Mankind’s ‘Destiny’ [v247]
SEPTEMBER 2019
In a world that is literally ‘spinning out of control’, with instability and uncertainty being a part of every aspect of life, have you ever considered what mankind’s ‘DESTINY’ is?
As I listed in last month’s post, there are many issues that are of concern to many people about the ‘condition’ of our world right now—disease, energy crisis, famines, nuclear proliferation, poverty, terrorism, and violence, just to name a few. Depending upon a person’s life experiences and personality, they ‘analyze’ these issues differently when asked about the FUTURE OF HUMANITY.
Pacifists believe that it is possible for us to “all just get along.” However, sadly, the entire recorded history of humanity contradicts that sentiment. So, most people, depending on their mindset about this, suggest different levels of ‘catastrophe’ and a variety of hypothetical scenarios:
– A pandemic will wipe out humanity
– Many super-volcanic eruptions, covering the earth with the flow, bury everything on earth, including all of mankind
– A runaway ‘greenhouse’ effect collapses of our oxygen ecosystem, killing all of humanity
– A coronal mass ejection from the sun will ‘fry’ the earth and all of humanity
– A very large asteroid will collide with the earth and would cause extinction
– Biotech will create a new life form that will eventually ’eliminate’ humanity
– Uncontrolled nanotechnology incidents result in the destruction of the earth’s ecosystem, and in turn mankind
– AI machines will reproduce themselves and destroy mankind (or mankind will become ‘cyborgs’)
– Nuclear/biological warfare would destroy many humans first off, then the earth’s ecosystem, and in turn, would kill off the rest of mankind
Estimating the probabilities of unprecedented events is definitely subjective, however, even if the probability of human extinction is low—because the stakes are so high—many believe that it would be wise for us to invest in extinction ‘countermeasures’.
English theoretical physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking—just a few weeks before passed away in 2018—thought that mankind “must abandon earth or face extinction,” and that mankind’s only chance of long-term survival lies in colonizing space: “Our only chance of long-term survival is not to remain inward looking on planet Earth, but to spread out into space.” [ Hawking also warned that artificial intelligence might mean the end of mankind in a way that we’ve long thought of as being science fiction: “The genie is out of the bottle…I fear that AI may replace humans altogether. Someone will design AI that replicates itself. This will be a new form of life that will outperform humans.” He foresaw not just autonomous robots, but autonomous weapons, too ].
Hawking went on to say that, “Our population and our use of the finite resources of planet Earth are growing exponentially, along with our technical ability to change the environment for good or ill. If we want to survive beyond the next century, our future is in space.”
World-renowned physicist and futurist Dr. Michio Kaku totally agrees with Hawking, presenting a compelling vision of how humanity could develop a sustainable civilization in outer space. He suggests that the developments in robotics, nanotechnology, and biotechnology will allow us to terraform and build habitable cities on Mars and beyond. He further suggests that we will be able to journey out of our solar system with interstellar travel. Ultimately, he shows us how humans may someday achieve a form of immortality and be able to leave our bodies entirely, laser porting to new havens in space. Wow. He’s definitely a “futurist”!
[ Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrNC4V6XfLE ].
Now, a definitely more cost-effective solution than outer space would be to build ‘refuges’ here on earth (since there are elaborate bunkers that already exist for government leaders to occupy during a nuclear war, and facilities to protect crop seeds). However, as of today, there are no self-sufficient, remote, permanently occupied refuges that are meant to protect humanity from a range of possible extinction events. Although they would probably save humanity, in what ‘condition’ would they and the earth be in after the catastrophe? Enough to ‘restart’ the world?
Now, of course, the BEST SOLUTION would be if we all could just “get along” and make peace. BUT, sadly, history tells a different ‘story’—all the way back to the beginning of humanity with Cain and Abel, when it was a ‘perfect’ world!
[ Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxNvbkWcNy4 ].
BIBLE’S VIEW OF MAN’S ‘DESTINY’
God created everything “good” in the beginning (Genesis 1:31a), but humanity ‘messed things up’!
Adam and Eve lived in a perfect world—in a state of ‘innocence’ and were created to live forever. They lived in an absolutely ‘idyllic’ place (“Garden of Eden”), and “walked” daily with God! However, they capitulated to the temptation of Satan (the Devil) and called into question God’s integrity, righteousness, goodness, and wisdom. They became ‘doubters’ of God, and disobeyed—eating from the ONE ‘tree’ (of probably thousands) that He told them not to eat from (Genesis 2:17). With that, they started their own ‘doomsday clock’, that would eventually end in their physical deaths.
By their disobedience to God, “sin” ‘entered’ into their nature. Then, when they had children (Cain and Abel), this nature was passed along to their offspring (Genesis 5:3). The sin nature manifested itself early in the genealogy: the very first child born to Adam and Eve, Cain, became the very first murderer (Genesis 4:8). In addition to that, they also set in motion a spiritual ‘avalanche’ that has ‘INFECTED’ the whole of the human race with the ‘curse’ of sin…death! (Romans 5:12). This passed-on sin is known as “inherited” sin. Just as we inherit physical characteristics from our parents, we inherit our sinful ‘nature’ from Adam.
This is the explanation of why human life is the way it is. Why the ‘world’ is the way it is; Why the universe is degenerating; Why there is so much evil; Why there is so much corruption; Why there is conflict, hatred, and war; Why there are disasters of all kinds; Why there is disease, deformity, and death. Everything that is bad, evil, corrupt, devastating, and deadly is because of Adam and Eve’s disobedience of God.
Now, in addition to everyone’s eventual physical death, Adam and Eve also ‘plunged’ all of humanity into “spiritual death”—a ‘separation’ from God (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 7:9). A “double whammy”! All human beings who will ever walk on this earth are affected by what Adam and Eve did!
HOWEVER, because God is loving and full of grace and mercy, He offered a ‘solution’, right away, but it would take some time to ‘flesh out’. ‘Talking’ directly to Satan, God said that He would, “put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel” (Genesis 3:15). [ That has been called the “protoevangelium”—the first “Gospel”—the ‘solution’ to man’s sin problem ].
God ‘throws’ Satan and one-third of the angels that were following him out of Heaven and unto the earth. This is God’s ‘first’ judgment of Satan—however, it WON’T be the last!
It seems reasonable to me that after Satan (originally “Lucifer,” the highest of all angels) was thrown out of Heaven, it utterly ‘escalated’ his anger toward God. So, since he couldn’t hurt God, he focused on ‘hurting’ God’s creation—mankind (1 Peter 5:8).
Now, the “He” referred to in Genesis 3:15 (mentioned just above) is the one ‘Man’ who comes from the ‘seed’ of a woman that will be Satan’s destroyer—Jesus Christ.
I’m thinking that Satan understood this completely, and why he tried—working ‘through’ King Herod—to kill every male child at the time of Jesus’ birth (Matthew 2:16) in order to slaughter the Messiah before He (Jesus) could crush his ‘head’.
Later on, Satan ‘bruised’ Jesus on the Cross, but it was only a minor bruise that would ‘heal’ (since Jesus resurrected from the dead). The Cross was a blow on Jesus’ ‘heel’, but it would allow for the redemption of all the sinners who would love God and hate Satan.
The ‘Cross’ was a total defeat of Satan, as it provided humanity a ‘way’ to avert the punishment of God for sin, by providing the atonement that paid in full for the sins of all the people whom God would regenerate. By paying the full debt to God—required to satisfy His justice—and by conquering death, it ‘opened’ Heaven to repentant sinners and repaired their relationship to God the Father. All this marvelous ‘Cross work’ of Jesus was the crushing blow on the ‘head’ of Satan!
[ Jesus satisfied God’s wrath against sin and provided believers with victory over their sin nature: “‘He himself bore our sins’ in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness” (1 Peter 2:24) ].
However, God’s ULTIMATE DESTINY for humanity is total SANCTIFICATION through Jesus (1 Thessalonians 3:13; 1 John 3:2) and everlasting life with Him in Heaven!
God, in His infinite wisdom and mercy, has provided the ‘remedy’ for the sin we inherited, and that this remedy is available to everyone: “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you” [ Acts 13:38 ].
The mystery of evil and why God has allowed its reality with all of the suffering it causes may never be fully known in this world, but Scripture assures that EVIL IS TEMPORARY. Once the culmination of God’s redemptive plan is complete, Jesus Christ will have destroyed the Devil’s work forever! (1 John 3:8).
Some have wondered why God created beings who could sin. Well, the thing is, the alternative would be to create beings unable to choose right and wrong, in that case, angels and humans would be like ‘robots’, unable to ‘truly’ show love and affection to God. He could have either make sin impossible, or He could make beings free to choose, but He could not logically do both. So, without an ability to choose, no being can have a ‘meaningful’ relationship with God, and no one could meaningfully experience of His mercy, love, justice, and righteousness. The fullness of God’s nature and glory would not be apparent.
The existence of sin is definitely ‘negative’ (Romans 6:23), but it IS NOT the end of the story. Satan will ultimately be defeated. His end has been declared, and his evil will not continue forever! (Revelation 20:7–10).
So, following up on the Tribulation (in last month’s post), the following will give you an idea of how God will finally put an END TO EVIL!
[ See last month’s post for more details:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/final-tribulation-v246/ ].
As I mentioned, God is loving and merciful, and He shows this by following the “Battle of Armageddon” by 1,000 years of peace on earth—the “Millennium.” Swords will be beaten into plowshares. The wolf will dwell with the lamb. Little children will play with snakes because they will no longer be poisonous. Most importantly, Jesus will reign as “King of kings and Lord of lords.” A PERFECT ruler!
The following is what happens AFTER THE TRIBULATION (and the Second Coming of Jesus) until the END OF TIME!
‘TRANSITION’ TIME
There is a 75-day ‘transition’ that separates the end of the Tribulation from the beginning of the “Millennium” (“milli” = 1,000; “annum” = years). During this brief interim, a number of significant events transpire:
– The Antichrist in the False Prophet will be cast into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 19:20)
– Satan will also be ‘bound’ from this point until the very end of the Millennium (Revelation 20:1-3)
– The Old Testament Saints will be resurrected from the dead (Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2)
– The Saints who died during the Tribulation are resurrected from the dead (Revelation 20:4)
– The “Marriage Supper of the Lamb” (Jesus claiming His ‘bride’, the Church)
– The governmental structure of the Millennial Kingdom will probably be set up during this time (2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 20:4-6)
Following this 75-day interval, Jesus will set up His Millennial Kingdom (Revelation 20).
EVIL DECEPTION REMOVED
The first matter for Jesus as He sets up His Kingdom is the confinement of His chief rebel, Satan, and his removal from the earth—which will dramatically change the world. (By this time, God will have destroyed all human rebels at Armageddon – Revelation 19:11-21). The ‘ringleaders’ of the worldwide rebellion, the Antichrist and the False Prophet, will already have been thrown into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 19:20). The final step in preparation for the Millennial Kingdom will be the removal of Satan and his demons.
An angel—possibly Michael—will come from down from Heaven to ‘bind’ Satan. He will cast him into the abyss and seal it. [ The abyss is a place of torment where demons fear to be sent (Luke 8:31) ].
Satan will be incarcerated in the abyss for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1-3) so he cannot deceive humanity any longer.
RESURRECTION OF BELIEVERS
The church age believers that were resurrected at the Rapture, before the seven-year Tribulation, will now be joined with the Old Testament Saints who will be raised at this time (Daniel 12:2).
This will be the resurrection of the Tribulation Saints—many of whom will have been beheaded for Christ (Revelation 20:4).
A final blessing for the participants in this First Resurrection will be that they will reign with the Jesus for 1,000 years along with all the believers who survived the Tribulation.
Those who have a part in the First Resurrection are blessed because the “second death” no longer has power over them. (The “second death” is eternal Hell.) The comforting truth is that no true ‘child’ of God will ever face God’s eternal wrath (Romans 5:9). Those who participate in the First Resurrection are also blessed because they will be ‘priests’ of God and of Jesus. Raptured believers are already “a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9).
Somehow we will be involved in the ‘expression’ of God’s will. We will be His ‘agents’, carrying out His wishes in the world.
What a world that will be! The Saints won’t have to try to figure out what to do because they will all be glorified and perfect—and will perfectly carry out the will of Jesus. They will simply enforce His agenda, which will be abundantly and perfectly clear to all of them.
JUDGMENT OF THE NATIONS
The Judgment of the Nations takes place following the Second Coming of Jesus. The nations are composed of “sheep” and “goats” (they represent the saved from the unsaved among the Gentiles – Matthew 25:31-46). One’s DESTINY—entering Jesus’ Kingdom or entering into eternal punishment in Hell—hinges on how one treated Jesus’ “brothers.” The brothers were those who were bearing witness of Jesus during the Tribulation (probably primarily the 144,000 Jews that were proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom into every nation on earth).
For the judgment of the Jews, Jesus will ‘purge’ out all of the rebels who refused to turn to Him for salvation during the Tribulation period (they will be sent to eternal punishment), whereas the believers from among this group will enter into the Millennial Kingdom, where they will enjoy the blessings of the New Covenant (Ezekiel 20:37; Jeremiah 31:31).
However, these saved Jews will not be given their resurrection bodies. They will enter the Kingdom in their mortal bodies. Though longevity will characterize the Millennial Kingdom, both Jews and Gentiles will continue to age and die (Isaiah 65:20). They will then be resurrected at the end of the Millennium (Revelation 20:4) for their ‘final’ judgment.
MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB
The Church (Gentiles) are regarded as a “virgin bride” awaiting the coming of her divine ‘Bridegroom’, Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:2; Revelation 19:7-9).
The individuals living during the church age that came to salvation (repented of their sins and believed in Jesus), became a part of the Church, the bride of Christ, that will be betrothed to Jesus.
Jesus previously came to claim His bride at the Rapture, at which time He took His bride to Heaven, the Fathers ‘house’, where He had prepared a place for them to live (John 14:1-3). [ Just like a Jewish groom did for his bride in the time of Jesus ]. The actual ‘marriage’ takes place in Heaven, sometime after the Church has been raptured (prior to Jesus’ Second Coming – Revelation 19:11-16), but the “Supper” (the ‘reception’) happens now, during this transition period.
THE “MILLENNIAL KINGDOM”
After the Tribulation ends at the “Battle of Armageddon,” Jesus will literally reign for 1,000 years on a ‘near-perfect’ earth as “King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16). Yet, He has graciously promised that His Saints will reign WITH Him. They will rule subordinately over every aspect of life in the Kingdom, and will perfectly carry out His will. With Satan, his demons, and all God-rejecting sinners out of the way, the Millennial Kingdom will be a time of ‘awesome’ peace.
Imagine a time when there will be no more poverty, and every person will have all that their heart desires! Imagine that there will be no prisons, no hospitals, no mental institutions, no army bases, no gambling ‘dens’, no bars, no houses of ill repute, and no homes for the aged and the infirm. The wolf and the lamb, the calf and the lion, and a little child and the serpent will all play together! The implements of war will be relics of the past.
Longevity of life will return as in the days before the Flood of Noah. “No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed” [ Isaiah 65:20 ]. (That means that a normal lifespan will be multiple hundreds of years.) All who die during the Millennium will be resurrected at the end of the Millennium (Revelation 20:4-5) to face their ‘final’ judgment.
The Bible also reveals that all married couples will continue to have children throughout the Millennium. Now, even though the Millennium will involve the perfect government of Jesus, it will also include ‘fallen’ human beings. These people will give birth to babies and raise children, some of whom will not necessarily choose to follow Jesus. As long as they do not externally rebel against the government of Jesus, they are permitted to live during the Millennial Kingdom. But, all ‘outward’ rebellion will be stopped instantly.
Israel will not only experience regeneration in fulfillment of the New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34), but they will also be regathered (Isaiah 43:5-7; Jeremiah 16:14-18; Psalm 105:8-11; Genesis 15:18-21, 26:3-4, 28:13–14). They will finally possess the ENTIRE Promised Land that God promised Abraham. Also, the Covenant that God made with Israel—promising a complete national regeneration —will happen, and every Jew in the Millennial Kingdom will personally know God (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Isaiah 22:22-24, 30:18-22, 44:1-5, 45:17).
A Millennial Temple will be built apparently to represent God’s presence among His people during the Millennium (Ezekiel 37:26-27). This Temple will be the ‘worship center’ of Jesus during the entire Millennium (Ezekiel 37:26-28).
The ‘sacrifices’ will be a kind of Jewish ‘memorial’, of the awful price Jesus had to pay for their salvation. The temple system will allegedly function much like the Lords Supper (“Holy Communion”) does today, as a moral ritual (1 Corinthians 11:25-26).
The sacrifices will not be a return to the Mosaic Law, since it was forever done away with through Jesus (Romans 6:14-15; 1 Corinthians 9:20-21; Hebrews 8:13). The sacrifices relate only to removing ritual impurities in the Temple as long as fallen, but redeemed human beings, remain on earth.
The Bible also reveals that those who enter into the Millennial Kingdom will enjoy some very unique physical blessings:
– The ‘curse’ that the earth has been under since Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden will be lifted. The earth itself will begin to bloom and blossom so that even the desert will no longer be parched and dry (Isaiah 35:1).
– There will be a blessed and enhanced environment (Isaiah 35:1-2)
– Rain and food will be plentiful (Isaiah 30:23-24)
– Animals will live in harmony with each other and with humans (Isaiah 11:6-9)
– Physical infirmities and illness will be removed (Isaiah 29:18; Isaiah 33:24)
– Prosperity will prevail, resulting in joy and gladness (Jeremiah 31:12-14)
– The earth will experience a great population explosion. Most likely, by the end of the Millennium, there will be more people on the face of the earth than ever before in the history of mankind.
The Bible then reveals that Jesus will institute a perfect government, and it will have these characteristics:
– It will be global (Psalm 2:6-9; Daniel 7:14)
– It will be centered in Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:2-4; Jeremiah 3:17)
– He will reign on the throne of David (Jeremiah 23:5-6)
– It will be perfect and effective (Isaiah 9:6-7)
– It will bring lasting global peace (Micah 4:3-4)
In short, Jesus’ government will yield an ideal ‘climate’ for a living on earth. He will succeed were all human governments have failed before!
There will also be great spiritual blessing during the Millennial Kingdom (Jeremiah 31:31-34):
– The Holy Spirit will be present, and will indwell all believers (Isaiah 44:3; Ezekiel 36:27; Ezekiel 37:14; Joel 2:28-29)
– Righteousness will prevail around the world (Isaiah 46:13; Isaiah 51:5; Isaiah 60:21)
– Obedience to Jesus will prevail (Psalm 22:27; Jeremiah 31:33)
– Holiness will prevail (Isaiah 35:8-10; Joel 3:17)
– Faithfulness will prevail (Psalm 85:10-11; Zachariah 8:3)
– All the world’s residents will worship Jesus (Zachariah 8:23)
– God’s presence will be made manifest (Ezekiel 37:27-28; Zachariah 2:10-13)
How AWESOME this will be!
HOWEVER, the thing is, the ‘heart’ of man is going to be no different during this Millennial period than it was before the Tribulation. Sin will be less because Satan and his demonic hoards will be restrained, but there will still be sin and rebellion in people’s hearts, because all humans are born with a sin nature. According to Jesus, the evil that is in the world comes from ‘within’ man. All Satan does is multiply it through temptation. In fact, that is one of the purposes of the Millennium. God is going to use the Millennium to prove that Satan’s ‘religion’, humanism, is ‘bankrupt’ when it purports that the way to change the world is to change society. Humanists take that position because they believe that evil is rooted in society. But the Word of God says that evil is rooted in the fallen nature of man, and that the only way to change the world is to change people’s ‘hearts’!
As the Millennium commences, the Temple has been built and the nations of the earth are coming there to worship the true God and Jesus there. Prosperity reigns in a paradise regained. The ‘Garden of Eden’ is back and it is worldwide! Poverty and injustice are unknown. Everyone has their heart’s desire. It will be an INCREDIBLE TIME!
The bloom of youth is on everyone’s cheek. Cemeteries are crumbling relics of the past and tears no longer flow! The “Golden Age” has dawned!
Jesus’ reign is righteous. Sin is visited with swift and certain judgment. It’s everything that you could never even imagine—BEYOND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS!
Now, just to be clear about the ‘viewpoint’ I come from about the Millennium. I am a “pre-millennialist,” but there are two other interpretations: Amillennialism and post-millennialism.
An “Amillennialist” believes the Millennium on earth is NOT ‘LITERAL’, and Jesus is reigning in the spiritual realm right now. Amillennialists interpret Revelation’s prophecies about the Millennium as pure symbolism. They take all the promises given by God to Israel in the Old Testament and apply them to the New Testament Church.
The “Post-millennialist” view believes that Jesus is coming AFTER the 1,000 years of peace on the earth (the Rapture). The thing is, there are not many post-millennials around today since their theory about the world is getting better and better is rapidly being disapproved by the reality that our world is getting worse and worse (which is what the Bible teaches).
The “Pre-millennialist” then believes that Jesus must come BEFORE the Church can enjoy 1,000 years of peace on earth. Jesus will come in power (His Second Coming) and He will rule and reign from Jerusalem. God will give His nation Israel a second chance to repent, and they rise to political prominence.
[ In this day and age, the Pre-millennialist’s goal is to ‘prepare’ people for the Second Coming of Jesus by preaching the glorious saving Gospel. (Just what I’m trying to do with this post!) ].
SATAN RELEASED
Just when we think we are done with Satan—bound in the bottomless pit—he RETURNS! But, it is not a jailbreak. He is released by God. Satan is allowed to have one final ‘fling’. Why? It is God’s final ‘TEST’ of mankind (Revelation 20:7-9).
Satan’s violent hatred of God and Jesus will not be altered by his 1,000 years of imprisonment in the abyss! When he is released, he will immediately set out on his final act of rebellion (Revelation 9:20-21; 16:9; 16:11; 16:21).
By exposing the ‘seed’ of rebellion that is in people’s ‘hearts’, he will do this by persuading the nations to rebel against Jesus. At this point, you are probably wondering, “Why would people rebel after experiencing 1,000 years of peace, righteousness, and justice?” Well, just think about what it would be like to live under, “the rule of the rod of iron.” The ‘flesh’ wants all the pleasures of the world, drugs, gambling, illicit sex, and pornography, and Jesus will not ‘allow’ these things to happen. Any attempt to indulge in the ‘lusts’ of the flesh will be met with swift and sure justice. Violators would be tried before ‘perfect’ judges. There will be no appeal, because the judge’s decision will be perfect. So, people on the ‘surface’ will say, “We praise you, Jesus!,” but there will be seething rebellion in their ‘hearts’, and Satan is going to expose that rebellious spirit.
As was mentioned previously, though the initial inhabitants of the Millennial Kingdom were all ‘redeemed’, they still possessed a sinful human nature. As all parents have done since the Fall, they will pass that ‘corruption’ on to their offspring. Each successive generation throughout the Millennium will be made up of sinners in need of salvation, many will come to saving faith in Jesus. But, amazingly, despite the most moral society the world has ever known, many others will love their sin and reject Jesus (Romans 8:7). Even the utopian conditions of the Millennium will not change the sad reality of human depravity. As they did during Jesus’ incarnational presence on the earth (in the first century), sinners will refuse His grace and Lordship in these ‘final’ centuries.
So, Satan will rally the nations of the earth against Jesus: “When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison. He will go out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog. He will gather them for battle. Their number is like the sand of the sea” (Revelation 20:7-8). Satan will move his forces against Jerusalem with a frenzied fervor.
FINAL REBELLION
Satan will collect the deceived nations from “the four corners of the earth” (Revelation 7:1; Isaiah 11:12). Rebels will come from all over the globe.
Amazingly, the number of rebels will be like the “sand of the seashore”—a figure of speech used in the Bible to describe a vast, uncountable multitude (Genesis 22:17). As mentioned previously, the ideal conditions of prosperity and peace that will prevail during the Millennium, coupled with the long life spans of its inhabitants, will lead to a massive population explosion. Vast numbers of those people will join Satan in his final act of rebellion against God.
The rebel forces will “come up on the broad plain of the earth and surround the camp of the saints and the beloved city” (Jerusalem).
Yet, like Armageddon 1,000 years earlier (Revelation 19:11-21), the “battle” will, in reality, be an ‘EXECUTION’. As the rebel forces move in for the attack, “fire will come down from heaven and consume them” (Revelation 20:9). They will be INSTANTLY EXTERMINATED! Satan’s forces will be physically killed, and their souls will go into the ‘realm’ of punishment, awaiting their final sentencing to eternal Hell (Revelation 20:11-15).
When God let Satan out of the bottomless pit, he was demonstrating to the world two great principles: Punishment is not the answer; Changing the environment is not the answer. It is the human ‘heart’ that must be changed, and that can be done only through the power of the Holy Spirit.
I read years ago that archeologists opened the tomb of one of the Egyptian pharaohs who had been dead for thousands of years. Inside the tomb, they found some grains of wheat, and decided to conduct an experiment.
They put those grains into the right environment with moisture in the warm sun. Those grains of wheat, that had been lying there for thousands of years, began to sprout! Isn’t that amazing?
Well, that is the same way it is with sin in the human ‘heart’. Our salvation is never from ‘within’ us because we only have the seeds of sin in our hearts. Our salvation can only come from ‘without’ (2 Corinthians 4:7)—Jesus.
So, many people may be asking at this point, “Will humanity ever say goodbye to sin?” Well, the answer is, “Yes,” when God abolishes Satan’s rule, his authority, and all of his power at the end of time (1 Corinthians 15:24-25)—and believers will be ‘perfected’ and incapable to sin!
SATAN CAST INTO LAKE OF FIRE
The Devil, who deceived all of the Saints, will be “thrown into the Lake of Fire and brimstone.“ There he will join the Antichrist and the False Prophet, who, by that time, will have been in that place of torment for 1,000 years (Revelation 19:20).
Finally, all three persons of the satanic ‘trinity’—Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet—will suffer THEIR DIRE ‘DESTINY’. Now they all will receive their just do!
In addition to them, all demons who have ever served under Satan will all be thrown into the Lake of Fire: “The eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels” [ Matthew 25: 41 ].
SECOND RESURRECTION
All the unsaved for all of time will be resurrected at the end of the Millennium, and will be judged at the “Great White Throne Judgment” (John 5:28-29). Their bodies will be eternal, and though they will suffer the fires of Hell, they will not burn up, but will last for eternity in an environment of suffering! How HORRIFIC are the eternal consequences for choosing against Jesus!
GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT
The final sentencing of the lost is the most serious, sobering, and tragic passage in the entire Bible! [ Maybe just inching out Matthew 7:21-23: “Depart from Me, I never knew you!” ].
“Then I saw a great white throne and one seated on it. Earth and Heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them” [ Revelation 20:11-15 ]. The White Throne is called “Great” because of its awesome power and ultimate purpose, which is eternal judgment. It is called “White” because of the purity of the judgment.
It will be the last ‘courtroom’ scene that will ever take place. The accused—all the unsaved who have ever lived—will be resurrected to experience a trial like no other! There will be no debate over their guilt or innocence. There will be a prosecutor, but no defender; an accuser, but no advocate. There will be an indictment, but no defense mounted by the accused. The convicting evidence will be presented with no rebuttal or cross-examination!
No one at the Great White Throne Judgment will have the slightest grounds for complaint about their sentence. Unrepentant sinners will experience God’s perfect justice.
The absolute accuracy of God’s judgment will assure that unbelievers’ punishment in Hell fits their inequity. Each person’s life will be individually evaluated, and each person’s punishment will be consistent with that evaluation. The Bible teaches that there will be varying degrees of punishment in Hell (Matthew 10:14-15; Matthew 11:21-24; Mark 12:38 and 40).
Yet, while there are varying degrees of punishment in Hell, everyone there will suffer intolerable misery and torment. All sinners in Hell will be completely separated from God and all that comes from His goodness. They will be horrifically miserable, but not equally miserable (if that’s even possible!).
Some, in shock and horror, will protest and say, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesied in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name performed many miracles?” But they will hear the most chilling, terrifying words that any human will ever hear: “I never knew you; depart from me, You who practice lawlessness” (Matthew 7:22-23). They will then be thrown into the Lake of Fire (they will be ‘swallowed’ up by the final Hell!).
The Bible vividly portrays the various aspects of the final, fiery Hell. Fire is used to depict the torment of Hell. Whether the fire of Hell is a literal, physical fire is unknown, since the Lake of Fire probably exists outside the universe as we know it. If the fire here is symbolic, the reality it represents will be even more horrifying and painful. Hell is depicted as a place of total darkness, which will isolate its inmates from each other (Matthew 22:13; 2 Peter 2:17). There will be ‘parties’ with your friends!
It is also depicted as a place where the worm (possibly in emblematic of an accusing conscience) devours the wicked and will never die (Isaiah 66:24; Mark 9: 44). It is a place of banishment from God’s Kingdom (Matthew 8:12; Matthew 22:13)—FOREVER!
All those who are judged at the Great White Throne Judgment have a horrible destiny:
– Weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:41-42)
– Condemnation (Matthew 12:36-37),
– Destruction (Philippians 1:28),
– Eternal punishment (Matthew 25:46),
– Separation from God’s presence (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9)
– Trouble and distress (Romans 2:9).
– Unquenchable fire (see Mark 9:47-48)
– Burning sulfur (Revelation 19:20)
– Eternal fire (Matthew 18:8)
– Everlasting distraction (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9)
– The second death (Revelation 20:14)
There are no words to precisely describe the horror of Hell! It is INCONCEIVABLE to the human mind!
Know that God has your life recorded in His “book.” Not a thing about your life has escaped His knowledge. God knows the secret things in your life that nobody else knows—and one of these days you will face His ‘accounting’ of your life (Ecclesiastes 12:14; Romans 2:16).
You WILL NOT be able to bribe the Judge. No shrewd lawyer will be able to put any kind of ‘spin’ on your case (Romans 14:11-12).
C.S. Lewis said that everybody in the world is in two ‘categories’. One group says to God, “Not your will, but mine be done.” and the second group says to God, “Not my will, but Thine be done.” Those in the first category will have lived a life of self-concern, and they will ‘drop’ into Hell, as the broken ‘heart’ of God will say, “Not My will, but thine be done.” God will respect your free will!
However, you can settle “out of court” right now! Your sin can be buried in the ‘grave’ of God’s forgetfulness, never to be brought up against you again! (Romans 8:31-39; Hebrews 8:12; Isaiah 38:17, 43:25).
Now, there is ONLY ONE WAY to avoid the terrifying future of Hell! Those who confess their sins and ask God for to forgive them on the basis of Jesus’ substitutionary death on their behalf will be delivered from God’s eternal wrath (Romans 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:9). Just REPENT and BELIEVE in Jesus as your Savior! [ The “Prayer of Repentance” below may help you with this ].
NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH
So, before the eternal Kingdom can be manifested, God must deal with this cursed earth and universe. Satan has long carried out his evil schemes on earth (Ephesians 2:2), so the earth must be purged of all the stains resulting from his extended presence. The old must make room for the new (2 Peter 3:7-13). So, God will consume the earth with fire to burn away the pollution of Satan’s last revolt, and out of the fiery inferno will come a New Heavens and a New Earth.
He will take this earth and reshape it like a hot ball of wax. The earth will be refreshed, beautified, and perfected to what God originally created before it was polluted by sin and changed by the ‘Curse’. It might also be greatly enlarged, because it is going to serve as the foundation for a gigantic city—the New Jerusalem.
Just think of it! As God creates the New Earth, we will most likely be suspended in the Heavens (possibly inside the New Jerusalem), watching the greatest ‘fireworks’ display in the history of the cosmos!
The Greek word used to designate the newness of the cosmos is not “neos” but “kairos.” Neos means “new in time.” However, kairos means “new in nature” or “new in quality.” So, it means new of a different kind, that is qualitatively different than the first. It’s not just chronologically new. It’s qualitatively new. It’s a new design. It’s different from this current earth. We’re not talking about just improvement or renovation. It’s a COMPLETE ‘DO OVER’—different materials and different atmosphere. Utterly renewed and renovated—gloriously rejuvenated! Everything will be according to God’s original plan—in a state of absolute perfection. The whole universe is remade, and we will probably explore those galaxies in the ages to come!
When it’s all over, God will then ‘lower’ us down to the New Earth inside the New Jerusalem. We are going to live eternally inside that glorious city located ‘on’ (?) the New Earth. God will bring Heaven down from the invisible realm and place it on the New Earth! (Revelation 21 and 22; Isaiah 60; Isaiah 65).
Sometimes we forget the last few chapters of Revelation correspond perfectly to the first few chapters of Genesis. The story begins when God intends for a righteous man and woman to rule the earth for His glory. However, Satan tempts them and everything gets ‘messed up’. The redemptive work of Jesus is then planned by God. Then, in the culmination of the last couple of chapters of Revelation, we have God restoring all to what He originally planned—and He’s going to make it even better than it has ever been!
The MOST IMPORTANT thing about all this is that God will then “pitch His tent” among His people, and no longer will He be far off and distant. No more will His presence be ‘veiled’ in the human form of Jesus (or like in a cloud, a pillar of fire, or inside the “Holy of Holies,” as He was in the Old Testament times). This will be the manifestation of God’s glorious presence to His people like no other in redemptive history, and the culmination of all of His divine promises!
God will come down to that New Earth and ‘live’ among us: “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them” [ Revelation 21:3 ]. God is going to wipe away every tear from our eyes, and there will no longer be any suffering—no pain, no death, no sorrow. He is going to make all things new, and we are going to live in perfect bliss in the New Jerusalem—forever!
Now, to ‘see’ God back in the Old Testament times was ominous: “no man can see God at any time and live” [ Exodus 33:20 ]. But, the reason for that, at that time and during the church age, was humanity’s sinfulness. Originally Adam could ‘see’ God and live, since God came down into the Garden and “walked” with him. But, a soon as sin came into the world, God could no longer be around Adam, since He cannot be in the presence of sin. (It is kind of like a bonfire. If you throw a leaf from a tree in there, it is immediately consumed. But, if you ‘cover’ it with a fire-proof coating, it doesn’t burn up. That’s what the righteousness of Jesus, does for us—and we are not ‘burned up’ in God’s presence!). So, since we will be sinless in our ‘eternal state’, we will be able to ‘see’ God and be in His presence—daily…and forever!!!
There will be no sadness, no disappointment, and no pain. There will be no tears for any reason. There will no longer be any death (1 Corinthians 15:54). Grief and sorrow that produce mourning will not exist!
There will no longer be any ‘curse’—for when God recreates the earth, it will be abolished. Just think of what we could do right now if all human beings, instead of using 10% of their brains could use a 100% of their brains, and got together and collaborated on something! That’s what it will be like then!
There will no longer be any sea (Revelation 22:1; Revelation 22:17). Without a sea, there will not be any hydrological cycle, so that every feature of life and climate will be dramatically different. Also, in the Bible, the sea represented the potential for evil (Genesis 1:6-10; Daniel 7:2-3; Ephesians 4:14; Revelation 13:1), so this says that there will no longer be any potential for evil!
Sometimes you hear about an older person who has lost their spouse and the surviving spouse will say, “Yeah I just want to go be in Heaven so I can be with my loved one again.” Well, that’s understandable, but believe me, that’s not the ultimate goal of Heaven—to rejoin a loved one. Although that’s going be great, it’s God and Jesus who are the “stars of the show”! We are going to see them face to face! That indicates that we are going to be changed substantially, since as I just mentioned, there’s no way humans could do that in our present sinful state.
We are going to have obligations and responsibilities—things that we are going to do. We will continue to grow spiritually ETERNALLY—learning more and more about God every day while in His presence. We are going to actually sit at Jesus’ ‘feet’ and learn! [ Consider reading the “Mary/Martha” story in Luke 10:38-42 about how Mary chose the “better thing” by sitting at Jesus’ feet ].
We are NOT gonna spend eternity floating around on a cloud playing a harp!: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, nor has the mind of man conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him. He has revealed those things to us through His Spirit” [ 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 ].
“Reigning” implies government, it implies administration, it implies activity, so it’s going to be MUCH MORE than just singing and playing a harp. There is going to be all kinds of stuff to do. You WON’T BE BORED!
We are also going to ‘serve’ the Lord eternally. The Bible does not get specific as to the nature of that service, but I believe it will be meaningful and fulfilling. I can imagine, for example, that He will magnify and perfect our gifts. I can imagine that vocalists will sing as they have never sung before, and artists will paint with a majesty they never thought possible—all being done for the glory and honor of our Creator. Woo-hoo! CAN’T WAIT! (Philippians 1:23-24).
Now, this is only a glimpse, but, for me, it’s enough to make me ‘yearn’ for it, particularly when you consider “That we shall see God’s face” (Revelation 22:4). That means we are going to have intimate, personal, eternal fellowship with our Creator!
[ For a bit more details about the “New Earth,” view this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post: https://markbesh.wordpress.com/a-place-to-retire-v221/ ].
NEW JERUSALEM
The description of the New Jerusalem is just astounding—the human mind can scarcely take it in. The overall impression of the city is a gigantic brilliant ‘jewel’. It will transcend anything that has ever been experienced. I’ve got to believe that the heavenly city will be far more wondrous then we can possibly imagine!
First off, it’s HUGE! It’s a ‘cube’ that measures approximately 1,500 miles x 1,500 miles x 1,500 miles high. That would be the distance from Canadian border to northern Mexican border, and from the East coast of the U.S. to the Rockies. That’s a surface area of 2,250,000 square miles—just for the first ‘floor’! By comparison, that’s 45 times bigger than England, 10 times bigger than France or Germany, and almost 2 times bigger than India!
Now, if the city has ‘stories’, and each were 13 feet high (the standard height for a commercial building in the U.S.), the city would have 660,000 stories! A scientist, Henry Morris, calculated that 20 billion people could inhabit this ‘city’, assuming that only 25% of it was given over to dwelling places, and 75% was used for whatever else—streets, parks, public spaces, public buildings, and the like! In his calculation, he gave each person a 75-acre ‘cube’ to call their own! It will have PLENTY OF ROOM for all the redeemed from all of time! (John 14:2-3).
Here’s another way to imagine it: It’s a cube that is just slightly smaller than our moon (the outside corners of the city’s ‘cube’ would just touch the outside of the moon’s sphere). Totally amazing, and “coming down” out of Heaven! (Perhaps it would even rotate around the New Earth like the moon does now.)
[ Note: Since it’s not specifically said, some think it could be a pyramid ].
If it’s a cubicle, it might also be intended to communicate that this eternal city is like the previous “Holy of Holies” that was the “inner sanctuary” of the previous Jewish Temples—where God’s ‘presence’ was. (It was a 15’w x 15’l x 15’h room). This is where the high priest would go, one day a year (“Day of Atonement”), to offer sacrifices for the forgiveness of the Israelite’s sins.
The city is made up of thick walls of 12 precious stones (Revelation 21:19), and open gates, each made up of a single gigantic pearl (Revelation 21:21). There are angels at each of the 12 gates, not only as guardians, but also in the role as ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation (Hebrews 1:14). Perhaps the names of the 12 tribes of Israel are written on the gates to remind us that, “salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22), and perhaps the names of the Apostles appear on the foundations to remind us that the Church was built upon these men of God (Ephesians 2:20). The “street” will be made of transparent gold (evidently to allow God’s glory to ‘illumine’ throughout the city unrestricted).
Now, the MOST IMPORTANT ‘FEATURE’ INSIDE the city is the ‘Throne’ of God and His ‘Presence’! Radiating from the Throne will be the brilliance of the full manifestation of His glory, so much so that the city has no need for the sun or of the moon to shine on it, “for the glory of God has illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb” (Revelation 21:23b). There will also be no night time (Revelation 21:25).
In addition to that, since the Bible says that our new bodies will be like Jesus’ resurrected body (He could go through walls, and be in another place almost instantaneously). So, it will be conceivable that you will be on the bottom level of the New Jerusalem and then be up at the top level without needing to use an ‘elevator’.
I’m thinking that our physical abilities will also never ‘peak’—attain maximum capacity—since we will be continually learning from God. I’ve got to believe we will see, smell, feel, hear, and taste way beyond anything we could imagine. Maybe God will boost our IQ’s to a 1,000 or more, and allow us to use 100% of our brains, so we could understand vastly more than now (Einstein was supposed to have an IQ of 160, and use about 15% of his brain!).
Now, flowing from God’s Throne will be a river of the “water of life,” probably symbolic of the perpetual outflow of spiritual blessings to all the redeemed for all the ages, who are now and will forever bask in the full ‘glow’ of eternal life. It will run down the middle of the city’s main ‘street’.
On each side of the street will be a “Tree of Life”—the celestial counterpart to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:9). The tree symbolizes the blessing of eternal life, and it bears 12 kinds of fruit, “yielding its fruit every month.”—emphasizing the infinite variety that will fill Heaven. The leaves of the tree will also be “life-giving,” probably likened to supernatural vitamins. Since there is no disease or illness in Heaven, these are probably taken to promote superior health—maybe needed to visit far-flung galaxies [ You might be like Dr. Who without needing the “Tardis”! ;^D ].
The New Jerusalem will be a place of indescribable beauty. But the most glorious reality of all will be that formally sinful rebels will be made righteous, enjoying INTIMATE FELLOWSHIP with the Trinity—God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit—and we will be able to serve them, share unimaginable joy and incessant praise…forever!
C.S. Lewis, trying to explain how staggeringly unbelievable Heaven will be said, “Our ability to imagine what eternity will be like is like two infants in a womb talking about what they will be doing once they’re born and are 25 years old.” The Apostle Paul said, that on earth we “see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” [ 1 Corinthians 13:12 ].
The eternal city will be ‘incomprehensively’ wonderful, far more than any human mind could possibly fathom or even begin to imagine! Believers on earth are merely ‘pilgrims’ on route to their final ‘frontier’, the New Jerusalem, just passing through this brief ‘dot’ of time on earth.
[ For an allegory of what a Christian can expect to experience in this life, view this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post about “The Pilgrim’s Progress” book: https://markbesh.wordpress.com/leaving-a-legacy-v242/ ].
God’s ’DESTINY’ for humanity is finally fulfilled here. God’s plan of salvation, conceived in eternity past, is now brought to full fruition—and it’s going to take Him all of eternity to show you the fullness of who He is, and how much He loves you!!!
WRAP UP
The end of history, as we know it, will come with a flurry of the most incredible events ever confronted by mankind.
[ For more details about the final ‘Tribulation’ of this earth, read this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/final-tribulation-v246/ ].
After the Millennium, believers will enter eternity, which is beyond human imagination. The Apostle Paul said of eternity, “I have not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him” [ 1 Corinthians 2:9 ]. That was written before God gave the Apostle John a small ‘preview’ of eternity (the Book of Revelation). The things we do know about the future are so appealing that they should motivate anyone to PREPARE FOR ETERNITY IMMEDIATELY by personally repenting of their sins and believing in Jesus as their Lord and Savior!
Well, the DEVIL’S GREAT DESIRE is to drag you down to the same Hell that is HIS OWN ‘DESTINY’—to keep you from God in this life, and the ‘inheritance’ God promises for the eternal future of the believer! That’s definitely REALLY BAD ‘NEWS’!
HOWEVER, there is some PHENOMENALLY GOOD ‘NEWS’! Your ‘DESTINY’ can be a very special place ‘RESERVED’ for you after you die—HEAVEN! An ‘EXCLUSIVE’ place for those who have been cleansed from their sins by faith in Jesus, and those whose names have been written in the Lambs “Book of Life” (Revelation 13:8).
[ For a bit more details about Heaven, view this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/a-place-to-retire-v221/ ].
There is a God in Heaven who loves you with an everlasting love, and He’s provided a way for you to ‘escape’ everlasting Hell—the ‘provision’ of His Son Jesus, who died on the Cross as your ‘substitute’, your ‘atonement,’ for all your sins!
Jesus took all the wrath, all the judgment, all the agony that you and I deserve, and God says that if you TRULY ‘REPENT’ of your sins and trust in what Jesus did on the Cross, believe that He was raised from the dead, and receive Him as your Savior, then you will RECEIVE ETERNAL LIFE AS A FREE ‘GIFT’! You will find a place reserved for you in the New Jerusalem, and you will enjoy fellowship with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit forever and ever and ever!!!
Every one of us grows closer to the day of our death with each and every passing breath. Every heartbeat is one step closer to the time of our judgment. The problem is, WE DON’T KNOW WHEN THAT DAY WILL BE. “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” [ Hebrews 9:27 ].
The ULTIMATE ‘DESTINY’ of everyone who has ever been or ever will be is DEATH: “It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart” [ Ecclesiastes 7:2 ]. In addition to that, for all who have refused to repent and trust in Jesus will be the “Lake of Fire” (Revelation 20:12-15), the “second death” (Revelation 21:8). A destiny I wish for no one!
HOWEVER, the ‘FINAL’ DESTINY for believers is life in HEAVEN—and it will be the beginning of something that has NO END!
Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” [ John 14:2-3 ]. This “place” is the NEW JERUSALEM…“HEAVEN”!
The thing is, there are a LOT OF PEOPLE say that they are going to Heaven, but, as the old hymn says, “Everybody talkin’ about Heaven ain’t goin’ there.” Here’s a story I heard that might help illustrate this:
A man had a dream that he stood outside the gates of Heaven and saw people trying to get inside. One man knocked at the gate, and a voice within asked, “Who seeks entrance into Heaven?” The man said, “I am a Humanitarian.” The voice asked, “What is the password?” He replied, “The password is ‘Charity’.” The voice within said, “I never knew you; Away from me, you evildoer!”
Another person knocked, and the voice asked, “Who seeks entrance into heaven?” He said, “I am a Moral man.” The voice asked, “What is the password?” He replied, “It is ‘Honesty’.” The voice inside said, “I never knew you; Away from me, you evildoer!”
Another person knocked, and the voice asked, “Who seeks entrance into Heaven?” He said, “I am a Religious man.” From within the voice asked, “What is the password?” The man answered, “Ritual.” The voice said, “I never knew you; Away from me, you evildoer!”
The last man stepped up to the gate and knocked. The voice within asked, “Who seeks entrance into heaven, and what is the password?” The man said, “Nothing in my hand I bring. Simply to the Cross I cling.” The voice within said, “Open wide the gate and let him in, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.”
The ‘Cross’ (Jesus’ sacrifice) is THE ONLY ‘WAY’ TO HEAVEN! So, the question for you is, “Have you ever honestly TRUSTED ‘IN’ Jesus?” Have you humbly ‘come to Him’ and ask Him for the forgiveness of your sins—not trusting in your humanitarianism, charity, moralness, or religiosity—but trusting only in Jesus’ “shed blood”? If not, might I be so bold to STRONGLY SUGGEST that you DO SO RIGHT NOW! [ The “Prayer of Repentance” below may help you with this ].
Many “Christians” say that they have done this, but are not ‘SURE’ that they going to Heaven. Well, the Bible says that you CAN BE SURE!
The Apostle Paul tells us that, “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” [ Romans 8:16 ], that it is not based on something ‘subjective’. It is based on a promise from Jesus that, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life” [ John 6:47 ].
Here’s a story that pastor Erwin Lutzer told that might help you understand the ‘concept’ of assurance:
“You know, we fly quite a bit, my wife and I. And sometimes we’ve flown “stand-by.” Sitting in the lounge, you’re not sure whether or not you’re going to get on [the flight]. I remember asking the woman at the check-in desk, ‘Are we going to get on this flight?’ She said, ‘Well, we don’t know. But in a few minutes, I’ll call your name to tell you if you are going to be on the plane or if you’re not going to make it.’
“Uncertainty. How different it is when you sit there, and you have a ticket. When you have that ticket, you can kick back. You can rejoice. Why? Because you know there’s a seat on the plane for you. It may be 6-F, but there it is.
“The Bible says that for those who believe the Gospel, there is a place reserved in Heaven for you.
“I tell people that there’s a crown that only you can wear; there’s a door that only you can enter; and there’s a place reserved for you, if you meet the requirement of receiving what Jesus Christ did on our behalf. Coming to Christ and receiving the gift of eternal life. But, we come in humility; we come in faith; and we come with a great sense of need because we know that we are sinners. Then we transfer our trust to what He did for us.”
So, if you ‘trust’ in Jesus (Believe; Commit; Surrender; Follow; Rest – Matthew 11:28-30; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18), He will take care of the rest! The chorus of the song “Jesus Paid It All” says it well: “Jesus paid it all; All to Him I owe. My sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.” Jesus is the ONLY ONE who has the ‘credentials’ to do this! There is no other teacher, ‘prophet,’ or ‘guru’ that has ever made those kinds of promises! Jesus alone is able to ‘save’ you from everlasting Hell!
[ Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FHwdx5BIvc ].
[ For more details on being ‘assured’ that you are going to Heaven, read this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/knowing-assurance-v243/ ].
LAST WORDS
Last words of people are important, and they are also important in the Bible. God’s words are crisp and concise as He ‘sums up’ the Book of Revelation, that deals with the ‘DOOM’ of the Devil, the ‘DESTINY’ of the dead, and the ’TRIUMPH’ of Jesus.
[ FYI: For more details on last words, view this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/ones-last-words-v232/ ].
The Apostle John, in the “last words” of his ‘book’ (and of the Bible), says, “These words are faithful and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must quickly take place” [ Revelation 22:6 ]. Then Jesus said, ‘Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book’” [ Revelation 22:7 ].
In essence, Jesus said, STOP! LOOK! and LISTEN! ‘Stop’ changing any of the words in this book; ‘Look’ only to Jesus for your salvation; and continually ‘listen’ for the glorious ‘sound’ of Jesus’ return to this earth that will put an end to evil, utterly renew, refresh, and rejuvenate the whole universe, and ‘bring down’ Heaven to earth for believers to live with Him there forever!
The Bible’s last words are a ‘proposal’ for people to choose the ‘sure’ redemption that Jesus offers: “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates” [ Revelation 22:14 ]. Then He says, “Come! Anyone who hears should say, ‘Come!’ And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should take the living water as a gift” [ Revelation 22: 17 ].
Some people who read the Book of Revelation get all ‘hung up’ on its symbolism—maybe even you. You might say that I missed some symbolism or perhaps misinterpreted some minute details. Well, I just might have, but I really just want to ‘focus’ you on what is MOST IMPORTANT:
“Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” [ Revelation 22:20 ].
In some Bibles, this last ‘portion’ of the last chapter in Revelation is titled, “Epilogue: Invitation and Warning”—and that has been my ‘focus’ in this post. First, to WARN YOU of your ‘POSSIBLE’ DESTINY (eternal Hell, if you are not “born again”), and INVITE you to ‘chose’ ANOTHER ‘DESTINY’ (eternal life in Heaven).
Your response to this ‘invitation’ will ‘FIX’ YOUR ETERNAL ‘DESTINY’!
Those who hear this truth but continue to have a ‘hardened’ response to it (not accept it), fix their ETERNAL DESTINY IN HELL! However, those who ‘accept’ Jesus’ free ‘gift’ and faithfully serve Him in this life, are ON THEIR WAY TO HEAVEN! It’s THAT SIMPLE!!!
In the concluding verses of the Revelation, the Bible comes full circle. It opened with a promise of a coming Savior, who would redeem His people from their sins. That promise, which came immediately after Adam and Eve sinned (“The Fall”): “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” [ Genesis 3:15 ].
The rest of the Bible is full of God’s appeals to sinners to repent of their sin and to come to Him as the One who forgives, is merciful, gracious, loving, and will grant them forgiveness. Will you ‘answer’ His appeal in the affirmative?
Just as the Bible opens with the promise of Jesus is First Coming, it ends with the promise of His Second Coming. In God’s final ‘invitation’ to sinners, “Come!” All who are thirsty may come; they can have the water of life as a free gift if they want it” [ Revelation 22:17 ], there are several ‘INCENTIVES’ designed to motivate people to respond to it:
– A solemn warning (Revelation 1:3 )
– The truthfulness of Scripture (Revelation 22:18-19)
– The certainty of Jesus’ return (Revelation 22:20-21)
– It comes personally from Jesus (Revelation 22:13, 16)
– The ‘blessings’ of Heaven (Revelation 22:14-15)
The glorious, comforting truth is that those who ‘humble’ themselves and accept God’s offer of salvation will find Him gracious. Fittingly, the VERY LAST WORDS of the Bible says: “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.” This is an expression of God’s ‘AMAZING GRACE’ toward fallen humanity.
[ For more details about God’s “Amazing Grace,” read this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/amazing-grace-v239/ ].
The Book of Revelation is God’s final ‘word’ to humanity. It is imperative that those who desire their FINAL ‘DESTINY’ to be Heaven, that they accept the ‘gift’ of His Son, Jesus, and to the best of their ability, take to ‘heart’ all of the words in the Bible as coming from the Creator of the universe—the One who CREATED HEAVEN, and knows how to get you there!
[ For more info on the greatest ’gift’ you will ever receive, read this previous “Life’s Deep Thoughts” post:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/the-greatest-gift-v226/ ].
So, is the world ‘spinning out of control’? Well, maybe from our viewpoint, but NOT FROM GOD’S VIEWPOINT! As Jan Markell, a prophecy expert from Olive Tree Ministries is ‘know for’ saying, “The world is not falling to pieces, rather, the pieces are all falling into place.”
[ Current events in the Middle East are ‘aligning’ and ‘converging’ with what the Book the Revelation prophecies declare. For more details about this, view Jan Markell’s 2019 prophecy conference:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xk61fRFOHJ4 ].
God has told ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN what mankind’s ‘DESTINY’ is—and it’s REALLY SIMPLE to understand: HEAVEN or HELL!
To GO TO HELL, do nothing ‘with’ Jesus by ‘ignoring’ Him and everything He says; and do nothing with the Bible by ‘ignoring’ it and everything it says.
HOWEVER, if you want to go to HEAVEN, ‘pay attention’ to Jesus and everything He says (and act upon it); and ‘pay attention’ to the Bible and everything it says (and act upon it)!
The required ‘ACT’ is to REPENT and BELIEVE (Mark 1:15; Acts 16:30-31). Specifically, that means to recognize your hopeless ‘condition’ (a sinner under the wrath of a holy God – Romans 1:18), then truly, from the ‘depths’ of your soul, REPENT of your sins and TRUST (Believe) Jesus for His righteous and sacrificial substitution for the penalty for your sins (death and an eternity in Hell). “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” [ Luke 13:5 ].
[ Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi6J1EdUPz8 ].
You then must ‘SURRENDER’ to Jesus’ leading (primarily through Bible reading), and “take up your Cross” (Matthew 16:24-25), deny yourself of your own ‘agendas’, count the ‘cost’ of following Him (Luke 9:57-62), and ‘sacrifice’ your life for what He wants to do with it (John 16:33)—knowing full well that this is the ‘narrow road’ and that following Jesus might mean you may face the loss of friends, family, reputation, career, and possibly even your life! (Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23).
Now, following Jesus doesn’t necessarily mean that all of these things will happen to you, Jesus is just asking—ahead of time to be ‘upfront’ about it—if you ARE WILLING to “take up your cross.” Then, when there comes a time in your life where you are faced with the choice of following Jesus or the ‘comforts’ of life, you will ‘willingly’ choose Jesus. Then you will be called His “disciple” (Luke 14:27). Jesus ‘promises’ that it will ALL BE WORTH IT! (Matthew 16:25-26).
[ Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbks-45i4kY ].
[ Excerpts from: Jason G. Matheny; Tim LaHaye; Thomas Ice; Nathan Jones; Dr. David Reagan; David Jeremiah; Paul Washer; Allen Parr; John MacArthur; R.C. Sproul; Bobby Conway; Adrian Rogers; Ron Rhodes; Tony Evans; Randy Alcorn; John Ankerberg; Skip Heitzig; Steve Lawson; Greg Laurie; Andy Woods; Ed Hinson; Mark Hitchcock; Don Perkins; John F. Walvoord ]
RELATED POSTS:
“‘Final’ Tribulation”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/final-tribulation-v246/
“‘Blessed’ Hope”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/blessed-hope-v245/
“Knowing ‘Assurance’”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/knowing-assurance-v243/
“Leaving A ‘Legacy’”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/leaving-a-legacy-v242/
“‘Outworkings’ Of Grace”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/outworkings-of-grace-v241/
“Amazing ‘Grace’”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/amazing-grace-v239/
“One’s ‘Last Words’”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/ones-last-words-v232/
“The Greatest ‘Gift’”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/the-greatest-gift-v226/
“A ‘Place’ To Retire”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/a-place-to-retire-v221/
“‘Saved’ From Death”:
https://markbesh.wordpress.com/saved-from-death-v219/
‘PRAYER’ OF REPENTANCE
In the Bible, there is a parable that Jesus told about a Pharisee and a tax collector praying in the Temple. He notes that the tax collector didn’t even dare to lift his eyes toward Heaven as he prayed. Instead he “beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner’”—and Jesus said that the tax collector “went home justified,” he had been “born again” and ‘reconciled’ by God. (Luke 18:9-14).
If you are ‘sensing’ something like that right now, let me strongly encourage you to HUMBLE YOURSELF, CRY OUT to God, and PLEAD for Him to mercifully ‘SAVE’ YOU! None of us have a ‘claim’ on our salvation, nor do we have any ‘works’ that would cause us to deserve it or earn it—it is purely a gift of Divine grace—and all any of us can do is ask. So, CONFESS YOUR SINS and acknowledge to God that you have no hope for Heaven apart from what He provides through Jesus.
There is no ‘formula’ or certain words for this. So just talk to God, in your own words—He knows your ‘heart’. If you are genuinely sincere, and God does respond to your plea, one will usually have a sense of joy and peace.
Jesus said, “He that comes to Me, I will not cast out” [ John 6:37 ].
[ FYI: This is a great sermon on the “Call to Repentance” by John MacArthur from his book “The Gospel According to Jesus”: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/90-22/the-call-to-repentance
(Transcript: http://www.spiritedesign.com/TheCallToRepentance-JohnMacArthur(Jul-27-2019).pdf) ].
[ NOTE: If you have ‘tasted the kindness of the Lord’, please e-mail me—I would love to CELEBRATE with you, and help you get started on your ‘journey’ with Jesus! ].
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RESOURCES:
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“The Future of Humanity: Our Destiny in the Universe”
By: Michio Kaku
We are entering a new Golden Age of space exploration. With irrepressible enthusiasm and a deep understanding of the cutting-edge research in space travel, World-renowned physicist and futurist Dr. Michio Kaku presents a compelling vision of how humanity may develop a sustainable civilization in outer space. He reveals the developments in robotics, nanotechnology, and biotechnology that may allow us to terraform and build habitable cities on Mars and beyond. He then journeys out of our solar system and discusses how new technologies such as nanoships, laser sails, and fusion rockets may actually make interstellar travel a possibility. We travel beyond our galaxy, and even beyond our universe, as Kaku investigates some of the hottest topics in science today, including warp drive, wormholes, hyperspace, parallel universes, and the multiverse. Ultimately, he shows us how humans may someday achieve a form of immortality and be able to leave our bodies entirely, laser porting to new havens in space.
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“Physics of the Future: How Science Will Shape Human Destiny and Our Daily Lives by the Year 2100”
By: Michio Kaku
In Physics of the Future, Michio Kaku—the New York Times bestselling author of Physics of the Impossible—gives us a stunning, provocative, and exhilarating vision of the coming century based on interviews with over three hundred of the world’s top scientists who are already inventing the future in their labs. The result is the most authoritative and scientifically accurate description of the revolutionary developments taking place in medicine, computers, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, energy production, and astronautics.
In all likelihood, by 2100 we will control computers via tiny brain sensors and, like magicians, move objects around with the power of our minds. Artificial intelligence will be dispersed throughout the environment, and Internet-enabled contact lenses will allow us to access the world’s information base or conjure up any image we desire in the blink of an eye.
Meanwhile, cars will drive themselves using GPS, and if room-temperature superconductors are discovered, vehicles will effortlessly fly on a cushion of air, coasting on powerful magnetic fields and ushering in the age of magnetism.
Using molecular medicine, scientists will be able to grow almost every organ of the body and cure genetic diseases. Millions of tiny DNA sensors and nanoparticles patrolling our blood cells will silently scan our bodies for the first sign of illness, while rapid advances in genetic research will enable us to slow down or maybe even reverse the aging process, allowing human life spans to increase dramatically.
In space, radically new ships—needle-sized vessels using laser propulsion—could replace the expensive chemical rockets of today and perhaps visit nearby stars. Advances in nanotechnology may lead to the fabled space elevator, which would propel humans hundreds of miles above the earth’s atmosphere at the push of a button.
But these astonishing revelations are only the tip of the iceberg. Kaku also discusses emotional robots, antimatter rockets, X-ray vision, and the ability to create new life-forms, and he considers the development of the world economy. He addresses the key questions: Who are the winner and losers of the future? Who will have jobs, and which nations will prosper?
All the while, Kaku illuminates the rigorous scientific principles, examining the rate at which certain technologies are likely to mature, how far they can advance, and what their ultimate limitations and hazards are. Synthesizing a vast amount of information to construct an exciting look at the years leading up to 2100, Physics of the Future is a thrilling, wondrous ride through the next 100 years of breathtaking scientific revolution.
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“Beyond: Our Future in Space”
By: Chris Impey
Human exploration has been an unceasing engine of technological progress, from the first homo sapiens to leave our African cradle to a future in which mankind promises to settle another world. Beyond tells the epic story of humanity leaving home―and how humans will soon thrive in the vast universe beyond the earth.
A dazzling and propulsive voyage through space and time, Beyond reveals how centuries of space explorers―from the earliest stargazers to today’s cutting-edge researchers―all draw inspiration from an innate human emotion: wanderlust. This urge to explore led us to multiply around the globe, and it can be traced in our DNA.
Today, the urge to discover manifests itself in jaw-dropping ways: plans for space elevators poised to replace rockets at a fraction of the cost; experiments in suspending and reanimating life for ultra-long-distance travel; prototypes for solar sails that coast through space on the momentum of microwaves released from the Earth. With these ventures, private companies and entrepreneurs have the potential to outpace NASA as the leaders in a new space race.
Combining expert knowledge of astronomy and avant-garde technology, Chris Impey guides us through the heady possibilities for the next century of exploration. In twenty years, a vibrant commercial space industry will be operating. In thirty years, there will be small but viable colonies on the Moon and Mars. In fifty years, mining technology will have advanced enough to harvest resources from asteroids. In a hundred years, a cohort of humans born off-Earth will come of age without ever visiting humanity’s home planet. This is not the stuff of science fiction but rather the logical extension of already available technologies.
Beyond shows that space exploration is not just the domain of technocrats, but the birthright of everyone and the destiny of generations to come. To continue exploration is to ensure our survival. Outer space, a limitless unknown, awaits us.
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“Because the Time is Near: John MacArthur Explains the Book of Revelation”
By: John MacArthur
“The end of the world is coming.” From roadside signs to science fiction films, this slogan underscores our society’s nervous fascination with the future. Whether it’s a giant asteroid, a worldwide plague, or some other global catastrophe, the end of the world is a terrifying prospect—at least for those who have no idea what it will be like.
For Christians, however, the end of the world should be anything but dreadful. In fact, it should be something we look forward to. Why? Because God has told us how the world will end. And He has assured us that the end of this age will mark the beginning of a new, glorious one in which we will serve and worship Him in sinless perfection. Our eternal hope, as believers, is intimately tied to the end of this world.
All of this is laid out in the book of Revelation. Not only is Revelation the inspired Word of God, it is also the only New Testament book that includes a promised spiritual blessing for those who study and apply its message. As such, it is an essential part of every Christian’s devotional life. Those who ignore Revelation deprive themselves of a rich treasure of divine truth, and the promised blessings that come from understanding that truth. Join John MacArthur as he explains the book of Revelation in a way that is both doctrinally precise and intensely practical.
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“The End Times in Chronological Order: A Complete Overview to Understanding Bible Prophecy”
By: Ron Rhodes
Bible prophecy expert Ron Rhodes offers an easy-to-understand yet detailed chronology and explanation of end-times events.
The chapters are arranged around the major end-times themes: the rapture, the tribulation, the millennial kingdom, and the eternal state. Each chapter begins with a list of the specific events it covers, making this an extremely user-friendly chronological guide to end-times biblical prophecy.
Rhodes allows for various interpretations among Christians. Yet the sequence he describes is faithful to the biblical text, based on a literal approach to prophecy, and held by many Bible scholars.
As readers discover that they really can understand Bible prophecy, they will come to love and trust the Scriptures like never before.
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“Charting the End Times: A Visual Guide to Understanding Bible Prophecy”
By: Tim LaHaye and Thomas Ice
Bestselling author Tim LaHaye and prophecy expert Thomas Ice teamed up to produce a visual resource unmatched by anything available in the Christian book marketplace! The result of decades of careful research and Bible study, the charts and well-written explanatory text provide a fascinating picture of the times ahead. Charting the End Times includes…
– A foldout portraying God’s complete plan for the ages
– More than 50 full-color charts and diagrams
– Timelines of the end times
– A comprehensive overview of the key elements of the last days
– Clear answers to tough end-times questions
Providing a wealth of information, this book is certain to become a popular study tool for understanding God’s unfolding plan!
https://www.amazon.com/Charting-End-Times-Understanding-LibraryTM/dp/0736901388/
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“Bible Prophecy Answer Book: Everything You Need to Know About the End Times”
By: Ron Rhodes
Studying Prophecy Can Change Your Life
Strengthen your faith and find real hope for the future in this extensive resource that provides concise answers to your most burning questions about Bible prophecy and the end times. Topics include everything from how to interpret prophecy to clarifying the perplexing specifics of the rapture, the antichrist, and the afterlife.
Respected Bible scholar Ron Rhodes addresses questions many are asking, such as…
– Is it important that we be aware of the signs of the times?
– Do Christians agree about the role of America in Bible prophecy?
– Is there biblical evidence that the church will escape the tribulation period?
– Will only believers enter into Christ’s millennial kingdom?
– In what way will the heavens and earth be made “new”?
Whether you’re looking for quick instruction or you’re eager to go deeper, this accessible Q&A-style guide will help you navigate prophetic Scripture passages and better understand matters of eternal significance.
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“The Prophecy Answer Book”
By: David Jeremiah
For anyone curious about prophecy and the signs of the end times, this book links the pieces of the prophecy puzzle in plain, simple language.
There are 1,000 prophecies in the Bible so it’s natural to wonder, have any prophecies been fulfilled? Do they really explain the future? Can we really know what will happen at the end of time? In succinct and clear answers to most frequently asked questions, Dr. Jeremiah decodes and clarifies prophecy for the average person. He explains in simple lay terms what could otherwise be mysterious and even frightening, allowing readers to gain a balanced and assuring perspective of the significance of prophetic events to their personal lives as believers in Christ. He also helps readers understand how prophecy is directly related to world events today.
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“Unveiling the End Times in Our Time: The Triumph of the Lamb in Revelation”
By: Adrian Rogers and Steve Rogers
“The one who reads this is blessed, and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it are blessed, because the time is near!” —Revelation 1:3 (HCSB)
Respected Bible teacher and beloved pastor Adrian Rogers takes readers on a breathtaking journey through the “blessing book” of Revelation with Unveiling the End Times in Our Time. Indeed, Revelation offers every Christian believer a dramatic and hope-filled overview of what the end of days will be like.
Although some think Revelation is confusing, or even scary, with its talk of dragons and beasts, the text contains a proper understanding of where history is headed. Rogers makes clear how the signs of the times already reveal God’s plan for bringing his people to full redemption, empowering us to live boldly while expecting the return of King Jesus as the triumphant Lamb.
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“God’s Plan for Your Future: Purpose, History, and Destiny of Humanity”
By: David Charles Cole
Critics’ Comments: A thorough, well-organized guide to biblical study…highly readable…author’s mastery of the material is extraordinary …dexterously links the ancient message of the Bible to modern life… a comprehensive guide…The prose is habitually clear and highly readable…The author has the wisdom and the knowledge to help discover God’s Plan for you…at the top of my list…It may be the most important book you read this year…
Do you wonder: Is there a God? If so, why does He allow evil in the world? Does my life have a purpose? What is it? Is God involved? Does He really love sinners while hating their sins? What will happen when I die? Is there a heaven and hell? What does the Bible tell us they are like? Can I earn my way to heaven by simply being “good?”
The answers to such perplexing questions are revealed in Scripture. The problem is, many people don’t want to take time to pour over page after page of seemingly opaque material to learn the truth. They want understanding without exertion.
This book provides a unique solution. It takes an encyclopedic approach, gathering the most relevant verses from the pages of Hebrew and Christian Scripture, organizing them under specific subject headings, and adding expository commentary as needed.
Learn the history, purpose, and destiny of mankind as revealed by God. The first two chapters outline the ascent of the Jewish people and the lessons it teaches. The next two examine the profound implications of the earthly existence of Jesus Christ. The fifth deals with the prophetic time in which we live. The next six detail what Scripture proclaims “must yet come”–The End Time as described in the Book of Revelation.
Life on Earth is a transitory experience for the everlasting soul. God has a plan for your time in the world and the future of your soul after death, but be aware your soul’s destiny is actually determined by choices you make in life.
This new anthology explains your options. It may be the most vital book you ever read.
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“Reducing the Risk of Human Extinction”
By: Jason G. Matheny
In this century a number of events could extinguish humanity. The probability of these events may be very low, but the expected value of preventing them could be high, as it represents the value of all future human lives. We review the challenges to studying human extinction risks and, by way of example, estimate the cost effectiveness of preventing extinction-level asteroid impacts.
Paper: http://wilsonweb.physics.harvard.edu/pmpmta/Mahoney_extinction.pdf
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“The Millennial Kingdom: A Basic Text in Premillennial Theology”
By: John F. Walvoord
The Millennial Kingdom is a comprehensive biblical and historical treatment of the doctrine of the millennium written for the pastor, students, scholar, or layperson. The three leading millennial views — postmillennialism, amillennialism, and premillennialism — are presented in the context of their history, their theology, and their biblical interpretation. Dr. Walvoord presents postmillennialism first and then discusses amillennialism. However, the subject of premillenialism forms the main body of the work. The author introduces premillennialism with a survey of its historical background in the Old and New Testaments and in the history of the church. Its theological setting and methods of interpretation are discussed. A presentation of the character of the millennium concludes the volume.
https://www.amazon.com/Millennial-Kingdom-Basic-Premillennial-Theology/dp/0310340918
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“Heaven”
By: Randy Alcorn
What will heaven be like? Randy Alcorn presents a thoroughly biblical answer, based on years of careful study, presented in an engaging, reader-friendly style. His conclusions will surprise readers and stretch their thinking about this important subject. Heaven will inspire readers to long for heaven while they’re living on earth.
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“Three Views on the Millennium and Beyond”
By: Darrell L. Bock, Stanley N. Gundry, Kenneth L. Gentry Jr., Robert B. Strimple, Craig A. Blaising
Are these the last days? Could Jesus return at any time to establish his thousand-year reign on earth? What is the nature of Christ’s millennial kingdom referred to in the book of Revelation? What must happen before Jesus returns, and what part does the church play? Three predominant views held by evangelicals seek to answer these and related questions: premillennial, postmillennial, and amillennial. This book gives each view a forum for presentation, critique, and defense. Besides each contributor’s personal perspective, various interpretations of the different positions are discussed in the essays. Three Views on the Millennium and Beyond lets you compare and contrast three important eschatological viewpoints to gain a better understanding of how Christianity’s great hope, the return of Jesus, is understood by the church. The Counterpoints series provides a forum for comparison and critique of different views on issues important to Christians. Counterpoints books address two categories: Church Life and Bible and Theology. Complete your library with other books in the Counterpoints series.
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“Revelation, Vol. 07”
12 message series. FREE download available.
[ John MacArthur ]
https://www.gty.org/library/bible-series-library/66V7/revelation-vol-07
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“Your Eternal Reward: Triumph and Tears at the Judgment Seat of Christ”
By: Erwin W. Lutzer
When we reflect on how we lived for Christ, we might weep on the other side of the celestial gates.
To their own detriment, many Christians have emptied the judgment seat of Christ of its meaning, living like they will never meet His knowing gaze. For this they may have tears in heaven.
In this provocative book, Dr. Erwin Lutzer argues that remorse in heaven awaits those who don’t live fully for God on earth. Exploring the often-overlooked Scriptures about reward and judgment for Christians, Dr. Lutzer answers questions like:
How will believers be judged?
Do rewards for faithfulness vary?
If heaven is perfect, why do rewards even matter?
His answers are immensely practical. Your Eternal Reward will prompt you to live more faithfully, whether in your conduct, your speech, or even your use of money, that you might enjoy heaven all the more.
What is sown on earth is reaped in heaven, and Dr. Lutzer will have you taking this truth to heart.
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“THE SEARCH FOR MEANING” WEBSITE
This site presents discussions on the 12 most commonly asked questions about the Christian faith.
The 12 discussions are accessed by the “tabs” at the bottom of the page. The tabs are numbered 1-12. Roll your mouse over them and you will see the question displayed at the right. Click on the number to select that question.
Within each question (i.e. tabs 1-12), there are subtopics (or dialogues) to select that appear as smaller tabs underneath the numbered tabs. Roll your mouse over them and the title of these topics is also displayed to the right. Click on the open rectangle to select that dialogue.
For each question (1-12), a link to related resources and an optional flowchart is provided. To access this material, click on the respective words, “Related Resources” or “Options Flowchart.”
To play a more detailed discussion of the subject, between two people, select the desired dialogue and click on “Play Audio Dialogue.”
In the upper right-hand corner of the page, there is an icon that looks like binoculars looking at a question mark. Click on this icon to return to the homepage.
In the upper right-hand corner of a “Related Resources” page, there is an icon that looks like some books. Click on this icon to get to an “overview” page that has links to all of the resources for all of the questions. There also are additional “appendices” for most of the questions.
In the upper right-hand corner of a “Flowchart” page, there is an icon that looks like an Org chart. Click on this icon to get to an “overview” page that has links to all of the flowcharts.
http://4vis.com/sfm/sfm_pres/sp_q1_d1_1of10.html
[ Content by: Bill Kraftson and Lamar Smith; Website by Mark Besh ]
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“FRUITS OF THE BEATITUDES” WEB SITE
(The ATTITUDES of Jesus that produce the CHARACTER of Jesus)
CLICK ON THE LINK to view:
http://fruitsofthebeatitudes.org/
FACEBOOK PAGE:
https://www.facebook.com/FruitsOfTheBeatitudes/
[ Mark Besh ]
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[ P.S.: If you would like to investigate further about fulfilled prophecies, visit the following link:
http://www.4vis.com/sfm/sfm_pres/sp_q4_d4_1of10.html ].
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ARTICLES:
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“Human Space Exploration is Man’s Destiny”
In the 1960s, when President John F. Kennedy was making his pitch for the United States to send astronauts to the moon, he put the challenge succinctly.
Ken Reightler watched NASA grow up at Langley from his childhood home in nearby Virginia Beach.
“We go … not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard,” Kennedy told Congress and the world.
We go back for the same reason, but “in some ways, NASA has become a victim of its own success,” according to Ken Reightler, president of Lockheed Martin Space Operations in Greenbelt, Md., and twice a member of space shuttle crews while a NASA astronaut.
The “public sees competence, efficiency,” said Reightler, who spoke at the Reid Conference Center on Tuesday as part of a four-lecture colloquium series that is celebrating the 50th birthday of the agency.
“We’ve flown more than 350 astronauts into space in more than 100 flights,” Reightler added.
That “comfort zone” is one reason why there may not be as much apparent public support for Constellation than there was for Apollo 40 years ago, though, Reightler added, “one of my jobs is traveling around and speaking, and I’m seeing enthusiasm for going back.”
“I think it can be built,” he added.
His lecture, “NASA Human Spaceflight: Past, Present and Future,” drew parallels between issues competing for the public’s attention when spaceflight began, shortly after NASA was created, and now. Part of his experience with Langley involved growing up in nearby Virginia Beach.
A war in Vietnam, assassinations of Martin Luther King, John and Bobby Kennedy and others, economic strife and various presidential elections drew the emotions of a nation that willingly invested 4 percent of its budget in the space program in the 1960s.
Gasoline then was 25 cents a gallon.
Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, economic problems, foreclosures, a presidential election and other social difficulties draw the emotions of a nation that now invests 0.6 percent of its budget in NASA.
Gasoline is well over $3 a gallon.
It’s alike, but different.
“This is a risky business, but I believe space exploration will always be a risky business,” Reightler said. “But we are able to build on the knowledge and relationships that we have built over 50 years” of NASA.
He looked around the room, nodded and said, “This is where human spaceflight began.”
Reightler pointed to NASA’s beginnings, when the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics at Langley was included in the agency in 1958. He also pointed to Langley’s roots in Project Mercury and the Space Task Group at the center.
“It was staffed by 35 people,” Reightler said. “Can you imagine, just 35 people?”
From then until now, the mission is clear and, even with five decades of foundation to build upon, it remains difficult. Perhaps even more difficult than the mission undertaken by the young engineers and scientists who answered Kennedy’s call at the dawn of NASA.
“Many of us in this room will get this started, but we won’t be here to see the first astronaut land on the moon or Mars,” Reightler said. “We’ve got to educate the next generation of scientists and engineers.
“It’s clear that the new era of exploration has begun.”
That exploration should be by humans, he added in answer to some who say robotic involvement is enough.
“You can train a robot to paint a beautiful picture,” Reightler said. “But you don’t want to hang that picture in your living room. You want that human touch.
“I believe that space exploration is the destiny of the human spirit.”
Now, as then.
NASA Langley Research Center
Managing Editor: Jim Hodges
Executive Editor and Responsible NASA Official: H. Keith Henry
Editor and Curator: Denise Lineberry
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“‘Man in the Universe’ is the Destiny of Mankind”
There, in the stars, lies the long awaited Age of Reason, when our species sheds at last the cultural residue of the beast. – Lyndon LaRouche
In less than three weeks the most critical international conference since the inauguration of President Donald Trump – the Beijing Belt and Road summit – will convene. On May 14 and 15, the leaders and heads of state from twenty-eight nations will gather, joined by representatives from one hundred and ten countries, industry leaders, business leaders, and others. It has already been announced that Russia’s President Putin will be the highest guest of honor at the conference.
During the last three years, an invitation has been repeatedly extended to the United States to take up the offer of Chinese President Xi Jinping for “win-win” cooperation, to join in the great economic development perspective of the Belt and Road, for the benefit of all nations involved. This offer was first made to former President Obama in 2014, but was summarily rejected by the British-run Wall Street stooge who was then occupying the White House. Obama chose geo-political confrontation over working with China and other nations for the good of mankind.
Now a new opportunity has presented itself. President Trump has expressed serious interest and already taken initial steps toward developing a friendly working relationship with China, as was demonstrated in his recent discussions with President Xi in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. Again, the offer of “win-win” peaceful cooperation has been put forth, this time to President Trump. The opportunity now before the United States is very real. Were America to seize this opportunity, the murderous banking and financial looting policies of London and Wall Street might be replaced with a future of expanded economic opportunity, peace and scientific progress. Those are the implications for accepting China’s offer to join in a commitment to the common aims of mankind through “win-win cooperation.” Were President Trump to announce his intention to attend the Belt and Road conference in May, this alone would be a singular action that could well shift the entire global situation.
Not least in importance, by opening up a greater collaboration with the nations of the Belt and Road, a great impetus will be delivered and a greatly enhanced potential will be unleashed for joint efforts in science, particularly cooperative work toward the exploration and development of space. With full U.S. participation, a leap for all of mankind in space exploration becomes immediately and rapidly possible.
The Optimism of Space
On Monday, April 24, President Trump spoke with astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS). He was joined in the oval office by his daughter Ivanka and astronaut Kate Rubins, and together they spoke with NASA ISS Commander Peggy Whitson and Col. Jack Fisher. The dialogue between the ISS and the President was broadcast live into hundreds of class rooms and space facilities around the United States and was streamed and viewed world-wide as well. The President honored Commander Whitson for her great achievements as the first female commander of the ISS, as well as having spent more time in space than any other American astronaut. Their discussion touched on several topics, including a report from Whitson about the need to understand how microgravity works in space and how it effects the human body. She also reported that they are studying the question of long-duration space missions and the technological advancements that will be required. There are currently over two hundred scientific experiments ongoing aboard the space station.
Col. Fisher stressed the critical importance for international cooperation in space exploration. He talked about his trip to the ISS aboard the Soyuz with his Russian counterpart, veteran Cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin. Col. Fisher said, “The international space station is, by far, the best example of international cooperation and what we can do when we work together in the history of humanity.” Both American astronauts were explicit concerning the optimism and inspiration which they have taken from their participation in this mission. This was demonstrated most beautifully by Col. Fisher’s when he said, “I would say to all the students that are watching, the time to get excited is now. If you aren’t studying science and math, you might want to think about that because our future in the stars starts now…. And we’re going to find a permanent foothold in the stars for humanity if we do that.”
The Role of Visionary
On March 25 of this year the Schiller Institute extraordinary conference, in Berlin, Germany, to honor the one hundredth anniversary of the great space pioneer Krafft Ehricke. Under the banner of “Krafft Ehricke’s Vision for the Future of Mankind,” Ehricke’s prime thesis that there are no limitations to the progress of mankind in the universe was celebrated and discussed. As if a divine hand had intervened, on the very same day of that conference, President Trump gave his truly inspiring national address in which he declared, after the signing of the NASA authorization act, “With this legislation, we renew our national commitment to NASA’s mission of exploration and discovery. And we continue a tradition that is as old as mankind. We look to the heavens with wonder and curiosity.”
If we are to take up this challenge today it is of paramount importance that every American fully grasp the critical importance that this effort, on behalf of all mankind, is the necessary future. It must also be a shared commitment. All nations – all of humanity – shall benefit from the cooperation among nations for the peaceful use and development of outerspace. This is the ultimate “win-win” solution for all nations. This can be realized through the application of what Lyndon LaRouche has termed “Crash Programs,” i.e., “the tight integration of the most advanced, most fundamental scientific research with the production and development of new technologies in a general way, such that there is no organizational separation between the most fundamental scientific research and production in general.”
The Time to Act
Many initiatives are already underway. On Saturday, April 22, China celebrated its second annual national space day by carrying out the docking of the Tianzhou 1 supply ship docking with China’s Tianzhou 2 space lab, 240 miles above the earth. Two days later China celebrated the anniversary of China’s first space satellite on April 24, 1970, on the very same day that President Trump spoke with the astronauts aboard the international space station
A full participation by the United States in the upcoming Beijing Belt and Road summit would have the immediate effect of advancing this progress dramatically. This is just what is needed. A new future beckons, one wherein the legacy of war, zero-growth and cultural decay will become a memory. Bold action now will make the difference.
[ Kesha Rogers ]
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“Fusion and Space Exploration: The Next Step in the Destiny of Mankind”
Mankind, unlike all animal species, is capable of perpetual growth and progress. Realizing this potential, however, requires that we increase our power in and over nature, over time. Such increase does not happen at a steady pace and by continuation of one level of technologies and practices, but by revolutions—leaps upward—in the productive powers of each individual, and which result from the introduction of new creative discoveries into mankind’s applied practice. In this way, man creates his own future and evolves upward through discoveries of higher and more powerful principles than the ones he wielded before. Compared to mankind of the middle ages, or of the 18th century, we as a species are a mighty geological force, with powers to change nature and to sustain human life in greater numbers and to broader geographical extent, than ever existed before. It is thus the role of economic policy to encourage and enable such crucial discoveries, and their application to our work and our lives.
The vital and unique role of the creative human mind just referenced is the principle underlying LaRouche’s call for a “Fusion-Driver Crash Program” in his “Four Cardinal Laws to Save the USA Now.” We must craft our economic program to effect the necessary next steps to be taken by mankind, in conjunction with a program for the colonization of nearby space. With such a commitment for the next several decades, we will re-assert our self-advancement towards a more powerful state of humanity.
Nuclear Fusion—Mastery of the Cosmos
Throughout human history, our discoveries have put ever-higher forms of “fire” into our hands—from wood fire, charcoal, coal, and coke; to petrochemicals and natural gas; to the fire of the atomic nucleus—which we use to transform nature around us, and to expand our reach both on and off the Earth. This succession of categories of fire has given us the means to cook food, melt and transform metals, invent new chemicals, travel faster than sound, move mountains, create new elements of the periodic table, and send rockets to other planets.
The next step in our mastery of principles of nature lies in full mastery of the powers of the atomic nucleus: controlled nuclear fusion.
Nuclear fission reactions, which have been under our control for many decades, release energy when a heavy nucleus (such as uranium) is split apart. Fusion reactions unite two light nuclei (such as hydrogen and helium), releasing an order of magnitude more energy (per fuel mass) than fission reactions. However, making fusion happen is not simply “fission backwards,” and it has challenged our basic assumptions about the behavior of matter and energy.
The potentials of controlled fusion are enormous. While the temperature inside a fission reactor can range from 300-1000°C, temperatures inside fusion reactors are in the tens of millions, to hundreds of millions of degrees. This means that we are interacting with matter in an entirely new way, since any material is vaporized at such high temperatures, and becomes a superheated charged gas, called a plasma.
The power of fusion is seen both in the sheer magnitude of power produced, and also in unique qualitative properties of high temperature plasmas. Inside a tokamak—one type of fusion machine—when fusion occurs, energy is released in the form of electromagnetic radiation and charged particles. While the heat and the charged particles can be used to produce abundant electricity very cheaply, all of the products have applications in industry, medicine, mining, and other sectors of the economy. The resulting increase in the productivity of the labor force will support increased lifespans, population density and quality of life, both on and off the planet.
The advancements of a fusion economy are at our fingertips, and can be brought about by a firm commitment for an international crash program effort, within a new paradigm of international cooperation.
Fusion is the Next Space Platform
Applying the immense power of controlled fusion on Earth will increase our species power in a revolutionary way, but its full potential is extraterrestrial. Fission and fusion power will allow us to live and work in other places in the Solar System, and to transform them, in a way that is impossible with chemical power alone.
The process will begin on the Moon, our nearest planetary neighbor—and a rich depot for fusion fuel! For billions of years, the Sun has been depositing helium-3, an isotope of helium, onto the surface of the Moon via the solar wind, where it has been trapped within the upper layers of the lunar soil. Helium-3 is very rare on Earth, but estimates are that there are 100 million tons of helium-3 on the Moon, which would be enough to power civilization on Earth at current levels of consumption for millions of years.
Helium-3 is an ideal fusion fuel. Fusion of deuterium and helium-3 releases more energy than any other fuel regime, and unlike other fuel combinations, the products of the reaction are almost entirely charged particles—which can be controlled with a magnetic field. This means that they can be used to produce electricity directly and efficiently, and also as thrust in fusion rockets. With nuclear power we can maintain our work and industries through the 2-week long night periods on the Moon, and in nuclear rockets, power flight to distant bodies like Mars in weeks, as opposed to months.
With fusion power, we will upshift our species to one which can extend and maintain its existence throughout the inner solar system, and perhaps beyond, and begin to fulfill our role as a creature from Earth with an extraterrestrial imperative.
The Greatest Upshift in Civilization on Earth
The development of space is a vehicle through which civilization can unify around the common aims of mankind. This fulfills the inspiration of President Kennedy who said, “For the eyes of the world now look into space, to the moon and to the planets beyond, and we have vowed that we shall not see it governed by a hostile flag of conquest, but by a banner of freedom and peace. We have vowed that we shall not see space filled with weapons of mass destruction, but with instruments of knowledge and understanding.”
Today, the potential for international cooperation for the exploration and development of the Moon and the cosmic environment within the Moon’s orbit (cislunar space) stands before us. Such a program would require new discoveries in the domain of high-energy physics, biology in the space environment, fission and fusion power, and related fields. In this first stage of development, we will establish the technologies, resources and capabilities needed to expand beyond, to places such as Mars.
China has taken leadership on lunar missions in the recent decade, and has invited cooperation from all other nations—including the U.S. In 2017, China will return a lunar sample to Earth for the first time in 41 years, and in 2018, they will place a lander and rover on the far side of the Moon. Mankind has never landed anything—robotic or human—on the lunar far side, yet that location promises to tell us more about the history of the development of our Solar system with its unique geology than anything we can access on Earth; and by setting up a very low frequency radio astronomy observatory there, it will give us a glimpse into features of the Solar system, Milky Way galaxy and far distant galaxies which are simply impossible to see from Earth or Earth orbit.
The spinoff technologies generated by expanding the arena of human dominion to, first, cislunar space, then within the orbit of Mars, and then the entire heliosphere, have the ability to lift every nation out of poverty, cure every disease, feed every child, and render the tools and causes of war obsolete. For this reason, our leaving the Earth will drive the greatest upshift in civilization on Earth in human history.
The commitment to space exploration will be the embodiment of the new paradigm, and must be based on the defense of the creative identity of the human mind. Human beings are a space-faring species, not meant to be confined to Earth: a species with a mission to discover and come to understand who we are as mankind in the Universe. We must bring about a unified human mission that establishes a completely new view of the Solar System, defined not by the compartmentalization of space, but by a unified galactic system.
The great German-American space pioneer Krafft Ehricke understood that the industrial development of the Moon and beyond is not just a worthwhile undertaking, but an extraterrestrial imperative:
“Space opens new horizons beyond Earth and offers new beginnings in ways we can manage this precious planet. It offers noble aspirations, opportunities for creative action, for bringing the human family closer together and contributing to a better future for all.”
[ Megan Beets and Kesha Rogers ]
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“Frontiers of Space: Fulfilling Mankind’s Destiny as Man in the Universe”
This is an edited transcription of the presentation of Kesha Rogers to the Schiller Institute conference in Morristown, N.J. on Feb. 16, 2019. Ms. Rogers is a member of the LaRouche PAC Policy Committee. She has been a candidate for U.S. Congress, securing the Democratic Party nomination, and not just once, and forcing a run-off in her bid for U.S. Senate from the state of Texas.
Thank you Jason, and thank you all for being here today. It is a pleasure to see so many people here that are passionate about our space program, as I am, and the great vision and mission for mankind.
I want to thank Helga, for her inspiration and vision of bringing this conference together. [applause]
It is because of the vision and life’s work of Lyndon and Helga LaRouche, dedicated to the progress of mankind, that we gather here today. I’m happy to be joined on this panel by some extraordinary individuals and speakers who I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, when Lyndon LaRouche asked me, and we talked about running for office, and the idea for a campaign around the revival of our space program.
After I first saw Mr. LaRouche’s, “The Woman on Mars” video, which Jason just showed, I vowed that I would dedicate myself to fulfilling that mission. I don’t come from a technical, scientific background. I did it as someone who represents the ordinary man and this vision for the ordinary man. And I’m proud of the support that I’ve received from a number of people within our space program, who understand that that wasn’t just a vision of the past, that the space program is not just something from the past, but something that drives us into the future.
The passion that we see exhibited in our space program has to continue. I want to start my topic and my remarks today on the theme “The Frontiers of Space: Fulfilling Mankind’s Destiny as Man in the Universe.”
[ Kesha Rogers ]
Video: https://larouchepub.com/other/2019/4609-kesha_rogers_frontiers_of_spac.html
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“Space Exploration and Development of Science – Our Destiny”
In this video, I share my thoughts about mankind’s destiny.
[ Citizen Victor ]
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB2ITmxV1Ww
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“Destiny in Space”
Travel up close astronauts as they repair the Hubble Space Telescope and soar above Venus and Mars whilst finding proof of new planets and the possibility of other life forming around distant stars.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcalu3vQGLA
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“AI and the Destiny of Mankind”
Future AI will shape future of Mankind.
– “Man and machine joining into a grand alliance.”
– “Ultimately if we want the life we have here to spread for more than a puny
fraction of this amazing cosmos we’re gonna need AI.”
– “When we reach the stars we shouldn’t be surprised if we encounter other life-forms perhaps not flesh and blood but ancient alien AI of unimaginable intelligence.”
[ Curiosity Stream ]
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOtY5zQSKvk
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“Our Post-Human Future”
-In 15 years the human specie is going to develop super human level machine intelligence
-What it means to be Super-Human?
-The country with Artificial Intelligence will be the country on top
David Simpson is the best-selling novelist of the Post-Human series, a Kindle All-Star and has been ranked the most popular sci-fi Author in America by Amazon.com. He has filmed a short proof-of-concept based on his series, is an award-winning teacher and holds a Master’s degree in literature from the University of British Columbia.
[ David Simpson – TEDxSantoDomingo ]
Presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAb-mSq615g
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“Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies”
By: Nick Bostrom
Superintelligence asks the questions: What happens when machines surpass humans in general intelligence? Will artificial agents save or destroy us? Nick Bostrom lays the foundation for understanding the future of humanity and intelligent life.
The human brain has some capabilities that the brains of other animals lack. It is to these distinctive capabilities that our species owes its dominant position. If machine brains surpassed human brains in general intelligence, then this new superintelligence could become extremely powerful – possibly beyond our control. As the fate of the gorillas now depends more on humans than on the species itself, so would the fate of humankind depend on the actions of the machine superintelligence.
But we have one advantage: we get to make the first move. Will it be possible to construct a seed Artificial Intelligence, to engineer initial conditions so as to make an intelligence explosion survivable? How could one achieve a controlled detonation?
This profoundly ambitious and original book breaks down a vast track of difficult intellectual terrain. After an utterly engrossing journey that takes us to the frontiers of thinking about the human condition and the future of intelligent life, we find in Nick Bostrom’s work nothing less than a reconceptualization of the essential task of our time.
Book: https://www.amazon.com/Superintelligence-Dangers-Strategies-Nick-Bostrom/dp/0199678111/
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“Future of Life”
Mission: To catalyze and support research and initiatives for safeguarding life and developing optimistic visions of the future, including positive ways for humanity to steer its own course considering new technologies and challenges.
We have technology to thank for all the ways in which today is better than the stone age, and technology is likely to keep improving at an accelerating pace. We are a charity and outreach organization working to ensure that tomorrow’s most powerful technologies are beneficial for humanity. With less powerful technologies such as fire, we learned to minimize risks largely by learning from mistakes. With more powerful technologies such as nuclear weapons, synthetic biology and future strong artificial intelligence, planning ahead is a better strategy than learning from mistakes, so we support research and other efforts aimed at avoiding problems in the first place.
We are currently focusing on keeping artificial intelligence beneficial and we are also exploring ways of reducing risks from nuclear weapons and biotechnology. FLI is based in the Boston area, and welcomes the participation of scientists, students, philanthropists, and others nearby and around the world. Here is a video highlighting our activities from our first year.
Website: https://futureoflife.org/
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“Destiny as a Tale of Mankind’s Place in the Universe”
For years, Bungie has been examining mankind’s place in the universe through its games. Destiny is the most cyptic example.
Bungie’s Never-ending Cycle
Throughout its long 23-year history, Bungie has often looked up at the stars for inspiration. Whether it’s Marathon, Halo, or the brand new Destiny, the AAA developer has more than once told the tale of humanity’s place in the universe through its games, filling them with celestial beings, ancient civilizations, and technologies that help or hinder mankind. Stepping into the shoes of one of Bungie’s protagonists, the player is always thrust into a world that he/she doesn’t comprehend right away. Immediately apparent is that there are always forces at work that are beyond our control or understanding. We are but a speck in a very, very big space.
The events of Bungie’s games always take place in the remnants of an ancient alien civilization that managed to break the bonds of gravity and spread out across the universe. But somehow, these great civilizations always disappear, whether by their own hand or more mysterious means. The races that sprout up in their absence millions of years later are fated to fight over the machines and weapons that these ancient aliens left behind. It becomes a never-ending loop of ascendance, supremacy, and fall. Is humanity’s purpose to play its part in this cycle or to break from it? [more…]
[ John Saavedra ]
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“Does Humanity’s Destiny Lie in Interstellar Space Travel?”
Imagine a time when humans, having spent decades exploring the solar system through landings on Venus and Mars; passages by the largest asteroids; close-up surveys of Jupiter and its giant moons; repeated loops through Saturn’s system of rings and satellites; detailed photography of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto; and even landing on a comet, finally create a coherent plan to travel through interstellar space to reach the nearest stars and their planets.
That time has almost arrived. Once NASA’s Dawn spacecraft arrives at the asteroid Ceres in March of this year , and the space agency’s New Horizons spacecraft flies by Pluto in July, humans will have completed the solar system exploration described above. They will have done so, of course, by creating complex and highly capable spacecraft that not only secure high-resolution images of the objects they encounter, but also roll across planetary surfaces to measure local conditions in a dozen different ways, including spectroscopic and chemical analysis of the composition and history of each object.
Will humans ever replace robotic explorers? [more…]
[ Donald Goldsmith ]
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“Mankind Must Abandon Earth or Face Extinction: Hawking”
Mankind’s only chance of long-term survival lies in colonising space, as humans drain Earth of resources and face a terrifying array of new threats, warned British scientist Stephen Hawking on Monday.
“The human race shouldn’t have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet,” the renowned astrophysicist told the website Big Think, a forum which airs ideas on many subjects from experts.
“Our only chance of long-term survival is not to remain inward looking on planet Earth, but to spread out into space,” he added.
He warned that the human race was likely to face an increased number of events that threaten its very existence, as the Cuban missile crisis did in 1962.
The Cold War showdown saw the United States and Soviet Union in a confrontation over Soviet missiles deployed in Cuba, near US shores, and brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.
“We are entering an increasingly dangerous period of our history,” said Hawking.
“Our population and our use of the finite resources of planet Earth are growing exponentially, along with our technical ability to change the environment for good or ill.”
If we want to survive beyond the next century, “our future is in space,” added the scientist.
“That is why I’m in favour of manned, or should I say ‘personed’, space flight.”
His comments came after he warned in a recent television series that mankind should avoid contact with aliens at all costs, as the consequences could be devastating.
Website: https://phys.org/
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“8 ways the world could suddenly end”
Unintentional “Dark Futurist”, Stephen Petranek, re-visits the subject matter of his original eleven year old TED Talk and offers the audience an extraordinarily sobering look at the eight critical issues that threaten human life on Earth.
[ Stephen Petranek – TEDxMidwest talk ]
Presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEfpxiUIZPs
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“What Does the Bible Say About Destiny or Fate?”
Are you destined for heaven or fated for hell? Do you have a choice in the matter at all or is your final destination determined even before you take your first breath? These are the questions that we must ask ourselves when it comes to the destiny or fate of people within and outside of the faith. The answers to these questions lies in the 5 W’s and H of the scriptures:
Who is in control?
“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8:29-30).
God is sovereign and therefore, in control of everything. The Lord could’ve made all people like clones or robots to do His every bidding without a second thought. However, He made us people of free will to make choices that will lead our destiny to eternity in heaven or hell. God remains in control even when it seems like everything is out of control.
What is the fate of humankind?
“It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart” (Ecclesiastes 7:2).
The death ratio is still 1:1. Unless Jesus comes first to rapture up His church—everyone will die at some point in time. Death remains the great equalizer; however, there’s hope for those who put their trust in Jesus as He’s promised that a place has been prepared for them. The door of death was opened by Adam and Eve, but the sting of death was overtaken by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The fate of mankind is to die, but the hope for the believer is eternal life.
When is our destination determined?
“In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves” (Ephesians 1:4-5).
The destination of every man, woman, and child is determined when they choose to accept or reject Jesus Christ as Lord. He was sent to die for the world—that is, every single person on this earth has an opportunity to be saved. Because God is sovereign—He knows those who will put their trust in Jesus before they even know it. He provides every opportunity through the promptings of the Holy Spirit, the testimonies of His people, the teachings and preachings of the Bible, and the creation itself speaks of God’s love for the world.
Are you destined towards a future glory?
Are you destined towards a future glory?
Where does destiny lead us?
“For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame” (Philippians 3:18-19).
Hell wasn’t created for humans, but for Satan and his demons. (2 Peter 2:4) God desires that every person come to know Jesus and accept His sacrifice for their sins. Yet the hearts of many people are hardened and they want to be the masters of their destiny. There’s no amount of good works that can cover the multitude of sins. Only the innocent blood of Jesus is accepted for the redemption of sins. Destiny of all mankind leads to Jesus—those who accept Him are destined for eternal life and those who reject Him are destined for eternal destruction.
Why does God give us choices?
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
How much sweeter it is to be loved for yourself rather than for what you do for someone else! The Lord is gracious to reach out to us when we were yet in our sins. His love is unending, pure, and unconditional. He will still love those who reject His Son, Jesus. When we obey His precepts, we reveal our love for Him. We choose to love Him because He first loved us. Our choice (that is a gift from God) reveals the depth of true love—one that isn’t forced on anyone.
How are we to know our destiny?
“In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:11-12).
We know our destiny when we put our trust in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirits that we are the sons and daughters of God. There’s an assurance that comes to our hearts and minds as we pray and read the Bible. There will always be times of doubt especially when difficulty or tragedy comes to our lives. However, the love of God endures through the storms of life to encourage our faith and trust in God.
What’s your Destiny?
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).
Are you destined towards a future glory? There’s a place beyond this world that has been prepared for your arrival when you accept Jesus Christ as Lord. It’s a place without sorrow or sickness. It’s a place where God’s glory and light shines all the time in peace, joy, and love. Your destiny lies in humbling yourself and surrendering your will to God’s will for your life on this earth. Today is the first day of your great destiny in Christ!
[ Crystal McDowell ]
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“Forum on the Millennium”
Is Jesus coming to rule and reign for a thousand years? Find out from a forum of Bible prophecy experts on the show Christ in Prophecy.
[ Christ In Prophecy” Show ]
Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIyM1scZP5g
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“What Is Heaven Like?”
There are many preconceived ideas about what heaven is like: we might picture ourselves sitting on a fluffy white cloud playing a harp, or we see ourselves sitting on a porch or playing a round of golf. Some even think heaven sounds boring. In this message, we examine what heaven will really look like for believers and what we can expect when we get there. (Revelation 5:1-14)
[ Skip Heitzig ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv43JdSuBQM
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“Surprising Facts about Your Eternal Home – Revelation 21-22”
Through the years, I have observed that most people (even Christians) have ideas about what heaven will be like that are vastly different from how Scripture describes heaven. In this series, we have followed the chronological flow of the book of Revelation from the rapture through the tribulation, from the second coming to the millennial kingdom. We turn now to what the Bible describes as the final phase of heaven—the eternal state.
This teaching is from our series What’s Next? with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
[ Skip Heitzig ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6ZhYhIdTrg&list=PLtgtto5_Ad9VH7-fWoeBH5R8Xz7P7SCWi&index=14
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“Revelation”
After the second coming of Jesus, Revelation 20 speaks of a millennial kingdom on earth where Jesus will reign with His people for a 1,000-year period. What is the importance of this kingdom? Why is Satan again unleashed at the end of this time period? What judgments will take place during this time?
[ John Ankerberg Show ]
“What happens after Jesus “wins” at Armageddon?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bf8g-qVZOQs&list=PLe8NaZjaaLSeP_1-BqC4ykIrrHUd8_Pay&index=9
“How should we prepare for the marriage supper of the Lamb?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcnG0V3Aphg&list=PLe8NaZjaaLSeP_1-BqC4ykIrrHUd8_Pay&index=11
“Will every believer receive a reward at the judgment seat of Christ?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8M-7QXDxtlw&list=PLe8NaZjaaLSeP_1-BqC4ykIrrHUd8_Pay&index=12
“What is the Good News of the Millennial Kingdom?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orKaRlFUbiM&list=PLe8NaZjaaLSeP_1-BqC4ykIrrHUd8_Pay&index=7
“The Millennial Kingdom”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWVpQ6zMuT8&list=PLDx9NWBLfsuAB_EhyV-Zx1w7JZFrMCNfD&index=13
“God’s Plan for Eternity Future”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhRaSV8PDoI&list=PLDx9NWBLfsuAB_EhyV-Zx1w7JZFrMCNfD&index=14
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“White Throne JUDGMENT – Are You Ready ?”
Life comes and goes so quickly and then we pass into the ‘after life’.
Our immortal soul is weighing in the balance. Where will you go ?
Heaven or Hell?
[ Paul Washer ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAZvcusdFVc&list=PLSVrqbL10gZlLSjeD-J3wPe_pd6P1s5Pw&index=3
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“For Everyone!” (Revelation 20:4-7; 11-15)”
My mom used to wake me up early every morning with her sweet voice saying, “Rise and shine!” It took a few times, but I eventually got up out of bed. Jesus too will call everyone who has died to “Rise up!” But not everyone will rise up to shine; some will rise up to suffer. Let’s consider three inevitable and unalterable truths about the future for all of us: We will all live, we will all die, and we will all rise again to live forever…. But where and how?
This teaching is from our series What’s Next? with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
[ Skip Heitzig ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2XoyKzAlb8&list=PLtgtto5_Ad9VH7-fWoeBH5R8Xz7P7SCWi&index=13
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“Heaven”
SERIES: We’ll look at what the Bible teaches about the New Heavens and Earth.The Bible discusses a time in the future when a new heaven and earth will be recreated from the ones that exist today. Dr. Ankerberg and Randy Alcorn discuss what will take place along with applications for how we live today.
[ John Ankerberg Show – Interview of Randy Alcorn ]
“Will Heaven Be Exciting?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-btiplMvaY
“Our Existence in Heaven”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwf1yA_A6cY
“The Future Glories of Heaven”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNr6oJWA120
“The New Heaven and New Earth”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cI6jiWXHsT0
“How Can You Be Sure You are Going to Heaven?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yVTi0KLmrI
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“Don Perkins on the Millennial Kingdom”
Are we living today in the Millennial Kingdom? Find out with guest Don Perkins on the show Christ in Prophecy.
[ Christ in Prophecy interview ]
Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=C2sIg7CsR5Q
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“Andy Woods on the Millennium”
Will there be a literal reign of Jesus on earth for a thousand years? Find out with guest Dr. Andy Woods on the show Christ in Prophecy.
[ “Christ in Prophecy” Show ]
Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYA1xVx0B7I
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“The Great White Throne Judgment”
[ Steve Lawson ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkCa4Xh70sM
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Revelation 20:1-3 – When is the Millennium?”
This sermon was preached at Grace Family Baptist Church. This was part of an expository series on Revelation.
[ Voddie Baucham ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyEq07uMOHc
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“The Judgment of God and the Great White Throne”
[ Paul Washer ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FOKbtXq-y0&list=PLSVrqbL10gZlLSjeD-J3wPe_pd6P1s5Pw&index=
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“The Millennium and The Final Failure and The Great White Throne”
[ Tommy Nelson ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-hD-f7h3v4
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“What on Earth Is the Millennium?
[ Dr. David Jeremiah ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBX1sQEI6N4
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“What Is The Millennium?”
Dr. Norman Geisler explains what the millennial reign of Christ will entail.
[ Bobby Conway ]
Illustration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Zg5CQhrlRQ
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“Will Heaven Be Boring?”
Bobby describes what awaits in Heaven for believers.
[ Bobby Conway ]
Illustration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=MilOotKtyTg
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“A Question of Time: The Last Days According to Jesus”
At the Mount of Olives, the disciples asked Jesus when He would return. In this message, R.C. Sproul considers Jesus’ surprising answer.
[ R.C. Sproul ]
Teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8PCrvPLqMo
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“C.S. Lewis on Heaven and the New Earth: God’s Eternal Remedy to the Problem of Evil and Suffering”
Sermon by Randy Alcorn
[ Randy Alcorn ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gs5VzPK8rw0
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“Revelation Chapter 20”
The Book of Revelation can be easy to understand! Join Dr. David Reagan and guests as he explains chapter 20 on the show Christ in Prophecy.
[ Christ in Prophecy ]
Show: https://vimeo.com/119767325
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“Revelation Chapter 21-22”
The Book of Revelation can be easy to understand! Join Dr. David Reagan and guests as they explain chapter 21-22 on the show Christ in Prophecy.
[ Christ in Prophecy ]
Show: https://vimeo.com/119777956
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“The Millennium – Bible Prophecy Q&A”
Dr. David R. Reagan and panel on the show Christ in Prophecy answer questions concerning the millennial reign of Christ.
[ Christ in Prophecy ]
Show: https://vimeo.com/119375021
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“Setting the Stage: The First Millennium”
Volumes have been written giving detailed analyses of the extraordinary things that occurred in the first thousand years of church history, events that influenced everything that came after them. In this brief overview, I’m going to look at five dimensions of activity that had monumental impact for the future history of Christianity.
The first such matter was the rise of the so-called “mono-episcopacy.” By the end of the first century, it was seen that the bishop of Rome had grown exceedingly more influential than other bishops of that period. Within the next century or so, the authority and power of the bishop of Rome was consolidated for all future history of the Roman Catholic Church. The singular authority that became located in the bishop of Rome gave the church a unifying base. The influence of the pope in the first thousand years of the church is almost impossible to measure.
In that light, we see the second major impact come to the fore — the innovations brought to Christianity by perhaps the most important pope of the first millennium: Gregory the Great. In his activities he consolidated the power vested in the sacraments of the church and spawned the vast sacerdotal system (priests through ordination receiving the ability to act as mediators of God’s grace to man through the sacraments) with which all future Catholicism would be associated.
A third element that had great influence on the future of Christianity was the rise of the monastic movement. Beginning with the extreme asceticism of people such as Anthony of the Desert (ca. 251–356), this radical brand of self-denial became institutionalized with the rise of various monastic orders, most of which exist to this day. These orders include the Benedictines, the Augustinians, the Franciscans, and others that date back several centuries.
Perhaps most important in the first thousand years were the ecumenical councils. Of the several ecumenical councils, clearly the two most important were those that were convened in the fourth and in the fifth centuries. The fourth century saw the convening of the Council of Nicaea and the production of the historic Nicene Creed. Here the church gave its definition of the deity of Christ over against the heretic Arius, who argued that though Jesus was the first creature created by God and in that sense the firstborn of God, He nevertheless remained a creature and so was not to be worshiped as the second person of the Trinity.
The tension that was provoked by the Arian controversy and the years of deliberation and discussion that ensued finally culminated in the Council of Nicaea in 325. In that council the full deity of Christ was affirmed, and Christ, the divine Logos, the second person of the Trinity, was declared to be co-essential and co-eternal with the Father. This formula gave the church a way to distinguish among the persons of the Godhead, while at the same time attributing a singular divine essence to the three. The antitrinitarian Christology of Arius saw the beginning of its defeat with this ecumenical council.
The fifth century saw the convening of perhaps the most important christological council in all of church history at Chalcedon in 451. Here orthodox Christianity had to fight a battle on two fronts. On the one hand was the opposition to the orthodox view of the nature of Christ in His incarnation by Eutyches. Eutyches was a monophysite — he declared that Jesus had only one nature. This nature was called a single “theanthropic nature,” meaning a divinely human nature or a humanly divine nature. This position, saying that Christ had one nature (Greek: monophysis), obscured both the real deity and the real humanity that were united in the incarnation of Christ.
On the other side of the debate, the Nestorians argued that if Jesus had two natures, He had to have had two persons as well, so they separated the two natures of Christ into two persons. Over against both heresies, Chalcedon gave its famous formula by which it declared that Christ is truly God and truly man, with the natures perfectly united in such a way that they are not confused — the natures are without mixture, confusion, division, or separation; each nature retains its own attributes. This was a watershed council because it set the boundaries or parameters of christological speculation. The two natures were not to be merged or confused; the human nature, for example, would not be absorbed or swallowed up in the divine nature and vice versa. At the same time, the two natures were not to be separated so as to lose their unity in the one person.
Throughout history since Chalcedon, the church in virtually every generation has had to face the tendencies of either confusing the two natures or dividing or separating the two natures. Orthodoxy in the fifth century declared that the natures must be distinguished yet never separated. They must be distinguished and never be co-mingled.
The other noteworthy event of the first millennium was the extraordinary impact of Augustine of Hippo, perhaps the greatest theologian of that millennium. Augustine was called to defend the church against the heresies of the Donatists in their disputes about baptism and, more importantly, against the heretical views of Pelagius, who denied original sin, arguing that even apart from grace the descendents of Adam could achieve lives of perfection. Augustine’s theology of salvation shaped the future history of Christianity, particularly as it helped quicken Luther and Calvin for the Protestant Reformation. At the same time, Augustine’s view of the church solidified the power of the monoepiscopacy and the Roman magisterium for all future generations.
These five aspects of the first millennium are only illustrative of a vast number of things that in the providence of God developed over this period of time. Sadly, at the end of this millennium, the church was already groping in the darkness and biblical soteriology had declined to such a degree that the gospel was rapidly becoming obscured, even becoming almost totally eclipsed until it was recovered in the sixteenth century Reformation.
[ R.C. Sproul ]
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“The Coming Earthly Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ”
We’re going to look at the book of Revelation, chapters 19 and 20, by way of an overview. We are now embarking on a new section of the book of Revelation that starts, really, with the return of Jesus Christ, the establishment of His millennial Kingdom, and then the new heaven and the new earth, which is the eternal state. This is the last great section in the book of Revelation, and we’ll go through it carefully and thoughtfully and look at every part of it as we have all the way through this tremendous book. [more…]
[ John MacArthur ]
Overview: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/66-69/the-coming-earthly-kingdom-of-the-lord-jesus-christ
Part 1: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/66-73/the-coming-earthly-kingdom-of-the-lord-jesus-christ-part-1
Part 2: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/66-74/the-coming-earthly-kingdom-of-the-lord-jesus-christ-part-2
Part 3: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/66-75/the-coming-earthly-kingdom-of-the-lord-jesus-christ-part-3
Part 4: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/66-76/1.04
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The Coming Kingdom of Christ”
Take your Bible, if you will, and let’s look together at the book of Daniel. We’re having a wonderful time studying this wonderful prophesy in the book of Daniel. Tonight we come to the seventh chapter of Daniel, a great and historic chapter in the Old Testament. Daniel chapter 7. [more…]
[ John MacArthur ]
Part 1: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/27-15/the-coming-kingdom-of-christ-part-1
Part 2: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/27-16/the-coming-kingdom-of-christ-part-2
Part 3: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/27-17/the-coming-kingdom-of-christ-part-3
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“The Millennial Reign of Christ”
The Millennial Reign of Christ Don Perkins speaks on the 1000 year reign of Jesus Christ at 412 Church
[ Don Perkins ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfvFS_bgC80
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“The Millennium in the Old Testament – Can It Be Found There?”
The Amillennial viewpoint of end time Bible prophecy is the majority view within the Church today — held by both the Catholic church and most mainline Protestant denominations.
Amillennialists are those who believe that Jesus is currently reigning over all the world from Heaven through the Church. They therefore believe that we are in the Millennium now — that it began at the Cross and will continue until the Second Coming. They do not believe that Jesus will ever return to this earth to reign from Jerusalem.
To sustain their viewpoint, Amillennialists must spiritualize most end time prophecies, arguing that they do not mean what they say. Thus, for example, they dismiss the fact that in Revelation 20 we are told six times that the Millennium will last 1,000 years. Amillennialists reject the thousand years as being “figurative in nature,” meaning only a long period of time.
One interesting thing I have noticed over the years about Amillennialists is that they have little or no knowledge of the end time prophecies contained in the Hebrew Scriptures. Most Amillennialists I have encountered believe that the only place in the Bible that the Millennium is mentioned is Revelation 20. [more…]
[ Christ in Prophecy ]
Teaching: https://christinprophecy.org/articles/the-millennium-in-the-old-testament/
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“The Millennium”
The book of Revelation describes a time period in the last days called the Millennium. In fact, it says that the Millennium is a period of one-thousand years. But when did the last days begin? Are we still waiting for the last days or are we in them now? Is the Millennium a future expectation for the church or are we currently in it? In this message, Dr. Sproul explains the different theological perspectives in the church that are known by their teaching about “The Millennium.”
[ R.C. Sproul ]
Teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejd4ZAnXmMM
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“The Millennium: When Is It?”
“He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years” (v. 2).
– Revelation 20:1-15
Revelation 20:1–6 mentions a thousand-year reign of Christ with His saints: the millennium. This is the only passage in the Bible that speaks of this, and because it is not obvious what is being spoken of, it has become a matter of controversy down through the ages.
There are two main ways to understand the millennium. Some theologians believe that the millennium is a symbol for the reign of the saints in heaven during the gospel age. Others take it as referring to a reign of Christ with or through His saints on the earth. Here there are three possibilities: Amillennialists (amils) believe that the entire gospel age is the millennium; premillennialists (premils) believe that the millennium comes after Christ’s return but before the Last Judgment and lasts one thousand years; postmillennialists (postmils) believe that the millennium is a golden age (no specified length) of spiritual influence on the earth, captained by Christ ruling from heaven, before His second advent.
There are variations in each view. Some amils put the millennium in heaven, while others include the church on earth. Some premils add other features, such as a rapture and seven-year tribulation period before the millennium starts (this is a feature of dispensationalism). Some postmils say that the millennium is the whole gospel age, but still look forward to a time of prosperity for the Gospel based on other passages.
The three positions generally boil down to a kind of historical pessimism versus optimism. Premils usually believe things are going to get worse and worse until finally a great tribulation breaks out, and then Jesus will return to set up His thousand-year rule. Postmils believe that, in spite of ups and downs, the kingdom of Christ will spread over the world and leaven all of human culture, prior to a final rebellion at which point Jesus will return to end history. Amils see the ups and downs, but don’t see any kind of “golden age.” They stress that Christ could return at any moment, without any preceding signs or events.
Coram Deo
Most of the Reformers and the Puritans were postmils. Calvin, though, was an amil, and Dutch Calvinism, after a postmil start, has tended to be amil. Fundamentalism of the last 150 years has tended to be premil. In light of such diverse “biblical” positions, resist the temptation to be dogmatic on this issue. Avoid the scandal of division over doctrinal nuance which is not relative to salvation.
[ R.C. Sproul ]
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“The Millennium, Part I”
“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years” (Rev. 20:1–2).
– Rev. 20
The millennium is perhaps the most fiercely debated aspect of Christian eschatology (the doctrine of last things). Orthodox believers often allow their views on this topic to separate themselves from other Christians. This is regrettable. After all, Dr. R.C. Sproul teaches, the literature in which millennial teaching is found is difficult to interpret and should caution us against dogmatism on this issue. Nevertheless, millennial views are not irrelevant, for they can affect the way we live, as we hope to demonstrate in the next two days.
The millennium is the thousand-year reign of Christ described in Revelation 20. Three major interpretations have emerged on the nature of the millennial kingdom and its relation to the return of Christ: premillennialism, amillennialism, and postmillennialism.
Premillennialism exists in two major varieties, and most American evangelicals today probably affirm some kind of Dispensational Premillennialism. As popularized by men like Hal Lindsey and Tim LaHaye, dispensational premillennialism teaches that evil will increase in the world and overpower the church just before Christians are taken up to heaven (the rapture) to escape seven years of persecution. Jesus will return following this tribulation to set up a kingdom based in Jerusalem for one thousand years, after which the wicked are judged and the righteous live in peace forever. But dispensational teaching is grounded in a significant distinction between Israel and the church unfounded in Scripture, making its eschatology suspect. Moreover, a pre-tribulational rapture is hard to square with the whole of Scripture, and it rests largely on a confused reading of Daniel 9.
Historic Premillennialism is found among many of the early church fathers and has often reappeared since then. Like dispensationalism, this view also thinks evil will gain much strength before Christ’s return to establish His one-thousand year reign on earth. However, this form of premillennialism does not teach a secret rapture, nor does it separate the church from Israel, since the authors of the Bible clearly say all those who trust God in Christ constitute His people — whether Jew or Gentile (see especially Rom. 11:1–24).
Coram Deo
In its historic and dispensational forms, premillennialism has the advantage of reminding us of the real presence and power of the evil one. Many may fault its pessimistic understanding of the influence of the church on the world system, but we do well to take from premillennial believers their strong conviction that Satan remains ever on the prowl (1 Peter 5:8–9). Be mindful of the enemy and be on guard always against His influence.
[ R.C. Sproul ]
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“The Millennium, Part II”
“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (Hab. 2:14).
– Habakkuk 2:14
Space prevents us from doing full justice to the various millennial views. For example, some teach a mid-tribulation or post-tribulation rapture even within dispensationalism. Moreover, the popular dispensationalism we see on television and in popular fictional writings is different than the “progressive dispensationalism” taught by many dispensational institutions. Progressive dispensationalism shies away from the more speculative aspects of dispensational eschatology and is increasingly recognizing the underlying unity of the diverse, biblical covenants.
Amillennialism is the most widely held millennial view in the Reformed church today. Its adherents understand the one-thousand years of Revelation 20 to represent the entire span between Christ’s first and second advents, in which Jesus reigns from the right hand of the Father. As in premillennialism, the amillennial position also speaks of the increase of evil, culminating in a personal Antichrist whom Jesus will destroy when He returns to renew the earth (chap. 21). Amillennialism’s strengths are its reading of biblical, apocalyptic literature symbolically, as its authors likely intended, and its stress on the truth of Christ’s present reign (1 Cor. 15:25).
Postmillennialists criticize amillennialists and premillennialists for their pessimism. This view, widespread in centuries past, is gaining adherents today and stresses the Gospel’s power. Christ reigns from the throne of heaven to ensure the success of the Great Commission. Multitudes will trust Jesus and transform the world, producing a golden age of peace and justice. As in amillennialism, most think the millennium symbolizes a long time span, after which Christ ushers in the eternal state. Postmillennialism’s optimism encourages Christians to take dominion of the earth (Gen. 1:28), while the other views may imply that applying the biblical worldview to society is not as important, thus focusing solely on rescuing people from a world where the Gospel will have no lasting impact. Scripture’s underlying framework, the sure growth of God’s kingdom, is the bedrock of biblical postmillennialism (Isa. 2:1–4; Matt. 13:31–33).
Coram Deo
Postmillennialists do not deny that there will be tares in God’s kingdom until Jesus returns (Matt. 13:24–30). Still, Dr. Keith A. Mathison notes that “at the end of the age, the Son returns to a field of wheat, not a field of tares” (Postmillennialism: An Eschatology of Hope, pp. 210–211). Whichever millennial view we hold, all believers should have confidence in the Spirit’s power. If we follow His ways and not our own, we can powerfully witness the reign of Jesus.
[ R.C. Sproul ]
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“The Rediscovery of Man’s Lost Destiny”
Tonight’s message is going to be less like preaching perhaps, and more like teaching, and it’s going to demand your concentration as you’re going to find out throughout our study of the Book of Hebrews, it’s a very, very deep and a very, very difficult book, unless you’re really concentrating, and unless you’re really putting yourself under the control of the Holy Spirit so that you might really understand. But I can promise you the blessing of God if you do understand and really grasp these tremendous and profound truths. [more…]
[ John MacArthur ]
Sermon: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/1605/the-rediscovery-of-mans-lost-destiny
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“What Heaven will be Like”
Message from Revelation 4 by Pastor Greg Laurie. From Pastor Greg’s series “Revelation: The Next Dimension”
[ Greg Laurie ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQXlwom2oVk
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“What Is The Millennium? 7 answers to 7 Questions”
[ David Jeremiah ]
Q&A: https://davidjeremiah.blog/what-is-the-millennium-7-answers-to-7-questions/
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“The Millennium”
Related resources on the Millennium.
[ Precept Austin ]
Part 1: https://www.preceptaustin.org/the_millennium
Part 2: https://www.preceptaustin.org/the_millennium_2
Part 3: https://www.preceptaustin.org/the_millennium_3
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“What the World Will Be Like When the Kingdom Comes”
Part 34. What will the world and humans enjoy when the kingdom finally comes to the earth? In this series, we’ve been going through Andy’s book, “The Coming Kingdom: How Kingdom Now Theology is Changing the Focus of the Church.”
[ Andy Woods ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqireniIzAw&list=PLJ5WZ9aWBhyi3bHbotTG1iONLkMn-Ck-b&index=10
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“Why the Kingdom Lasts 1000 Years”
The Coming Kingdom 035 – Dr. Andy Woods – February 14, 2018. How long will the kingdom last? How do we know it well last 1000 years? Should this number in the Book of Revelation be interpreted literally or allegorically? How do we interpret symbols in Revelation? The Bible gives us very concrete answers to these questions.
In this series, we’ve been going through Andy’s book, “The Coming Kingdom: How Kingdom Now Theology is Changing the Focus of the Church.”
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IM_WCXOuqD0
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“What Will Eternity Look Like?”
Have you ever wondered what eternity will look like for the Christian? What will we do there? What type of bodies will we have? What happens when we die? And what is this whole millennium period about? In this training we will see to answer these questions and more!
[ Allen Parr ]
Teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfZt51hGCU0
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Your Future in the Millennial Kingdom”
Jesus returns to rule for a thousand years! Evangelist Don Perkins gives the details at the Future Hope Conference Online.
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FM-PwBWnL_0
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EGnmocq89Q
Part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EGnmocq89Q
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“Revelation 20:1-3 – When is the Millennium?”
This sermon was preached at Grace Family Baptist Church. This was part of an expository series on Revelation.
[ Voddie Baucham ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyEq07uMOHc
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“The Seven Beatitudes of Revelation”
– Read and heed this book (Revelation 1:3)
– Die in the Lord (Revelation 14:13)
– Wait for his coming (Revelation 16:15)
– Are invited to the supper (Revelation 19:9)
– Are resurrected to life (Revelation 20:6)
– Keep these words (Revelation 22:7)
– Do His commandments (Revelation 22:14)
———–
Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heat the things which are written in it (see Revelation 1:3 a)
“blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on! “Yes, “says the spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them“ (Revelation 14:13)
“behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame“ (Revelation 16:15)
“Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the lamb“ (Revelation 19:9)
blessed and holy is the one who has a part In the first resurrection (see Revelation 20:6)
“blessed is he who hears the words of prophecy of this book“ (Revelation 22:7)
Blessed are those who watch the robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the gates into the city. (Revelation 22:14)
Seven is the number of perfection; it’s the number of completion, the number of fullness.
So there’s full blessing in studying the book of Revelation.
[ John MacArthur ]
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“Heaven what Will it Be Like?”
What Will Heaven Be Like? David Reagan speaks on heaven, its nature and meaning with Don McGee.
[ Christ in Prophecy ]
Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ew6DQNupsqs
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“The Reality of the New Heavens and the New Earth
Pastor Jason Petterson of Valley Presbyterian Church in North Hills Ca. preaching on the new heavens and new earth from Revelation 21. This is a solid sermon even in its condensed form. If you are a Christian you will be encouraged.
[ Jason Petterson ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QN5Ugh30fGk
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“2019 Understanding The Times Conference”
The official 2019 UTT Conference from Sept 21, 2019 at Grace Church in Minnesota. The edited speaker segments will be made available beginning of October 2019.
Speakers include Jan Markell, Amir Tsarfati, Robert Jeffress, J D Farag, Jack Hibbs, and Laurie Cardoza-Moore
Our purpose is to help people understand the times according to the Bible, contend for the faith in Jesus Christ, and help the Church stand against deception as watchmen on the wall in these last days.
Jan Markell is Founder and President of Olive Tree Ministries, a Christian ministry helping Christians see current events through the lens of the Bible. It also is a discernment ministry and encourages Christians to contend for the faith.
[ Olive Tree Ministries (Jan Markell) ]
Conference Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xk61fRFOHJ4
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“Who is God and What is Mankind’s Destiny?”
This video contains my attempt to present the Gospel of the Kingdom as concisely as possible without neglecting any of its key ingredients; using as few ‘insider’ terms as possible while explaining those essential biblical concepts simply using modern vernacular and examples; and presenting the message as non-judgmentally and entreatingly as possible without compromising the integrity or content of the Gospel we’ve been commissioned by Yeshua to preach. Obviously there’s more that could be said – this isn’t an in-depth bible study on any of the points I discussed, but I believe I covered all the necessary bases.
Yeshua said, “And this Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness and then the end will come.” (Mathew 24:14) The gospel that contains “the power to save” (Romans 1:16) contains key elements that MUST be included in the message; however, many Christian movements and teachers are neglecting, even abandoning, some of the savior’s teachings in an attempt to make their ‘gospel’ more appealing. Paul warned against those preaching “another gospel, another Yeshua [Jesus] or another spirit.” (1 Corinthians 15:1-2 & 2 Corinthians 11:1-4 & Galatians 1:6-9), and we should take heed to his words by closely examining the scriptures for ourselves and “test everything – holding fast to that which it good.” (1 Thessalonians 5:1). Let us not be found among those who “will not tolerate sound doctrine and turn to teachers [and prophets] who’ll simply tell them what we want to hear.” (2 Timothy 4:2-4 & Isiah 30:9-11); rather, let us be those who are true disciples of Yeshua and diligent students of His Word (Mathew 28:18-20 & 2 Timothy 2:13 & 2 Timothy chapter 3 & Hebrews 5:11-14), who conduct themselves “in a manner worthy of their high calling” and are “confident and unashamed” when our King and Savior returns (1 John 2:28 & Philippians 3:14). Be encouraged in your love and service of our soon to be returning King, Yeshua our Messiah!
[ Trent Zelanick ]
Teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF29DkQQB1g
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“The 1000 Year Millennium Kingdom”
After the last bowl judgment is thrown by God the Father to the earth – the battle of Armageddon ensues and then Jesus comes back to put a final end to all of it.
The Antichrist and False Prophet are the first ones to be thrown into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone. Satan is then thrown into the Bottomless Pit for a thousand years, and all of the bad and unsaved people are kept in Hades (Hell) for the next 1000 years.
All of the above was discussed in my article titled, “Basic Overview of Main End Time Events,” so I will not repeat what was in that article. All the Scripture verses were given to you in that article on all of the above events.
Now that Jesus has returned back to our earth for the second and final time – what exactly is He going to do? He is going to be setting up a 1000 year Millennium Kingdom in which He will literally rule this entire earth from the city of Jerusalem in Israel. Here is what the Bible has to say about what will be going on during this time period.
The Bible says this period will be a time of perfect peace. Jesus will rule this entire earth from the city of Jerusalem, and He, and He alone will be the only official Ruler and King of this earth. Men will no longer war with one another and even the wild beasts like tigers and lions will be tame.
All of the saints who have been living with Jesus in heaven will be coming down with Him to help Him rule the nations of this world. Jesus will be the only God people will worship and serve. All other false religions will have been completely done away with. People will live long lives, possibly up to a 1000 years like they did before the flood of Noah.
Here are the main verses from Scripture that will give us this specific information.
Jesus Will Rule This Earth From the City of Jerusalem
Some people think that Jesus will not be literally ruling this earth from the city of Jerusalem. They think He will be ruling from Heaven where He is at now. I believe this view is wrong. The following Scripture verses will tell us, without any other possible interpretation, that Jesus will literally be ruling this entire earth from the city of Jerusalem, not from Heaven where He is at right now.
1. This first verse is from the Book of Psalms. It is God the Father making a statement that He will set His Son Jesus on the holy hill of Zion where He will literally rule from. God is saying that He is going to give Jesus the entire earth as His possession.
“He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in His deep displeasure: “Yet I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You, ask of Me, and I will give you the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ ” (Psalm 2:4-9)
2. This next verse says that God the Father will be giving Jesus the throne of King David, which is from Jerusalem, and that His kingdom will last forever.
“He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David … And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:32-33)
3. This next verse tells us that this kingdom will never be destroyed and that it will not be left to humans to try and manage. Humans have made nothing but a mess of things over the course of human history, and God will no longer be putting up with us trying to run the world. This verse tells us that Jesus’ kingdom will now consume all of the other earthly kingdoms of this earth and break them into pieces.
“And in the days of these things the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.” (Daniel 2:44)
4. This next verse tells us that all peoples, nations, and languages will serve Jesus. Jesus, and Jesus alone, will be our earthly King, and no one else will be worshiped as a god or king. Jesus will be the sole supreme Ruler and King of this earth forever and ever!
“I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His Kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14)
5. This next verse tells us that our earthly government will be on Jesus’ shoulders. It says we will have a peace on this earth that will have no end!
This verse also reaffirms that Jesus will be upon the throne of David and that He will rule with justice and righteousness from His throne. He will be called the Prince of Peace! We will literally have heaven on earth with Jesus in complete control of everything.
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, ever forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)
6. This next verse tells us that Jesus will literally be dwelling in the midst of Jerusalem. It says that Jerusalem will be called the holy mountain of God. I believe this verse is telling us that Jesus will literally rule this earth from the city of Jerusalem – not heaven!
Thus says the Lord: ‘I will return to Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, the Mountain of the Lord of hosts, the Holy Mountain.’ (Zechariah 8:3)
7. Here is another good verse that will tell us that Jesus will literally be dwelling in our midst. When the Bible says that Jesus will be dwelling in our midst, I believe this is literal interpretation – that He will literally, not symbolically or figuratively, but literally be dwelling and living among us in this Millennium Kingdom.
“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,” says the Lord.
“Many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and they shall become My people. And I will dwell in your midst. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you. And the Lord will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 2:10-12)
8. Here is another verse driving home the point that Jesus will literally be dwelling in our midst. This verse also tells us that His tabernacle and sanctuary will also be in our midst in addition to Himself. This sanctuary will sanctify Israel.
“… and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people. The nations also will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel, where My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.” (Ezekiel 37:26-27)
9. Here is another good verse that tells us that Jesus will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel and that His glory and no other will once more fill their temple.
“The Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Then I heard Him speaking to me from the temple, while a man stood beside me. And He said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. No more shall the house of Israel defile My holy name, they nor their kings, by their harlotry or with the carcasses of their kings on their high places.” (Ezekiel 43:5-7)
10. This next verse is very interesting, once more proving, without any shadow of a doubt, that Jesus will literally be ruling this entire earth from the city of Jerusalem. This verse also tells us that people will talk about going to see Jesus in Jerusalem and will come and actually seek Him out in Jerusalem.
The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Let us continue to go and pray before the Lord, and seek the Lord of hosts. I myself will go also.” Yes, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.’
“Thus says the Lord of hosts; ‘In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’ ” (Zechariah 8:21-23)
The Saints Will Rule With Jesus Christ
in This Coming Millennium Kingdom
The Bible tells us that the saints, who are actually in heaven when all this starts to take place, will also literally come down and rule with Jesus in this Millennium Kingdom.
The earth will thus have a mixture of people who have survived the 7 year Tribulation who will continue to have children to keep the earth populating, and all of the saints who have died, passed on into heaven, and who then will be coming back down with Jesus to rule the nations with Him.
1. This first verse tells us that the saints of the Most High will literally receive this kingdom and actually possess it forever and ever.
“But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.” (Daniel 7:18)
2. This next verse tells us that the saints who are overcomers will be given power over the nations. The word “overcomes” may be referring to the saints who were martyred in the Tribulation and who did not give into taking the mark of the beast and/or all of the saints who have ever lived who have made it through this life remaining loyal to Jesus.
“And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations.” (Revelation 2:26)
3. Here is another good verse that basically says the same thing about he who overcomes in this life for Jesus:
“To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” (Revelation 3:21)
4. This next verse specifically tells us that the saints who are martyred during the Tribulation will also be coming back down to rule with Jesus. This verse also tells us that this era will last for 1000 years. This is how you know that the Millennium Kingdom will be lasting for a 1000 years.
“And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshipped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4-6)
The rest of the dead refer to all of those people who are not saved. They will remain in Hades (Hell) until the 1000 years are over. At the end of the Millennium Kingdom, they are then resurrected to face God in what is called the Great White Throne Judgment, where they will then be judged for their last and final time before God.
The first death is where the unsaved are thrown into Hades (Hell). The second death is when the unsaved are thrown into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone where they will remain for all of eternity. You will notice the above verse tells us that the second death has no power over those who have been involved in the first resurrection. This tells us that the only people who will have part in the first resurrection are the ones who are saved in the Lord.
5. This next verse from Daniel also tells us that the saints will be possessing this kingdom and that they will also be given this kingdom.
“…and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom … Then the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High … His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him.” (Daniel 7:22,27)
6. This next verse goes one step further and says that the saints will also be judging the world with Jesus.
“Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you …” (1 Corinthians 6:2-3)
Burn these major verses into your memory banks! They are telling us that all Christians will be having a major part to play in the coming Millennium Kingdom. Keep your eyes on this final end – as it will help give you the courage to become an overcomer if these end time events start to occur in our lifetime.
There Will Be No More Wars – Ever Again!
1. This next verse is extremely powerful. It tells us that there will be no more wars between humans ever again – all because Jesus will now be the one and only supreme Ruler of this world. This verse also tells us that all of God’s laws will be going forth from Jerusalem to all of the nations of the world. Jesus Himself will be the One to judge between the nations.
It says that we will no longer “learn war anymore.” People will no longer have to be afraid of anyone or anything, and everyone will be able to live safely under his vine and fig tree. It says that our “swords will be beat into plowshares and our spears into pruning hooks.”
We will truly have heaven on earth in this new environment. It also says that Jesus will teach us all of His ways and that we will all learn how to walk in His paths.
Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established at the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it. Many nations shall come and say, “Come, and let us go to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.”
For out of Zion the law shall go forth, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations far off; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree. And no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of Hosts has spoken.” (Micah 4:1-4)
2. The reason there will be no more wars is because Jesus will now be the only King and Ruler of this world.
This next verse also tells us that there will be no other religions other than God the Father and Jesus Christ. Differences in religions throughout human history have always been the cause of many wars between nations. This next verse tells us that Jesus will reduce to nothing all the gods of this earth and that all peoples shall worship Him and no one else. All of the other false religions as we know them today will be forever taken off the face of this world.
“The Lord will be awesome to them, for He will reduce to nothing all the gods of the earth; people shall worship Him, each one from his place, indeed all the shores of the nations.” (Zephaniah 2:11 )
3. This next verse tells us what will happen to a nation or a people if they do not come up to Jerusalem once a year to worship Jesus as King. It tells us that God will withhold rain from that nation, and you cannot live without the water that rains brings to a country.
“And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain.
If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.” (Zechariah 14:16-18 )
Wild Beasts and Animals Will Be Tame
This next verse will tell us that all of the wild beasts and animals on our earth will become tame. It says that lambs will dwell with wolves, calves will dwell with lions, and that the lions will eat straw like the ox. Lions and wild beasts apparently will no longer be meat eating beasts and they will no longer have to kill other animals for their food and nourishment!
It also says that poisonous snakes will no longer be poisonous. It says children will be able to play by the viper’s den. And if they can do that, then poisonous snakes will no longer be poisonous! This verse also tells us that these wild beasts and animals will no longer hurt or destroy.
This incredible verse then ends by saying that the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the seas.
“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; … and the lion shall eat straw like the ox, the nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9)
You know we are going to have heaven on earth when all of the wild animals and beasts of this earth will be tame. No longer will we have to keep some of these wild beasts and animals locked up in cages in zoos for people to see.
They, like the rest of us, will be totally free from all of the people who like to control and dominate others for their own gain and profit. We will all be forever safe, free, and secure in this new heavenly environment.
People Will Live Long Lives – No More Weeping or Crying
This next informative verse will tell us that there will be no more crying or weeping. If all the bad and unsaved people are in Hades, Satan is chained up in the bottomless pit during this entire time, and Jesus is the sole King and Ruler of this earth, then there will be no more reason or cause for people to weep or cry over bad things that have always occurred on this earth.
We will truly have perfect peace and a perfect environment in which to live in and work in. There will be no more crime or disorder on our earth – ever again!
This next verse also tells us that people will be living long lives. People will live as long as trees, which could be up to a 1000 years like they did in the time before the flood of Noah. It also says that an infant will no longer live but a few days and no old men who will not fulfill their days. This verse also tells us that people will enjoy the work of their hands and that they shall not labor in vain nor bring forth children for trouble.
“… The voice of the weeping shall no longer be heard in her, nor the voice of crying. No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days: For the child shall die one hundred years old, but the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed … For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth children for trouble …” (Isaiah 65:19-23)
Again, just try and imagine a perfect world in which there will be no more wars and no more crime – a world where nothing bad will ever happen again that would cause us to weep or cry – all because Jesus will now be in full charge and running this world the way it should be run.
Conclusion
The above verses give us a very good description of what this Millennium Kingdom will be like and what we can expect. After all the bad things that we will see occur over the last 7 years in the Tribulation, people are really going to appreciate and be very thankful when Jesus comes back down a second time to set up His 1000 Year Millennium Kingdom from the city of Jerusalem.
The final history lesson that we will all learn from the last 7 years of the Tribulation, and from the entire course of human history for that matter, is that humans do not have the answers or the ability to create an utopian world in which to live in. Man will eventually be setting up this world for mass destruction with the increase in technological knowledge, especially in the field of weapons of mass destruction.
Jesus Himself says that had the days of the Tribulation not been shortened by God the Father, that we humans would have succeeded in destroying the entire world. Jesus said that no flesh would have been saved had God not directly intervened and sent Him back down a second time to put a final end to all of the fighting and bloodshed.
Now that all humans will have seen what a mess we had made of this world with the increase of technical knowledge that had been given to us, God is now going to show us what the world can be like with His Son Jesus in total charge.
With God now in complete control of everything, you will notice that He will first take out all the bad and unsaved people from this earth. They will all be kept in Hades (Hell) during the entire length of the Millennium Kingdom. God also throws Satan into the Bottomless Pit during this entire period.
Bottom line – we cannot have perfect peace and perfect order in this world as long as we have Satan, his demons, and bad and evil people running around causing as much trouble as they possibly can. So the first thing God is going to do is to take out all of these bad angels and bad people off the face of this earth. God means serious business when He takes full control, and He will no longer be putting up with these bad and evil influences in this world. As a result, we will now truly have heaven on this earth during this time.
Just try to imagine what this world will be like once all of the above Scripture verses come true and Jesus comes back for this second time to set up this Millennium Kingdom.
Now what happens after the 1000 years has ended? Believe it or not, things are going to go from better to best. We are going to get a New Heaven and a New Earth. But before this event happens, there are two more events that must take place before we can get our final ending with the Lord. These two events will be discussed in the next two articles.
[ Michael Bradley ]
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“Are You Really a Christian? Repent & Believe”
…“Salvation is not a flu shot the evidence that you truly repented long ago when you said you did is because you’re still repenting now and even to a greater degree the evidence that you believed a long time ago is that you’re still believing now and evermore believing in greater and greater degrees.”
…”See the holiness of God like never before you begin to see your sin as never before and your attitude towards that sin about which you once boasted has totally changed and you hate it and you’re ashamed sir that is repentance you can be saved you lack one other thing believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.”
…”Cry out to God as though hell we’re opening up its mouth to swallow you down cry out to God that he might save you.”
…“This work the Spirit is creating recreating taking a wicked vile God-hating heart and recreating it in true righteousness and true holiness in the image of Jesus Christ in the image of God.”
…“God commands all men to repent and believe. That today is the day of salvation that you are to flee from the wrath to come. To flee from the law of Moses that condemns you into the city of refuge who is Jesus Christ our Lord. Run to him. Repentance is simply giving up. to stop fighting against God and to stop attempting to gain your own salvation through your own works to literally give up and fall upon Christ. That is salvation. So that you say nothing in my hands I bring simply to the cross I cling.”
[ Paul Washer ]
Teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo9uN76LoL0
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“Without Repentance, a Man Cannot be Saved”
The correct response: Repentance and faith.
[ Todd Friel ]
Teaching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fey2k-NwAC8
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“Repent! Believe! Be Saved!”
Jesus said, “Repent and believe in the gospel” (Mk 1:15). Repentance begins with a recognition and confession that what God says is true: He will not excuse the guilty, we are all sinners, & Christ has died for our sins. A genuine recognition of our sinfulness and guilt will also lead to genuine sorrow, shame and even hatred for what we have done. Apparent sincerity of confession alone is never definite evidence of genuine repentance. It must be accompanied by a turning away from sin. One must put their faith in Jesus alone for salvation. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (Jn 10:27). This is not just a one time prayer but a whole new lifestyle. Repent and believe the good news today, because the truth is – YOU MAY NOT HAVE TOMORROW!
[ Paul Washer ]
Sermon snippet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi6J1EdUPz8
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“The End of the Universe”
[ John MacArthur ]
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVq8fYdiwCQ
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_9S8dycLlw
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“The White Throne of Judgment”
[ Tony Evans ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z7WhJTOhbs
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“The Uniqueness of Christ in His Millennium Rule”
[ Tony Evans ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBLfji4sU9w
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“The Millennial Kingdom”
[ Tony Evans ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PW5yn_YrPA
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“A Place Called Heaven: Answering 10 Questions About Your Eternal Home ”
Sermon series
[ Robert Jeffress ]
Sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqLORZRv8SM
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“The Destiny of Mankind”
A Series of Short Articles Outlining the Destiny of Mankind
At some point in our lives most of us ask “What is the purpose of life? Why are we here?” Let’s leave aside the mountains of books on philosophy and the many different religions and simply read some key texts in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation.
The following seven articles are brief and to the point and cover some of the most important concepts of life. In short, they give a timeline of God’s dealings with man and His plan for mankind. They reveal the planned destiny of mankind. The timeline goes something like this:
1. God’s perfect plan from creation is for man to dwell with His Creator in Paradise. To do this, man must become an immortal spiritual being
2. For man to dwell with God (who is Spirit) requires mortal man to become a living spirit through a spiritual re-birth
3. In the Garden of Eden man chose to walk away from Paradise. But God, through Jesus Christ, offers free spiritual re-birth if we choose to accept it
4. God’s plan was to achieve all this through Abraham and his descendants (the tribes of Israel). The nation of Israel was to became God’s witness and blessing to the nations
5. So God made a covenant with Israel: they would be blessed and be a blessing if they followed His laws. They failed, and suffered, but today the nation is being restored to her own land.
6. For those who choose to follow Christ and be spiritually re-born, they can look forward to dwelling with God in Paradise. Their eternal home is with God in the New Earth
7. The Book of Revelation gives a final warning. Man has a choice – to accept spiritual re-birth through Jesus Christ, or reject the offer and so reject eternal life in Paradise
…
Man’s Destiny – As God Intended
The apostle Paul described man’s destiny as a mystery. He said that mortal man was meant to become immortal (that is the plan of his Maker) and then live with His Maker eternally. This is a truly mind-blowing concept, but that is what the Bible says.
man’s destiny
In his first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 15 verses 50-54, Paul wrote:
What I mean, friends, is that what is made of flesh and blood cannot share in God’s Kingdom, and what is mortal cannot possess immortality.
Listen to this secret truth: we shall not all die, but when the last trumpet sounds, we shall all be changed in an instant, as quickly as the blinking of an eye. For when the trumpet sounds, the dead will be raised, never to die again, and we shall all be changed. For what is mortal must be changed into what is immortal; what will die must be changed into what cannot die. So when this takes place, and the mortal has been changed into the immortal, then the scripture will come true: “Death is destroyed; victory is complete!”
There is a caveat here: this amazing transition to immortality is conditional, as explained below.
Man’s Eternal Home – the New Earth
A popular view is that when we die we go to live in heaven. But the Bible doesn’t say that. It doesn’t say that man’s reward is to go permanently to heaven. Heaven is God’s throne and earth is meant for man. But man will not spend eternity on this earth! The truth is that a New Heaven and a New Earth is prophesied. And it is in the new and perfect earth where God comes and walks with man, as He did in the Garden of Eden. A perfect God-man relationship will be restored. Such prophecies are brief and full of symbolism – little detail is revealed. But the concept and promise is there (and the caveat is there too)! Here’s what the Bible says about this amazing promise:
man’s destiny
In Revelation 21: 1-7, we read about John’s vision:
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.
Did you see it? Did you see God’s caveat? God says He will fulfill this amazing promise “to the thirsty”. What about those who do not believe and are not thirsty for a relationship with their Creator? Revelation 21.8 says:
But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars — they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.
The amazing promise of eternal life with our Creator is conditional. We must first reach out to God through the living Jesus Christ. In doing so our lives will be totally changed. Jesus said this eternal and perfect destiny can be ours by simply believing and trusting in Him. We can of course choose not to believe, and many do so. One more thing. Before the passing away of the present earth, prophecy strongly suggests that there will be a glorious time of peace on this earth when Jesus returns. And believers will play a major role as immortal beings!
The Book of Revelation – An End Time Message
After all’s been said and done, the Bible’s bold declarations culminate in its last book, Revelation. Here we read the final verses of the Bible, and the promise and warning of Jesus. Since Jesus is soon to return (He will be seen “with the clouds” Revelation 1.7), this last book is essentially an end time message. First, an amazing promise to those who trust in the risen Jesus:
end time
Revelation 22: 12-14
Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
Blessed are those who wash their robes. They will be permitted to enter through the gates of the city and eat the fruit from the tree of life.
The city here is the New Jerusalem described symbolically in Revelation 21. Here we find the blessings (fruit) of the symbolic “tree of life” first mentioned in Genesis 2.9 in the Garden of Eden. It seems that, for believers, time has gone full circle to what God planned in the beginning. Sadly, not all partake of this eternal blessing and fellowship with God. Jesus gives a warning:
Revelation 22.15
Outside the city are the dogs—the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idol worshipers, and all who love to live a lie.
So there we have it. Man has a choice and Jesus gives a plea to mankind:
end time
Revelation 22.16,17
I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source of David and the heir to his throne. I am the bright morning star.
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.
Today, man is expert at twisting God’s word. We see this in his attempts to redefine marriage for example, and in his attempts to replace national Israel with the church (Replacement Theology). So Jesus gives a final warning:
end time
Revelation 22.18,19
I testify and warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book [its predictions, consolations, and admonitions]: if anyone adds [anything] to them, God will add to him the plagues (afflictions, calamities) which are written in this book;
and if anyone takes away from or distorts the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away [from that one] his share from the tree of life and from the holy city (new Jerusalem), which are written in this book.
The important biblical concepts discussed in these seven short articles are summarized below in a timeline:
[ Facts About Israel ]
Articles: https://www.factsaboutisrael.uk/the-destiny-of-mankind/
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“How You Can Be Sure You Will Spend Eternity with God”
People can make mistakes about many things—a wrong turn while driving or spilling a drink at dinner. However, there is one question where we cannot risk being wrong: “How can I spend eternity with God?”
[ John Ankerberg Show – Interview of Erwin Lutzer ]
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhACtMUeaRI
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“Jesus Paid It All”
And I hear the savior say
Thy strength indeed is small
Child of weakness, watch and pray
Find in me thine all in all
‘Cause Jesus paid it all
All to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
Lord, now indeed I find
Thy power and thine alone
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone
‘Cause Jesus paid it all
All to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
It’s white as snow, white as snow
It’s washed away, it’s white as snow
And when before the throne
I stand in Him complete
Jesus died my soul to save
My lips shall still repeat
‘Cause Jesus paid it all
All to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
He washed it white as snow
He washed it white as snow
You can’t be silent
You can’t hold it in
O praise the one, Jesus
Praise the one
O praise the one who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
O praise the one who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
O praise the one who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
O praise the one who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
O praise the one who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
O praise the one who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
Only Jesus
Only Jesus
The worthy one
The only one
The worthy one
Jesus paid it all
And all to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
[ Kristian Stanfill – “Everything Glorious” album ]
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“Rock of Ages”
Rock of ages, cleft for me
Let me hide myself in Thee
Rock of ages, cleft for me
Let me hide myself in Thee
Let the water and the blood
From Thy riven side which flowed
Be of sin the double cure
Cleanse me from it’s guilt and pow’r
Nothing in my hand I bring
Simply to Thy cross I cling
Nothing in my hand I bring
Simply to Thy cross I cling
Naked, come to Thee for dress
Helpless, look to Thee for grace
Vile, I to the fountain fly
Wash me, savior, or I die
Rock of ages, cleft for me
Let me hide myself in Thee
Rock of ages, cleft for me
Let me hide myself in Thee
[ Amy Grant – “Hymns and Faith” album (Written by Augustus Toplady) ]
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“Very Last City”
(Parody of “Paradise City” by Guns N’ Roses)
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
(Take me home!) Oh, won’t you please take me home
Take me now to the very last city
Where the massive gates have a pearly finish
(Take me home!) Oh, won’t you please take me home
Brand-new Earth and Heaven under His feet
C’mon! Our King says come to Me
I’m preparin’ a place for all the ones who believe
I’ll see you on the other side
It’s waitin’ at the end of the line
The righteous risen Lord showed the way
You gotta – keep pushin’ toward that fortress of faith
You know it’s – it’s all in Revelation – just you wait
You read in all the chapters you’ll find
21 and 22 are sublime
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
Oh, won’t you please take me home, yeah, yeah
Take me now to the very last city
Where the massive gates have a pearly finish
Take – me – home!
After we’re there in the city, past danger
He’ll wipe our tears, so just try to remember
A certain Gentleman from Nazareth decreed
We have another city naked eyes can’t see
Tell me who you’re gonna believe
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
Take — me – home, yeah, yeah
Take me now to the very last city
Where the massive gates have a pearly finish
Oh, won’t you please take me home – oh yeah!
No more delay — no more decay
No more dismay — still more to say
Have to remember this important part
Now we can only enter with an open heart
He said, don’t wait around for any action to start
You just believe and you’ll find
What are you, blind?
He said it all a million times!
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
Take — me – home, yeah, yeah
Take me now to the very last city
Where the massive gates have a pearly finish
Oh, won’t you please take me home
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
Take — me – home, yeah, yeah
Take me now to the very last city
Where the massive gates have a pearly finish
Oh, won’t you please take me home
Home!
LEAD
Ohhhhhhh!
I wanna go, I’m gonna go
Oh, won’t you please take me home
I wanna see, I wanna be
Oh, won’t you please take me home
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
Take – me — home!
Take me now to the very last city
Where the massive gates have a pearly finish
Oh, won’t you please take me home
Take me now, take me now
Oh, won’t you please take me home
I wanna see, I’m gonna be
Oh, won’t you please take me home
MINI LEAD
I wanna see — where I’m gonna be
Oh — oh, take me home
Take me now to the very last city
Where they have safe streets and they’re gold and pretty
Oh, won’t you please take me home
I wanna go, I — wanna go
Oh, won’t you please take me home
Yeah, baby! Whee!
[ ApologetiX – “Isn’t Wasn’t Ain’t” album ]
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“I’ll Prepare For You”
(Parody of “I’ll Be There for You” by The Rembrandts)
so Jesus told his disciples
“We’re gonna go away.
Where I go you know,
They all crowd please explain”
He said “You’ve all been stuck in 2nd grade
If you haven’t seen the way, the truth, the life,
it’s here in your face but
I’ll prepare for you
prepare a place up above
I’ll prepare for you
‘Cuz, I’ve been there before
I’ll prepare for you
prepare for me, too
I’ll send another friend
to help you on your way
you learn from him you’ll go far
please don’t be afraid
“Father help me do the things I did”
“But you will do even greater works then that if you believe and
I’ll prepare for you
prepare a place up above
I’ll prepare for you
‘Cuz I’ve been there before
I’ll prepare for you
so prepare for me, too
The world could never know Him
The world could not receive Him
so you’re the only ones who know
what it’s like to know Him
become a place in their plan
He’ll come to live inside you
so when all of this happens
you will know the words I say were true, yeah
Seems like you’ve all been stuck in 2nd grade
when you haven’t seen the way, the truth, and the life
it’s here in your face but
(2X)
I’ll prepare for you
prepare a place up above
I’ll prepare for you
‘Cuz I’ve been there before
I’ll prepare for you
so prepare for me, too.
[ ApologetiX – “Classics: 90’s” album ]
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“Judgment Gets Passed”
(Parody of “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” by the Rolling Stones)
I was born — with no past lives, here I came
And I doubt that there’s more if I die in vain
But we all die once — and that’s just a fact
Then we all rise — the judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
I’m amazed but the truth is gettin’ hacked
By the fools who say man dies and comes right back
But we all die once — and that’s just a fact
Then we all rise — the judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Wait around ‘til your time’s up and then you’re dead
Are you countin’ on bein’ reincarnated?
Will you frown as your crumble to dust, my friend
Write this down — Hebrews 9 verse 27
Yes it says
That we all die once — and that’s just a fact
Then we all rise — the judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
Judgment gets passed and you can’t come back
[ Apologetix – “The Boys Aren’t Backin’ Down” album ]
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“Heaven Isn’t Like That”
(Parody of “Shine” by Collective Soul)
Do some good works and lead a good life
Always go to church and try to be really nice … really nice
Say a couple prayers and finally when you die
Go to Saint Peter, tell him, “Let me come inside
“At least I tried”
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, child!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, pal!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, now!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, child!
Learn to play the harp, you’ll need it while you’re there
Pick yourself some wings; I’m sure you’ll get a lovely pair
A lovely pair
Reach for a halo, keep it in your hair
Lead a wimpy life eternally with nothing there
But fluffy air
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, child!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, pal!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, now!
No! Heaven isn’t like that, child!
Get in God’s word; see what you find
Only place to look to tell you how to get inside
Let me tell you now; you gotta go through Christ
Open up your heart and tell Him He can come inside
Dwell inside
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Yo! Let Him in your life right now
Yo! Let Him in your life right now
Yo! Let Him in your life right now
Yo! Let Him in your life right now
You know what Heaven’s like?
It hasn’t entered your mind
Heaven is the best place that’s ever been
You wanna get in? Let Him
Let Him in your life; that’s the only way
C’mon…inside, come on in, Yeah, yeah, yeah.
C’mon inside, C’mon inside!
[ ApologetiX – “Ticked” album ]
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“I Want in That Place”
(Parody of “I Want it That Way” by The Backstreet Boys)
You are much higher – I want inside there
Beneath heav’n I pray – I want in that place
But we are two worlds apart – You speak to my heart
Then You say, “I want in that place”
Tell me why – (You) came knockin’ on my heart today
Tell me why – I’m nothin’ but a disgrace
Tell me why – Why You’d ever come to me and say
I want in that place
Can I soar higher? I want inside there
Yes I know – it’s two-way
But I want in that place
Help me Christ – I’m nothin’ but I’m sorry
Help me Christ – I’m knockin’ but I need grace
Help me Christ – I’m never gonna get it straight
But I want in that place
Now I can see that we’ve fallen so short
From the way we’re supposed to be (Yeah)
No man in existence is righteous enough
I need You inside of me
You are Messiah – You want inside of
My heart – C’mon, c’mon, c’mon!
(C’mon I need you)
(You) came knockin’ on my heart today
Tell me why – I’m nothin’ but a disgrace
Tell me why – in Revelation 3 You say
I want in that place
Help me Christ – I’m nothin’ but I’m sorry
Help me Christ – I’m knockin’ but I need grace
Help me Christ – I hear Heaven’s gonna be great
I want in that place
REPEAT LAST CHORUS
And I want in that place
[ ApologetiX – “Spoofernatural” album ]
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“Revelation Man”
(Parody of “Secret Agent Man” by Johnny Rivers)
There’s a man who seems just like a savior
With everyone he meets he gains their favor
Oh, with every move he makes,
Another hand he shakes
Odds are he won’t give you peace tomorrow
Revelation Man
Revelation Man
Hey, he’s givin’ you a number and takin’ away your faith
It’s there in Revelation that you find
A pretty beast who has an evil mind
He led the world astray;
They’ll give their souls away
All that he will give is grief and sorrow
Revelation Man
Revelation Man
Hey, he’s givin’ you a number and takin’ away your faith
Bringin’ all the world together one day
Then saying that he’s God Almighty next day
Oh, but you fell for all his tricks
By listenin’ to 666
God’s not who he is you’ll see tomorrow
Revelation Man
Revelation Man
Hey, he’s givin’ you a number and takin’ away your faith
Revelation Man
[ ApologetiX – “Biblical Graffiti” album ]
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“Twice Dead”
(Parody of “Once Bitten Twice Shy” by Great White)
Well it’s time to get a start that’s new, little girl
You’ve been huntin’ and you’re stumblin’ all over God’s Word
You can’t remember where you got so much sin
And you don’t know just how we’re born again
You didn’t know what a rotten soul was
Until you read in John where chapter three told us
Christ was there with Nick at nite
Be born again, He said, or else you’ll stay died … yeah
Now it’s the middle of your life and you’re growin’ old
You see there’s God’s word in a hotel drawer
You look inside – the Book is kinda neat
The written word ya read sure knocks you off your feet
You didn’t know how a rotten soul cooked
Until you caught the rich man in the gospel of Luke
That hit home and your heart got hot
You said, “It looks like it’s time
I was gettin’ right with God”
I said, my, my, my – you’re once livin’ twice died, babe
My, my, my – I’m once dead and twice alive, babe
My my my – you’re once livin’ twice died, babe
Woman you’re a mess gonna die in your sins
There’s blood of the Lamb if you let Christ in
Can’t keep Him out – confess with your mouth
You best read Romans 10 cause that’s where it’s found
You didn’t know that a rotten soul burned
Now you’ve got the manual and you’ll live if you learn
You’ve got the picture – you’ve got to speak
Come to Him and pray and make it short and sweet
CHORUS
You didn’t know they let rotten souls in Heaven
Until you saw the scripture there in Romans chapter 7
You told me, “I want to know the Son”
And look at you now – your darkness is gone
CHORUS
[ ApologetiX – “Classics – The 80’s” album ]
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“Role Never Changes”
(Parody of “Roll With the Changes” by REO Speedwagon)
As soon as Cain and Abel — well, we find men killing
‘Cause Satan hates that we are all God thinks of
The Bible’s on the table – while blood is spilling
Waiting here for you to take and pick up
So if you’re tired of old Satan’s story
Ohhhh, turn from rages
All we have is just one enemy
Whose role never changes – yeah-eh yeah-eh
Woo!
Christ knew what had to happen – fought the terrible serpent
God went through man’s darkest hour
He heard that some were laughin’ – felt the nails that hurt him
Our guilt was poured on Him as the sweet turned sour
So He expired but He came in glory
Ohhhh – returned from the grave, yes
Now He is our priest forever
His role never changes – ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhnh yeah-eh
Woo!
Sooooooo-oh-oh-oh if you’re tired of unstable moorings
Oh, Hebrews, 13:8 says
Christ is the same forever
His role never changes
Baby – role never changes
Oh, you know, you know, you know He’s got to
(Keep us holy) Oh yeah (Keep us holy — oooo oooo ooo)
Ohhhhhh His role never changes
Keep us holy
(Keep us holy) Oh yeah-eh-eh (Keep us holy — oooo oooo ooo)
Ohhhhhh that role never changes
Oh, ba-a-aby
(Keep us holy) Oh ba-a-aby (Keep us holy — oooo oooo ooo)
Oh, He’s got to ’cause His role never changes
Got to, got to, got to, got to keep us holy
(Keep us holy) got to keep us (Keep us holy — oooo oooo ahhhhhhhh)
Oh, He sought you and He bought you but you’ve got turn to God
Keep us holy, keep us holy — ooo ooh-ooh-ooh ooh-ooh-ooh
Keep us holy, keep us holy — ooo ooh-ooh-ooh ooh-ooh-ooh
Keep us holy, keep us holy — ooo ooh-ooh-ooh ooh-ooh-ooh
Keep us holy, keep us holy — ooooooh ooooooh ahhhhhhhhh
[ ApologetiX – “Zebraic” album ]
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“Taken Up”
(Parody of “Shake It Up” performed by The Cars
Uh, well, a man called Elijah prayed one day
That the Lord would take Him away
Stand tall, Elijah — keep your feet
Don’t you worry, now – soon you’ll be
Taken up
Taken up — Ooh yeah
Taken up
Taken up
Well, men don’t fly – Israel knew
But you know Enoch did it, too
In Genesis 5, verse 24
Don’t you know why? He pleased the Lord
Taken up – ooh ooh
Taken up – yeah yeah
Taken up – ooh ooh
Taken up
That’s right, I said
Men don’t fly
(No, no, no)
And yet those guys
(Would get real close)
No one died
(Definitely not)
They were
(Ahh ahh ahh)
Taken up, yeah, home with God, woo! Yes!
LEAD
Oooh yes!
Uh, well, His friends know Christ will prepare
To take us right back up to there
Just hold tight – go to work
Let’s spread the news that the earth needs first
Just take it up – ooh ooh
Take it up – ooh yeah
Take it up – that’s right
Take it up
Uh well, shed some light
(Go, go, go)
Spread worldwide
(Let them know)
Stand for Christ
(Spread real love)
And we’ll
(Ahh ahh ahh)
Take ’em all – home with us, woo
Taken up – hey, have you seen
First Thess-a-lon-i-ans 4:17
Just stand tall in Christ — keep your feet
Don’t you worry, now – soon you’ll be
Taken up — ooh ooh
Taken up – ooh ooh yeah
Taken up — ooh ooh
Taken up – ohhh yeah
Taken up – taken up, taken up, baby
Taken up – taken up — ooh ooh
Taken up — taken up, taken up, baby
Taken up – taken up — ooh ooh
Taken up — ooh
Taken up – ooh yeah, yeah
Taken up – hoo hoo
Taken up – taken up
Oh Taken up – look it up — in Second Kings, baby
Taken up – check in – chapter 2, ooh!
Taken up – mm mm hmm
Taken up – oh yeah — yeah
Taken up – oh here He comes
Taken up – oh here He comes
[ ApologetiX – “Double Take” album ]
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“Droppin’ On The Sun”
(Parody of “Walkin’ on the Sun” by Smash Mouth)
It ain’t no joke, no lie, the Bible clearly spoke
To teach the world to fear the furnace underneath
To teach the world about hellfire but there’s liars
Who say they know Christians are wrong, even bad people rest in peace
It gets enough attacks. I know men doubt that it’s fact
It’s not like any map shows exactly where it’s at
But just like gravity you cannot see it really exists
And it does no good but they’ll deny it just to stay in their sins
So don’t delay, act now! Your time is runnin’ out!
Find out while you’re still alive — The true way is Jesus Christ
And if you follow the way, you’ll have no sorrow but if
the offer’s done, you might as well be droppin’ on the sun
Two thousand years ago He spoke out and they wrote down
All the best in the New Testament together in a book
And He told how it was dark, surrounded by fire
Where teeth will be gnashin’, man, Christ said Hell happens
And so He spelled it out, so to help out those who felt doubt
Then He brought it back up when He talked against the self-proud
And religious hypocrites threw hissy fits
Because that’s just what happens when they’re faced with their sins
So don’t delay, act now! Your time is runnin’ out!
By now I’m sure you’ve surmised — There’s two places to arrive
And if you follow the way you’ll have no sorrow, but if
The offer’s shunned, you might as well be droppin’ on the sun
It ain’t no joke that He’s gonna take the sheep and goats
And He’ll steer them to the left and right, but, listen, folks:
The ones that’s goats get disposed of. God won’t just burn their souls up
They’ll be livin’ in eternal Godless hopeless darkness
So don’t risk that, get facts, you ought to take a look at
Luke 16, Mark 9 and Jude — There’s one little chapt’r
Look today at Matthew chapter 10, verse 28
You need to read in Revelation 20 what does it say?
So don’t delay, act now! Your time is runnin’ out!
Find now while you’re still alive — Matthew chapter 25
And if you follow the way — you’ll have no sorrow, but if
You drop and punt, you might as well be droppin’ on the sun
[ ApologetiX – “Biblical Graffiti” album ]
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DEEP THOUGHTS:
“I believe that mankind’s destiny lies in the stars.”
[ Neil Gaiman ]
“If mankind’s destined to bite the bullet, let’s bite it and be damned.”
[ Darren Shan ]
“If mankind is to advance there must be installed permanently at the head of its columns proud instances of courage. Acts of daring light the pages of history and the soul of man. The sunrise is an act of daring. To venture, to defy, to persevere, to be true to one’s self, to grapple with destiny, to dismay calamity by not being afraid of it, to challenge now unrighteous powers and now victory run wild, to stand fast and hold firm – these are the examples that the peoples need, the spark that electrifies them.”
[ Victor Hugo ]
“A troubled and afflicted mankind looks to us, pleading for us to keep our rendezvous with destiny; that we will uphold the principles of self-reliance, self-discipline, morality, and, above all, responsible liberty for every individual that we will become that shining city on a hill.”
[ Ronald Reagan ]
“It is unlikely that many of us will be famous, or even remembered. But not less important than the brilliant few that lead a nation or a literature to fresh achievements, are the unknown many whose patient efforts keep the world from running backward; who guard and maintain the ancient values, even if they do not conquer new; whose inconspicuous triumph it is to pass on what they inherited from their fathers, unimpaired and undiminished, to their sons. Enough, for almost all of us, if we can hand on the torch, and not let it down; content to win the affection, if it may be, of a few who know us and to be forgotten when they in their turn have vanished. The destiny of mankind is not governed wholly by its ‘stars’.”
[ F. L. Lucas ]
RELATED SCRIPTURE VERSES:
“In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.”
[ Ephesians 1:11-12 ]
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”
[ John 6:44 ]
“And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.”
[ Acts 13:48 ]
“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
[ John 15:16 ]
“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.”
[ 1 Peter 1:1-2 ]
“Even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.”
[ Ephesians 1:4-5 ]
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
[ Revelation 21:3-4 ]
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”
[ Romans 8:28-29 ]
“The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.”
[ Psalm 138:8 ]
“No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.”
[ Revelation 22:3-5 ]
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
[ Jeremiah 29:11 ]
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”
[ Romans 8:28-29 ]
“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”
[ Proverbs 16:3 ]
“But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”
[ 1 Corinthians 2:7-9 ]
“And “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
[ 1 Peter 2:8-9 ]
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
[ Ephesians 2:8-9 ]
“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.”
[ Revelation 20:12 ]
“For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”
[ Philippians 3:18-21 ]
“Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”
[ Matthew 19:28 ]
For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,”
[ 1 Thessalonians 5:9 ]
“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
[ Revelation 21:1-9 ]
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”
[ Matthew 7:21-23 ]
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“A quick summary of the Christian “Gospel”:
JESUS’ PROPITIATION made our SINS FORGIVEN and IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS to us so that we have GOD’S ACCEPTANCE into His Heaven and ETERNAL LIFE.”
[ Mark Besh ]
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Hope you enjoyed some of these insights—share them with your friends and colleagues—so we can have a larger ‘pool’ to receive from, and more to share with! Also, remember to include your name as the “source,” if some of this wisdom is of your doing—I would like to give credit where credit is due!
FOCUS VERSES:
“The eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
[ Matthew 25: 41 ].
“Then I saw a great white throne and one seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them.”
[ Revelation 20:11-15 ].
“Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them.”
[ Revelation 21:3 ].
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, nor has the mind of man conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
[ 1 Corinthians 2:9 ].
“For now see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.”
[ 1 Corinthians 13:12 ].
“It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.”
[ Hebrews 9:27 ].
“It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.”
[ Ecclesiastes 7:2 ].
“In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”
[ John 14:2-3 ]
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.”
[ John 6:47 ].
“These words are faithful and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must quickly take place.”
[ Revelation 22:6 ].
“‘And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book’.”
[ Revelation 22:7 ].
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.”
[ Revelation 22:14 ].
“Come! Anyone who hears should say, ‘Come!’ And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should take the living water as a gift.”
[ Revelation 22: 17 ].
“Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”
[ Revelation 22:20 ].
Mark
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If you have a ‘neat’ story or some thoughts about an issue or current event that you would like me to try to respond to, I would be glad to give it a try…so, send them to me at: mbesh@comcast.net
Disclaimer: All the above jokes & inspirations are obtained from various sources and copyright are used when known. Other than our name and headers, we do not own the copyright to any of the materials sent to this list. We just want to spread the ministry of God’s love and cheerfulness throughout the world.
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LIFE'S DEEP THOUGHTS 