Part III: Heaven and hell unveiled--triumph of the resurrection

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Part III: Heaven and hell unveiled-triumph of the resurrection

joseph earnest

Frescoe of Sant'Ignazio in Rome painted by Fra Andrea Pozzo 1694

by Joseph Earnest March 31, 2013.

Newscast Media HOUSTON, Texas—The third and final assault happens after the second coming of Christ has taken place in chapter 20. In the previous chapter 19, there is no mention of a resurrection taking place, or angels gathering people, this is because the false prophet, the beast and all the wicked people who took the mark of the beast during the tribulation had been killed, and the only survivors were those who accepted Christ and did not take the mark of the beast. Hence, at the second coming there is no need for angels to separate the tare (evil) from the wheat (righteous) because the remaining people on earth are all righteous. These people missed the wedding supper of the Lamb, because at this point, it has already taken place in heaven.

At the end of chapter 19, this is the group that stays, since they will be needed to repopulate the earth during the 1000 years. Remember, the bride that came with Christ from heaven will have a transformed body and will be like angels that cannot reproduce. Those who are here on earth and missed the wedding supper of the Lamb, will still have their earthly bodies and will reproduce to form several other nations. As such, they will not be taken up to heaven, because someone is going to have to refill the earth with more earthlings after the wicked have been killed off in the second coming.

If they were to be taken up to heaven, their bodies too would be transformed like angels, and they would not be able to reproduce, therefore the entire earth would be empty with nobody to replace the population. Christ was asked about whether people would marry in heaven and in Matthew 22:30 he answered, "At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven." **This means that when people go to heaven, whether is by resurrection or any other means (e.g. being snatched away like Elijah or Enoch), once they make it into heaven, their bodies become like angels and cannot marry or reproduce.

It would therefore make no sense for those who missed the wedding supper of the Lamb to be taken into heaven, leaving the earth empty, yet as we will see, after the second coming, nations were formed. Where did these nations come from?

In the next twentieth chapter, after satan has been chained for 1000 years, he is let loose for a little while to deceive "the nations". These nations are as a result of repopulation of the earth, by those who accepted Christ during the tribulation. The third and final assault happens when satan himself is cast into the lake of burning sulfur where he joins the beast and false prophet. At this point the great white throne judgment takes place and death and Hades are cast into the lake of fire together with those who rejected Jesus Christ. We saw previously that Hades is a temporary holding place of torment for non-believers. At the end of the age, that whole pit called Hades or hell, is cast into yet another larger pit called the lake of fire which is called the second death, because the souls experience eternal damnation.

joseph earnest

Some may be wondering what role the angels will play and whether they will resurrect anyone at the second coming. There is a serious problem with this logic. If there is a resurrection at the second coming, why would angels be necessary to do that since when people are resurrected they are able to travel in air at will just like angels?

The resurrection that is talked about in chapter 20 verse 4 happens after the second coming, and is for those who were beheaded, not the ones who were alive. Once they are resurrected at the end of the tribulation they rule for 1000 years with Christ.

This particular resurrection was the first resurrection of its kind. There were other resurrections before this as indicated in Matthew 27:51-54:^"Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, ⁵²and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; ⁵³and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many."

As for angels gathering people, it is not done to resurrect or snatch them away. Matthew 13:30 states: "Let both grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say to my reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and then bind them in bundles and burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." (KJV)

Verse 49 then states: "So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just."

It is obvious there will be two gatherings; one for tares (unbelievers) and the other for the wheat (believers). The gathering is not a resurrection, it is a separation of the goats from the sheep. As we saw in chapter 19 verse 21, once the separation takes place and the false prophet and beast are thrown in the lake of fire, "the rest of them (the tares) were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider of the horse."

Now Matthew 13:30 begins to make sense. "Let them both grow together until the harvest" means, let those who haven't accepted the mark of the beast co-exist with those who have.

"And in the time of harvest I will say to my reapers, Gather ye together first the tares," means, at the second coming those who have accepted the mark of the beast will be the first to be gathered and killed. (Rev 19:21)

"But gather the wheat into my barn," means, the righteous who accepted Christ during the tribulation and overcame, are the wheat. The barn is the eternal kingdom of God with everlasting life. The believers will inherit God's kingdom as His sons.

"So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just. (Matt 13:49) means, this same procedure of separating the wicked from the just, the goats from the sheep, the tare from the wheat, will also play itself out at the great white throne judgment, where those whose names are not written in the Lamb's book of life will be separated from those who accepted Christ. Each group will be led to its appropriate final destination.

joseph earnest

To summarize this series we can assert that when Jesus returns to earth at the second coming, He will be returning from a wedding, with his bride (his followers). The bride will be clothed in fine linen, and will be part of the heavenly army that returns with Christ at the second coming. Both the beast and false prophet will be defeated at the second coming, which is the second assault, and will be thrown into the lake of fire. The first assault is the battle of Armageddon or Megiddo that happens earlier.

Satan will then be chained for one thousand years. Since the wicked will have been eaten by the birds in the air after being killed, the righteous will repopulate the earth for a millennium. Those whose heads were cut off during the tribulation will rise and reign with Christ. After the millennium, the sea shall give up its dead and all people, great and small will appear before God to be judged. At this point satan will be cast into the lake of fire, which is the third assault. Those whose names are not written in the Lamb's book of life will follow satan into eternal damnation.

When a person accepts Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and believes He is the Son of God who was resurrected from the dead, then repents of the sins he or she has committed, that person's name is immediately written in the Lamb's book of life. In order for a person's sins to be forgiven, that person has to also forgive other people who wronged him or her. Such an individual never goes through the great white throne judgment because when Christ died on the cross, judgment fell upon Him (Jesus), in our place. Romans 8:1 says, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

The only judgment Christians face is the judgment seat of Christ—not to judge the sins of a believer, but to reward believers for the way they lived their lives and the fruits of their lives. Those who squander their skills, gifts and abilities will receive lesser rewards than those who maximize them.

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