in 6 days is the same God who judged it. He is also the same God who will speak back into existence that which He wills to be here on earth during His 1000 year reign over it. We will look a little bit at how that will look during Jesus' reign.
When we last finished in revelation Chapter 19, we saw the beast and the false prophet thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the place of the second death. It is an eternal death. Jesus is an eternal God. When Jesus created man, He created them to be an eternal being with an eternal existence. When all is completed, each person would have either chose to have eternal life or eternal death. The lake of fire was not intended for man. It was intended for Satan and his demons who rebelled against God. Satan continues to deceive and drag as many eternal souls as he can into the lake of fire with him. Remember this, that I repeat over and over again, from the apostle Peters' 2nd letter in his 3rd Chapter, verse 9, because this is the heart of God;
"The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some might count slowness, but is
patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish but for all to come to
repentance."
I think when Jesus conceived the concept of making a New Creation, He thought that many would love to have eternal life with Him. What He ends up finding is what he spoke is the gospel of Matthew in the 7th Chapter, verse 13 and 14;
(13)"Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads
to destruction, and many are those who enter by it.(14) For the gate is small, and
the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it."
The gate is narrow because their is only one way to gain eternal life and that is through Jesus. Satan has supplied many other ways, in mans mind, how they can achieve gaining eternal life or even just die and cease to exist. Apart from Jesus there is no life.
At the end of Revelation Chapter 19, verses 20 and 21, this is the reason why the beast and the false prophet are the first two to be cast into the lake of fire, where they will be a thousand years before anyone will join them;
(20)"And the beast was seized, and the false prophet who performed the signs in
his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and
those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire
which burns with brimstone.(21) And the rest were killed with the sword which
came from the mouth of Him (Jesus) who sat upon the horse, and all the birds were
filled with their flesh."
Revelation Chapter 20 begins with Satan being bound for a thousand years, when John sees this in verses 1-3;
(1)"And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss
and a great chain in his hand.(2) And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old,
who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,(3) and threw him
into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he should not deceive the
nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he
must be released for a short time."
You are probably wonder why Jesus is going to bind Satan for a thousand years and then release him again. Why not just throw him into the lake of fire with beast and the false prophet? Jesus wants to make sure that everyone understands that Satan is the great deceiver and will never change and that is why he deserves to be cast into the lake of fire. When Satan is released for a short time at the end of Jesus' thousand year reign, he again deceives the nations to rise up against Jesus. This is after everyone under Jesus' reign have been living in peace.
John continues with this in verses 4-6;
(4) "And I saw thrones , and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them.
And I saw souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus
and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his
image, and had not receive the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and
they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.(5) The rest of the
dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first
resurrection.(6) Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection;
over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of
Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.
In these verses we start off seeing that there are a people who are sitting on thrones and judgment was given to them. We know From Chapter 19, that when Jesus returns to execute His judgment with the saints, that they are given white horses like His. These horses are the thrones on which those who overcame the devil by the blood of the Lamb and their testimony of Jesus, will sit as they execute the wrath of God with Jesus.
We read this in Revelation Chapter 12, verse11;
"And they overcame Satan because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the
word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even to death."
They were willing to die for Jesus, not rejecting the truth. They did not receive the mark of the beasts. This is the mark that the beast would require for anyone to be able to buy or sell and they did not worship the beast or his image. They were not afraid to give up what they owned or ever their lives to be faithful to Jesus. Their reward for their faithfulness to the truth is that they will come back to life and be caught up to be with Jesus in the air as we read in Paul's 1st letter to the Thessalonians Chapter 4, verses 16 and 17;
(16)"For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of
the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first.
(17) Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the
clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord."
After the wrath is complete, the saints, the New Creations, are going to rule over the earth with Jesus for a thousand years. They will rule the earth from the heavenly Jerusalem, Mount Zion. This is the place that Jesus said that he was going away to prepare, when He said this in John's gospel, Chapter 14, verses 1-3;
(1)"Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me.(2) In My
Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you;
for I go to prepare a place for you.(3) and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will
come again, and receive you to Myself; that were I am, there you may be also."
In Chapter 21 we will see a description of this heavenly Jerusalem, the real 'city of peace'. In my next blog I am going to show in the Old Testament where it talks about this heavenly city and how it will dwell above the earth during the thousand year reign of Jesus.
After the first resurrection, when the faithful are caught up to meet Jesus in the air, there will be a second resurrection a thousand years later. Those who take part in the first resurrection are blessed and holy(set apart) and will not take part in the second death, the eternal death of the soul, in the lake of fire. After the thousand years are complete, there will be a second resurrection where all the rest who have died will be resurrected. Then there will be what is know as The Great White Throne Judgment, where Jesus will make judgment on those who did not participate in the first resurrection.
When Jesus takes over rule of the earth from Satan, He will rule in righteousness for a thousand years. The earth will be different then it has ever been. The prophet Isaiah wrote about how it will be in those days, where in his 11th Chapter, verses 6-9;
(6)"And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with
the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little boy
will lead them.(7) Also the cow and the bear will graze; their young will lie down
together; and the lion will eat straw with the ox.(8) And the nursing child will
play by the hole of the cobra, and the weaned will put his hand in the vipers den.
(9) They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full
of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."
Again in Isaiah in his 65th Chapter, verses 17-25, it describes this;
(17)"For behold I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things will
not be remembered or come to mind.(18) But be glad and rejoice forever in what
I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing, and her people for gladness.
(19) I will also rejoice in Jerusalem, and be glad in my people; And there will no
longer be heard in her the voice of weeping and the sound of crying.(20) No longer
will it be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live
out his days; For the youth will die at the age of a hundred and the one who does
not reach the age of a hundred shall be thought accursed.(21) And they shall build
houses and inhabit them; They shall also plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
(22) They shall not build and another inhabit, they shall not plant and another eat;
For as the lifetime of a tree, so shall be the days of my people, and my chosen ones
shall wear out the work of their hands.(23) They shall not labor in vain, or bare
children for calamity; For they are the offspring of those blessed by the Lord, and
their descendants with them.(24) It will also come to pass that before they call,
I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.(25) The wolf and the
lamb shall graze together, and the lion shall eat straw with the ox; and dust shall be
the serpent's food. They shall do no harm in all My holy mountain, says the Lord."
I know that the blogs that I have written pertaining to Jesus return, to stop Satan from destroying the earth and judge those who made the choice to reject His offer of eternal life, might not sound like a good thing, but it will result in a great thing.
Jesus' peace and understanding be with you.
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