REVELATION: He is Coming; the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ; The Millennial Kingdom & Beyond

Friends, the day is coming. Jesus will call the church home, and shortly after, the Tribulation will begin. 

• The 7th Bowl (Revelation 16:17-21) finishes the Wrath of God.
• And with that, Babylon (the world system and city) will be "remembered" by God (Revelation 18) - destroyed.
• Revelation 19 - there is rejoicing in Heaven (over the fall of Babylon), Jesus returns, judges the nations, and sets up His millennial kingdom.

What follows is the who and what in order starting with the return of Jesus:

• Jesus
• Descends from Heaven and returns to the earth for the 2nd time
• Matt. 24: 29, 30; 25: 31; Rev. 19: 11-13
• The armies in Heaven (The raptured Church…His bride)
• Follow Jesus on white horses as he descends to earth
• Rev. 19: 14 
• SOULS of all BELIEVERS who died before Christ was crucified
• Descend to earth with Jesus. 
• 1. Jesus resurrects their bodies from their graves, 
• 2. Jesus gives them glorified bodies, 
• 3. Jesus joins their souls with their glorified bodies, and 
• 4. They all remain on earth with Him. 
• 1 Cor. 15: 22-24; Dan. 12: 2a, 13; Rev. 20: 5b-6
• SOULS of all BELIEVERS who died during the 7 year period
• Descend to earth with Jesus. 
• 1. Jesus resurrects their bodies from their graves, 
• 2. Jesus gives them glorified bodies, 
• 3. Jesus joins their souls with their glorified bodies, and 
• 4. They all remain on earth with Him. 
• 1 Cor. 15: 22-24; Rev. 6: 9-11; 20: 4-6
• SATAN
• Cast into the Abyss for 1000 years
• Rev. 20: 1-3
• THE ANTI-CHRIST
• Cast into The Lake Of Fire (Hell)
• Dan. 7: 11, 26; Rev. 19: 20
• THE FALSE PROPHET
• Cast into The Lake Of Fire (Hell)
• Rev. 19: 20
• All LIVING JEWISH UNBELIEVERS
• 1. Gathered & Slaughtered by Jesus, 
• 2. Their BODIES are buried on earth, ashes or in the sea, 
• 3. Their SOULS descend into The Well of Departed Souls (Hades) 
• Dan. 12: 1, 7, 11-12; Matt. 24: 15-22; Zech. 13: 8; Amos 9: 8-10; Isaiah 10: 20-23; Num. 16: 30, 33;Luke 16: 22-28
• THE NATIONS (Living Gentile Unbelievers who gather for war with Satan against Jesus) 
• 1. Jesus wages war against them by TREADING THE WINE PRESS from Bosrah, through the Kidron Valley, to The Jezreel Valley (Har Magedon-Armageddon), 
• 2. Their BODIES are buried on earth, ashes or in the sea, 
• 3. Their SOULS descend into The Well of Departed Souls (Hades) 
• Isaiah 34: 1-8; 63: 1-6; Joel 3: 12-14; Rev. 16: 12-16; 14: 20; Rev. 19: 15-16; Rev. 20: 5a-6
• JESUS
• Establishes His throne in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount
• Dan. 7: 13-14; Matt. 25: 31
• JESUS
• JUDGMENT OF THE NATIONS
• Dan. 7: 9-12; Matt. 25: 32
• All LIVING GENTILE BELIEVERS
• Jesus queue's them in a line and declares them to be SHEEP
• Matt. 25: 32-40 (Sheep)
• All LIVING GENTILE UNBELIEVERS
• Jesus queue's them in a line and declares them to be GOATS
• Matt. 25: 32-33, 41-45 (Goats)
• All LIVING GENTILE UNBELIEVERS (GOATS)
• Cast ALIVE into The Lake Of Fire (Hell)
• Matt. 25: 46
• ALL LIVING JEWISH & GENTILE BELIEVERS
• Only these are left to populate the earth. 
• They NEVER die, continue to have children, and live eternally with Him 
• Matt. 25: 32-40, 46 (Gentiles) Matt.24: 31; Isaiah 11: 11-12; Zech. 13: 8-9; 8: 1-23 (Jewish)

Jesus is going to reign on earth 1,000 years! He will rightfully be King of Kings!

Millenial Kingdom: 1,000 years

• JEWISH PEOPLE
• No more Jewish unbelievers EVER AGAIN on earth.
• Dan. 9: 24;   Zeph. 3: 12-13; Zech. 14: 9-11, 20-21; Isaiah 59: 20-1; Isaiah 60: 1-22; Jer. 31: 33-34
• SOULS of GENTILE UNBELIEVERS who died during the 1000 year reign
• Descended to The Well Of Departed Souls (Hades)
• Num. 16: 30, 33: Luke 16: 22-28
• BODIES of GENTILE UNBELIEVERS who died during the 1000 year reign
• On earth in the ground, in ashes or in the sea
• Rev. 20: 5a-6
• ALL LIVING BELIEVERS during the 1000 year reign
• ETERNAL LIFE WITH JESUS ON EARTH
• Dan. 7: 27; Rev. 20: 4-6

And at the end of the 1,000 years Satan will be released to deceive the nations once again, there will be a battle, and we already know the end: JESUS WINS! HE IS VICTORIOUS!

At the end of the Millenial Reign of Christ

• SATAN
• Released from prison in the Abyss
• Rev. 20: 7
• SATAN
• Comes out to deceive the Nations (Gentile Unbelievers)
• Rev. 20: 8
• SATAN
• Gathers the Nations (Gentile Unbelievers) for war against Jesus
• Rev. 20: 8
• SATAN
• Amasses his army and surrounds Jerusalem
• Rev. 20: 9
• SATAN
• Fire comes down from Heaven and devours his army
• Rev. 20: 9
• SATAN
• Cast into the Lake of Fire (Hell)
• Rev. 20: 10
• JESUS
• Sits on His GREAT WHITE THRONE.
• No more Heaven and Earth as we know it
• Rev. 20: 11
• All DEAD UNBELIEVERS: JEWISH AND GENTILE
• (Except for the "Goats", who's sentence has already been carried out during the Judgment of the Nations)
• The Well of Departed Souls is emptied out and their souls are united with their dead bodies from in the ground, in ashes or in the sea
• Dan. 12: 2b;  Rev. 20: 5-6; 12-15
• All DEAD UNBELIEVERS: JEWISH AND GENTILE
• (Except for the "Goats", who's sentence has already been carried out during the Judgment of the Nations)
• They ALL stand before the GREAT WHITE THRONE
• Rev. 20: 12-15
• ALL LIVING/SPIRITUALLY DEAD GENTILE UNBELIEVERS
• who were born during the 1000 year reign and still living at the time of The Great White Throne Judgment
• They ALL stand before the GREAT WHITE THRONE
• Rev. 20: 12-15
• ALL OF THE ABOVE LIVING AND DEAD UNBELIEVERS
• Cast into the Lake of Fire (Hell)
• Rev. 20: 15
• BELIEVERS
• Those in glorified bodies as well as those living in their bodies eternally reside with Jesus in the NEW HEAVEN, NEW EARTH & NEW JERUSALEM
• Rev. 21: 1-3, 7, 23-27; 22: 1-4

I will confess, there is a part of me that longs for the Rapture, the 1,000 years, and the New: Heaven, Earth, & Jerusalem. But there is the bigger part that knows that so many are not ready, spiritually. Once the church is gone from earth...there will be terrible times and happenings on earth. Friend, I do not want you to go through the Tribulation. I do not want you to live during the time of the Man of Lawlessness, the Anti-Christ. I want you to among those who are called to heaven by Jesus, who are spared the Wrath of God.

Please message me. Reach out to me. Let us talk. 

God has laid out in His word. We know what is going to happen. And I hope you make the right choice before the time is too late.

MARRIAGE: Protect it! Fight for it!

This past Tuesday night was a normal night for our household. The one exception is that the kids were super excited to be going to the zoo the next day. Getting 2 kids under the age of 5 to bed with thoughts of lions, tigers and bears (oh my!) in their heads is not an easily accomplished task.

But my husband in persevered and both kids went to bed. So the two of us did what I assume most couples do in America these days once the kids are in bed, we plopped on the couch, put a sitcom on, and somewhat mindlessly browsed Facebook on our phone.

A post by a lady stood out to me in my browsing. The summer study for my connection group at church is Lysa TerKeurst's "Finding I AM." So maybe because I am engrossed in her study every day, sharing tidbits on our connection group page, seeing that she posted something stood out. So I read her post.

And then I was in shock. My heart broke for Lysa. For those of you who want to read her own words, here is the link to her post:

 

Rejection, Heartache, and a Faithful God

Let me summarize:

Her husband of almost 25 years for about 2 years was unfaithful to her and developed a substance abuse issue. And after therapy, counseling, prayer, fasting she is filing for divorce. Her own words:

"When I first found out about Art’s infidelity 18 months ago, I made the decision not to divorce him. I had just finished fasting and praying for 28 days and really felt led by the Lord that I was to love Art in my reaction to this shocking news and trust God for every step moving forward. I was still committed to doing everything I could think of to make our story one of restoration, even in the face of the worst kind of betrayal imaginable. I prayed continually. I sought counsel from family and other wise friends. And Art and I even made repeated trips across the country together for intensive counseling especially designed for marriages in crisis. But sadly, though I have repeatedly forgiven and accepted him back, he has continued to abuse substances, be unfaithful, and refused to be truthful to me and our family.

I believe I have the capacity to love Art and to forgive him, but his steadfast refusal to end the infidelity has led me to make the hardest decision of my life. After much prayer and consultation with wise, biblically-minded people, I have decided that Art has abandoned our marriage. Yet, the Lord has been so faithful to help me at every step of this very painful journey and has now assured me I’ve done all I can do."

Do you understand why I was (and still somewhat am) in shock? Let's review Lysa's "resume" if you will:

• President of Proverbs 31 Ministries and the New York Times best-selling author of Uninvited, The Best Yes, Unglued, Made to Crave, and 16 other books.
• Married 25 years
• Raised 5 children

Now lets go worldly - she is gorgeous, put together. She is the WHOLE package.
But she wasn't enough.

Lord help us, if a woman like her isn't enough - how can our own marriage survive? We are dis-shelved, stay at home moms, or assistants in offices. Our roots are showing (our ends need a trim too to be honest), toe nails need a pedicure, our clothes don't fit just right anymore (because we are too tired to go to the gym).

Most would say her husband didn't have a reason to cheat, but he was missing something. And it wasn't something Lysa could give him. He thought another woman could give him what he was missing. But she cannot and eventually he will realize that. That longing, that something that is missing - only Jesus can fill that need.

Proverbs 5 is a warning against adultery. Let's look at verses 15-20:

Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well. Should your springs be scattered abroad, streams of water in the streets? Let them be for yourself alone, and not for strangers with you. Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight; be intoxicated always in her love. Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?

God is warning us, the decision you made in your youth - honor it. If you married young, fight for your marriage years down the road. Keep the fires burning. The spouse of your youth, the one who was with you in the hard times, when you were dirt poor, had nothing, but that person stood by you - stand by them. Do not upgrade or trade up - which the world will tell you is fitting. Reject that teaching. Stay married, woo your spouse, fight for them.

At work we talked about Mrs. TerKeurst's situation. Several of us read the comments left by others in response to her sharing. Our world is breaking. People are devastated. Post after post, women were pouring out their hearts that they knew what she was going through. That they understand, they are in her shoes.

I read a commentary that summed the situation up nicely (for lack of any other word):

"Not ONE of us is immune to Satan’s plans for our marriage."

What Lysa TerKeurst’s Divorce Tells Us About Our Own Marriages

Marriage was the first institution created by God.
Before the church, the feasts, the celebrations in the tabernacle, God created Marriage. Marriage is important to God - it should be important to you and me.

Genesis 2: 18-25

"Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”  Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed."

God made man, and did not want him to be alone, that it wasn't good for him to be alone, so he made woman for him. To help him. We are designed to be coupled, to become one flesh, to serve the Lord together. And Satan is doing everything he can to destroy the institution of family. Satan thought he should be God, so he is about to destroy God. You and I know that in the end Satan loses, but until then he has a freedom to cause chaos. His (Satan) chaos should cause us to move toward the Father, to draw closer to God, to strive to live as Christ lived.

And right now - we need to fight for our marriages. If your friendships are not building up your marriage, get rid of the friendships. If your parents do not support/believe/encourage your spouse, spend less time with your parents. Show your children that your spouse comes before them - as God intended. Love your spouse, dance with them in the kitchen, kiss them before bed. If you are having troubles, seek help - counseling, see your pastor, do not go it alone. The world today is designed to alienate us from those around us - don't let it happen. Build up a community around you that is pro-marriage, pro-family. We must fight for our marriages. But know this - if you take on this challenge, you will meet obstacles.

Ephesians 6:12 (NLT)

For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

My husband and I have resolved together that divorce is not an option for us. It is the legacy of my heritage, and I want my children and the generations after them to have a better foundation. But taking this stand, by resolving that we will not divorce - we have set ourselves up for attacks, struggles, and issues. And we have had them - financially being the #1 issue - which is one of the top reasons couples divorce. We want to be different, sanctified, set apart. To keep our marriage together, to not let it fall victim to the schemes of the enemy, we have had to work and invest in our marriage. We have attended seminars, we go on dates just the two of us, we spend time with other couples who share our values, we talk and assess how our marriage is doing. Daily we tell each other we love each other, we are affectionate as often as possible (1 Corinthians 7:5 - Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.), we surprise the other with tokens of appreciation. We tend to our marriage as you tend to a plant - it can only produce fruit if it is properly cared for.

I will end this with the marriage chapter of 1 Corinthians (Chapter 7: 1-16):

Principles for Marriage

Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

Now as a concession, not a command, I say this.I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another.
To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is good for them to remain single, as I am. But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife.
To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you to peace. For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?