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| Art by Pat Marvenko Smith, copyright 1992 |
In this chapter we will see Jesus returning with His Church to establish the Millennial Kingdom. The purpose
of this booklet is not to discorage anyone nor to force them into pessimistic thinking by saying: "Since the Lord is returning
so soon and the end of the world is coming, why should we work so hard to keep up with the payments, or work hard in school?
Or why should we get married and bother to have a family? Why should anyone bring children, into this world, if everything, which
was said before, is true? We will just sit and study the Bible, pray and be ready for Christ's return." I hope that nobody
will come to this conclusion. However, if anybody should be tempted with this attitude, I will answer you with the words of
the apostle Paul as he addressed those indifferent people in Thessalonica. Some had become careless, indolent and lazy after
they read his first epistle, where he talked about Christ's return. This hard working apostle and faithful servant of Jesus
Christ wrote: "Whoever refuses to work, is not allowed to eat." (2.Thess.3:10)
Christian people must always keep a good balance between physical and spiritual life. As far as this temporal
life is concerned, they must plan and work as if they were to live for a hundred years. However, at the same time, they must
be ready to depart from this world as if it were today. Those people who have this balance are ready for this life and
for eternity.
1. The Second return of Christ with the Church to this earth will be personal and visible. The apostle John
says: "Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the people
of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen." (Rev. 1:7) You remember that in Chapter One where we were talking
about the Rapture of the Church, we saw from 1.Thess.4:13-17 that at His return for the Church, Jesus will not touch this
earth. All believers will meet Him in the air and will be taken into the clouds. But at His return with the Church, Jesus
will come to this world and everybody will see Him.
2. Jesus will return to judge the world. The most beautiful picture of our Lord's return, with power and
glory, is described in Revelation 19:11-16. Jesus will come on a white horse. On Palm Sunday, He came to Jerusalem on a borrowed
donkey. (Matt.21:5) Now He returns as VICTOR and as Mighty Conqueror on a white horse. "White" stands for purity and holiness.
He is called "Faithful and True". Heavenly multitudes will follow Him. Before He was rejected by many and followed by only
a few. Now, a great army will follow Him. Out of His mouth comes "a sharp sword." This stands for war and judgment upon all
unbelievers and rebels who were left behind. Before the crucifixion most people followed Jesus only when they wanted His healing
and help, or when they needed bread. (Matt.26:56) At His Second Coming ti this world Jesus will be known and seen as "King
of Kings and Lord of Lords". At His first advent Jesus came "to seek and to save" (Luke 19:10) Till this day He is calling
everyone by saying: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." (Matt.11:28) At His Second
coming He is returning to "judge the world with justice". (Acts 17:31) He will say to all those unrepentent rebels: "Depart
from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." (Matt.25:41) "Then I will
tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!"
Today we see so much injustice even among certain judges. They are corrupted by bribes and prejudice.
If only they would follow the advise Moses gave to his judges before they entered the promised land as he warned his people:
" Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists
the words of the righteous." (Deut.16:19) Unfortunately even today some people are unjustly condemned for the crimes
of others. Some spend many years in prison and some even lose their lives because of unjust judges or false witnesses, because
of the colour of their skin, their religious or political beliefs. But this will not happen any more. Praise be to God. Jesus
knows what it means to be condemned unjustly. He Himself was accused falsely by the priests and judged wrongly by Caiaphas
and Pilate. Noe He returns as the Faithful, True ans Just judge. (Rev.19:11)
3. At His Second Coming to this world Jesus will be crowned with many crowns. (Rev.19:12) Do you remember
that on earth He was crowned with a crown of thorns, the symbol of humiliation and curse? (Matt.27:28) But when He comes back
to this world He will be crowned with many crowns, with power, glory, honour and authority. Jesus will also return as "King
of Kings and Lord of Lords" (Rev.19:16) with "an iron scepter" (Rev.19:15). The Psalmist is talking about this kingdom in
Psalm 2:6-9. This means that now the whole world will be compelled to bow down before Jesus, submit to His authority and worship
Him.
4. The Judgment of all nations of the world. Right after the battle of Armageddon, before Jesus establishes
His Millennial Kingdom, He will judge all nations of the world. The prophet Joel writes about this: "I will gather all nations
and bring them to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning my inheritance, my people
Israel, for they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land." (Joel 3:2) It appears that God will judge
these nations of the world on the basis how they treated the Jewish people during the time of the Great Tribulation, as well
how they mistreated them many times before. This Valley of Jehoshaphat is between the Mount of Olives and city of Jerusalem.
Today there is a large cemetery in that place. Our guide during our three visits to Israel in 1973, 1974 and 1975, pointed
out to us that everybody wants to bury their loved ones closer to the Golden Gate, so that they will be closer to it when
the Messiah comes. According to Matthew 25:31-46, when Jesus returns in His glory and with all the angels, He as the Great
Shepherd, will separate the people as a shepherd divides the sheep from the goats. The Church, or as the apostle Paul calls
them, "the Saints", will help Christ to judge these nations. We read: "Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?"
(1 Cor.6:2)
I stated before, that this will be the judgment of the nations of the world. The judgment of all unbelievers
will be after the millennial kingdom.(Rev.20:5) At the judgment in the Valley of Jehoshaphat God will judge all nations in
the light of their treatment of His chosen people, Israel, during the Great Tribulation. It appears that during the time of
"Jacob's trouble" (Jer.30:7) Israel will be betrayed and abandoned even by their closest allies. As it was in the days of
Pharaon, when the Egyptians were killing Hebrew boys (Ex.1:22), and during the rule of Hitler when millions of Jews were exterminated
and hardly anyone tried to help them, so it will be during the days of "Jacob's trouble", Jewish people will again suffer
greatly and nobody will come to their rescue or try to defend them. At the end of the Great Tribulation, help for the Jewish
people will finally come, but it will come from their God and from their Messiah.
Perhaps you are asking this legitimate question: "Who are these people who will be judged in the Valley
of Jehoshaphat? Where will they come from, since most of the world's population will be destroyed during the Great Tribulation,
and especially at that terrible and very destructive battle of Armageddon?" It is true that there will be very few people
alive on this planet earth, because we read that, "The day of the Lord is coming - that criel day of his firce anger and fury.
The earth will be made a wilderness, and every sinner will be destroyed." "Those who survive will be scarcer than gold" "The
Lord is going to devastate the earth and leave it desolate.. The earth will be shattered and ruined. The Lord has
spoken and it will be done. So God has pronounced a curse on the earth. Its people are paying for what they have done. Fewer
and fewer remain alive... This is what will happen in every nation all over the world. It will be like the end of harvest,
when the olives have been beaten off every tree and the last grapes picked from the vines." (Isaiah 13:9-12 and 24:1,
3 6 and 13) However, all those who remain alive when Jesus returns, must appear before this judgment in the Valley of
Jehoshaphat. Here it will be decided which nations, not individual people, but nations, will enter the Millennial
Kingdom and which nations will be excluded from it.
According to several passages of God's Holy Word, we see that the people of Israel will finally recognize
and accept Jesus as their Messiah. Jesus at His Second Return to this earth will come to the Mount of Olives from which He
ascended into heaven. (Acts 1:11-12) We read about it in Zechariah 14:4, that "On that day his fett will stand on the Mount
of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with
half of the mountain moving north and half moving south." When Jesus came to Bethlehem and later on Palm Sunday to Jerusalem
as Saviour, the people of Israel did not recognize Him nor did they accept Him as their promised Messiah. Of course many individual
Jewish people accepted Christ as Saviour and Lord, even as many of the Jewish people are Christians today. After all,
Peter, John, Matthew and all other apostles were Jews. However, even today Israel as a nation does not recognize Jesus as
their Messiah. They do not honour Him nor follow Him. At His second advent, when Jesus returns in glory and with power and
with angels, the people of Israel as a nation, will recognize and accept Him as their long awaiting Messiah. After the
Great Tribulation (Jacob's trouble), when the Jewish people will be greatly persecuted, they will pray to God for the Messiah
- Deliverer. When Jesus comes, they will recognize Him and accept Him gladly. We read that "They will look on me, the one
they have pierced, and mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn
son." (Zech.12:10) The whole nation of Israel will repent of their sin, when they rejected Jesus. Now they will accept Him
as their Messiah and King. Again we read in Zechariah: "They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, "They
are my people," and they wil say, "The Lord is our God." (Zech. 13:9)
My friend, are you ready to meet the Lord Jesus if He should return today? Do not ignore this Biblical warning.
Don't be like the man who bought himself a high quality barometer. As soon as he came home and put it on the wall, it pointed
to the section marked "Hurricane". Thinking that it was stuck, he shook it and turned it upsidedown. When the indicator stayed
still pointing to the section "Hurricane", then man got very angry and wrote a letter to the company who made the barometer.
When he was going out to mail it, the hurricane struck. Luckily he was not hurt, but he learned a very important lesson. From
then on he never doubted his barometer. Look at and learn from a much clearer indicator than a barometer. It is God's Holy
Word, the Bible. It is never wrong! Listen to its warning and be ready for that judgment day. Hide yourself in Christ and
thus escape the judgment to come. The Bible says: "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me
has eternal life and will not be condemned..." (John 5:24)
I will close this chapter with an illustration. The Governor came with the chaplain into the state prison
to announce to inmates an amnesty and a day of grace. But the prisoners did not want to listen to his message. They did not
beleive him because they did not recognize him. Most of them were jeering. Many were swearing and cursing. Some even threw
orange peels at him. Hurt and disappointed the governor left the prison. In few weeks he returned with his official body
guards and with an official stately introduction. However, at this time he returned only to announce their punishment and
judgment. Although some were crying and pleading for mercy, it was too late!
Don't you neglect your day of salvation, dear reader, by rebelling against your Saviour. Repent of
your sin and tirn to Jesus now, while He is calling you, saying: "Come unto me all ..."(Matt.11:28) or one day He will say:
"I never knew you. Get away from me, you wicked people!" (Matthew 7:23).
Chapter 5:
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