Kingdom of Life

This is not an enjoyable page. It is a long and unpleasant one.

But that is alright, because it is an extremely important page. It is so important that if you don’t understand what is on this page, you cannot really understand the rest of this website.

Different people have different philosophies about what they will listen to. Some people are alright with unpleasantness, at least some of the time. Many people are not alright with unpleasantness, with “fire and brimstone.” They only want to hear what will make them feel good, what will give them a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. Anything besides that and they will say they are “being yelled at.”

Ultimately, we all, at some point, need to decide why we are involved with religion. There are three general purposes people have for religion. The first is to have a genuine search for truth, to really know God. The second is to employ a self-help mechanism — we aren’t sure if God really exists but we think it is good for us to act as if he does and to follow most of the stuff in the Bible. The third purpose is to have a useful expedient — that is, getting involved in religion not because we are interested in the things of God, but so we can use it to manipulate people so as to get something else we desire. Do we treat religion as a search for truth, as a self-help mechanism, or as a useful expedient?

If we are serious about engaging in a genuine, sincere search for truth, we ought to be willing to follow that truth wherever it leads. We should be willing to experience some unpleasantness. And we will have to face up to some unpleasant realities. The journey may not be easy, but the destination makes it all worthwhile. “Then Jesus said to those Judeans who had believed him, ‘If you continue to follow my teaching, you are really my disciples and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” (John 8:32)

Our relationship with God is broken

God created human beings in His image; He created us to be like Him. “Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, after our likeness, so they may rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move on the earth.’” (Genesis 1:26) We were not created on God’s level, with his level of wisdom and power. But He gave us the ability to give and receive love, to be aware of good and evil, to choose between good and evil. Genesis 2:15-17 (ESV) says, “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” Humankind was given a choice to obey or disobey, which implies an ability to choose good or evil and implies at least the understanding that obedience would be good and disobedience would be evil, though there was not the understanding of good and evil that would come later.

So humankind could choose to obey God, and God would provide their physical needs and sustain their lives for an indefinite time; it is reasonable to suppose that God over time would also bring them up spiritually so their wisdom would grow and the relationship between them and God would become more meaningful. Or humankind could choose to disobey God, and God’s provision would be harder to come by and their bodies would eventually wear out. Most importantly, the spiritual relationship with God would be broken.

The first humans chose to disobey God. They rebelled against Him; they sinned. God informed them of the consequences: “And to Adam he said, ‘Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, “You shall not eat of it,” cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.’” (Genesis 3:17-19, ESV) This would be true for their descendants as well, which means all of us, since all of us are descended from those first humans who rebelled. “So then, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all people because all sinned — for before the law was given, sin was in the world, but there is no accounting for sin in the same way that Adam (who is a type of the coming one) transgressed.” (Romans 5:12-14) All of us have been touched by sin and its consequences.

Even more important than the physical consequences of sin have been the spiritual and eternal consequences — that is, the consequences for our relationship with God. Sin made us all enemies of God. The apostle Paul, writing to Christians, said, “And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds…” (Colossians 1:21) Sin corrupted and contaminated us and all creation, separating us from God.

God’s holiness and righteousness

To understand why we became separated from God, we must understand some things about Him. God is holy — He is set apart from and above all that He has created. And He is righteous, which means He is totally good; there is nothing evil about Him. 1 John 1:5 says, “Now this is the gospel message we have heard from him and announce to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.” Moses said, “I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.” (Deuteronomy 32:3-4, NIV) “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.” (Revelation 15:3-4, NIV)

Thousands of years ago God revealed Himself in a very compelling way to the nation of Israel. Shortly after bringing them out of slavery in Egypt, He showed them His glory at Mount Sinai. Shortly before the Israelites entered Canaan, Moses reminded the people of the reaction they had had upon encountering God there:

Then, when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness while the mountain was ablaze, all your tribal leaders and elders approached me. You said, “The LORD our God has shown us his great glory and we have heard him speak from the middle of the fire. It is now clear to us that God can speak to human beings and they can keep on living. But now, why should we die, because this intense fire will consume us! If we keep hearing the voice of the LORD our God we will die! Who is there from the entire human race who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the middle of the fire as we have, and has lived? (Deuteronomy 5:23-26)

The law — the standard of righteousness

God not only showed them His glory, He gave them His law, the law by which a person’s righteousness would be measured. God revealed to them in great detail His expectations for our attitudes and actions toward Him and toward each other. These expectations are summarized in several places in the Bible, including the following:

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (Deuteronomy 6:4-5, ESV)

You must not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the children of your people, but you must love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD. (Leviticus 19:18)

The apostle Paul put it this way: “He ‘will reward each one according to his works’: eternal life to those who by perseverance in good works seek glory and honor and immortality, but wrath and anger to those who live in selfish ambition and do not obey the truth but follow unrighteousness. There will be affliction and distress on everyone who does evil, on the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, for the Jew first and also the Greek. For there is no partiality with God.” (Romans 2:6-11) “So you must keep my statutes and my regulations; anyone who does so will live by keeping them. I am the LORD.” (Leviticus 18:5)

What it means to keep the law

It is important to understand what is meant by ‘persevering in doing good works,’ ‘doing good’ or ‘keeping God’s statutes.’ What is meant is always doing good and never doing evil. God’s standard is perfection. “For the one who obeys the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.” (James 2:10)

Humanity’s failure

Unfortunately, by the time God revealed His law to Israel, humanity was already corrupted by sin. Sin corrupted our hearts. While we are able to reason with our minds that it would be better for us to only do what is right, because our hearts are corrupted by sin we are not able to desire to only do what is right. We have knowledge of good and evil; we know it would be better for us to be honest, giving, to be good stewards of this planet, to be peacemakers. But we don’t want to do these things badly enough. Thus, none of us have kept God’s law.

Paul pointed out in Galatians that the law therefore became a kind of curse, something that only pointed out our failure, since none of us could keep it. “For all who rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the book of the law.’ Now it is clear no one is justified before God by the law, because ‘the righteous one will live by faith.’ But the law is not based on faith, but ‘the one who does the works of the law will live by them.’” (Galatians 3:10-12)

None of us have done “the works of the law.” On the contrary; all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Paul quoted several Old Testament passages in support of this point:

What then? Are we better off? Certainly not, for we have already charged that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin, just as it is written:
“There is no one righteous, not even one,
there is no one who understands,
there is no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
together they have become worthless;
there is no one who shows kindness, not even one.”
“Their throats are open graves,
they deceive with their tongues,
the poison of asps is under their lips.”
“Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood,
ruin and misery are in their paths,
and the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For no one is declared righteous before him by the works of the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin. (Romans 3:9-20)

Separation from God

Our sin has separated us from God. He loves us. But, being holy and righteous, He hates the evil we do. We cannot be in His presence while our sins are still counted against us, because He cannot ultimately tolerate our sin. David, king of Israel, understood this when he wrote Psalm 51 after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and murdered Uriah. He understood his need to be forgiven of his sin:

Have mercy on me, O God, because of your loyal love!
Because of your great compassion, wipe away my rebellious acts!
Wash away my wrongdoing!
Cleanse me of my sin! For I am aware of my rebellious acts;
I am forever conscious of my sin.
Against you — you above all — I have sinned;
I have done what is evil in your sight.
So you are just when you confront me;
you are right when you condemn me.
Look, I was guilty of sin from birth,
a sinner the moment my mother conceived me.
Look, you desire integrity in the inner man;
you want me to possess wisdom. (Psalm 51:1-6)

Isaiah 59 also makes the point that we have been separated from God by our own sin:

Look, the LORD’s hand is not too weak to deliver you;
his ear is not too deaf to hear you.
But your sinful acts have alienated you from your God;
your sins have caused him to reject you and not listen to your prayers.
For your hands are stained with blood
and your fingers with sin;
your lips speak lies,
your tongue utters malicious words.
No one is concerned about justice;
no one sets forth his case truthfully.
They depend on false words and tell lies;
they conceive of oppression
and give birth to sin. (Isaiah 59:1-4)

The consequence of sin: Death

I realize this is not a pleasant subject, but we must face it. There was once a political television ad in which someone asked the following question: “How can you solve a problem if you refuse to acknowledge that it exists?” How can we begin to address why our world is messed up and why our lives are messed up unless we acknowledge the problem? Our world is not as it should be and our lives are not as they should be, and the source of the problem is sin — our rebellion against God. We can address the source of the problem by the light of God’s Word, and we will find God willing to deliver us. Or we can go on fiddling around the edges of the problem, treating the symptoms of the problem, and it will continue. If we want to really address the problem we must be willing to face it fully; we must realize the effect sin has had on everything — our relationship with God, ourselves, our relationships with each other, our world.

For this reason deliverance is far from us
and salvation does not reach us.
We wait for light, but see only darkness;
we wait for a bright light, but live in deep darkness.
We grope along the wall like the blind,
we grope like those who cannot see;
we stumble at noontime as if it were evening.
Though others are strong, we are like dead men.
We all growl like bears,
we coo mournfully like doves;
we wait for deliverance, but there is none,
for salvation, but it is far from us.
For you are aware of our many rebellious deeds,
and our sins testify against us;
indeed, we are aware of our rebellious deeds;
we know our sins all too well.
We have rebelled and tried to deceive the LORD;
we turned back from following our God.
We stir up oppression and rebellion;
we tell lies we concocted in our minds.
Justice is driven back;
godliness stands far off.
Indeed, honesty stumbles in the city square
and morality is not even able to enter.
Honesty has disappeared;
the one who tries to avoid evil is robbed.
The LORD watches and is displeased,
for there is no justice. (Isaiah 59:9-15)

The sinful nature

In understanding sin’s effects we must start with ourselves. As mentioned earlier, sin has corrupted our hearts — that is, who we are spiritually; our essential being, our will, the part of us which decides what our goals will be, what we will desire, what we will pursue. We are talking about the part of us which makes us ‘in God’s image’ — which makes us like Him. We still have that, we still bear His image, we still are like Him in the ability to make decisions about what we will value, desire and pursue. We still have good in us; we still have some ability to choose to do what is right.

But in keeping with our search for truth and aim of getting to the source of our problems, we must be realistic and face facts. Our hearts are malfunctioning; they are not functioning as they should. We are not able to always choose the right thing, even when we know with our minds that the right thing is preferable. To have God’s nature is to have His spirit. However, we are born with a sinful nature; our spirit — our heart — is corrupted by sin and we cannot always do what is right. Paul, speaking of the sinful nature, said, “For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For I want to do the good, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but I do the very evil I do not want!” (Romans 7:18-19) Another way of putting this is that while we are capable of reason, we are not governed by reason. We are governed by our hearts. And our hearts are born in slavery to sin. It is not that we can never do what is right. It is that we cannot always do what is right. As long as we are unable to always do what is right, we are slaves to sin.

Jesus made it clear that the heart is the source of the problem; it is the heart which has been corrupted. “He said, ‘What comes out of a person defiles him. For from within, out of the human heart, come evil ideas, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, evil, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, pride, and folly. All these evils come from within and defile a person.’” (Mark 7:20-23)

Death: Separation from God

We have already mentioned that our sin separates us from a righteous God. We cannot stand in His presence as we are naturally, as we were born into this world. For us to be in heaven for eternity with a good and righteous God we must have our sins wiped away — we must have some sort of spiritual transformation or rebirth so that we become blameless. We must accept that unless our sins are forgiven we are not ready to walk through the front door of heaven and announce, “Here I am! How are you God? This is awesome! It sure is great to be here!” We are certainly not entitled to expect God to let us into His presence and invite us to make ourselves at home simply because we have done some good things, or because (we think) we have done more good than bad. The reason I have harped so much on how righteous God is and how serious our offenses against Him are is because it is critical for us to understand why we are separated from Him and why He is justified in anything He decides to do to us.

It is important to establish the above truth in order to really appreciate His love and mercy. Of course, a picture of God’s character, in order to be complete, must include not only His righteousness and justice but also His love and mercy. “The LORD passed before him and proclaimed: ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7, ESV) God loves us, and we will show elsewhere how His loving character has compelled Him to act so we can be restored to a right relationship with Him. But it is critical for us to understand: 1) That relationship is broken to begin with, 2) God cannot and will not simply sweep sin under the carpet anymore than a conscientious human judge will acquit a criminal, and 3) He is not obligated to prevent the consequences of sin committed by a particular person from affecting others.

The consequences of sin for our relationship with God are severe and have affected every area of our lives. In this world, our separation from God results in missing out on the joy of knowing Him and having Him near, in a sense that nothing we try ever gives us complete fulfillment, in health problems and in financial lack. In the world to come, if not dealt with, separation from God will be eternal and will mean the total and irreversible loss of everything good as He drives us from His creation. God will not tolerate evil indefinitely; He will someday judge His creation and purge it of evil.

Death: Conflict with each other

Because we became enemies of God we also became enemies of each other. The problems we experience in our individual lives and in our world are a direct result of sin. We can see sin’s effects by comparing God’s Word with what is prevalent in the world. The fifth commandment is found in Exodus 20:12: “Honor your father and your mother, that you may live a long time in the land the LORD your God is giving to you.” Yet we often make light of what our parents want, rationalizing it in various ways. Today’s entertainment often glamorizes this or makes parents’ wishes an object of humor. The sixth commandment says, “You shall not murder.” (Exodus 20:13) But humans have often wrongfully taken the lives of other humans — who were created in the image of God. The seventh is, “You shall not commit adultery.” (Exodus 20:14) But this and other forms of sexual immorality are pervasive and have left a wide swath of destruction — spiritual, relational and emotional — through our families and our individual lives.

“You shall not steal,” says Exodus 20:15. Yet it seems many will do just that if they believe they can get away with it. The ninth commandment is, “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16) But lying is also commonplace; most seem to have the attitude that doing it is sometimes necessary to be ’successful.’ The tenth is, “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17) Yet we are never satisfied with what we have and tend to want what someone else has. From the individual level to the international level, we see people lying, cheating, and even killing in order to take what belongs to others.

Consequences at all levels

We can see the consequences of sin throughout our world. It can be difficult to separate the consequences of our alienation from God from the consequences of our alienation from each other. But we can readily see death at whatever level we look. In our individual lives, we search for meaning and significance in life, but can never quite find it in worldly power, fame, acclaim and treasures. We may experience injuries, physical or mental illnesses or addictions as we wrestle with hostile environments and bodies and spirits affected by sin. We may, depending on our circumstances, struggle to survive economically. We must wrest a living from the earth in a way that was not necessary before sin.

In our families, there may be a lack of communication or conflict which prevents any kind of loving interaction. There may even be violence or abuse between parents and children, between spouses, or between other members of the family. Our relationships outside the family, with friends, coworkers, acquaintances and others, may also be characterized by deception, cheating, mistrust, theft or violence. Most of us have experienced love and caring in our relationships with family and friends. But the consequences of sin are impossible to ignore; is there any family that has not been touched by them in some way?

In our communities, there may be conflict between different ethnic and racial groups, and/or between economic groups. We have a tendency to associate with those who look, speak or act like us, and to keep our distance from those who are different. There seems to be a subconscious belief that those who are different ought to become like us, and that if they are unwilling to do so, they are probably up to no good. Also, some are blessed with a greater ability to earn material wealth. It is not unusual for racial/ethnic distinctions and economic differences to coincide. This can exacerbate the feeling among those in “our” group that if “they” have more wealth than “us”, “they” probably stole it; or, if “they” have less wealth, then “they” would probably like to take it from “us” and will if they get the chance. Crime and corruption on the part of various individuals or groups in various places can make us feel confirmed in our suspicions and justified in stepping outside moral boundaries ourselves.

In our world, conflict between nations has been raging for ages. A nation’s prideful desire to exalt itself above other nations or achieve a dominant position may bring it into conflict with other global or regional powers. Or, a deep-seated fear of domination by others may lead a nation to pursue assertive and destabilizing policies in its quest for security. Conflict manifests itself in efforts to improve one’s strength, strategic position and influence at the expense of others. An international conflict becomes violent when a nation decides these factors are to its advantage and it goes to war to achieve its objectives. Often, ‘international conflict’ can occur within established international borders; any national, ethnic, religious or other type of groups which are motivated by pride or fear can come into conflict — and under the right circumstances, violent conflict. Often too, non-state groups will strike across borders.

It is important to understand that any nation or group can come under the temptation to use force unjustly. We all have a sinful nature; none of us are free from its influence. We tend to single out nations which have committed especially serious crimes in recent times as being ‘warlike’ while the rest of us are ‘peace-loving’. However, any of us, under the right conditions, can end up committing sin on a large scale. The Bible clearly teaches that it is our sinful desires that drive us into conflict with each other:

Where do the conflicts and where do the quarrels among you come from? Is it not from this, from your passions that battle inside you? You desire and you do not have; you murder and envy and you cannot obtain; you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask; you ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, so you can spend it on your passions. (James 4:1-3)

Those sinful desires can emerge at any time; sometimes they may be lurking below the surface and will emerge as soon as circumstances change. We can see plenty of evidence that conflict between groups can spring up for reasons which cannot be considered even remotely rational or justified. There are national, ethnic and religious groups which have lived peacefully with each other for centuries and are now in bitter conflict with each other. Often the only thing which seems to have prompted it is a change in geopolitical conditions — a country or power which was keeping order in the region has left the scene.

We should be content with what we have. We should follow the command to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19.18) and treat other people as we would want to be treated. We should have an attitude of humility, remembering that everything we have is from God. And when we are threatened, we should rely on God and on healthy relationships with others who can help us.

But instead, we allow ourselves to be enticed into pursuing more and more wealth, power and influence. We view the needs and wants of others as being of secondary importance. We pridefully seek to exalt ourselves in relation to others. And when we are threatened, we fearfully and angrily lash out, determined to not let anyone get the better of us and unwilling to rely on anyone else’s goodwill. In pursuit of these things, humanity has lied, cheated, and waged war to take what we want by force. We have deceived each other and have allowed ourselves to be deceived by the devil, who “comes only to steal and kill and destroy…” (John 10:10)

God will judge His creation

Many have asked when God is going to do something about the evil running rampant in our world. Some have assumed that either God doesn’t care or that He is incapable of doing anything.

Be assured that God does care very much about the violence being done to His creation, and that He is quite capable of doing something about it. The apostle Paul touched on this in a speech he made in Athens, Greece:

“The God who made the world and everything in it, who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by human hands, nor is he served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives life and breath and everything to everyone. From one man he made every nation of the human race to inhabit the entire earth, determining their set times and the fixed limits of the places where they would live, so that they would search for God and perhaps grope around for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move about and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we too are his offspring.’ So since we are God’s offspring, we should not think the deity is like gold or silver or stone, an image made by human skill and imagination. Therefore, although God has overlooked such times of ignorance, he now commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has set a day on which he is going to judge the world in righteousness, by a man whom he designated, having provided proof to everyone by raising him from the dead. (Acts 17:24-31)

The “man whom he designated” is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus is the way God has provided for us to be saved from His judgment, which will come upon the world. Jesus has already come and died on the cross to take upon Himself the punishment that we deserve for our sin, and He will come again to execute God’s judgment. Peter made it clear that the day will come when Jesus will make His promised return, and he also gave the reason why God has been holding that day back:

Above all, understand this: In the last days blatant scoffers will come, being propelled by their own evil urges and saying, “Where is his promised return? For ever since our ancestors died, all things have continued as they were from the beginning of creation.” For they deliberately suppress this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago and an earth was formed out of water and by means of water. Through these things the world existing at that time was destroyed when it was deluged with water. But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, by being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

Now, dear friends, do not let this one thing escape your notice, that a single day is like a thousand years with the Lord and a thousand years are like a single day. The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some regard slowness, but is being patient toward you, because he does not wish for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief; when it comes, the heavens will disappear with a horrific noise, and the celestial bodies will melt away in a blaze, and the earth and every deed done on it will be laid bare. (2 Peter 3:3-10)

We have already seen from scripture that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). If we understand that, then we will not be too eager for God to “do something about the evil in the world.” We are a part of that evil! And if we have not been forgiven of our sin, we are on the wrong side of God’s judgment.

The return of the King

The book of Revelation is a written record of a vision shown to John by the Holy Spirit. The vision has to do with the spiritual war between God and Satan, the decisive victory won on our behalf by Jesus, and God’s inevitable judgment and purging of evil from His creation, to be followed by a new heaven and a new earth in which there will be no more death, mourning, crying or pain (Revelation 21:1-4). The prevalence of symbolic language in the book, and the possibility of multiple levels of meaning in many places, does not prevent us from understanding the above general points. It does make it difficult to be sure about the meaning of particular passages and verses. Nevertheless, it would be wise for us to look at a part of Revelation as we consider the end of this world.

Then I saw heaven opened and here came a white horse! The one riding it was called “Faithful” and “True,” and with justice he judges and goes to war. His eyes are like a fiery flame and there are many diadem crowns on his head. He has a name written that no one knows except himself. He is dressed in clothing dipped in blood, and he is called the Word of God. The armies that are in heaven, dressed in white, clean, fine linen, were following him on white horses. From his mouth extends a sharp sword, so that with it he can strike the nations. “He will rule them with an iron rod,” and he stomps the winepress of the furious wrath of God, the All-Powerful. He has a name written on his clothing and on his thigh: “King of kings and Lord of lords.” (Revelation 19:11-16)

The rider is the Son of God. He has already come before to die for us, to serve as the Way for us to be saved. It is obvious from the wording of the above passage that His return is very different from His previous coming. It also becomes obvious, as we continue, that the world does not welcome Him as its savior; instead, it regards Him as an intruder to be resisted. However, the King is coming, and there will be no stopping Him:

Then I saw one angel standing in the sun, and he shouted in a loud voice to all the birds flying high in the sky:
“Come, gather around for the great banquet of God,
to eat your fill of the flesh of kings,
the flesh of generals,
the flesh of powerful people,
the flesh of horses and those who ride them,
and the flesh of all people, both free and slave,
and small and great!”

Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to do battle with the one who rode the horse and with his army. Now the beast was seized, and along with him the false prophet who had performed the signs on his behalf — signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. Both of them were thrown alive into the lake of fire burning with sulfur. The others were killed by the sword that extended from the mouth of the one who rode the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves with their flesh. (Revelation 19:17-21)

In the above verses there is reference to leaders who, in the last days, will persecute believers in Christ and will greatly deceive non-believers.

Then I saw an angel descending from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the abyss and a huge chain. He seized the dragon — the ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan — and tied him up for a thousand years. The angel then threw him into the abyss and locked and sealed it so that he could not deceive the nations until the one thousand years were finished. (After these things he must be released for a brief period of time.)

Then I saw thrones and seated on them were those who had been given authority to judge. I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. These had not worshiped the beast or his image and had refused to receive his mark on their forehead or hand. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were finished.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who takes part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:1-6)

There are different opinions among Christians about the meaning of the above scripture. It seems likely, though, that the return of Christ and the defeat of the secondary powers of evil does not result in the final, complete defeat of evil. Instead, a ‘millennial period’ begins, in which Satan is restrained, and believers who suffered during the last days before Christ’s return now reign with Him. Some Christians interpret the arrival of the rider on the white horse as referring to Christ’s victory over death, which has already happened. Even if this is the case, the millennial period would begin at a later point in time. Also, the bible clearly teaches that Christ will literally return to this world in person at some point in the future. Note the mention of the “second death” toward the end of the passage. There will be more on that shortly.

The final defeat of Satan

However we interpret the preceding scripture, it appears that Satan, before his final defeat, will be allowed to take one last swing at the Kingdom of God. There is no doubt about the outcome:

Now when the thousand years are finished, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to bring them together for the battle. They are as numerous as the grains of sand in the sea. They went up on the broad plain of the earth and encircled the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and devoured them completely. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet are too, and they will be tormented there day and night forever and ever. (Revelation 20:7-10)

The last judgment

After this comes the judgment of all people, including those currently living and the dead going back to the earliest times. “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” (Daniel 12:2, ESV)

Then I saw a large white throne and the one who was seated on it; the earth and the heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. Then books were opened, and another book was opened — the book of life. So the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to their deeds. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each one was judged according to his deeds. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death — the lake of fire. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, that person was thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:11-15)

There is good news

We have seen in the preceding sections how sin and death entered the world because of our rebellion against God. This sorry state of affairs is not something which has been inflicted on us. We have done it to ourselves. And there is nothing we can do on our own to make things right with God, because we are unable to do anything to change our sinful nature, to change our corrupted hearts. If we could only be declared righteous — made right with God– by doing “the works of the law” (Romans 3:20) — that is, by doing all of the right things and none of the evil things — then none of us would be declared righteous. We would all be destined for the “second death” — eternal separation from God.

But we have also briefly touched on the fact that the Son of God came first to provide a way for us to be saved. We have seen in scripture that some will reign with the Son when He returns, and that the names of some will be “written in the book of life” (Revelation 20:15).

God has provided a way for us to be declared righteous apart from the law!

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God (which is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed — namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. But they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:21-24)

“God is love.” (1 John 4:16) The universe, which God created, is an expression of His love. We humans were created in God’s likeness (Genesis 1:24). Because God loves us He gave us the freedom to follow Him or turn away from Him. Because He loves us even though we turned our backs on Him, He punished us and allowed us to experience the consequences of our sin so that we could realize that all is not well between us and Him. And because He loves us He has provided a Way for us to be reconciled to Him. That Way has a name — Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. (John 3:16-18)

*****

Several years ago I was chatting briefly with a co-worker. Somehow the subject of church came up, and she said something to the effect of, “I need to start going to church or I’m going to be in trouble, aren’t I?” Something required us to cut short our conversation right then and there, so I didn’t get a chance to respond. But I wanted to tell her that we are all in trouble, we are all in the same boat, but Jesus came so we could be saved.

Understanding this — that “there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:22-23) — is very important for everyone, both for those who are believers in Jesus Christ and for those who are not.

It is important for non-believers, in order to realize that all is not well between God and His creation, to understand the real source of problems, and to be aware of the need for a savior.

And it is important for believers, in order to understand why Christ’s sacrifice was necessary, and in order to have the proper attitude toward this lost, dying, hurting and confused world.