
| Mystery Of The Ages Chapters
Mystery of the Angels and Evil Spirits Wisdom
|
Millennial Growth in Knowledge,
Overcoming Just as the
converted Christian in this present age must continue to
live a life of overcoming, and of spiritual growth and
development (II Pet. 3:18), so will they in the
millennium. Happily they then will not have to overcome
Satan. But they shall have to overcome all evil impulses,
habits or temptations, innate within themselves. |
After the Millennium
Following the
millennial reign of Christ and the Church on earth, however,
shall come the time of God's JUDGMENT on this world. A criminal
may have committed a great crime--even murder. But until caught,
and brought to trial before a judge, he has not yet been judged
or condemned.
In
the final judgment, with Christ on the judgment seat, every human
who has lived in this world shall be brought back to life (Rev.
20:11-12). They shall then give account for their sins committed
in their first life.
The
dead IN Christ at the time of Jesus' Second Coming shall be
resurrected to immortal God-life if they shall have died, and
those still living who are IN Christ at his coming and led by his
Holy Spirit shall rule and teach with and under Christ during the
thousand years. But all others who have died shall not live again
until the end of the millennium (Rev. 20:5).
The
37th chapter of Ezekiel also shows the resurrection at the time
of the judgment. This 37th chapter is the prophecy of the
"dry bones." The Bible itself interprets these dry
bones in verse 11 where it says these dry bones are the House of
Israel: "...behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our
hope is lost...." Like the prophecy says: "Again he
said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye
dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God
unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you,
and ye shall live: and I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring
flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you,
and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord"
(verses 4-6).
Next
this prophecy tells of the Great White Throne Judgment when this
whole house of Israel, who sinned so greatly against God, shall
be resurrected.
The
prophecy continues: "So I prophesied as I was commanded: and
as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the
bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the
sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them
above: but there was no breath in them.
Then said he unto me,
Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the
wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O
breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.
"So
I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them,
and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great
army" (verses 7-10). This shows being brought back to mortal
life, sustained by breathing of air, just as in their original
life. That is, mortal life--still unconverted. Then God says,
"Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you
to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of
Israel." This is the resurrection in the Great White Throne
Judgment. All the ancient Israelites are resurrected mortal,
precisely as in their first life. Then what? "And ye shall
know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my
people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my
spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your
own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and
performed it, saith the Lord" (verses 13, 14).
In
other words, in the Great White Throne Judgment after the
millennium, Old Testament Israel will be resurrected; then they
shall come to "know the Lord." God's knowledge will
come to them. The resurrected then will read this: "And
there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein
ye have been defiled; and ye shall lothe yourselves in your own
sight for all your evils that ye have committed. And ye shall
know that I am the Lord, when I have wrought with you for my
name's sake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to
your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord
God" (Ezek. 20:43-44).
Then
upon this repentance, notice again in Ezek. 37:14: "And
shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place
you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have
spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord."
Thus,
in the Great White Throne Judgment, they will come to know that
Christ the Savior had come and died for them. And upon their
repentance they shall receive the Holy Spirit and with it
salvation and eternal life.
All
who had lived, previously unjudged, not only Israel, but of all
nations, will be resurrected MORTAL, physical, as they were in
their first life up to the time of death. Those in this judgment
will be mortals. They will then give account and be judged.
Concerning this Great White Throne Judgment Jesus said: "The
men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and
shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of
Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here. The queen of
the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and
shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the
earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than
Solomon is here" (Matt. 12:41-42; also in Luke 11:31-32).
Also: "But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable
in that day for Sodom, than for that city.... But it shall be
more tolerable for Tyre and Sidom at the judgment, than for
you" (Luke 10:12, 14). There will be punishments. Those who
have sinned little will be beaten with few stripes, but those who
have sinned greatly, knowing God's will, with many stripes (Luke
12:47-48).
But
the penalty for sin is DEATH in the final last judgment. Since
all have sinned, all shall be judged guilty and sentenced. But
they shall learn that Jesus Christ paid their penalty in their
stead. And in repentance, demonstrated by performance, they will
be given an opportunity yet at that time to choose LIFE, and be
made immortal.
What
a merciful God is the Creator, whose mercy is as great toward us
as the heavens are high above the earth. And he is able to remove
our transgressions from us as far as the east is from the west
(Ps. 103:12).
BUT
THERE IS MORE! MUCH MORE!
Incredible Human Potential Revealed
In the book of Hebrews
we read: "For unto the angels hath he [God] not put in
subjection the world to come, whereof we speak" (Heb. 2:5).
The theme of the context here is "the world to come."
There
is but one earth, but the Bible speaks of three worlds, ages or
civilizations on the earth--the "world that then was"
(the antediluvian world from Adam to Noah); this "present
evil world" (from the Flood until Christ's return, yet
future); and "the world to come" (which will start when
Christ comes and sets up the kingdom of God).
This
verse speaks of angels as if the world had been put in subjection
to angels; in fact, in the very beginning of this book of
Hebrews, the first chapter, it is speaking of Christ and angels
and the relation of angels to humans. This was explained in
Chapter 2 of this book.
But
bear in mind the general theme here, or context, is "the
world to come, whereof we speak"--not this present age, now
coming rapidly to its end! Continue on in verse 6: "But one
in a certain place testified, saying...." Then follows a
quotation from the first six verses only of the eighth Psalm.
In
this psalm, David continued showing specifically that God has now
placed in subjection under man the solid earth, the earth's
atmosphere or air, and the sea. But now the writer of the book of
Hebrews is inspired to expand David's prophecy to add something
radically different--something to happen in the world to come!
This
revealed knowledge of God's purpose for mankind--of man's
incredible awesome potential--staggers the imagination. Science
knows nothing of it--no religion reveals it, so far as I
know--and certainly higher education is in utter ignorance of it.
Nevertheless,
it is what God says he has prepared for them that love him (I
Cor. 2:9-10).
I
have said before that God revealed necessary knowledge to our
first parents, but they didn't believe what he said! Some 4,000
years later, Jesus Christ the second Adam appeared on earth with
a message direct from God the Father in heaven, revealing the
same necessary knowledge--but only a handful--a hundred and
twenty--believed what he said, though many professed to
"believe on him" (as in John 8:30-31, 37-38, 40,
45-46).
Today
science, religion and education still do not believe WHAT HE
SAID.
But
now let's see what is said in this passage in hebrews, beginning
where Hebrews leaves off quoting the eighth Psalm: "Thou
hast put all things in subjection under his [man's] feet. For in
that he [God] put all in subjection under him [man], he [God]
left NOTHING that is not put under him" (Heb. 2:8).
Is
it possible God could mean what he says "all things"?
Nothing excluded?
In
the first chapter, the Moffatt translation of the Bible renders
the Greek word translated "all things" as "the
universe" (verse 8).
In
other words, for those willing to believe what God says, he says
that he has decreed the entire universe--with all its galaxies,
its countless suns and planets--everything--will be put under
man's subjection.
But
wait a moment! Before you disbelieve, read the next words in the
same eighth verse: "But now we see not yet all things [the
endless universe] put under him [man]." Remember (verse 5),
this is speaking of the "world to come"--not today's
world. But what do we see now, today? "But we see Jesus, who
was made a little lower than the angels [or, "for a little
while lower"] for the suffering of death, crowned with glory
and honour." Man, other than Christ, is NOT YET
"crowned with glory and honour."
But
see how Christ is already crowned with glory and honor. Continue:
"For it became him, for whom are all things [the entire
universe] and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto
glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect
through sufferings....for which cause he [Christ] is not ashamed
to call them brethren" (verses 10-11).
In
other words, Christians having God's Spirit are joint heirs with
Christ to INHERIT all that Christ already has inherited. He is
now in glory! He has already inherited the entire universe. He
sustains it by his power. Man, if he is converted, having God's
Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:9), is now only and HEIR--not yet a
possessor.
But
see now how Christ already has been crowned with glory and
honor--and is already in possession--has already inherited. Begin
with Hebrews, chapter 1:
"God...hath
in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath
appointed heir of all things [the entire universe], by whom also
he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and
the express image of his person, and upholding [sustaining] all
things [the entire universe] by the word of his power..."
(Heb. 1:1-3).
The
living Christ already sustains the entire universe by his
limitless divine power. The passage continues to show his
superiority over the angels--he is the begotten and born Son of
God--angels are merely individually created beings. Angels are
now administering spirits (invisible to us), ministering to
us--to us who are now in lower status than angels--but who are
heirs of salvation, when we, like Christ, shall become born sons
of God (Heb. 1:4-14).
Outer Space--Planets Now Dead
Now put this
together with what is revealed in the eighth chapter of Romans.
Here
it speaks of Christ as God's Son: "...that he might be the
firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29). Humans, having
God's Holy Spirit, are heirs of God and joint heirs with
Christ--who, alone of all humans, has already been born as God's
Son by a resurrection from the dead (Rom. 1:4). He is the FIRST
of the human family to be born into the family of God--the
kingdom of God. He is our pioneer who has gone on before. We
shall follow at the resurrection of the just at Christ's return
to earth in supreme power and glory.
This
eighth chapter of Romans, verse 9, says if we have within us the
Holy Spirit of God we are his begotten sons, but if we do not
have his Spirit we are none of his--not Christians at all. But
verse 11 says that if we have God's Holy Spirit growing within
and leading us we shall be raised from the dead by his
Spirit--(or if living when Christ comes we shall be changed from
mortal to immortal).
Now
continue: "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they
are the sons of God....The Spirit itself beareth witness with our
spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then
heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ...also glorified
together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time
are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be
revealed in us..." (Rom. 8:14-18).
Continue,
Revised Standard Version: "For the creation waits with eager
longing for the revealing of the sons of God; for the creation
[all the suns, planets, stars, moons] was subjected to futility,
not of its own will but by the will of him who subjected it in
hope; because the creation itself will be set free from its
bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children
of God. We know that the whole creation [stars, suns and moons
now in decay and futility] has been groaning in travail together
until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves [we
Spirit-begotten humans], who have the first fruits of the Spirit
[the very FEW now being called to salvation--the
"firstfruits"], groan inwardly as we wait for the
[birth] as sons" (verses 19-23).
What
an amazing marvelous revelation of knowledge!
No
more amazing, awesome, eye-opening passage could be written!
It
is so astonishingly revealing, one doesn't fully grasp it just
reading quickly through.
First
I quoted from verse 29 of Romans 8 stating Christ WAS the
firstborn of MANY BRETHREN.
In
Hebrews 1, we see that Christ, the first human to be born by a
resurrection from the dead, has been glorified and now sustains
the entire universe. He is our Pioneer who has gone on ahead. At
his return to earth in power and glory, those who have been
converted and received God's Holy Spirit shall be born into the
God family by a resurrection. Then the entire universe will be
put into subjection UNDER them!
Then,
from Romans 8, if we have and are led by the Holy Spirit of God,
we shall be raised to Spirit composition and immortality in the
God family even as Christ was in A.D. 31 upon his resurrection.
Now
once again from verse 19: "For the creation waits with eager
longing for the revealing of the sons of God" (RSV). This
shall happen after the time of the resurrection, when those who
are human actually become--by a resurrection or instantaneous
change from mortal flesh to Spirit immortality--sons of God.
Astonishing?--Entire Universe to Be Renewed
Now understand please.
Why should the whole universe--the creation--be waiting with
eager longing for the actual birth and appearing of all these
sons of God to be born into the family of God? The following
verses portray a universe filled with planets in decay and
futility--yet as if subjected now to this dead state in hope!
"Because the creation itself [the universe not now capable
of sustaining life] will be set free from its bondage to decay
and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God."
How
did all the planets fall into the bondage of decay? Surely God
did not so create them!
Decay
signifies a state or condition caused by degeneration and
decomposition from a previous undecayed state. God, then, created
these planets in a state of NONdecay.
But
something caused deterioration to set in.
What
could have caused all this "bondage to decay"?
It
cannot be the state in which God created them! Everything we read
in God's revealed Word about God's creation shows it to have been
a perfect creation. The earth was first created a perfect
creation of glorious beauty.
We
see that angels inhabited the earth prior to the creation of man.
Angels, who were perfect from the creation until iniquity or
lawlessness was found in them, caused the whole surface of the
earth to turn into a state of decay, confusion and emptiness, as
shown in chapter 2.
Could
the whole universe with its myriad of other planets have been
created for the eventual purpose of sustaining life? We are not
told specifically be revelation in God's Word whether it was or
not, but what we are told throws additional light on why God
decided to create man!
Continue
this passage in Romans 8:22: "We know that the whole
creation [universe] has been groaning in travail together until
now." Consider that the creation is compared to a mother
about to be delivered of her child. The creation is pictured as
groaning in travail in hope (verse 20), awaiting the birth by
resurrection to immortality, of the children of God. It is as if
the creation is the mother and God is the father. Anyway the
whole thrust of the passage is that when we (converted humans)
are born of God--then having the power and glory of God--we are
going to do as God did when this earth had been laid "waste
and empty"--Hebrew, tohu and bohu (Gen. 1:2). Christ, who
renewed "the face of the earth" (Ps. 104:30), was
renewing what had been destroyed by the rebellion of the sinning
angels.
What
these wonderful passages imply and indicate goes far beyond the
amount specifically revealed.
This
passage indicates precisely what all astronomers and scientific
evidence indicate--the suns are as balls of fire, giving out
light and heat; but the planets, except for this earth, are in a
state of death, decay and futility--but not forever--waiting
until converted humans are BORN the children of God; born into
the very divine family of God, forming the kingdom of God.
Jesus'
gospel was the kingdom of God. What I am showing you here is that
Christ's gospel of the kingdom actually included all this
knowledge here revealed--even the whole universe is to be ruled
by us, who, with God the Father and Christ, become the kingdom of
God.
God
is first of all Creator, but God is also Ruler. And he is
Educator, who reveals knowledge beyond and outside the scope of
human mind of itself to comprehend!
Put
together all these scriptures I have used in this chapter, and
you begin to grasp the incredible human potential. Our potential
is to be born into the God family, receiving total power! We are
to be given jurisdiction over the entire universe!
What
are we going to do then? These scriptures indicate we shall
impart life to billions and billions of dead planets, as life has
been imparted to this earth. We shall create, as God directs and
instructs. We shall rule through all eternity! Revelation 21 and
22 show there will then be no pain, no suffering, no evil,
because we shall have learned to choose God's way of good. It
will be an eternal life of accomplishment, constantly looking
forward in super-joyous anticipation to new creative projects,
and still looking back also on accomplishments with happiness and
joy over what shall have been already accomplished.
We
shall never grow tired and weary. Always alive--full of joyous
energy, vitality, exuberant life and strength and power!
Earth To Become UNIVERSE Headquarters
Finally,
even the Father will come to this earth. His throne over the
whole universe will be established on this earth.
Notice
in I Corinthians 15:24, after speaking of the various
resurrections, it is recorded: "Then cometh the end, when he
shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when
he shall have put down all rule and all authority and
power."
In
Revelation 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."
And
further in Revelation 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."
When
it speaks of God and the LAMB, the LAMB represents Christ and God
refers to the FATHER.
Finally
the at-one-ment shall be completed. Both God the Father and the
Son Jesus Christ in us and we united with them as the one great
supreme God family.
How
wonderful beyond the ability of words to express is the glory of
God and his wonderful purpose actually now in progress. Praise,
honor and glory be to God and to Jesus Christ forever and
forever.
With
God's great master plan of seven thousand years finally
completed--the mystery of the ages finally revealed, and with the
re-creating of the vast universe and eternity lying ahead, we
come finally to
THE
BEGINNING.
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