The Truth is Still the Truth

 Behold, I Come Quickly

Book of Revelation Chapter 22

What should we understand about Chapter 22? We must first return to the first Chapter.

Rev 1:1  The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants "things which must shortly come to pass"; and he sent and signified it "by his angel" unto his servant John: 

Rev 1:2  Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. 

This is exactly what the Apostle John has done. John has given to us the "testimony" of the Lord Jesus Christ.

John has given us the truth of the things that will take place just before the Lord returns to take His Church home, and then returns to the Mount of Olives to reclaim this world, and deprive Satan of the things he so greatly desires.

What are we to understand of the Book of Revelation? We are to understand that these words of John are all the exact and the complete truth from our Holy God!

Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. 

Not just a bunch of symbols! Not parables! But the truth of God from an Apostle of Jesus Christ, describing things from the future which he had no idea could exist and become true.

John trusted the Lord Jesus and it is this same Lord Jesus whom we are also to trust!

*****Rev 22:6  And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. 

We must understand that all the Word of God is true, and this includes all the Book of Revelation!

2Ti 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 

2Ti 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. 

These things do not change when it gets tough to be a Christian! 

If we do not wholly believe what the Lord Jesus says, then we are not Christian!

We do not have to discuss who wrote what, and who said what, in these Scriptures because Jehovah sent the Holy Spirit to oversee all the Word of God.

These things are faithful and true!

These things will shortly be done!

Remember we deal with Heavens timetable.

*****Rev 22:7  Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. 

You see, here lies the problem! "We must keep the sayings of the prophecy of this great Book of the Bible"!

We must keep the sayings, rightly divided, of all the Written Word of God.

As Christians, we have become lazy and relegated Jehovah as our great grandfather in the Heavens, and it is no wonder that He has removed His hand of blessing from America.

Jesus Christ is our God!

Jesus Christ is our Savior!

Jesus Christ is our Judge!

Nowhere do we see that our Lord is our grandfather!

If not for His great love, we would all be in a devil's hell right now!

We had better pay attention to that word "Behold" which means we had better open our eyes to the truth of the Bible.

When the Lord has had enough of our playing church, we had better believe He will come quickly!

If we are to have a revival, then we had better get started.

If we are going to remain that sad bunch of "so-called" Christians, then we just keep doing what we are doing and not worry about the world we are leaving behind for our grandchildren.

The Lord has placed these things in our hand, and He is watching and waiting to see what we are going to do.

Why in the world do you believe there will be a "Judgment Seat" of Christ, if He will not JUDGE our actions today?

We must not ever get confused about who is our God!

*****Rev 22:8  And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. 

Rev 22:9  Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God. 

You see this was not an angel at this certain time who faced John. This was a saint of God who had a glorified body in Heaven. This was a "Born Again" child of God who was giving the Apostle John this part of the Scriptures.

Heaven will be a wonderful place, because we have a Savior who loved us so much, who came and died for us that we might be saved!

Most all of us have loved ones in Heaven. In the time of John, this Saint said, "I am your fellow servant". "I am of your brothers the prophets" and most important of all, he said "I am one of them which keep the sayings of this Book".

We must ask ourselves, "are we of those who keep the sayings of this Book"?

We should not have to hesitate. It is a yes or no answer!

None of us are perfect and we know that, but we certainly are not doing the best we can to obey the Word of God, or our nation would not be in the terrible shape that it is today.

We are weak spiritually!

We are weak morally!

Our nation has become so weak every foolish nation in the world can stand up and slander us without even worrying about retaliation and laugh and mock us.

These things happen because we have left our God out of our lives! 

We will bow down to anything that resembles the truth when the truth of God is given to us to keep and not to ignore.

Are we going to pick up our cross and follow the Lord or not?

Mat_16:24  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Mar_8:34  And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

Mar_10:21  Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.

Luk_9:23  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

As we can see, this is a yes or no answer type question!

We may not have much time left to follow the Lord, and it begins with denying ourselves, our wants, our ways, and seeking the ways of Jesus Christ!

*****Rev 22:10  And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. 

You see it was not time for John to write these things down and just place that book on a shelf!

It was time to tell someone else the truth of the Living God.

At this point and on through the future, we are not to seal up any part of the Word of God.

It must be preached!

It must be taught!

It must be expounded!

It must be read!

It must be understood as the truth of God because it is!

When we become ashamed of God, He has already said He will be ashamed of us!

There is only one detail in the Book of Revelation that God keeps to Himself.

Rev 10:4  And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not. 

There are somethings during the time of God's wrath that we just do not need to know.

1) Because they are so terrible that we just do not need to know them.

Remember the blood will flow four to five feet deep for over 100 miles for the Lord to cleanse this earth of evil.

2) God does not want these things to have their mark upon our minds. As God told Moses only those who have been "Born Again" can look upon His glory and live and we need to concentrate on the "Glory" of God!

We must admit that all the things of Prophecy have fallen in place just as they have been written, and we would be extremely foolish to not believe that we are in those very last of the last of days!

The only thing that remains is for those last few to choose life rather than death and those few remnants of prophecy to be fulfilled.

*****Rev 22:11  He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. 

So upon whom are we as the Church to concentrate the resources of the Church?

1) Not those who are unjust!

The unjust are all those who walk contrary to the truth of God and who stand against the truth of God.

It is most of these who seek to change all laws that disagree with their formula of life.

They are seeking death and the Holy Spirit just says leave them alone to travel down that path of death.

They are contrary to all things that are right!

They have already been included in the "woes" of God!

Isa 5:20  Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 

Isa 5:21  Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! 

Isa 5:22  Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink: 

Isa 5:23  Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him! 

Isa 5:24  Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. 

3 Jn 1:11  Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God. 

It is not time to worry about the salvation of these people!

2) Not those who are filthy.

Filthy means: dirty, foul, unclean, nasty, polluted, defiled by sinful practices, morally impure. Those who procure by filthy lucre. (dishonest means)

Time is too short for these to ever change their ways!

3) Those that are righteous will remain righteous. We cannot lose the gifts that the Lord died for!

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

4) Those that are Holy will remain Holy!

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 

Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. 

Where should the resources of the Church be applied? To those who have never heard the Word of God.

Those who already know the truth of God should gather more often as these times get closer and closer!

Heb 10:22  Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. 

Heb 10:23  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) 

Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 

Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

We must understand that we are near the Coming of the Lord and when the Lord steps out of Heaven, it will be only a short time until He places His feet upon the Mount of Olives.

The Lord will certainly come quickly but He will travel slow enough to be noticed! Every eye will see Him even those who pierced Him!

*****Rev 22:12  And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 

Rev 22:13  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 

We should be very clear, these are the words spoken by the Lord Jesus Christ!

The Lord Jesus does not ever change!

Isa 40:10  Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. 

We already know that there is no one able to stand before the Lord unless He has accepted their call for forgiveness, have repented from their evil ways, and has written their name written down in the Lamb's Book of Life.

This message is written to every human, alive or in the grave!

Rom 2:6  Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 

Those deeds are the things done that have not been forgiven by those who have not asked and by those who were not sincere.

Our Lord God will never penalize anyone for doing things that are good, if they are done for the right reasons.

The pure fact is we seldom ever do anything if there is nothing in it for us, which means it was for the wrong reason.

We should have only one reason and that reason is because we want to be found in obedience to the Word of God!

There is no reason greater than this!

Ecc 12:13  Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 

Ecc 12:14  For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. 

The Lord Jesus Christ died in payment for our sins because we were sentenced to death!

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 

Rom 3:24  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 

If we do not recognize this truth, and trust the Word of God to be true, then we will suffer for all our deeds from the time of our birth until the day of our death!

Just so we know, the Lord wants us to know it is our Creator that developed this plan of salvation and this reward for our deeds!

**The Alpha:

The first letter of the Greek alphabet denoting our Creator.

When used as a number, it denotes the number One.

**The Omega:

The name of the last letter of the Greek alphabet denoting our Living God, who has no beginning and has no ending.

He exists from everlasting to everlasting and this is the same place he promises to those who love Him!

Isa 44:6  Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. 

Isa 44:7  And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them. 

Isa 44:8  Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any. 

When the everlasting God says there is no God besides Himself, then there is none which makes it real that we have only one way to enter into that realm of everlasting life!

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

Joh 14:7  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 

There are no blessings for those who oppose the Word of God!

*****Rev 22:14  Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. 

Rev 22:15  For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. 

That word blessed may mean many things to many people, but here it means only those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life can be called "Blessed"!

There is no one upon the face of this earth that can give me this title except, the Lord Jesus Christ!

I am "Blessed" because my "Faith" is in the works the Lord Jesus Christ did, to make me "Blessed"!

In other words I am "blessed" because I have been washed in the "Blood of Jesus" and it is His sin cleansing blood that has made me whole!

It is not in the keeping of commandments, it is in the doing of the commandments, which means we understand that we must be "Born Again" according as the Lord Jesus Christ states.

Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 

Jesus told Nicodemus listen to the words that come out of my mouth.

Joh 3:6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 

We must be baptized with the Holy Spirit of God. This is the same as being washed in the Blood of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit will not live in anyone who is not washed in the Blood of Jesus!

Joh 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 

Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 

Joh 3:19  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 

Joh 3:20  For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 

Joh 3:21  But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. 

This is the "Commandment" that causes blessedness "whosoever believeth in Him (Jesus) should not perish, but have everlasting life!

The keeping of the Ten Commandments will not get you to Heaven, this would be a works doctrine and the Lord Jesus Christ has done all the works. 

A blessed one need only have "faith" in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Who are those who got left out because they had no "faith" in the work of Jesus Christ?

Obviously, this word "dogs" does not mean domesticated dogs that are all over the world.

But take the time to see a pack of wild dogs at work. We can better understand this thing as the world!

**The world of the lost are like a pack of wild dogs!

Who are those dogs? 

Those who are unjust, spiritually!

Those who filthy, spiritually!

Those who are degraded!

Those who have no value in the eyes of a Righteous God.

Rev 21:7  He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 

Rev 21:8  But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. 

Spiritually wicked people who will never get another opportunity to enter into God's New Heaven, and they do not care while they are alive, but that will change immediately when they wake up in Hell.

Luk 16:22  And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; 

Luk 16:23  And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 

Luk 16:24  And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. 

Luk 16:25  But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 

Luk 16:26  And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. 

Luk 16:27  Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: 

Luk 16:28  For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. 

Luk 16:29  Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 

Luk 16:30  And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. 

Luk 16:31  And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

Then these words from our Savior.

*****Rev 22:16  I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. 

What is the reality of the Book of Revelation? It is the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ for the days we are living right now!

We should understand that angels can appear in most any form and those angels that are closest to the Lord Jesus Christ can appear in His form just as well as they can appear in our form.

This not deception, it is just who they are!

Those who have left this world and are in Heaven can also give that same appearance even though when we see them, we will know them.

Just as Peter recognized Moses and Elijah.

The one most important thing we need to remember is that it was Jesus who caused the revealing of all these things.

This is the Book of the Reveling of Jesus Christ and not about John the revelator!

Rev 5:3  And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. 

Rev 5:4  And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. 

Rev 5:5  And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. 

He will be King Jesus on earth because He is the last living relative of His day in the kingly line of David and He will never die.

Israel still flies the "Star of David"!

Jesus Christ is that Star!

Num 24:17  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: "there shall come a Star out of Jacob", and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. 

We should think like Job.

Job 19:25  For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 

Job 19:26  And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: 

Job 19:27  Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me. 

The Holy Spirit who has made sure that we can have the truth of God now adds a few more words.

*****Rev 22:17  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. 

Rev 22:18  For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 

Rev 22:19  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. 

Most all the Word of God is plain enough to understand if we just have "faith" and just understand it as it is written.

There are places that we need some help with, and the Holy Spirit will provide that help through Holy Ghost filled preachers, Sunday School, and just by Him guiding us as we read the Bible.

These words in this passage are very easily understand.

The Lord Jesus, by the Holy Spirit is the only authority of the written Word of God, and no perceived power upon this earth has the authority to change what the Holy Spirit has preserved for us.

If you go to a place of worship what changes any part of the Word of God, I suggest you leave and find a place where the truth is preached and is known!

2Ti 3:16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 

2Ti 3:17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. 

We cannot be furnished to step out into the world with God's Message unless we have God's Holy Ghost Inspired Words within us!

Again whose testimony is this?

*****Rev 22:20  He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 

Rev 22:21  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. 

It is "Grace" that keeps the Lord from coming, but we must be aware the Lord could step out of Heaven at any moment and in a moment in time we could hear the sound of the trumpet and things will begin to be set in motion.

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 

1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 

Immediately after the Church has been called out the Tribulation, then these things will begin, and these seven years will be far worse than we can even imagine.

The Lord will return and there will be no "Grace", there will be no "Mercy", there will only be "WRATH"!

Amen

Behold I Make All Things New

The New Heaven and New Earth

Book of Revelation Chapter 21 through Chapter 22 Verses 1-5

When will there be a New Heaven and a New Earth?

After Death and Hell are cast into the Burning Lake of Fire!

Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 

It is a true statement that if you love the Lord Jesus Christ you will die once and live twice the second life for eternity.

If we love the Lord Jesus Christ, we will not see a second death!

The key to these things is that your name must be written down in the Lamb's Book of Life!

Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. 

The New Heaven and the New Earth are only for those who have their name written down in the Lamb's Book of Life and there will exist no other place for life to exist!

There are some prayers we need to pray.

Our first prayer must be for our salvation!

Rom 10:9  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 

Rom 10:13  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

We must also pray for the Second Coming of the Lord, but this must be with a clear conscience.

Mat 6:10  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. 

We are to pray for the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus to come.

Psa 122:6  Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.

We are to pray for the peace of Jerusalem knowing that there will be no true peace in Jerusalem until the Lord Jesus returns.

Joh 17:20  Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; 

Joh 17:21  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

If we are like Christ, then we need to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

And last but not least, we need to pray for the Lost.

Certainly, we need to stay in constant contact with our Father in Heaven, but in all our prayers we need to include prayer for all these things!

As we wind down our study of the Book of Revelation, we know that the Lord has returned and shown His wrath against the Apostate world of Satan and it has been destroyed.

If fact, all this world has been destroyed, but then remade for 1000 years and this time has now passed.

All those who will spend eternity with the Lord have been decided and we get to that part where the Bibles says "I make all things new"

*****Rev 21:1  And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 

We should clearly understand this is not life as we understand it, reaching its ultimate climax, it is not!

What we are reading it about a new and eternal state of all those who have decided by choice to be with our Creator!

We should also understand that those who have gone on before did go to the New Heaven.

Jesus said, "I go to prepare a place for you"!

These are things that John was an eyewitness to!

A New Heaven:

1) Not only the lowest heaven. Not only the entire solar system. Also a new Heaven of heavens.

Not a remade earth for it still contains the Burning Lake of Fire that will burn forever but an entirely new earth.

There will be no more Sea. This is the salt water we call the Oceans.

We should understand the purpose of the oceans.

Our oceans have been removing the impurities of life for many years but because there will be no impurities the waters will never again turn salty.

Just as in the time of Elijah and King Ahab where fire came down from Heaven and licked up all the water, those Seas that had turned to blood will no longer exist! Those freshwater places that turned to blood will no longer exist!

The water for the earth will flow out from God's Temple and will never be salty again!

Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

Rev 22:2  In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

We should pay close attention to the plans the Lord has for us. A new home. The old earth was never our intended home!

Our Savior is very happy that this new world has finally come, to be presented to those who love Him!

*****Rev 21:2  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 

Different ones had spoken to John during this time. Different ones had pointed out some things to John during this time. 

John saw these things with his own eyes!

Since creation, the Almighty God has had this desire to live amongst those who love Him.

He spent some time walking with Adam in the cool of the day, but Jehovah could not live on this created earth in the time of Adam because He is all knowing and He knew that through Adam the sin nature to all mankind would begin.

Now since all this is in the past, God presents a new home to those who will be with Him forever and forever.

Corruption no longer will exist.

There is a new city of God. A holy city. A righteous city. A city that in itself would manifest God's Glory!

From verse 9 through verse 21 will describe this beautiful city of God.

If your name is written down in the Lamb's Book of Life, his or her name is stored in this New Jerusalem.

Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. 

Rev 3:13  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

There is not one blemish upon this new city, it is wholly new. 

It does not belong to this world.

It does not belong to the Millennial Kingdom.

It does belong to Eternity.

Nothing on this earth we live upon now, was destined for eternity except the Church, the Bride of Christ, each and every true believer!

This is the city that Abraham had a desire to see for he knew God's plan.

Heb 11:8  By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 

Heb 11:9  By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 

Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. 

It is here where our loved ones have been since God called them home.

2Co 5:1  For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 

2Co 5:2  For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: 

2Co 5:3  If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. 

It is here where the Lord has built our own Heavenly home.

Joh 14:1  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 

Joh 14:2  In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 

Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 

Joh 14:4  And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

And Oh, the voice of our God will be there!

*****Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 

How will God fulfill His covenant we are reading it right now.

Joh 14:23  Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. 

He lives within each believer now and He will live with us then in the New Jerusalem.

2Co 6:18  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. 

The dwelling place of God will then be with us!

The tabernacle of God is this beautiful created place where He will live with us throughout eternity and nothing will exist outside of His tabernacle.

*****Rev 21:4  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 

There will be no Sea.

There will be no tears, wiped away with the loving hand of God.

There will be no death.

There will be no sorrow.

There will be no pain.

There will be no murderers.

There will be no adulterers.

There will be no idolaters.

There will be no liars so there can be no politicians.

And most of all there will be no sin!

All things of the old way of doing things will be gone!

There will be a brand new, world!

*****Rev 21:5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 

We have been through much in this wonderful book, but notice one thing here.

These words come directly from that person sitting upon the throne of God!

Notice next that this same person who is sitting upon the throne of God says that all these things John has given to us are true and faithful to the fulfilling of God's promises.

No need to comment here the Lord God Almighty has spoken!

Who is this person? God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost.

*****Rev 21:5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 

Rev 21:6  And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 

Rev 21:7  He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 

Listen as John witnessed with his own eyes, the new City of Jerusalem and tells us who will reside there.

*****Rev 21:22  And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. 

We immediately see there will be no building to enter into to worship.

We will be in the presence of the Lord God Almighty and no other place of worship will be necessary!

A temple is a place set apart for the worship of a deity, a god.

The Lord God Jehovah is that Temple!

In my opinion, the New Heaven in itself is also the New Jerusalem.

What did verse 3 teach us?

Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

You see, Heaven is where the Lord is!

We must think of Heaven in relation to our worldly minds. 

We must just listen to what the Lord has told John to write with the Lord Himself saying these things are true!

These other Scriptures will explain themselves.

*****Rev 21:23  And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. 

The glory of the Lord our God will be all the light we need and with the light of the Lamb there can be no darkness at all.

*****Rev 21:24  And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. 

All those who are saved of the nations during the Tribulation will have the freedom to go in and out of this great city.

This confirms that "whosoever" calls upon the Lord can be saved.

Rom 10:13  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 

It is not as Calvinism dictates!

It is not as the Jehovah's Witness teach!

Who are these kings of the earth?

Rev 1:6  And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

There will be no need to shut the gates of the city at any time!

*****Rev 21:25  And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. 

We already know that Heaven will be one everlasting day as time will no longer exist!

The citizens of New Jerusalem will have constant, unbroken access to our God who is also our Father!

Just as we do now through our prayers, but then in person.

As kings and priests, what will we bring with us when we come to New Jerusalem?

*****Rev 21:26  And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.

When we come into the city, we will bring greater dignity to it and greater honor because we will carry with us the glory and honor of the Lord wherever we go!

Before you enter into New Jerusalem, Heaven, the New Heaven, your name must be written down in the Lamb's Book of Life!

*****Rev 21:27  And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life. 

All those who do not have their names in the Lamb's Book of Life are nowhere near New Jerusalem. They are in perdition, the place of the lost soul!

Rev 21:8  But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. 

If you see somethings of beauty here on earth, they are not perfect enough to be in New Jerusalem. Heaven!

In fact just listen to what God the Holy Spirit says.

Remember also there are no Seas but there will be water. Pure clear, healing waters. A river of life!

Listen as the Holy Spirit continues to describe the New Jerusalem, which I believe to be the New Heaven.

*****Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

Water is one of the necessities of life!

The truth of God is that He is the source of all life!

Psa 36:9  For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light. 

Joh 5:26  For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; 

Apart from the Holy Trinity, everyone else just has a derived life that comes by our God, the Lord Jesus Christ!

We are all dependent upon the Lord Jesus Christ for our life!

Life does not exist in its own right!

Life is not spoken of as being created!

Life exist because we have a Savior!

Jesus gave life to those who are born into this world.

Jesus gives eternal life to those who love Him.

Joh 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 

Joh 4:14  But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. 

Joh 5:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. 

Joh 20:31  But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. 

Jesus has given us this life, and now we are prepared for a more abundant life.

Joh 10:10  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. 

It will be a resurrected life!

Joh 11:25  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 

There is only one way to obtain this resurrected life.

1Jn 5:11  And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 

1Jn 5:12  He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. 

1Jn 5:13  These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 

Knowing all these things, lets now look at our Scripture.

Just think, a river that is pure and uncontaminated and it will remain that way forever.

There is no reason to believe that these words are not just as they are written!

Life comes by our Creator. The Lord did not have to create life because all life comes by Him.

It is not so hard for me to believe, that when I am in Heaven and feel a little tired, I need only walk down to the River of Life to be refreshed.

It is not so hard for me to believe that if I see a blemish of old age, I need only walk down to the River of Life and be made young again.

If it flows from the Throne of God, then it must be life because our Lord is all about life.

I pity those who reject the Heavenly life that comes from accepting my Savior as the way, the truth, and the life!

But this is not all.

*****Rev 22:2  In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 

Not only water of life, but also the trees of life. It says tree as in one, but it says on both sides of the River of Life.

Twelve different fruits.

New fruit every month.

Even the leaves can be used for healing.

I can just imagine how great it will be to stop by God's throne and my life be extended throughout eternity.

Paradise will truly be a paradise!

Again why would we believe these things will not be actual just as they are written? 

This is the same tree of life that Adam could have eaten from forever, but he chose to follow Eve in her sin.

Gen 3:22  And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: 

Gen 3:23  Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. 

Gen 3:24  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life. 

There was nothing good about the "Tree of Good and Evil"!

When we treat the commandments of God like they are suggestions we will suffer every time!

We must have that change in attitude before we can accept the truth!

1Jn 3:1  Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. 

1Jn 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 

1Jn 3:3  And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. 

We will eat of the tree of life in New Jerusalem and the nations will use the leaves of the Tree of Life for healing.

The Lord God of life has lifted His curse!

*****Rev 22:3  And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: 

Rev 22:4  And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

One hundred ninety-nine times, in the Scriptures does the Holy Spirit use the word “curse” in its many fashions. (curse, cursed, curses, cursing)

When we see there will no more curse then this means there can be nothing but blessings!

What has the Lord taught us all along?

Rom 12:14  Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. 

We know that it was the sin of Adam that brought the first curse and sin has reigned unto death up until the time of Jesus Christ.

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Rom 5:21  That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. 

In the New Heaven and New Jerusalem there will be no sin! Without sin then we can live amongst the Throne of God and with the Lamb of God.

We may have more than one job, but the key job is to worship our God and our Savior!

There is no greater honor than to sit at the feet of Jesus!

Rev 7:15  Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 

Moses could only see the hinder parts of Jehovah God, but we will be able to see His wonderful face.

Even today, most prayers ask for the arm of God, when we should be asking for the face of God!

Psa 50:2  Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.

Psa 90:17  And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.

We will have the mind of Christ and the only thing on our minds will be pleasing our God!

Mat 5:8  Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

Rom 6:17  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

Eph 6:6  Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;

A pure heart will have the mind of Christ.

*****Rev 22:5  And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. 

As we live out our lives upon this earth, we are limited by time. 

Every tick of the clock causes us to age toward the end of our days upon this earth.

We are up awhile then we have to rest for a while. 

These things are not so in Heaven!

There will be no darkness which also means there will be no sin.

There will be no night because we will need no rest.

Everything that the saints have suffered will work for them an eternal weight of glory.

2Co 4:17  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

We will be engulfed in the Glory of God and it will be marvelous.

We will go with the Lord wherever He goes.

We will reign with Him for ever and for ever!

Amen

The Rule of King Jesus

The Millennial Kingdom

Book of Revelation Chapter 20 

In Chapter 19 we saw The Lord Jesus Christ bring the "Judgment" of God upon all those who had the "mark of the beast" and all those who fell down to worship the image of the beast.

The Earth is almost completely destroyed!

The Lord Jesus will now set the captives free but He will also rule for one thousand years and he will rule those who remain with a "rod of iron" which means He will make the laws, which we know will the same Word of God we have today and He will not tolerate any deviation from His law.

Jer 30:1  The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 

Jer 30:2  Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. 

Jer 30:3  For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. 

Jer 30:4  And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. 

The Lord Jesus will not rule a destroyed earth because He will remake the earth, as it was in the days of Adam, before sin entered into the world.

He will reclaim what Adam lost!

*****Rev 20:1  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 

Who is the identity of this angel? 

We know that Satan was just and angel. He was not the greatest of angels, nor is it ever said that he was a strong angel. He was just and angel who was to lead the worship in Heaven.

Eze 28:13  Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. 

Because Satan was just an angel, even though an Archangel (Lucifer), it will only take another angel to subdue him.

Personally, I hope the Lord just allows the smallest angel in Heaven to do this thing.

Before the Lord will begin to rule for one thousand years there are some things that need to be taken care of.

The first being Satan needs to be bound and out of the picture.

He is just a tool in the Lord's hand, and he will not be needed for those one thousand years!

*****Rev 20:2  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 

Rev 20:3  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. 

Notice he is named the Devil, Satan, the dragon, and that old serpent, just so we will know he is the same one who deceived Eve who caused Adam to sin and who we have found throughout the Scriptures and now here in the Book of Revelation.

Satan has never been bound during the Church Age, but he is under complete control of Jehovah God, the Lord Jesus Christ. he must have the permission of the Lord before he can plague a child of God.

He is allowed a lot of freedom with those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ.

What do we know about the Devil? He was an original angel named Lucifer and dwelt in Heaven. He is one of the main reasons there will be a New Heaven, a New Jerusalem, and a New Earth. God lives in places that are pure!

He rebelled against Jehovah and was cast out of Heaven onto the earth where he became prince of the power of the air and the (little g) god of this age, he is still allowed to accuse God's children.

During the Great Tribulation he will be limited to the earth, and have no more contact with the Lord.

At the end of the Great Tribulation he will be bound, chained, in the bottomless pit for one thousand years, where he will just be one of the others who are already there. He has no importance in the bottomless pit!

This is the subject of our lesson today.

Just so we know, spirit beings can be chained with a heavenly chain!

2Pe 2:4  For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; 

Jud 1:6  And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. 

Those heavenly chains are chains of darkness. They are everlasting chains that only God can remove!

For one thousand years the mouth of that old accuser will be taped shut and closed.

For one thousand years old Satan will be amongst the other angels that rebelled.

For one thousand years people can live without temptation.

For one thousand years the Devil cannot lead anyone into sin.

For those who live today we see that only Heaven has the power to overcome the evil wickedness of that old Serpent who first brought sin into this world!

For those who live today, we can see that there is coming a day when doors will not have to be locked and people can walk the streets without fear of being robbed or molested in any way.

The Lord Jesus when He came from Heaven, He did not come alone!

*****Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 

Just who will sit upon these thrones?

Dan 7:22  Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. 

If there are to be "judges" then obviously there will be people to judge and the only ones who remain alive are those who refused the "Mark of the Beast".

They rejected the Mark of the Beast, but they have not yet accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

The Millennial reign of Christ will be a time that is far different from any other period of history but there will still be only one salvation plan.

There will still be only one Word of God. The exact same book we call today the Bible, and there will be no perverted versions of the Bible.

Those that sit to "judge" will have these Scriptures as the guide to Judgment!

1Co_6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?

I personally believe that the Saints of God will judge the Gentiles that remain.

I personally believe it will be the Apostles who will judge the Hebrew children who have survived.

Mat 19:28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Mat 19:29  And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. 

Mat 19:30  But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

These are the words of Jesus so they must be taken just as they are written.

There are many who survived the Great Tribulation or there would be no need of judges.

These judges will be somewhat as described in the Old Testament to defend the truth of God!

No one will be allowed to go by their own thoughts, nor live according to their own ways!

It may also be true that the "martyrs" will remain closest to the Lord.

We have the Church (the Bride of Christ) who will be on a one thousand-year honeymoon.

We have the resurrected saints, the 144,000 Hebrew evangelist, and martyrs from the Great Tribulation.

There will be at the last a resurrection of the dead who will all go to the White Throne of Judgment where they will be judged.

This will not take place until the end of the one thousand years!

*****Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. 

It could be said that the Rapture of the Saints of God does not reach its climax until the Bride of Christ returns with the Lord to this earth for the Lord to rule for one thousand years.

Luk 14:13  But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: 

Luk 14:14  And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just. 

It could also be said that this is the first resurrection outside the Church Age. The period of time called the "Time of Jacob's Trouble".

Rev 14:1  And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. 

Rev 14:2  And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: 

Rev 14:3  And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.

What do we already know?

Mat 27:50  Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. 

Mat 27:51  And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; 

Mat 27:52  And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, 

Mat 27:53  And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. 

Mat 27:54  Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God. 

At the resurrection of the Lord, many Old Testament Saints also arose from their graves and we here no more about them.

Who is to say that some similar did not occur as the Lord Jesus sat down upon His earthly throne?

In reality there are but two resurrections!

Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 

Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. 

1) There is the resurrection to life. Which may take place on more than one occasion.

2) There is the resurrection to damnation that will take place only once!

This is exactly what we understand from verse 6.

All those who serve with the Lord when He sits as King of kings and Lord of lords, are all part of that group who are those who have been resurrected to life and the second death holds no power over them.

We should understand that there will be many alive that are not in glorified bodies at this time but have lived through the Great Tribulation or there would be no need for judges or priests.

All these will live for one thousand years under King Jesus as He rules with a rod of iron.

There will be many births but there may be no death or limited death.

The earth will be restored to be like it was in the first days of Adam before sin entered in this world.

There has been no temptation.

No one can be in the family of God who has not been tempted to do evil.

We must all have a testimony!

To accomplish this, The Lord will release Satan for a short season.

*****Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 

Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 

What has happened during those one thousand years?

1) To begin with:

Amo 9:13  Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. 

Amo 9:14  And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. 

Amo 9:15  And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God. 

Eze 36:33  Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded. 

Eze 36:34  And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. 

Eze 36:35  And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. 

Isa 35:1  The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. 

Isa 35:2  It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God. 

Isa 35:4  Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you. 

Isa 55:12  For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 

Isa 55:13  Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off. 

Joe 3:18  And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim.

But the Lord will rule with a rod of iron:

The population will have grown tremendously.

God has one rule.

All those who will live throughout eternity with Him will choose to do so. Jehovah, the Lord Jesus Christ does not force Himself upon anyone!

Even these who have been raised in perfection must get the opportunity to hear the lies of Satan and then make their choice.

The end is always the same! To be on the side of the Lord is to be on the winning side!

The One who turned Satan loose is the same one who bound him. He is just a tool in the hands of the Lord who has a purpose just as we all do.

One thousand years locked up in Hell's prison will have no effect in rehabilitation for Satan. He is the same evil and wicked person he has always been, and he will immediately seek an army to battle again with the Lord.

He does not seek angels.

He is still limited to the earth.

He will again try to bring chaos to this earth.

We should understand that most of Israel and over the one thousand years many have been born and the population of earth is tremendous.

They have lived one thousand years under the hand of King Jesus and the Saints of God.

The Lord has met all the needs of the people all these years.

The one thing missing has been "temptation" and we will see how easily it is for humans to be deceived.

*****Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

Again a mighty army has been put in place to march on Jerusalem. 

Notice the Lord allows these things to take place up to the point that Jerusalem is again cut off.

God does what God does! He will put an end to rebellion for ever!

God will eliminate the last army to come against Him.

He will not use other humans for they have proved to be loyal and faithful.

The Antichrist and the False Prophet are still in the Lake of Fire and Satan takes on whatever shape he needs, to deceive, and he is good at it!

When God sends fire down from Heaven every sinner of those one thousand years will be destroyed instantly and the only one standing will be Satan and he will be totally humiliated before the Lord confines him to the Burning Lake of Fire for eternity.

Isa 14:12  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 

Isa 14:13  For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 

Isa 14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 

Isa 14:15  Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. 

Isa 14:16  They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; 

Isa 14:17  That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? 

Satan will join those who he had enlisted to help him.

*****Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. 

There will no great reunion when these three are in the same place. We could say that misery loves company, but they will not ever see each other again.

Satan will live forever knowing that he had been to Heaven and he knew how wonderful Heaven was and he will now be where all those who rebel against our Heavenly Father and His Son and His Spirit and he will feel that misery forever.

Remember this place was specifically designed just for Him.

This is his "final judgment"!

He will never be loosed again!

Satan and all his demons knew this day was in their future!

Mat 8:28  And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. 

Mat 8:29  And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? 

Their freedom to torment humans was finally over!

There was but one thing that remained for all those who had rebelled against the Messiah.

Judgment Day

*****Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 

Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 

Rev 20:13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 

Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 

Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. 

We can be sure that God promises a "final judgment"!

A "judgment" when all those who have rejected the truth of the Scriptures will be resurrected to face the Lord Jesus Christ as he will judge them.

Act 17:30  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: 

Act 17:31  Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. 

Act 17:32  And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter.  

The righteousness is "being right morally" according the truth of the Scriptures and the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, who was raised from the dead to be King of kings and Lord of lords, but also Judge of judges!

We already know that God does exactly what He says He will do and this fixed day is according what we see written in our Scripture in Revelation 20 verses 11-15.

2Ti 4:1  I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

This would be at the end of His Millennial Kingdom.

There is every reason to believe that we will all face "judgment" at one time or another!

Rom 2:5  But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 

Rom 2:6  Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 

Rom 2:7  To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 

Rom 2:8  But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 

Rom 2:9  Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 

Rom 2:10  But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 

Rom 2:11  For there is no respect of persons with God. 

The theme of our passage in verse 11 is that this will be the "final Judgment" of all those whose names are not written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Even all secrets will be revealed!

Luk 12:2  For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. 

Luk 12:3  Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. 

Luk 12:4  And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 

Luk 12:5  But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him. 

The bottom line is, that it is far better to confess your sins, which God will immediately forget, and repent to live a life according to the Scriptures, and confess the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior.

Psa 103:8  The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. 

Psa 103:9  He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. 

Psa 103:10  He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 

Psa 103:11  For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. 

Psa 103:12  As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. 

Psa 103:13  Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. 

Psa 103:14  For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. 

Mic 7:18  Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. 

Mic 7:19  He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. 

Heb 8:12  For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. 

No matter who we are or what we have done in our life, if we are serious with Jesus Christ and confess our sins, they will not be remembered in Heaven!

God has the records of our guiltiness and it would be far better for us if our life of sin would be blotted out of those books and our name found written in the Lamb's Book of Life!

You see it is also at this time that death will be cast into the Lake of Fire and there will be no more death only life eternal.

This is also the time that Hell will be cast into the Lake of Fire which is the new home of all those whose name cannot be found in the Lamb's Book of Life.

We must have faith in the truth of God and the truth of our Savior.

I cannot imagine anyone who would want to spend eternity in misery in the Burning Lake of Fire.

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, sweetest name I know.

Amen

The Heavenly Marriage

The Marriage of the Lamb

Book of Revelation Chapter 19 Verses 1 through 10

Some things we should understand. Prior to the return of Jesus Christ to this earth, His marriage to the Church, (the Bride of Christ) will take place in Heaven.

We know that from our last lessons, when the Lord Jesus Christ caused the 144,000 Jews to get to Heaven then, at that time, there will be the Lord and the Bride of Christ finally in the same place (Heaven) together, and this marriage will take place.

When the Lord returns with the armies of Heaven and the Saints, then the marriage of the Lamb of God has already taken place!

The "Judgment Seat" of Christ has also already taken place!

The Lord Jesus will after these things, return to Judge the earth in His wrath.

What did the Prophets teach us?

Zec 14:2  For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 

Zec 14:3  Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. 

Zec 14:4  And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. 

Isa 66:15  For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. 

Isa 66:16  For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many. 

It is the marriage supper that will then take place in Israel upon this earth.

It is at this time the Lord will return to save the Jews, according to their works!

And Christ Jesus gave us this parable:

Mat 25:21  His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 

Mat 25:22  He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 

Mat 25:23  His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 

Mat 25:24  Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 

Mat 25:25  And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 

Mat 25:26  His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 

Mat 25:27  Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 

Mat 25:28  Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. 

Mat 25:29  For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. 

Mat 25:30  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 

The remainder of the world will be "judged" regarding their treatment of the Jews.

Again the prophet Joel:

Joe 3:1  For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, 

Joe 3:2  I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land. 

Joe 3:9  Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up

Joe 3:11  Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD. 

Joe 3:12  Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

After the marriage of the Lamb to the Bride of Christ, these other things will take place!

Now let us witness the marriage of the Bridegroom in Heaven.

*****Rev 19:1  And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: 

We may ask after what things.

After the destruction of Babylon, the False Church and Babylon the economic System of the Antichrist from Chapters 17 and 18.

Notice that word "Alleluia" the one word that is universal in its meaning, (Praise God)!

Alleluia has become the cry of victory in Heaven.

This scene takes place in Heaven as the celebration begins as the "Great Whore" of false religion has been destroyed.

All religions that reject the Bible as the truth of God have been destroyed.

All these things happen because our God is all powerful!

The Lord is absolutely true and righteous in Himself!

The Lord is absolutely true and righteous in all His actions!

Heaven will now prepare for the Marriage of the Lamb of God.

*****Rev 19:2  For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. 

Rev 19:3  And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.

We must remember the souls under the altar.

Rev 6:9  And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 

Rev 6:10  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 

Rev 6:11  And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled. 

Their rest is now over for their death had been avenged!

They say Alleluia for the Lord doing as He said He would do.

False religion, which has been influenced by Satan all these years, was the tool used to corrupt the people of this earth.

Salvation belongs to God. He sent His Son to die in payment for all our sin!

He has given us His written Word to explain who He is and why He does what He does. 

He has given us purpose and He has been open to all peoples since He created Adam and Eve.

Over and over again, we have seen that the plans of God have existed before He created any part of our world, and he has given us line by line of His plan that He has followed without deviating from it at any time.

It is not just the souls under the altar who celebrate. The entire Church joins in for another promise will be fulfilled.

*****Rev 19:4  And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.

The four and twenty elders, who represent all the redeemed of the Lord celebrate the victory of the Lamb.

We will all rejoice. The raptured Saints of God. Those souls who have been reunited with their bodies. All those who have been martyrs all these years.

All the 144,000 Jews, and every Saint who has come to Heaven during the Great Tribulation, and I believe all those who have the faith of Abraham before the Lord came to the earth the first time.

Heaven will be a place of celebration!

Heaven will be a place of Alleluia.

Psa 106:48  Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD. 

If you do not like joyful loud praise and worship, you will not like Heaven at all.

It becomes the people of God to be full of joy!

To be honest there is not much joy on this earth.

We Christians should always have a certain amount of joy, after all look at our great future!

And we will miss out on the wrath of God. We will miss out on the Great Tribulation!

Jesus said He will never leave us, and Jesus will live forever and ever!

Rev 1:5  And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 

Rev 1:6  And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 

Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 

Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. 

The Lord Jesus Christ is God!

*****Rev 19:5  And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. 

Rev 19:6  And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

We must cast our bountiful praise to the One who was found worthy to open the Book of Revelation, the "Revealing" of the Lord Jesus Christ!

If we cannot do this while we live, what makes us think we will do this at this time in Heaven?

Every sorrow we have been through and have witnessed, will not be remembered when Jesus has completed His work on this earth.

Every single tear will be wiped away by the loving hands of God!

The Marriage of the Lamb of God is about to take place and all of Heaven takes notice of this most wonderful event.

That word "omnipotent" means the One who possesses unlimited power!

Jesus said:

Mat_28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth".

Much of that power is used to provide eternal life to all of us who love Him!

Joh_17:2  As thou hast given him power over all flesh, "that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him".

Nowhere in God's creation is there One more powerful than the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ!

We should be rejoicing now because we do not have to wait to get to Heaven.

It will just be much sweeter in Heaven.

The wedding of the Lamb of God is about to take place.

The one greatest time we will ever have as Christians.

We will be presented by the Son (the Lord Jesus) to our Heavenly Father as His Bride!

*****Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 

We immediately see that this time is special to the Lamb. It is the Lamb of God who has been patiently waiting on this day!

Here on earth we focus on the Bride but should truly focus on the Lamb of God!

In Heaven all the focus will be on the Lamb!

The same Lamb that was found to be worthy to open the Book.

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. 

Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 

Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth. 

It is Hallelujah time in Heaven!

It is rejoicing time in Heaven!

The Bride, all the "Redeemed" have made themselves ready by clinging to the faith. That faith in the work the Lord Jesus Christ has done so that we could be "Redeemed" and able now to stand before our Heavenly Father as the Bride of Christ, with the true Messiah.

When will this wedding take place? It will take place just before the Lord returns to this earth as King.

Remember the Lord first destroyed the "false religious system" of the Antichrist.

He next destroyed the "political system" of the Antichrist.

Billions of people had died because they rejected the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Earth was in flames!

When the Lord returns after the Wedding, He will restore the earth as it was in the days of Adam and Eve and reign as King.

The Lord would fulfill the promises He had made to King David and all the things of the prophets.

These things must take place quickly because there will still those living upon the earth who had not taken the "Mark of the Beast".

The world would be a much better place if we would focus on the Lord Jesus Christ now during the "Church Age"!

Jesus said He would build His Church:

Mat 16:18  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 

It was true, not even Hell could stand against the Church!

The Church on earth became the "Body of Christ":

Eph 1:22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 

Eph 1:23  Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Col 1:18  And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 

The Jews and the Gentiles have now been reconciled:

1Co 12:13  For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 

Eph 2:15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 

Eph 2:16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 

Eph 2:17  And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. 

Eph 4:4  There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 

Eph 4:5  One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 

Eph 4:6  One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 

The reconciled Body of Christ now becomes the Bride:

Eph 5:1  Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; 

Eph 5:2  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. 

Eph 5:23  For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. 

Eph 5:24  Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. 

Eph 5:25  Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 

Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 

Eph 5:27  That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. 

As the Bride, we have been waiting until this time that has officially arrived:

Joh 14:1  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 

Joh 14:2  In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 

Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 

Joh 14:4  And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

How has the Bride made herself ready?

By accepting in faith the truth of God!

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 

Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 

Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 

Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 

How has the Bride made herself lovely?

Joh_3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Joh_3:7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

1Pe_1:23  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

And it has come time to put on the wedding apparel.

*****Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 

As the saints of God we must dress properly for our wedding with the Lamb of God.

How had Jesus found us?

Isa 64:6  But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. 

We were terrible sinners!

We might even ask how could a Holy God ever see us as His future Bride?

None of us could claim to be better than others and it be true!

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 

We were sentenced to eternal death and there was no remedy for our situation!

Our choice was to remain the same or accept the free gift of God!

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

There had to be a way!

Rom 10:10  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 

Rom 10:13  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 

We had to learn about "faith"!

Rom 10:14  How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 

We had to be constant in our faith to grow in Christ!

Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. 

We had to put on the Lord Jesus Christ!

Rom_13:14  But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

Gal_3:27  For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

We had to dress as Christ!

1Co 6:11  And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 

The Church had finally reached the object of her joy! United forever, never to be separated. All sin and evil wickedness soon to be eternally imprisoned in the Burning Lake of fire.

And the Bridegroom said:

*****Rev 19:9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. 

What do we know about the "Marriage Supper of the Lamb"?

It is a celebration event that takes place on earth because Israel has finally repented in honor of the of the marriage of Jesus Christ to His Church and the beginning of, the 1000-year Millennial Kingdom.

Eph 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 

Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 

Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

The word "blessed" in this Scripture means "happy and contented" are those which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.

All those who are the happiest in this world today are those who know they are going to the "marriage supper" of the Lamb!

Yes, we can know that we will be there!

The Apostle John takes just a moment to tell us that these are the very words of God.

We must realize though there is the Spiritual Babylon and a few places where the Lord uses symbolism but for the most part the Book of Revelation is to be taken literally! Just as it is written, and we would be foolish not to!

It is the Word of God that is the basis of our faith.

Heb 1:1  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 

Heb 1:2  Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 

Let us review:

The false church has been eliminated.

The wedding has taken place in Heaven.

The wedding music has played.

The Bridegroom is the Lord Jesus Christ.

The saints of God are the Bride.

The Bride is wearing the right garments "righteousness".

We are discussing the wedding reception in this verse. The Marriage Supper.

We will soon begin our 1000 years honeymoon here on the remade earth.

After those 1000 years the Bridegroom will take His bride home to be with Him forever in Heaven.

And then "they will live happily ever after!

It is believed that these guests, who are being called are the Old Testament Saints such as John the Baptist who was a friend of the Groom.

Joh 3:29  He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. 

By the statement made by this messenger, he was one of those Old Testament Saints or at least a blood bought child of God.

John was so excited with what these words that he fell down to worship the one who gave him this message, which was not the Lord.

We are to worship no one but the Almighty God, Our Creator, Elohim, The Lord Jesus Christ!

*****Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. 

What do we know? We know that many people even some in the Church laugh and make fun of prophesy, but the truth is, the Lord Jesus loves prophesy. 

The Lord Jesus, He is the Spirit of prophecy!

He alone is worthy of our worship!

He alone is worthy of our conversations.

All other conversations are in reality vain!

Being Christian is to be like Christ Jesus and He loved prophecy and we should to!

Next lesson we get to see the true Second Coming of the Lord.

At the "Rapture", the Lord came as a thief and stole His Church(Bride) from this earth.

At the true Second Coming, He will return to the Mount of Olives, the same place where He left this earth to go back home for a while.

If you want to know the truth, then you must meet Jesus Christ and it would be best to meet Him during the Church Age!

Amen