1And I saw an angel come down
from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his
hand.
2 And he laid hold
on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a
thousand years,
3 And cast him into
the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should
deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and
after that he must be loosed a little season.
Revelation 20:1-3
Revelation 20:1-3
21 And it shall
come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the
host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the
earth.
22 And they shall
be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut
up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.
23 Then the moon
shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts shall
reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.
Isaiah 24:21-23
Isaiah 24:21-23
Satan is bound up for 1000 years. There will be no more
deception. There will be no more accusing of the brethren. What is the result
of this?
10 Thus saith the Lord; Again there shall be heard in this
place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast, even in
the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate,
without man, and without inhabitant, and without beast,
11 The voice of
joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of
the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the Lord of hosts: for
the Lord is good; for his
mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise
into the house of the Lord. For I will cause to return the captivity
of the land, as at the first, saith the Lord.
12 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Again
in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the
cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie
down.
13 In the cities of
the mountains, in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and
in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities
of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth them,
saith the Lord.
14 Behold, the days
come, saith the Lord, that I will perform that good thing
which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
15 In those days,
and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto
David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.
16 In those days
shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith
she shall be called, The Lord our
righteousness.
17 For thus saith
the Lord; David shall
never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;
18 Neither shall
the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to
kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.
Jeremiah 33:10-18
Jeremiah 33:10-18
2 And it shall come
to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains,
and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people
shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of
his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 And he shall judge
among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their
swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not
lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
5 O house of Jacob,
come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord.
Isaiah 2:2-5
Isaiah 2:2-5
20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It
shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of
many cities:
21 And the inhabitants
of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts: I will
go also.
22 Yea, many people
and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in
Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In
those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all
languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a
Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
Zechariah 8:20-23
Zechariah 8:20-23
For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace,
and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go
forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.
2 And the Gentiles
shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called
by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name.
3 Thou shalt also
be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.
4 Thou shalt no
more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate:
but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the Lord delighteth in
thee, and thy land shall be married.
5 For as a young
man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom
rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.
Isaiah 62:1-5
Isaiah 62:1-5
11 In that day will
I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches
thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of
old:
12 That they may
possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my
name, saith theLord that doeth this.
13 Behold, the days
come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the
reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall
drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.
14 And I will bring
again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste
cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine
thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
15 And I will plant
them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land
which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.
Amos 9:11-15
Amos 9:11-15
There are probably hundreds of Scriptures that relate to
this time. There are at least dozens. The Millennial Kingdom will be a time of
bliss for those that are qualified to rule and reign with Christ during it. For
Revelation 20 continues:
4 And I saw
thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw
the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word
of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had
received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and
reigned with Christ a thousand years.
5 But the rest of
the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the
first resurrection.
6 Blessed and holy
is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath
no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with
him a thousand years.
Revelation 20:4-6
Revelation 20:4-6
Not everyone that makes it to heaven gets to be a part of
this ruling and reigning. There are some that remain asleep until the judgment.
I would rather not be one. I don’t know the number that are allowed to rule.
I’m not sure if there is a number. It might be open to all, but your martyrdom
is the qualification. Martyrdom isn’t an issue of the last moment of your life.
You can live as a martyr.
What I mean is that if you are one who has denied self and
live unto Christ, then you are a martyr. Paul said, “I die daily.” He
ultimately was killed for his faith, but even when he wrote that he was a
martyr. Martyrdom is not something that a select few get the privilege of
gaining a crown over. It is open to anyone. Anyone willing to take up the
things of God and die to their own interests and lives will gain that crown.
Missionaries (I hope) are martyrs. When you forsake everything and follow Him,
then what else do you have? You have nothing but Him.
The martyr is one that lives ultimately. Nothing in their
life can be qualified as their own. Everything is unto Him. If any thoughts or
deeds are discovered as not yielded, they are surrendered. If any control over
their life is not yielded, it is forsaken. In everything, whether in eating or
drinking, the martyr is wholly surrendered to God’s glory and not their own.
Some live in this kind of lifestyle. Others live much lower. Notice that my
requirement is not that they are sinless. Being sinless is ultimately the
result of complete submission to Christ, but even Paul called himself the chief
of all sinners. We are not without sin. Event the best of us can find something
that is the result of sin.
It is only the martyrs that did not love their lives even
unto death that receive this crown. Another word for this is eunuch. Jesus said that some make themselves eunuchs for the Kingdom of God. They alone are worthy of bringing in the
Kingdom. They alone have suffered through humiliation and struggle. They alone
know what it is like to forsake all in order to gain all. It is for this reason
they are chosen to teach and instruct the nations. And for those who are unsure
why I continue to stress nations, here
are a few Scriptures to show that God Himself desires to make Himself known to nations, and not only people:
8 He (the king)
shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of
the earth.
9 They that dwell in
the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust.
10 The kings of
Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba
shall offer gifts.
11 Yea, all kings shall fall down
before him: all nations shall serve him.
12 For he shall
deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.
Psalm 72:8-12 (emphasis mine)
Psalm 72:8-12 (emphasis mine)
8 Arise, O God, judge the
earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.
Psalm 82:8 (emphasis mine)
9 All nations whom thou hast made
shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.
Psalm 86:9 (emphasis mine)
10 The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the
eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation
of our God.
Isaiah 52:10
18 For I know their works
and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and
tongues;
and they shall come, and see my glory.
Isaiah 66:18 (emphasis mine)
17 At that time they shall
call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all
the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall
they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.
Jeremiah 3:17 (emphasis mine)
7 And I will shake all
nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house
with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.
Haggai 2:7
23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come
to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of
the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard
that God is with you.
Zechariah 8:23 (emphasis mine)
12 And all nations shall call you blessed:
for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 3:12 (emphasis mine)
32 And before him shall be
gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd
divideth his sheep from the goats:
Matthew 25:32 (emphasis mine)
The plan of God is that we are to be a witness unto Israel,
and when that full representation of Israel comes (ourselves and them being
made one together), we will be witnesses to nations. God has a prerogative. He is not simply hoping that
we will only save enough souls before the end. He has a jealousy for the
nations, that they will glorify Him. In Acts 17, Paul makes a remarkable
statement:
26 And hath made
of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and
hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they
should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though
he be not far from every one of us
Acts 17:26-27
Acts 17:26-27
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