The Earthly Kingdom of Christ, Part 3

We've been looking at the coming earthly kingdom of Jesus Christ our Lord described in Revelation chapter 20. And this is where we left off in our time last. Week as we looked at verses 4 to 6 of Revelation 20, how the saints themselves were reigned. We looked at two things: number one, the court of the king, and number two, the conditions.

Of the kingdom, and that's where we want to pick up this evening. The court of the king, of course, is made up of the people who as verse 4 says, sit on thrones. And we asked the question, who are the people who sit on those thrones? And we saw, as we looked in the scriptures, the Old Testament saints, as Daniel 7 describes, the Twelve Apostles, as Matthew 19 describes. The New Testament saints, the church as 1 Corinthians 6 and 2 Timothy 2 describe. And then, of course, the tribulational saints as those who have been martyred.

They too will reign on thrones and reign with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And verse 6 says, Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first res.

The ones in the first resurrection, it's described in other words in Luke 14: as the resurrection of the righteous.

John 5, 29, the resurrection of life. 1 Corinthians 15, 23, the resurrection of those who are Christ at His coming. And Hebrews 11 describes it as the better resurrection. Why are these people blessed and holy? It says, because the second death has no power over them.

What is the second death? The second death is recorded over in verse number 11. And I saw a great white throne, and him who sat upon it, whose presence in earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, and the great and the small, standing before the throne. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books according to their deeds. The sea gave up the dead which were in it, and the death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them.

And they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.

Those who are part of the first resurrection, the second death has no power over them. Those involved in the second resurrection, well, then eternal separation from God is theirs.

It's interesting to note that these people in the court of the king are blessed and holy. They are blessed because they have no part of the second resurrection.

They are blessed because they are a holy People. Turn back with me if you would, to Philippians chapter 3 for a second.

Philippians chapter 3 describes the glorified form. These people a part of the first resurrection. Philippians chapter 3, verse number 20 says, For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His gl by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to H. Somehow, your body and my body is going to be transform at the first resurrection.

It's going to be a glorified body. And of course, the question comes: what is that glorified body going to be like? If you want to understand a little bit of the glorified state, then you've got to somehow understand the glorified body of Jesus Christ our Lord. In Luke 24, we know that in his glorified body he could appear and disappear at will. So somehow you're going to be able to do that. Pretty neat, huh? And then in John 20, it talks about the fact that in Christ's glorified body, he could go through walls, through shut doors.

So apparently, in your glorified state, you're going to be able to do that because when you see him, you'll be like him, for you'll see him as he is. In Luke 2, he could transform him even with a thought. So whatever you think about, or wherever you happen to be thinking about, you're able to transport yourself in that location. In Luke 24, he could eat fish and he could eat honeycomb. So, evidently, in your glorified body, you'll be able to eat something. In Luke 24, he could sit down with the disciples and show them the scars in his hands.

Interesting. The only thing in heaven that's been made on earth are the nail prints in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Luke 2, verse number 32, he could speak and be understood. So, evidently, in your glorified body, you're able to speak intelligently, and people who are not in their glorified bodies will be able to understand you. In Acts 1:11, his body was incorruptible. Also, it was powerful. And also, he was glorified. So somehow that is what's going to make up your glorified body based on what we know the scriptures teach about Jesus Christ and his gl body.

All that to say is that it is impossible to know this side of eternity all that's going to take place in the Glorified body in what actually we're going to be doing. We do know this: that the court of the king is made up of those of the first resurrection.

Those Old Testament saints, those New Testament saints, those apostles, those martyred saints during the tribulation, they are all a part of the first.

Resurrection, and they will all have glorified bodies, and they will reign in the court of the king. Number two, the conditions of the kingdom.

What about the conditions? Let me give them to you briefly. First of all, politically. In Psalm 2, verses 6 to 8, in Daniel 2. Verse 35 and Daniel 7 verse number 14, we understand that Christ has a universal reign upon the earth. Psalm 72 says that it's absolute rule because every king and every nation will come and bow before him. Isaiah 11 tells us that it will be a righteous rule. The Lord Jesus Christ will rule not because of what he sees or what he hears, but based on the fact. That he is righteous, and every decision he makes will be a righteous one.

So, the political conditions of the world will be this: that Jesus Christ will have universal reign over the entire world. Everyone will bow before him, be subject to him, and he will rule in righteousness. Number two, the spiritual conditions.

The spiritual conditions are Very important because Israel takes a prominent place once again in the millennial kingdom. We told you before one of the reasons there is a 1,000-year reign of Christ upon the earth where Jesus Christ the Messiah. Sits on the throne of David ruling for the city of Jerusalem is because Christ has promised to restore the nation of Israel. When he does that, it says in Jeremiah 23, verse number 6, In his days, Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely. When you look at the spiritual conditions of the kingdom, you realize in Psalm 72, verse number 19, there's going to be the presence of Christ.

Isaiah 11, verse number 9, there's going to be the presence of truth. Psalm 72, verse number 7, the presence of righteousness. Isaiah 2, verse number 4, the presence of peace. Isaiah 12, verses 3 to 4, the Joel 2:2, the presence of a special Holy Spirit power. In Ezekiel 40 to 48, the presence. Of a new temple, those are some of the spiritual conditions, and thirdly, the physical conditions.

According to Isaiah 11, verses 6 and 9, the curse will be lifted. Joel 2, 21 to 27, food will be plentiful. Isaiah 29, verse number 18. Isaiah 33, verse number 24, health and healing will be plentiful. Evidence the physical condition of the earth will be renovated. As you recall, back in Romans chapter 8, we talked about last week. Another reason for the millennial reign of Christ is that there's going to be a renovation of the entire earth. Because all creation groans into the unveiling of the sons of God.

And so there's going to be a renovation of this earth, making the curse itself to be lifted to some degree from this earth. But remember, when Jesus Christ himself came, he preached these words: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. When he came preaching, he came offering the kingdom to his people. And as you recall, as you study the Gospels, you realize that when Christ was here, basically all disease and all sickness had been banished in the land of Israel. He healed all who came to him.

There was no one who came to him who wasn't healed. And as you read through the Gospels, you read of hundreds and thousands of people who would come to him and he would touch them and they would be healed. You'll also read the fact that when he had the opportunity, he would feed thousands of people. He fed the 20,000 and the 2,000 when he fed the five and four thousand. Those are only counting the men, of course. So you had the women, the children. You got about 2,000 at one time. And around 20,000 at another time, with just a few fishes and a few loaves of bread.

That was a taste of the coming kingdom. You see, if they would have accepted Christ as the Messiah, he would have set up his kingdom, and that's what they would have experienced forever. But you know, as well as I know, that they did not. They rejected him and crucified him. That was all part of the plan of God. But in the millennial kingdom, that's the way it's going to be. Basically, all disease is going to be banished. Why? Because Christ Himself is going to offer healing to all who come to Him.

He'll be able to feed as many as He wants to feed, because food will be plentiful. They are ideal conditions. They are supreme conditions. And let me answer this for you because it was asked or a question answer time last week about death in the millennial kingdom.

Is there going to be death in the Millennial Kingdom? Yes. How do we know? Because we know, according to Revelation 21. In the new heaven and the new earth, there is no more death. Revelation 2, verse number 4, you can read it. There 's also no more p. So, for that to happen, evidently there is death and pain during the millennial reign of Christ upon the earth. But after the great white throne judgment and the creation of the new heaven and the new earth, there is no more death. There is no more tears.

There are no more pain for people. Well, there is no more pain for people. That's very important to understand. But there will be death. But the only ones who will die in the millennium are those Who are unbelievers. Believers will not die. See, how do you know that? Simply this. Because there is no resurrection of millennial saints. Nowhere. Can't find it in the scriptures. There's the first resurrection.

And the first resurrection ends with the resurrection of the tribulational saints. Those are the ones who are resurrected. The last ones resurrected. Then comes the thousand-year reign of Christ. And then the second resurrection.

And the second resurrection is of the unbelieving dead. So, we can only conclude that if you become a believer in the millennium, you will not die. The only ones who will die. Are the unbelievers. How do we know that? Because there is death in the millennial kingdom, because Revelation 21:4 says there will be no longer any more death. For a longer discourse on that, you want to pick up F's book, The Footsteps of the Messiah. He goes into great detail in Isaiah 65 as to the characteristics of the kingdom and life and death in that kingdom.

It's very interesting. Anyway, I don know if that probably causes more questions than it answers, but there are some food for thought there for you. So, anyway, you have the reign of the saints. We understand that they will reign with the king of kings and lord of lords. They will rule with him. The condition of the kingdom is unlike anything we've ever seen before or ever. Can grasp in our finite minds because Jesus Christ Himself will rule from the throne of David. It's a perfect, great environment.

And then Sat will be released. That 's the fourth point. It says in verse number 7, and when the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison. Three things I want you to notice about the release of Satan from his prison.

First of all, his plan. Satan has a plan. It's a diabolical plan, but it is a plan. Notice the text says in verse number eight.

Satan will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth. Sat has not changed. He has been in the abyss for 1,000 years and he has not changed. Why? Because the abyss is not designed to change anybody. In fact, he's probably worse after that period than at any other period in his evil life. And so he comes back. And what does he do? The second thing I want you to notice is his people.

He comes back, and the children born during the kingdom. Remember, the only people that go into the kingdom are believers. They are the only ones. Christ comes back with his glorified saints. The Battle of Armageddon takes place. The false prophet, the Antichrist, were thrown into the lake of fire. The ser him was removed. And the only ones left are true believers, a remnant of Gentile believers, and a remnant. Jewish people, along with the 144,000 Jewish evangelists that made it through the tribulation because God put a seal upon them, they will all enter the kingdom.

They will all marry. They will have children. Those children will be born with sin natures, along with the people that go into the kingdom, still have a sin nature, although they are belie. There won't be any way for those people to really get together and rebel because Satan him is not in the process of organizing them. So, what does Christ do? He releases them. And then he will begin to organize all those people who inwardly have rebelled against the rulership of Christ. And that is, point number three, his purpose.

His purpose is to reveal the true character of the hypocrites. How can that happen? Listen, when Christ came the first time, they rejected him, right?

Say, well, yeah, I know, but his flesh. His being was veiled in fleshly humanity. I mean, of course they rejected him. But now, in his glorified state, ruling from the New Jerusalem, I mean, there is no way. They'll reject him. Oh, yes, they will. Listen, if two perfect people who do not have a sin nature And live in a perfect environment where sin has never been. Adam and Eve. Choose. To disobey God. What do you think a million depraved, sinful people will do in a perfect environment? Same thing.

They'll choose to rebel inward. And so when Satan is released, he will gather all those people together. And there will be millions of them, millions of them, who will come to fight again the Lord God. Two things I want you to see. Number one, the deception of the nations.

Number two, the destruction of the nations. It says in verse number 8, Satan is released from prison, will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together. For the war. The number of them is like the sand of the seashore. They came up on the broad plain of the earth. And surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved c. That is. The deception of the nations. Satan somehow has convinced them that they can conquer Christ. Remember, Satan is a master deceiver.

Revelation 12:9, Revelation:, Revelation:, Revelation 20, verse number 3, he Always portrayed as the deceiver. But I want you to notice something.

Satan only does what God des him to do. Ezekiel 38, verse number 16 says, I will bring you, that is, the armies of the world, against my land. He says, I'm going to bring you against me. This is God's plan. Satan just carries out God's plan. That's all he does. God's got a perfect plan, and in that plan, He has designed Satan to accomplish God's purposes. That's very important to understand. Satan is not sovereign. Satan is not omnipresent. Satan is not God. He's an angel. But he is subject to the supreme ruler of the world.

Please understand that Jesus Christ Himself rules over all. There is no difference in this than when Christ died on the cross in Acts chapter 2 or Acts chapter 3. The people killed them, but God directed it. God killed his own son. That's the bottom line. You can say the Romans put him on the tree, you can say the Jews put him there, you can say whatever you want, but specifically. In the predetermined foreknowledge of God, God the Father killed God the Son. That's what Acts 3:2 and 23 say. Note it says in verse number 8 that these people come from the four corners of the earth, literally around the globe.

Interesting. Satan's deception is global. Now, how long does it take him to do this? I don't know. Takes us and say. But it's a global deception. People buy into deception because they love their sin. And they buy at hook, line, and sinker. And then it says Gog and Mag. Now, I thought about spending a whole sermon on Gog and Magog, but I thought, no, you know what, you might not come back if I'm going to do that. So I decided not to do that. But who in the world is Gog and Mag? We know nothing about Gog.

We assume that Gog is the leader of Magog, and Magog is representative and symbolic of the nations of the world that rebel against the Messiah. The text says that the number of them are like the sand of the seashore. That is just so tragic. Ezekiel 38 says that the people are like a cloud cover the land. Do you know how many people that is? How many millions of people that must be that rebel again a perfect Ruler in a perfect environment. Amazing. Their deception, number two, their destruction.

It says they come up on a broad plane. Listen very carefully. According to Revelation 16, verse number 20, the topography of the land has changed. As you recall, back in our Discussion of Revel 16, we said that the topography of the land will change to such a degree that I believe it will go back to the way it was before the pre-flood days. I believe that the earth will be completely flat. In the millennial kingdom. The only hill will be Mount Zion, the city of our God, Jerusalem. Where Christ Himself will reign.

That's what I personally believe. I believe it'll be a flat land, and the people will come up on that flat land, and they will come up on that broad plain to fight against the Messiah. Remember, every island is moved away. And every hill is made flat according to Revel 16. So it's all gone. All you have is flat land. So all these nations, like a cloud that covers the land, like the sand on the seashore, they all come together to fight against. The Messiah. The text says they came up in the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved c.

S, the saints will be in the beloved city. What's that? That's the city of Jerusalem. And the saints just love to be with the Messiah. The saints love to be in his presence. You can read about it in Isaiah 24:2, Jeremiah:, Zechariah 14, verses 9 to 11. And here comes the water of the world. And listen to the description of the battle. And fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And you're like, it's all over. Just like that. It's over. Much quicker than the Battle of Armageddon. Much quicker.

And that battle itself is very quick. And then it says in verse number 10, and the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. The devil now fin occupies hell. The demise of Satan ass at the grave, executed at the end Of the kingdom. That is how the world as we know it will end. There will be a great white throne judgment. And then there will be a new heaven and a new earth.

That's where the world is going. You will either live forever with him or live forever without him. The destination of those who do not know him is described in verses 11 to 15. That is called the Judgment Day. The day man will be in God's court. Can you imagine being in God's courtroom? There is no opportunity for you to plead your case because you have no case. God renders the verdict. It's always a true verdict. It's always a righteous verdict. Because God is true and righteous. But one day the unbelieving man will be in God's courtroom, and God will pronounce his sentence upon that man.