Will It Take a Millennium to Transform the Earth?

Well, again, welcome to the sixth day of the Feast of Tabernacles. We are now enjoying the Feast of 2013. And where has it gone? It's gone by very quickly, hasn't it? We have been rehearsing, and we have all been longing for the Kingdom of God that is to last for a thousand years. A period of time that we commonly call the Millennium.

But I have a series of questions to ask you today. And here they are. Why does the first phase of eternity last a thousand years? Will it really take a millennium for a major transformation to occur on the Earth? What changes can we expect in the world by the end of the millennium compared to the beginning of the millennium?

Will the early part of the thousand years be any different from the latter part at all? And what will our rule be in the Kingdom of God? I'd like to look at some Scriptures today and discuss the answers to these questions. And of course, it all starts with the return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And a titanic battle that has to occur to decide who will reign on Earth. Let's begin by going to Revelation 19 and verse 11, if you will turn with me there. Revelation 19.11.

This Scripture is not pretty. It is rated R because it's pretty graphic. But Jesus Christ, who usually is kind and gentle and filled with mercy, must intervene for the sake of the elect because the world is about to destroy itself. And God has been patient with mankind for thousands and thousands and thousands of years, but the time is up. And God must intervene, or mankind would destroy himself off of the entire planet. So God does intervene. And here's what it says. Revelation 19.11. Now I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse. And he who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. And his eyes were like a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. This is none other than Jesus Christ himself. Verse 14. And the armies in heaven, these are the armies that are coming with him, clothed in fine linen, clean, or white and clean, followed him on white horses. If you look back at verse 8, you will see that the description of the Bride of Christ is almost exactly the same as it's said here on this army, who follows him on white horses. Verse 15. Now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword, that he should strike the nations, and he himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God, and he has on his robe and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And I saw an angel standing in the sun, and cried with a loud voice, saying to all their birds that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses, and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people free and slave, both small and great. And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies gather together to make war against him who sat on the horse and against his army. Can you imagine that the world is so deceived? The world is so deceived that they actually prepare to fight against Jesus Christ because they think He is an invader. They think He is the antichrist. They think He is the enemy. And so the armies of the nations of this world gather to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His saints who met Jesus Christ in the air when they were resurrected, and now returned back to earth with Jesus Christ, and the battle ensues. Verse 20, then the beast was captured, the political power of that time, and with Him the false prophet who worked signed in His presence, the religious leader, by which He deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped His image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire and brimstone, and the rest were killed with the sword. That's the rest of all of their armies. Millions of people killed. And the rest were killed with the sword, which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in His hand, and He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound Him for a thousand years. And He cast him into a bottomless pit and shut him up and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things, he must be released for a little while.

So we see here in this prophecy that Jesus Christ returns to battle the nations that have assembled near Jerusalem. He'll come with complete dominance, because He must. The terror brought upon those who resist the returning Christ here is horrifying.

But after the battle is won, we need to understand that the strength behind the rod of iron was only used as a last resort to gain control of the world. It is not used as a means of getting everything done. And that's a very important emphasize, because unfortunately there are some organizations in which their leaders have become bullies.

They have become intimidating bullies, and they use the excuse of a rod of iron to justify their heavy-handedness and their oppression of God's people. And that is shameful. Do you know what the most commonly used term to describe Jesus Christ is in the book of Revelation? You know what it is? I'll tell you what it is. It's lamb. It's a Greek word arnion, and it's used 29 times in the book of Revelation. Jesus Christ is referred to as a lamb. He is not a bully. He is not a tyrant. And neither should anyone be. But he comes back to a world that is in a mess due to the Great Tribulation, due to the Day of the Lord, and due to the effects of a terrible world war. And Jesus will assign an angel to imprison Satan to remove his evil influence from the earth. We pictured that, of course, on the Day of Atonement. But who's left? The peoples who are left of the nations will be frightened. They're going to be in emotional shock. They're going to be suspicious. But God has a plan. His plan is that he is going to have a team of loving and patient saints who will rule with genuine care and gentleness to reach out to the survivors of this world.

We are the spiritual and literal children of God, and we will begin to encompass the earth and to bring the healing message of hope to the ends of the globe. That's our part in this wonderful kingdom. Let's go to Zechariah chapter 14, beginning in verse 3. Zechariah chapter 14, beginning in verse 3.

Take a look at the return of Jesus Christ from a different biblical lens. It says, Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle, and in that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives will be split in two, from east to west, making a very large valley. Half of the mountain shall move towards the north, and half of it towards the south.

Verse 5, Then you shall flee through my mountain valley. This is a prophecy for the Jewish people alive in Jerusalem at that time. For the mountain valley shall reach to Azal. Yes, you shall flee as you fled the earthquake from the days of Uzziah, king of Judah. Thus the Lord my God will come, and all the saints with you. Brethren, that's you. That's me. The translation God's word for today says, All the holy ones will be with him. That's your calling. That's my calling. Isn't that beautiful? Jesus Christ returns to the Mount of Olives with his saints. This historical mount is about two and a half miles long. It's a mountain ridge that towers over the eastern side of Jerusalem.

And the initial purpose of the valley is for the Jews to have an escape, a final escape from the onslaught of war. It's from this location that God's kingdom is re-established on the earth. Our role during the early part of the millennium will be to promote and teach in love God's way to all cultures and all peoples. We, as the family of God, will reach out to the millions of jaded and frightened and disillusioned people who experienced the absolute horrors of world war.

But there are some myths that exist in the church about the kingdom of God. And I think one of the myths is the fact that I, from the conversations I hear and some of the things that I've read, I sometimes feel that we don't understand all the work that's involved in creating the kingdom of God and the time that it will take.

Let's take a look at some Scriptures here, Luke chapter 13 and verse 18. Because the truth is the kingdom of God does not immediately encompass the entire world. The Lord has authority over the earth, but authority and compliance are two different things. He's ruler over the earth, but to get people to willingly want to buy in and become part of the kingdom and part of the family of God takes some time. Luke chapter 13 and verse 18. Jesus speaking, then he said, what is the kingdom of God like?

And to what shall I compare it? It's like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden, and it grew and became a large tree in the birds of the air nested in its branches. You see, the kingdom is like the proverbial mustard seed and it'll begin just in Jerusalem, beginning in Jerusalem. And like one of the smallest of seeds, which a mustard seed is, it will be planted in Jerusalem, but will grow and grow and grow until it eventually towers over the earth and influences the entire earth.

Jesus Christ will send his saints out to the nations. And scattered people will begin a process of healing, of encouragement, and receiving the good news of peace. Let's drop down here to verse 20. Luke chapter 13 and verse 20. And again, he said, to what shall I like in the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened. So here in another analogy, the kingdom begins in one small geographic location.

And like leaven, leaven's eventually the whole lump of dough. It eventually expands to the entire world. So it's also important for us to understand that Jesus wants his saints to be active parts, to be active members of the development of the kingdom of God. And he wants us to help him finish his ministry. Did you know that Jesus Christ desires to finish his ministry? Let's go to Daniel chapter 9 and verse 25. Because his ministry was cut off. His ministry was intended prophetically to be for seven years, a year for a day in a prophecy. But the prophecy also said that he would be cut off.

In three and a half years, that's when his ministry was cut off. Let's read about this. Daniel chapter 9 and verse 25. This is what we traditionally call the 70-week prophecy. It says, Now therefore know and understand, or know therefore and understand, that from the going forth as a command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, and we believe that was the decree of Art Exertes in 457 B.C., there shall be seven weeks and after 62 weeks the streets shall be built again in the wall even in troublesome times, and after 62 weeks Messiah shall be cut off but not for himself.

He will be cut off for the sins of the rest of mankind. And the people of the Prince who is to come shall destroy the city and sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood. And till the end of the war desolations are determined. Verse 27, Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week, the day for a year, principle. But in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. Jesus Christ would allow himself to become a sacrifice and no longer would offerings or sacrifices be required for God's people.

And on the wing of abomination shall be one who makes desolate even until the consummation which is determined is poured out on the desolate. Now, it isn't my intent today to go through in detail the 70 weeks prophecy. But just to highlight here that it extends for 490 years, began with the degree, the decree of a man named Artaxerxes in 457 B.C.

And this first 69 weeks ended in 27 A.D. when Jesus Christ began his ministry, when he was baptized and began his ministry. And it said here that he would be cut off in the middle of the week. That was verse 27. After three and a half years of confirming the covenant, he was cut off, he became a sacrifice, and there was no need for animal sacrifices for the people of God. But we also believe that there is yet three and a half years of confirming the covenant still to be fulfilled. And the most likely scenario for this fulfillment is the very beginning stages of the millennium. Just as his prophecy predicted, the coming of the Messiah occurred in 27 A.D. and Jesus began his ministry.

He was intended to confirm the covenant for seven years, but was killed after three and a half years. So what did he do for that three and a half years? Well, for those three and a half years, he personally taught, he healed, he encouraged, and he took his first group of physical disciples, individuals who didn't even have God's Holy Spirit.

And those individuals also went about encouraging and teaching and preaching the good news to the people who were alive at the time of Jesus Christ. There's a parallel to that. When the millennium begins, Jesus Christ personally will continue to preach the gospel. He will continue to finish his ministry for three and a half years. But now the spiritual disciples, the saints, will be sent out around the world to heal and to teach and to proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God. This is all very encouraging for us, but I hope we understand that the process of healing, though it begins with the return of Christ, is going to take many generations to complete. Let's go to Isaiah 4, beginning in verse 1. Isaiah 4, beginning in verse 1.

This is one of the important aspects of the kingdom of God. Isaiah 2, verse 1. It says, Many people shall come and say, Come and let us go to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, and he will teach us of his ways. And we shall walk in his paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations and rebuke many people. They shall beat their swords in the plowshares, and their spears in the pruning hooks. Nations shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. So brethren, the saints will travel the earth under the direction of Jesus Christ and begin to introduce a new godly culture to the world. And many who hear the gospel for the first time, the survivors of these terrible end-time events, will want to know more. Some will travel to Jerusalem to learn more, as we'll see in a little while. They'll travel to Jerusalem also to attend the feast. The heart and core of that culture is God's law. And we shouldn't make it more complicated than it needs to be. God's law is you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself. And every rule, law, commandment, and principle in that kingdom will be based on this kind of love. It's just that simple. And who will be teaching the law of God? We will be teaching the law of God because we have the precious invitation to have been called at this time to learn God's way of life. And we'll talk about that a little bit later in the sermon. Let's go back to chapter 30 now, Isaiah chapter 30 and verse 18.

Isaiah chapter 30 verse 18.

The prophet Isaiah was also inspired to write, Therefore the Lord will wait, that he may be gracious to you, and therefore he will be exalted, that he may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are those who wait for him. For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, you shall weep no more. He will be very gracious to you at the sound of your cry.

When he hears it, he will answer you. And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yes, the law the Lord gave the world of spiritual spanking the time when he returned. Yet your teachers will no more be moved or will not be moved into a corner anymore. No longer will exist a culture that says, Who are you to judge me? Why? You, an ancient fossilized homophobe. Who are you to make judgments about sexuality or morality or anything else in this world? Who made you judge? Who died and made you king? So no longer will hollyweed dominate the culture of the world. It will now be a world in which laws of God and the teachings of God will be strengthened. They'll be prominent. They'll be public. They will be promoted instead of being shoveled in a corner and laughed at and sneered at as if they're archaic or obsolete. He says, But your eyes shall see your teachers. Your ears shall hear a word behind you saying, This is the way. Walk in it. Whenever you turn to the right hand or turn to the left. Yes, we saw earlier that Jesus Christ will return to earth with fury and might to conquer evil and defeat a satanic culture. But immediately afterward, he knows that a hurting humanity needs compassion and love and patience. They do not need to be beaten with a rod of iron. This scripture also indicates that human nature and the tendency to sin will still exist among physical survivors. They'll still need teachers. They'll need teachers for quite a while. They still need someone to coach them, to love them, to mentor them, to teach them. Of course, there will be an important difference there. The Spirit of God will permeate the world instead of Satan's Wi-Fi network that permeates the world today. Yet selfish human nature will still need to be resisted and overcome. Turn with me to Numbers 14, verse 18.

I'd like to point out a serious flaw in human nature.

And I'll tell you that as I became a pastor a few years ago and I knew more intimately about some individual's problems, even in my own congregation, the more the scripture has become clear to me. Numbers 14, verse 18. It's a deep problem with human nature. Here is something God stated.

Chapter 14, verse 18. The Lord is long suffering and He is abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.

Now, we need to understand the scripture correctly. Its meaning is not that God punishes great-grandchildren for the sins committed by their grandparents who lived and died generations before. That's not what God's saying here. God insists that each individual be punished and be responsible for their own sins.

The significance of this scripture, though, is the destructive consequences of sin and dysfunctional behavior being passed on from one generation to another within families. Medical research has proven soundly that sins such as alcoholism and abandonment and physical abuse, emotional abuse are passed down from parent to child, from one generation to another to another to another to another. And I can tell you as pastor that I've lived long enough now to see some very serious dysfunctions from people that I knew in the church who were grandparents that were passed on to their children and now are in their grandchildren. So this is a real struggle with human nature, something that people struggle with, and that is that we pass down these dysfunctions from generation to generation. After the return of Jesus Christ, it will take generations before mankind's families can truly be restored through healing and re-education and learning to obey God's laws. For example, there are some ethnic peoples who have hatreds of others simply because they're different. And this has been nurtured for thousands of years. Children aren't born to hate. Children are taught to hate.

And in this world, there are many, many cultures in which they hate the culture next to them because their skin color is different or because we use yellow beads and they use red beads. And people hate each other. That has to be taught.

And a godly culture has to root that out, has to eliminate that kind of generational dysfunction of hate that in some of these cultures has been going on for thousands and thousands of years.

It's going to take a number of generations within a godly culture to nurture a love of peace and spiritual maturity for the world. And we can expect that it will take hundreds of years, many generations, to root out this destructive and abusive human culture and build a godly one. Let's say another reason why it's going to take a thousand years to begin eternity. Amos chapter 9 and verse 13. Another myth many people have. It's probably from all of us growing up watching too many Disney movies. We confuse God with a genie. Genies wave magic wands and do everything for you. God says, I find fulfillment in work and you will too.

Jesus said, my father works and so do I. And so will the saints. Amos chapter 9 and verse 13. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when the plowman shall overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes, him who sow seed. Can you imagine an environment where the crop is so big that the person wants to plant next year's crops? Are saying, can you hurry it up a little bit? It's that time. I'm sorry. I'm still gathering what happened last year. But that's the abundant crops in life that will exist in the world tomorrow. It says, the mountain shall drip sweet wine and all the hills shall flow with it. I will bring back the captases of my people Israel. They shall build the way cities and inhabit them. God doesn't say, I will wave my magic wand and these cities suddenly appear. They shall plant vineyards and drink from them. He's not going to wave his magic wand and these beautiful hybridized grape plants jump out of the ground and have grapes the size of basketballs. No, that's not going to happen. They shall also make gardens and eat the fruit of them. I will plant them in their land and they're going to have to do the rest, is what God is saying. And no longer shall they be pulled up from the land that I have given them, says the Lord your God. The citizens of the world tomorrow will have a significant purpose and rich fulfillment in God's kingdom. A massive building program will begin. I want you to notice that God again isn't going to wave a magic wand to accomplish the work of building a new world and cleaning up the environment. He could, but he just simply chooses not to because he knows that we find dignity in work. That work is a good and a productive thing. It is a thing that builds character. It is a thing that builds our sense of worth. Yes, God's going to do his part in being when necessary. And if it's necessary, he will change the geography of the earth by leveling mountains and altering rivers and valleys. However, he expects those who have survived, assisted by the saints of Jesus Christ, to have an active role in literally rebuilding and reshaping a new world under the leadership of his saints. Something else is going to happen. Remember our discussion earlier in the feast about Genesis 1 and verse 14 when God originally created the world. There was a Hebrew word that was translated from the New King James Version, Seasons. That Hebrew word is moed. It's the same word that's translated feast everywhere else in Leviticus 23. Do you remember that? We read an alternative translation called God's Word. I'll read it again. Then God said, Let there be lights in the sky to separate the day from the night. They will be signs and will mark religious festivals, days and years. Well, the scripture reveals that one of the original purposes of the sun and the moon and the stars was to mark time in order to observe religious festivals. Well, whose religious festivals? Obviously, the same orderly God who created all things had his own religious festivals in mind. He, before there was one human being walking the earth, he established it and desired that all humankind would fulfill their rule by worshiping him and giving him honor. Let's now go to Zachariah chapter 14 one more time, verse 16, and see how his original intent, the original intent from Genesis 1.14 is fulfilled during the early part of the millennium. Genesis chapter 14 and verse 16. We're going to go full circle here from God's original intent at the creation of the earth before there was one human being alive and see his fulfillment of it.

Zachariah chapter 14 verse 16. Scripture that many of us are familiar with, That's everybody. Jew, Gentile, every skin color, every ethnicity.

So God comes full circle from his original intent at creation to the fulfillment of having all families of the earth, everyone, come and worship him on the days that he is appointed, the very days that you and I are celebrating right now and honoring him with.

These are the things that will occur during the first few hundred years of the millennium. We can expect much to have been accomplished after a few hundred years. The kingdom will be firmly established around the world, beginning in Jerusalem. The terrified masses of humanity who survived the great tribulation have long ago been comforted and gradually accepting God's way of life. New people are being born, physical people are being born into this kingdom. And by this time, the original human survivors, great great great grandchildren will have grown up in a world of peace and harmony and respect and dignity and a deep love of God. Virtually the entire world will honor God's law and worship the king during the Feast of Tabernacles. It will be the kind of world that you and I have prayed for every time we said, thy kingdom come. The world that we've longed for, for so many years. But, pretty powerful three-letter word, isn't it? The work of the saints of Jesus Christ, that's you and me, will have only begun.

The task of planning a new godly society was just a small foretaste of what lies ahead at the latter half of the one thousand years. It will no longer simply be a time of restoration, but vast preparation. From restoration to preparation.

It will no longer be focused simply on the living, like the early years of the millennium are, but on those who were dead, but, powerful three-letter word, will soon live again. Have you ever wondered how many people have ever lived on the earth?

The most interesting answer I could find came from a study by an organization called the Population Reference Bureau. This stunned me. I wasn't ready for this. The number that they came up with is 108 billion. That's with a B.

The author of the study, Carl Hobb, describes the assumptions that went into his calculations. By one AD, experts estimate that there were at least 45 million people in the Roman Empire.

So, extrapolating from that, he said he put the world population back then, including China, that was far more populous than the Roman Empire, and Africa and the Americas. He put the world population back then at roughly 300 million.

Based on assumptions about birth rate, he put the impact of infant mortality, infanticide, the Black Death, all of these things that have occurred through the Middle Ages and brought us to where we are today.

He said it took 1,650 years for the number to reach half a billion. It surpassed 1 billion living, only in the 19th century. So, their conclusion is that today the population is 7.1 billion and rising, but the total accumulation of people living and dead has reached 108 billion. I can't even get my hands around a number that large. Let's go to Isaiah chapter 26 and verse 19 and read about this time.

Isaiah chapter 26 and verse 19. Such a beautiful prophecy. Verse 19. Your dead shall live. Together with my dead body, Isaiah knew he was certainly going to die. Together with my dead body they shall arise, awake and sing, you who dwell in dust. For your dew is like the dew of herbs and the earth shall cast out the dead.

I'm going to read this from an alternative translation that I think does such a beautiful job. It's called the New Century Version. It says, Your people have died, but they will live again. Their bodies will rise from death. You who lie in the ground wake up and be happy. The dew covering you is like the dew of a new day. The ground will give birth to the dead.

The latter half of the millennium will be one of the most remarkable chapters in the history of the earth. Hundreds of years will be needed to prepare for the most anticipated event ever after the return of Jesus Christ. And that is that day, the eighth day, the last great day, when billions of people will be resurrected from the dead. And the latter part of the millennium must begin a massive, worldwide building project to prepare for the billions resurrected on that day. In one glorious event, think of the billions who have never known God's way of life. And they're going to be resurrected, and they're going to have immediate needs. What will they eat? How will they be clothed? Where will they live? Where will they have shelter? Where will they receive education? Where will they assemble to worship? How will the sanitary needs of a billion people be accomplished? You know, God is a God of order. I can't picture at that time that I say to Mr. Martin, you were a festival director. We had 100 billion people here, and an hour ago they had dinner, and now they all need, according to your term, biological breaks.

Mr. Martin, did you remember to order the porta-potties? Oh, man! I'm sorry! I don't know. I'll check with Mr. Cole and see if he ordered the porta-potties. No, God is more organized than that. Think of all the work that needs to be done in advance in preparation of these people who are resurrected from the dead. These are but a few of the challenges that we will need to face in advance of that great resurrection. Again, God is not a genie, and he's not going to simply wave a magic wand to make these things just happen. An omniscient and orderly God will have these needs filled in advance by the efforts of his spiritual children. And that's you, and that's me. Isaiah 41, if you'll turn there with me. See how some of the geography of the earth will be changed. Obviously, with that many people alive, we're going to need more land. And we're going to need land that is now desert and arid to be watered and to be able to produce food. Isaiah 41, verse 18.

The cypress tree and the pine and the box tree together. And they may see and know and consider and understand together that the hand of the Lord has done this. And the Holy One of Israel has created it. So, brethren, the geography of the earth will be changed as mountains and hills are leveled, deserts and wastelands will be transformed in the lush fertile land. And God is not the author of confusion. All the needs for an enormous second resurrection, including increased fertile land and food production and storage, the manufacture of clothing, a substantial building of homes, communities, schools, places of worship, sewage systems, all need to be provided before the second resurrection.

Now, since I have trouble getting my hands around 108 billion, just let's conservatively say that 20 billion people have ever lived. I can deal with that. From a conservative level, let's just say 20 billion people are resurrected on the eighth day, the last great day.

And we want to build community centers. And maybe we want a community center to be about a thousand people, because if they get too large, then you lose that personal touch with other people. And that's very important. If you were to build community centers for those who are resurrected, a community center to hold a thousand people, you will need 20 million community centers around the world. How about places to worship? From my own experience, I've been in large churches, I've been in small churches. My personal opinion is about 500 people. You go over 500 people, you begin to lose a lot. One of the biggest criticisms I hear from people who attend mega churches is that there are so many people in them, you rarely see the same person twice. So let's just say, just for speculation, that worship centers are built for 500 people to handle a resurrection of 20 billion. There would need to be 40 million buildings built. And, brethren, we worship a God of great diversity. There's not going to be some cookie-cutter blueprint that looks like Wal-Mart's pasted all over the world for worship centers. That's not going to happen.

How about homes for extended families?

Say an average home, Grandma and Grandpa might want to live with some of their children, might want to live with their grandchildren. Let's say that homes for extended families of 20. 20 individuals living in a home. Well, obviously, you would have to build a billion homes in order to handle that kind of a resurrection. Plus, these communities, they need utilities and roads and administrators and mayors.

And again, this is where you play an important part. You have been given the privilege of being called now and at this age for a wonderful purpose. Just think of the powerful impact and influence that you will have on the billions of souls who now rest in the earth.

Unknown to them, God is their only hope and you are His chosen saints.

We here, right now, during this feast, are preparing to serve in that everlasting kingdom. Isaiah 32, if you will turn there with me. Isaiah 32.

This is actually a very poor translation in the New King James, and I apologize for that. It's kind of cryptic, and it doesn't tease out the full meaning of the original Hebrew. But we'll begin by reading it in the New King James version. Isaiah 32, verse 1. Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. That's you. You are the princes and princesses of Almighty God.

Verse 2. A man will be as a hiding place. In context, this means the princes will be as a hiding place, meaning someone who gives you shelter and protection, and the cover from the tempest as rivers of water in a dry land. As the shadow of a great rock in a weary land, the eyes of those who see will not be dim, and the ears of those who hear will listen.

And also the heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly. The foolish person will no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be bountiful. I'm going to read this from the translation of the New Century version, because it does such a beautiful job. It says, a king will rule in a way that brings justice, and leaders will make fair decisions. Then each ruler shall be like a shelter from the wind, like a safe place in a storm, like streams of water in a dry land, like a cool shadow from a large rock in a hot land. That's what you'll be like to the people who have the benefit of being taught by you and loved by you and cared for by you. Verse 3, people will look to the king for help, and they will truly listen to what he says.

People who are now worried will be able to understand. Those who cannot speak clearly now will then be able to speak clearly and quickly. Fools will not be called great.

What a contrast to the headlines in our newspapers today.

Fools will not be called great, and people will not respect the wicked.

Now, what we've been talking about today is our role in the kingdom of God. And maybe you're saying to yourself that sometimes I don't feel like I'm preparing for God's kingdom, Mr. Thomas. My life seems mundane. I'm struggling with problems and issues. Might be family issues, might be financial issues, might be health issues, might be job issues.

I'm just struggling with a lot of stuff right now. I'm in a rut, and I just don't feel like there's a whole lot going on in my life or that a lot of productive things are happening in my life right now.

Well, I want to remind you how you are preparing for the kingdom of God.

Every day, every time you face a difficult day and you maintain the values of God, you are preparing for the kingdom of God. Every day you face a world of doubt with faith and confidence, you are preparing for the kingdom of God. Every time you see a need somewhere and you provide a solution or a service, you dedicate your time, you are preparing for the kingdom of God.

Every time you encourage another person, you visit a widow, call upon the lonely, you mail a card with love, you are preparing for the kingdom of God.

Every time you reign in a selfish thought or attitude and you replace it with the fruit of God's Holy Spirit, you are preparing for the kingdom of God.

Every time you overcome a sin or a negative habit, you are preparing for the kingdom of God.

Yes, God is preparing us each and every day to serve Him and others for all eternity.

Don't get discouraged about what God is doing through you, because you are God's building project.

God has a great work, and we're involved in that work, but you too are God's work. You are His temple.

And like any new construction site, I'm sure there seems to be rubble and waste all around your life right now.

Trust God to help you clean it up before your grand opening when Jesus Christ returns.

God has a great future plan for each and every one of us, and I can assure you that self-doubt and a lack of faith in God's wisdom has caused more people to abandon our faith than any other single cause.

So be assured and understand that God is indeed working with you.

I hope you'll remember this. You'll think about this as we complete the Feast of Tabernacles this year.

I'd like to take a look at one final scripture in Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 4.

This verse has been read earlier in Ephesians, and it's very beautiful.

But it highlights the fact that God not only has a great work that we are all involved in spiritually when preaching the gospel, but that God is doing a work in you.

Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 4.

Paul wrote, But God, who is rich in mercy because of his great love, which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.

So we were as good as dead, dead to our sins, but because the Holy Spirit came within us, we are alive together in Christ.

By grace you have been saved, and raised us up together and made us to sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

And that time isn't far away when we will hear that trumpet call, and we will leave this earth, and we will join Jesus Christ and meet him in the air as we prepare to return with him as his saints to this world.

That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.

For we are his workmanship.

You see, again, God is doing a work, a great work in your life.

And maybe we don't always sense it. Maybe we don't always know exactly what's going on.

Maybe, like any new building project, there seems to be a lot of rubble going on in our life around us in every direction.

But God knows what he's doing. We are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

So God has a great work for us to do, and together the church strives to preach the gospel and make disciples and feed the flock of God.

But don't ever forget that you are a work.

The day God began to call you, he began a spiritual work in you, a work of molding and filing and converting your life through the process of change and life-altering experiences.

And if we understand the plan of God, we understand that, yes, the good things and even the painful things can teach us that we can learn from them.

We can help others by the things that we suffer, by the things that we experience.

You are a part of the future and the hope of the world.

Jesus Christ is training-tested and committed, brethren, to serve as kings and priests in a wonderful world to come.

And the fruit that God desires in us is the result of the little things that we do each and every day.

The frightened and confused humanity who live in the world tomorrow will need teachers who have been there and had never quit.

They will need instructors who can encourage and empathize with them because they also experience human pain and discouragement.

They will need friends who walked through the valley of the shadow of death and trusted God to the very end of their physical lives.

They will need love from those whose love was refined by the fiery trials of affliction.

They will need spiritual brothers and sisters who never stop believing and preparing for a better world.

In other words, they need you.

And that is our calling.

So as the elective God, I encourage you to get the most out of the rest of this feast and to go home, determine, to draw upon God's spirit so that it can make a difference in our lives, in our families, and a positive difference in our church areas.

Remember to prepare.

Saints, for the millennium, God is also doing a work in you.

And the best is yet to come.

And each and every one of you have been invited to be a part of it.

Have a wonderful sixth day of the Feast of Tabernacles.