A Kingdom Without End

Good afternoon, everyone. Happy Sabbath to you.

Hello to everyone on Zoom land. Hopefully everyone out there is doing well and can be back with us before long.

I was looking at the calendar, and we're actually only a couple months away from the Feast of Tabernacles being finished.

Not only being started, but being finished. So we're moving very, very quickly through into the Holy Day season. So that being the case, I thought it'd be a good idea to talk on an overview level about one of the dominant themes of these fall Holy Days, and that is the Kingdom of God.

Sometimes we look at different elements of it as we make our way through the Holy Days, but I think it's a good idea from time to time to stand back and just think about it more holistically.

Even though much of what I say will probably be things that many of us understand and might have looked at in the past, I'm hopeful that as we go through it, there are certain things that might catch your attention to look at a little bit further or to think about as we're moving through these upcoming days.

The Kingdom is a central message of Jesus Christ, and of course, it's one of the things that are first and foremost in our minds. It should be. We think about the Lord's Prayer that's offered, what we see as a model prayer.

One of the things we always think of is, Thy Kingdom come and Thy will be done. Something that should be in our hearts, on our minds, in our prayers on a daily basis. So something that really should be in the forefront of what we're thinking of. Part of what that model prayer is to do for us is to help us understand how when we pray, we center our mind. We bring our mind back to where we understand God's mind is. His will, His plan, what it is that He's trying to accomplish.

One of the things to think about as we go through these upcoming days, if you're looking for something to study, is that the parables that Jesus Christ gave, by and large, deal with God's Kingdom. It's different ways that He was looking to explain God's Kingdom to those that He was speaking with. So if you're interested in that as a theme, taking a look back at the parables of the Kingdom of God that Jesus spoke, would be a good idea in the upcoming weeks here.

Let's turn to one of those as a starting point here for this message, and that one's in Matthew 13. We'll turn to Matthew 13, verses 31 through 33, and there are two short parables here that we'll focus on that carry out a single theme, a common theme between the two of them. Matthew 13, verse 31. Another parable He put forth to them, saying, Now, we could spend a lot of time digging into both of those. We're not going to do that today. But let's think about the overall theme that's being brought out within both of these parables, and that is that the Kingdom of God is something that starts small and it grows. That's really the simple message that's in both of these. When you think of a tiny seed, we're not familiar with mustard plants, but you can think of plants and trees that you are familiar with. I can still think back on trees that I planted, and we sold my mom's house a few years ago where I'd grown up. But it's amazing when you look back and you think of tiny little trees where parents would yell at us and say, Stop holding on to that tree when you're running around the yard. You're going to break it. And you go back 20 years later, 25 years later, and the trunk is this big around. It continues to grow and expand. It starts with one tiny little seed, and leaven is very much the same way. We use yeast nowadays. Back then they used sourdough starters. It starts with a pinch and expands and grows. This carries on a theme that actually began in the Old Testament in some of the prophecies about Jesus Christ. If you'll turn with me to Isaiah 9, verses 6 and 7. Isaiah 9, verses 6 and 7. This is a very common prophecy that Isaiah gave about Jesus Christ. It points out—and perhaps we've seen this before, perhaps we haven't—it points out this very same theme. We'll start in verse 6 of Isaiah 9. Here Isaiah, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says, Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder, his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Let's focus on the next line in verse 7. Of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end. So it goes a step even beyond what the parables talk about. A loaf of bread that's leavened has a logical end. It expands to a certain point. You bake it and you've got your loaf of bread. Likewise, a tree is not going to grow forever, but the kingdom here, we're told, is going to grow and expand forever. One of the characteristics of that kingdom that Jesus is called to be the king of is that it will increase without end. It's hard for us to wrap our minds around because we just don't get exposed to that type of thing. We don't have physical things around us that do that. So the qualities of the kingdom of God begin small, like the mustard seed, like leaven, grows to be large. We think the mustard tree or the loaf of bread, as we see in Isaiah, it will increase without end. So what does that mean? How does that work itself out? I'd like to look at that today in a little more practical detail and consider a few questions or thoughts in the process. Does the kingdom exist today? And if so, in what form? How does its unending growth unfold?

I'd like to look at it in three dimensions today as we look at the kingdom of God. I've broken it down into these three because I think it fits very neatly. It's not the only way to think about it. But the first one being the kingdom of God before the return of Jesus Christ. Perhaps not a way that we've thought about it in the past, but the kingdom of God before the return of Jesus Christ. Secondly, the kingdom of God when Jesus rules on earth. And thirdly, the kingdom of God after rule is delivered to the Father. So three different stages, if you will, of growth and expansion of God's kingdom as he works out his plan. So let's start with this first element, the kingdom of God before the return of Jesus Christ. Has God's kingdom started now or is it a future event?

Well, the answer is yes. It's some of both. And let's think about that for a minute and understand why. Now it might seem odd, and maybe it takes you by surprise, that we would assert that the kingdom of God is here now. And there are religious traditions that would teach that and say that, you know, as an organization that they are the kingdom of God. Others might say even that God is trying to establish his kingdom on earth before the return of Jesus Christ. There are entire political and religious movements that have claimed that sort of thing. All that being said, it's not wrong to say and to understand that in one element the kingdom of God has already begun. Let's turn to Mark 1, verses 14 and 15. Here we'll see the words of Jesus Christ and what it is that he said. A great place to center as the king of that coming kingdom. This is a passage. Mark jumps right in. He doesn't waste a lot of time with fluff. Mark chapter 1, you just have this whirlwind of events going on. By verse 14, he's already gotten past the temptation by Satan, past John the Baptist, as we see here in verse 14 being put in prison. And so in verse 14 of Mark 1, after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel. So Jesus spoke very much even at that time, centuries ago at this point, about the kingdom being at hand, a present phenomenon that it was there. What exactly does that mean? Let's turn further to Luke 17. I'll follow Joe Mangos tradition here. We'll read this one out of the English Standard Version. The ESV, Luke 17, verses 20 and 21. Starting verse 20 of Luke 17, being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus answered them, the kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, look, here it is or there, for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.

Now, if you've got an old King James or even a new King James Version, some other translations, it'll say the kingdom of God is within you. Commentators differ, but many of them will say that the correct understanding of this is that it is in the midst of you. And the fact that Jesus Christ was speaking about the fact that he in that sense personified the kingdom as the coming king of that kingdom, and he was right there in the midst of that. We know, of course, all of the controversies and conflicts that happened between him and the Pharisees as they refused to accept him as that king. So Jesus, again, in this section, was talking about the fact that the kingdom at that point in time, when he was walking on the earth, was in the midst of them. Luke 11 bears this out further, and talking again about the present reality of the kingdom that God was expressing, or that Jesus was expressing to those around him. Luke 11 will read verses 19 and 20. Luke 11, verses 19 and 20, again, as he's talking with the religious leaders at this time, he says, If I cast out demons by Baal's above, because they were accusing him of being of the devil, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. So he was saying the fact, and we know that it was the fact, that he was casting out demons through the name of the Father. And Jesus was acknowledging the fact that through him, the kingdom of God had come upon the people who were there. They were experiencing, through Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God, because he is the king of that kingdom. So we have clear, scriptural statements that tell us that the kingdom of God, at least in some element, has come. But what does that mean? Because we don't see it around us. We don't see the land. We can't point to a physical territory where God's kingdom is. There's no flag. I guess that could be an interesting discussion. What would the flag of God's kingdom look like? There's no flag flying from our church or anywhere else. There's no sovereign territory. How can all of this be a present reality if those things don't exist? So some theologians use a phrase that I find pretty catchy and I think very appropriate, and that's the phrase, already but not yet. Already but not yet. And it's a phrase that they'll use to talk about things like the kingdom of God. The fact that through Jesus Christ, through the work that he has done, the kingdom of God is already begun, but it is not yet here in its fullness. And we certainly know that for a whole lot of reasons, that it's not here yet. And we've got human models of this sort of thing happening as well. Some of you know our family lived in Poland for a while, during six years that we spent in Europe. And my wife had made friends when we were in Poland with a lady, and we ended up over at their house for dinner one evening. And near their entranceway, they had, as people would do, family pictures. And we saw a number of pictures of her husband and other people with recognizable world leaders.

We're like, wow, this is kind of interesting. How did this come about? And as we were talking and understanding more about them, it turned out that her husband was the son of somebody who had been part of the Polish government in exile during World War II. And so, like sometimes even happens today, what had happened to the Germans, as you know, and the Russians had divided up Poland, and it basically was occupied territory at the very start of World War II.

And so, many of the people who were in ruling positions left the country and were able to get out, and they established a shadow government or a government in exile that represented the sovereign nation of Poland, even though their nation was occupied by foreign powers. And at first, it was centered in France. The Germans took France, and it was centered after that in England.

And an interesting part of history for those who are interested in it is there were even pilots, Polish pilots, who flew in the Royal Air Force as part of the Battle of Britain. They fought against the Germans that were coming over to bomb England. There were others who were taken at that time into Soviet territory and imprisoned.

And when they were released, they made their way down south to India. And they actually formed armies in India for what they considered the sovereign Polish government, even though they didn't have a homeland at that point, and participated in some of the battles to retake the continent of Europe. We were in Monte Cassino. Some people have been to the feast in Italy before. Not too far from the Italian feast site is a place up on a hilltop, Monte Cassino.

There were some very famous war battles there during World War II. And there's a large Polish cemetery, actually, in Monte Cassino, because that's one of the places where they fought their battle. So this idea of a government existing, even without a country, is not something that's necessarily foreign to us as human beings. And, you know, no analogy is perfect, but it's probably the best way that I can think of expressing the way that the government of Jesus Christ and his rule is operating today.

There's not a sovereign, physical land that exists. That's the land of Jesus Christ, where we can pledge allegiance to him. There are no borders in that way. But he does have rulership. In some ways, it's also similar to King David, if you remember the story of him. He was anointed many years before he actually took the throne. And he was a king because he'd been anointed a king by Samuel, but he didn't have a kingdom. He had not yet been granted power over the kingdom of Israel at that time. So let's look at a few elements of this in terms of, again, the present element of the kingdom of God, the rule of Jesus Christ, and where we see that expressed in the Bible.

The first place we'll look is Ephesians 1, and we'll turn to verses 20 through 22 of Ephesians 1. Here again, as Paul's writing to Ephesians, he makes this point pretty clear. Ephesians 1, starting in verse 20. Breaking into a thought here, he says, "...which he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead, and seated him at his right hand in the heaven places." So at the point that Jesus Christ was raised, we understand through this scripture and other places, he was set at the right hand of God, a position of rulership. They are next to God. "...and far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come." So verse 21 is one of those verses that uses these superlatives, right?

These all these different examples of all kinds of things that he's above and saying, think of what you want, Jesus Christ is above it. Principalities, powers, might, dominions, any name that's named, and not only now, but in any age that you can think of. He is above it. And he put all things in verse 22 under his feet. So in case there was any doubt from the prior verse, and it's not a future tense here, he says he put all things under his feet and he gave him to behead over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

So there's a clear expression here in this passage in Ephesians of the fact that Jesus Christ does have preeminence. He has rulership. It's limited today in terms of its jurisdiction because of the plan of God, and the fact that Jesus Christ is not ruling in a physical way in this physical age. But as it states here, he is over his church, his body, and he's been given preeminence over all of these things, anything that you can think of, and he exercises it currently within the church.

So you think of it in that way as a government and exile. We, as a part of his church, are part of the kingdom of God that has not been fully ushered in yet, not given its full power and authority and dominion at this point. So we're subjects in that kingdom. Turn to Colossians 1, and we'll see that expressed as well in Colossians 1, verses 13 and 14, the fact that we are under the dominion of Jesus Christ as Christians.

Colossians 1, starting in verse 13, talking about God, He has delivered us from the power of darkness, Jesus Christ, and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of His sins. And so we're told here, we have been conveyed into the kingdom of God, through the blood of Jesus Christ, through conversion of the forgiveness of our sins. We have been conveyed into that kingdom. And again, if you think of that theme of already but not yet, God is saying we're there. We haven't reaped the fullness of it, but we are considered part of the kingdom of Jesus Christ at this point in time. And as a result of that, we are under His rule. Let's turn to Colossians 3, one of many places that we can see that theme of being under the rule of Jesus Christ that we need to submit to in this life. Colossians 3 and verse 15.

Here Paul writes the Colossians and says, Let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful. So there's that rulership that's supposed to be happening in us. Likewise in James 4, verses 7 through 10. I think familiar passages for many of us, as we're talking here about fighting the spiritual battles that we fight. James 4, verses 7 through 10. Again, because we are part of the kingdom of Jesus Christ, submit therefore to God, James 4, verse 7. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he'll draw near to you. And cleanse your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament, mourn, and weep. And let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.

Verse 10. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he will lift you up.

Again, talking about the fact that we have to submit to the one who rules over us in our lives.

The ones whose law and whose way of life we follow, because we recognize the sovereignty of that in our lives. So while these passages demonstrate, as I said, in that already-but-not-yet equation, the already part of it, we also recognize that the fullness of the kingdom of God is not yet.

One scripture we can turn to that clearly lays that out for us is 1 Corinthians 15, verse 50. I won't turn there, but just to refer to it, it states there that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom. So we are flesh and blood. We have not inherited the kingdom. But that doesn't mean that the kingdom doesn't exist at this point in its smaller form, preparing to grow.

So in concluding this section and thinking about the elements of God's kingdom that exist today before the return of Jesus Christ, we see that the kingdom of God is already-but-not-yet.

It's begun like the mustard seed or the leaven that's begun to spread in the dough. It's small, and it's incomplete at this point in time. It's not fully come. But it is present through Jesus reigning in the hearts and minds of those who've been called out of the world and into his body, which is the church. We also recognize, and we say that, that the full coming of the kingdom of God has certainly not taken place yet. So let's go there next, and let's look at that second phase as we think again about the fact that God's kingdom starts small, and it grows. As Isaiah tells us, the growth of that, the expansion of it, is never going to end.

So let's talk about this second phase, the kingdom of God, when Jesus rules.

So let's turn first to Daniel 7. I want to center on a few basic concepts here as a starting point.

We clearly believe that Jesus will literally rule physically over the nations of this world.

One of the scriptures that we look at to understand that is the passage in Daniel. We'll read Daniel 7, verses 13 and 14. So even though it's not the case today, upon Jesus Christ's return, the Bible tells us very clearly that he will set up a government that will rule over any government of mankind, any government of this earth. Daniel 7, verse 13.

Here, Daniel having a vision, he says, I was watching in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. So he's having a vision of the return of Jesus Christ. He came to the ancient of days and they brought him near before him, and to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all peoples, nations and languages, should serve him.

You're seeing here authority that's given over physical kingdoms. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away. His kingdom is one that will not be destroyed. So again, we see that everlasting element of it. There are a lot of other passages that we can turn to, one that you might want to think about as well. In Daniel is the vision that he had of the image, which we understand as a succession of world-ruling empires. And what is it that happens at the end, that image? A stone comes from heaven and strikes the image down completely, figuratively showing all of these governmental systems of mankind this stone from heaven, which represents Jesus Christ, comes down and casts down all of those governmental structures of mankind and rules over them. So this is a significant step and obviously dramatically expands the scope of God's kingdom when Jesus has returned and is a physical king, a king over the physical earth. His rule is on the earth. Let's turn there briefly to Revelation 5 and to see that the Bible very clearly expresses the fact that he will reign on the earth. We'll turn this time again to the English Standard version for this part of the passage. And breaking into a thought in Revelation 5 verse 9, about halfway through it states, by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth. So we've heard said many times that we believe that our inheritance is not to go to heaven, it is to rule on the earth, and this is where we turn to see that, clearly saying that we will reign on the earth. And that rulership, as we might remember, as we hear rehearsed sometimes at the feast, is something that brings incredible change to the entire earth. Changes the way the people act, changes the way that animals act, brings a level of peace, stability, and plenty that the earth really hasn't seen since the Garden of Eden went away long, long ago. We'll turn to one passage that lays this out, Isaiah 11, verses 6 through 9. I would encourage everyone as we get close to the feast to also think about these things as we look towards what is it the godly rule on this earth is going to do for the earth. There's a lot of prophecy that's laid out, especially in Isaiah but other places as well that talks about how changed the earth will be.

All the things, you know, we have this yearning within us as human beings. We know that things can be better, but at the same time, we're powerless to make it that way. We always run into our own fallibilities after we maybe get a good start on something. We always manage to mess up everything that we do in a human system, and we're shown very clearly that with God in the picture, with God leading the way, with his spirit available, the outcomes can be very different. Isaiah 11, verse 6. The wolf will dwell with the lamb. The leopard will lie down with the young goat. The calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. This picture shown of nature tamed of not being worried about which animal is going to eat the other one and whether the little child, if it gets in the middle of it, is going to be in danger. The cow and the bear shall graze together. Their young ones will lie down together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den. In verse 9, this incredible verse, they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. How amazing is that? You know, it's something we can't read these verses and think about it physically as reality because it's just so incredibly different from the world that we see around us, isn't it? You know, you think about all the time that we spend as human beings, as governments, protecting ourselves as countries from others, protecting ourselves from our neighbors, being suspicious of other countries and what they're going to do to us. We lock our doors at night. We're concerned sometimes that someone could break in and steal all of those things that are like second nature to us because of this world that we live in. And we rightfully teach our children, and we warn others to be careful because people are going to trick you. They're going to try to steal from you. They're going to try to hurt you. Imagine a world where that doesn't exist. It's almost impossible to conceive of it, but it's going to happen. It's going to happen through the rule of Jesus Christ, through His Spirit, as it comes and changes everything fundamentally about how we operate as human beings. What an incredible example of the dramatic expansion of God's kingdom. And that expansion is not going to end. It's just going to keep going.

Let's talk briefly in this vein about two phases of the rule of Jesus Christ over human beings. We don't always differentiate these things completely, so I think it's useful to think about it and just consider the two phases of how Jesus Christ is going to rule over human beings. The first of those is the millennium, which immediately follows the first resurrection, the millennium. That's one phase of how God is going to rule over mankind. Let's turn to Revelation 20.

Revelation 20, and we'll read verses 4 and 5.

Here in John's vision, he says, I saw thrones in Revelation 20 verse 4, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. Millennium means a thousand. This is where we get the term millennium and the idea that there will be a literal 1,000-year rule of Jesus Christ over physical nations. And then in verse 5, the rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended, and those thousand years is the resurrection there that precedes the thousand years as the first resurrection. So this also, and we're not going to go there in this message, but this follows the return of Jesus Christ that's described in Revelation 19. And what it shows that's just important for us to understand from a theological perspective is the millennium follows the tribulation, and the millennium happens after the return of Jesus Christ.

Okay, we see that very clearly if we read Revelation 19 and then Revelation 20, where Jesus Christ returns. He defeats the nations. He installs his authority and the millennium. And the reason I lay that out is there are beliefs out there that the millennium happens before the return of Jesus Christ. And in fact, through history, there have been some pretty large time periods of history where people believe that, and it really changes the way that they act with their governance, with the people around them. And in fact, something to be aware of today in the domain of something called Christian Dominionism, there very much is a view that as Christians, people should be taking over their government, influencing their government, and doing everything they can to install righteous rule so they can pave the way for the return of Jesus Christ. And this comes from this idea that we can drive human events, and in fact, as Christians, we should drive human events to create a world that's ready for Jesus Christ's return. And what we actually see is the opposite.

When God is ready, he will send Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ will strike down the governmental systems of this world, and then the millennium will come. For those of you who want to dig into history a little more, look at the Crusades. One of the reasons for the Crusades was at that point in time, people believed that they could, and even should, retake the Holy Land. That they could set up a Christian Dominion in the Holy Land, in the Middle East, take Jerusalem, and usher in a time when Jesus Christ would return, following a Christian Dominion being set up in the Holy Land.

We see how that ended. Not well at all for the people who went there. And it was misguided, and it didn't match what we see in Scripture. So it's important to understand what it is that we believe in the ordering that these things happen, because they drive the way that we behave, and how we view our responsibilities as Christians. This first phase of God dealing with mankind, the thousand-year millennium, ends with Satan being forever neutralized. Another very important thing that we see here in Revelation. Let's read Revelation 20 in verse 10. Again, I'll read this from the English Standard Version, Revelation 20 verse 10. Here we read John, writing that the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. So Satan removed at the end of this thousand-year period, never to return. This is where the second phase of Jesus Christ ruling over physical mankind takes place. And we'll start in Revelation 20. We'll rewind again to verse 5, and then we'll move on to verses 11 through 15 to look at this second phase.

Revelation 20 verse 5, the rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. So we saw earlier in Revelation 20, I forget the exact verse there in 1 through 4, talks about the first resurrection, and then we see here a second event that's talked about, which is the resurrection of the rest of the dead. And this ushers in a period that's discussed starting in verse 11 that we refer to as the Great White Throne Judgment. Verse 11, I saw a Great White Throne, that's why we call it that, and him who was seated on it. From his presence, the earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. We understand that to be Jesus Christ.

And in verse 12, I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. And then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books according to what they had done, and the sea gave up the dead who were in it.

Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. And then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire, and this is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. So in this section of scripture, which is very dense and tightly written, there are four things that are happening here.

There's a resurrection. There's a process of judgment. There's the outcome of that judgment, either death or life. And then finally, there's the end of death itself that's talked about.

And interesting, we don't really talk about it this way, but it's the end of human life.

It's actually the end of human life, and that's part of God's plan here at this second phase. Now, there's not a lot of detail provided here about the Great White Throne Judgment.

And I think we all understand what we believe. In fact, the fact that people will have, who have not known God, will have an opportunity in this time period to know God. How do we get there?

We infer it from a few things involving both this passage and other things that we see written in the Bible. And I'll just walk briefly through those. Happy to talk in more details. I know any of the other elders here would be as well. First of all, we see indications in John 644 and in James 1 18 that the only people who can come to God in this life are those who God calls to Him. And James refers to them as firstfruits. And it leaves you with a question. If everyone is called today, if not everyone is called today, how can there be an immediate judgment on resurrection? Can God judge somebody before they've actually had any actions with His Holy Spirit? In 1 Timothy 2 verse 4 and in 2 Peter 3 verse 9 are a couple of passages that explain very clearly that God desires all human beings to come to repentance.

Doesn't desire that anyone be destroyed and desires that all people would come to Him. And so we've got to reconcile somehow how is it that everyone can come to Him but not everybody's called in this life. There's got to be a way that that can happen and that's what we see and understand to be happening in this passage. Verse 12 talks about books being opened. We understand that to be the opening of the Scriptures to people who didn't previously have access or understanding of those Scriptures. It talks also about the book of life being opened. And we see in other places that the saints, those who are resurrected even, are those who had their names written in the book of life.

And at this point after the millennium that book of life is shown in this passage to be open, implying the fact that people can still have their names written at that point of time in the book of life. And so we understand this section not to be a point in time where people are raised, judged, and either condemned or rewarded, but rather a time when they're raised and they have an opportunity to understand God, to live life, and to make a known decision. Make a decision like we make, as we're exposed and called in this lifetime, to follow God or not to. And their ultimate judgment happens after that. Some associate the 100-year lifespans that are referenced in Isaiah 65, verses 17 through 25, as also referring to this white throne judgment period. So you'll sometimes hear people talk about that as a 100-year period. It's because of that association that some people make with that time period, again, to Isaiah 65, verses 17 through 25. So we have two discrete chapters or phases of this time that Jesus Christ is ruling over human beings on the earth. We have the millennium, which immediately follows his return, and after that we have this period that we understand is a period of judgment that happens during this white throne judgment period.

And at that point, we see that death is ended. Human life is ended because those who were raised, that rest of the dead resurrection, either accept God and are rewarded with eternal life and spirit bodies, or they're destroyed, as we saw a moment ago, in the lake of fire. So at the end of this second element of God's kingdom growing and expanding, human life actually ends. I know we don't usually think about it that way, but it's very clearly laid out. It also ends with Satan bound for eternity and no longer able to exert his influence. So let's look at the third element of the kingdom of God here, at least as I've divided it down, and that is the kingdom of God after rule is delivered to the Father, because that's the last element that happens here. And we'll turn then to Revelation 21 and we'll read verses 1 through 4 to at least get introduced to this passage, and certainly would encourage people to read more and dig deeper on this if this is something that interests you. Revelation 21, starting in verse 1, I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and there was no more sea. So it's talking about complete renewal here, complete change of what we see in physical surroundings. And then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice from heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he'll dwell with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them and be their God. And this is the first. You know, if we understand through a multitude of scriptures that I'm not going to go through today that the being that interacted in the Old Testament with humanity was the one who came to be known as Jesus Christ.

This is the initial coming of God the Father to the earth to dwell with men, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There'll be no more death or sorrow or crying, no more pain for all of the former things have passed away. And the rest of this chapter talks symbolically about this New Jerusalem coming down, all the different ways that it looks, and it uses all the language that, you know, insufficient human language to try to describe something that's spiritual in nature, and that's really indescribable and not completely understandable to the human mind, because so far outside of our dimension. First, Revelation 22, verses 3 through 5, carrying this theme on, talking about what it's going to be like at this point in time after the Father has come to dwell and the heavens and the earth have been renewed. It says, there will be no more curse, but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it. His servants shall serve Him. They'll see His face, His name shall be on their foreheads, and there shall be no night there. They will need no lamp, nor night of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light, and they shall reign forevermore.

So we see eternity here. And that brings us back to Isaiah, because Isaiah says that of the increase of God's government and peace, there will be no end. So what is it that happens after this? Forever is a long time. It's not really a true statement, because forever is outside of time.

Forever is longer than we can even conceive of. When the world happens, the fact is, we have a few clues that are given to us in the Bible, but there's not a lot that we know with certainty.

So good discussion over snacks later today. Let's open up a few of those clues, and we'll leave it at that for today. What does reigning forever entail? What is it that's going to happen?

Let's start in Hebrews 1, verses 1 and 2 to get our first clue. Our first clue is the fact that Jesus Christ has been given authority, or will be given full authority, over all things.

All things that have been created, all things that exist. Hebrews 1, starting in verse 1, God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets in these last days has spoken to us by his son, whom he has pointed heir of all things, through whom he also made the worlds. So kind of saying it in two ways, all things the worlds. He's saying Jesus is heir of everything that's out there. The term here, worlds, literally applies to the idea of ages, all of the ages of human existence, but also can be thought of and is believed by many to include all things created. The heir of all things created. Turn to Colossians 1 verses 15 and 16.

This is a passage that really further emphasizes that, talking here about Jesus Christ. Colossians 1 verses 15 and 16. Here Christ is described as the image of the invisible God in verse 15, the firstborn, over all creation, for by him all things were created that are in heaven and on earth visible and invisible, whether thrones, dominions, principalities, powers, all things were created through him and for him. So there's not really much space given here for any other belief than everything that exists will be under Jesus Christ. What do we see next? Well, we are joint heirs with God, as many of you might recognize. We'll turn to Romans 8 verses 16 and 17 that tells us this. Also read verse 21. Romans 8 starting in verse 16. The spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. Verse 17. If children then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. So joint heirs means you share in what he inherits. This is not to say that we are in any way going to be equal to Jesus Christ, but in terms of inheritance that we will access to all of the things that he has that have been placed under him. In verse 21, the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God, not just Jesus Christ. Everything created is going to be taken from that bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Now what does all that mean specifically? That's easy to say. I don't know. And I'm not sure anyone else does either. We can see what the Scripture says, but we have to be careful going too far beyond what the Scripture says. We know clearly from the Scripture that Jesus is the Creator and the inheritor of all things. We know that we are heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ. We know that there's no boundary to the increase that will happen in his kingdom. It's an attribute intrinsic to that kingdom. We also have to recognize at the same time that not only is the earth changed and renewed, but the heavens are as well.

What does that really mean? We're not really sure because we're told there will be a new heavens and a new earth. Does that mean the universe, as we see it and what little we know of our corner of the universe, continues to exist? Or is that part of the heavens that will be changed? Don't know.

Implication would be it's probably going to be changed if we're getting a new heavens and a new earth. Difficult to prove it beyond that. So that provides some interesting themes to think of. All kinds of postulations are out there in terms of what we as a children of God might do in that future. But the fact is that there's not much that's specifically told about it. We know that we'll be joint heirs with Jesus Christ. We know there will be continued expansion. We know God is God of opportunity and endless growth. And that we'll have a new heavens and a new earth that we will be ruling in and going back to the sermonette, working in, because that's an attribute of God not sitting around in but working in, creating in, in some fashion. And I think it's going to be exciting to understand more about what that means when the time comes. And it's kind of interesting in the meantime to guess at what it might be as long as we all understand that we're guessing. So in conclusion, God's kingdom is big topics. One we're going to hear a lot about in the upcoming days. And I'm hopeful that at least thinking about it from a broader kind of holistic viewpoint is helpful as we get our minds around the things coming up here in these fall holy days. We've looked at three parts that are revealed in the Bible in terms of God's kingdom. The kingdom of God before the return of Jesus Christ. We see the fact that Jesus rules within those God is called. He does that today, even as we're humans. And he does it within his body, the church. We saw the kingdom of God when Jesus rules on the earth, a literal rule over humanity that will come in two phases with the millennium and the white throne judgment after that. And thirdly, the kingdom of God after rule is delivered to the father, a post-human kingdom, one that's going to look and be very different than anything we can even conceive of humanly. God's kingdom is much more than an ethereal future event. It's a present reality that's going to continue to grow in breadth and power through the completion of God's plan for mankind and beyond that. So as we move towards the fall holy days, I hope we'll all continue to grow in our understanding of that kingdom, our commitment to submitting ourselves now to the rule of Jesus Christ in our lives, and continue to always pray, Thy kingdom come.