Participants: Lonnie Melashenko
Series Code: VOPS
Program Code: VOPS000020
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00:35 Our subject tonight is one of the most
00:37 fascinating spectaculars in all the Bible. 00:41 World Blackout Coming. 00:44 A thousand years of darkness when God finally, fairly, 00:48 and justly deals with the sin problem 00:50 in His big universe. 00:53 You know, every now and then, 00:54 a judge in one of our courts sentences 00:57 someone to an impossibly long prison term 01:00 to express horror or outrage about the crime. 01:03 Or a jury hands down a sentence of three or four life sentences 01:08 in a row when that criminal is already of retirement age 01:11 with no expectation it could possibly 01:13 ever be served in several lifetimes. 01:16 But you see, through that judge's 01:17 unimaginably impossible sentence, 01:21 our society expresses anger and disgust 01:23 for particularly heinous crimes. 01:27 Well, are you aware that a time is soon coming 01:30 when a judge will hand down a sentence of thousand years? 01:35 And the criminal will serve out every day of that sentence? 01:40 Now granted, people's opinions 01:42 about the 20th chapter of the Book of Revelation 01:44 and the millennium can be very, very confusing. 01:47 In fact, people have argued and debated 01:49 about that chapter for centuries. 01:52 In fact, this is true. 01:54 Once a bishop, I won't tell you which church, 01:56 but you all heard of it. 01:58 This bishop got so upset about the 20th chapter of Revelation, 02:02 he actually tore it out of that church's book. 02:05 And didn't get back into his denominations Bible 02:08 for hundreds and hundreds of years. 02:11 Well, folks, this is such an important subject. 02:13 Let's get out our Bible and discover what's next 02:16 as once again the Voice of Prophecy speaks. 02:19 Let's start with the Book of Revelation, Chapter 20. 02:24 And I want you to follow very, very carefully. 02:26 It says in the beginning of verse 1-3. 02:30 "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, 02:32 having the key to the bottomless pit 02:34 and a great chain in his hand. 02:37 He laid hold of the dragon, 02:38 that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, 02:41 and bound him for a thousand years, 02:44 And he cast him into the bottomless pit, 02:47 and shut him up, and set a seal on him, 02:49 that he should deceive the nations no more 02:51 until the thousand years were finished. 02:55 But after these things--" He must be what? 02:59 "Released for a little while." 03:02 All right, the first firm fact about the millennium. 03:06 We can nail this down. 03:08 God has a plan to deal with the greatest criminal 03:11 that this universe has ever known 03:13 when the Devil will be imprisoned 03:14 for a thousand years, chained up. 03:17 Amen? Amen. 03:18 Second fact, Bible prophecy tells us 03:22 after Satan is in prison for a thousand years, 03:25 he will be paroled. 03:28 Released, it says, for a little while. 03:31 But his parole evidently proves 03:33 that even after a thousand years he hasn't reformed. 03:37 He's still the Devil, still up to his same tricks. 03:41 Third fact, according to the Scripture, 03:44 the millennium is tied in very, very closely 03:48 with the resurrection at the Second Coming of Jesus. 03:52 In fact, we'll find in a moment 03:54 that the millennium is actually bound 03:56 by two separate and distinct resurrections. 03:59 "The resurrection of eternal life 04:02 at the beginning of the millennium 04:05 and the resurrection of damnation 04:07 at the end of the thousand years." 04:10 Jesus said once in John 5:25 and on, 04:15 He said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, 04:18 the hour is coming and now is, 04:21 when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, 04:24 and all those who hear will live." 04:28 So there you have it, the resurrection. 04:31 But I want you to notice now 04:32 how Christ explains this in the 28th and 29th verses. 04:36 He says, "Lonnie, do not marvel at this, 04:39 for the hour is coming in which all are in the grave, 04:41 who in the graves will hear His voice and come forth." 04:43 Notice now, "Those who have done good, 04:46 to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil 04:50 to the resurrection of damnation." 04:53 He talks about two resurrections. 04:55 First, the resurrection of those 04:58 who have done good. 05:00 The second, the resurrection of damnation. 05:04 And Revelation 20:5-6 says that it's the good people 05:09 who come up in the first resurrection. 05:12 Here's what it says. 05:13 "This is the first resurrection. 05:15 Blessed and holy is he 05:17 who has part in the first resurrection. 05:20 Over such the second death has no power, 05:23 but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, 05:25 and shall reign with Him--" How long? 05:27 "A thousand years." 05:30 In fact Paul told the Thessalonians 05:31 in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17. 05:35 "For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven 05:38 with a shout, with the voice of the archangel 05:40 with the trumpet of God. 05:41 And the dead in Christ--" Will what? 05:44 "Rise" What? "First." 05:47 Then He says and continues, 05:48 "Then we who are alive and remain 05:50 shall be caught up together with them in the clouds 05:53 to meet the Lord in the air. 05:54 And thus we shall always be with the Lord." 05:57 Amen? Amen. 05:58 So this first resurrection, 06:01 this glorious resurrection morning, 06:03 the first one is for whom? 06:07 The first group of dead people. 06:09 The dead in Christ, 06:10 the righteous, the saints, that's right. 06:12 They are the ones who are raised first. 06:15 And by the way, all of us Christians 06:17 if we haven't died by that time, 06:19 if we're still alive at Christ's coming, 06:20 it says we will be caught up with them in the clouds 06:24 to meet the Lord in the air. 06:25 And on that day, 06:26 Jesus' promises will finally be fulfilled 06:28 that He said in John 11:25. 06:32 "He that believeth in me, 06:34 though he were dead, yet shall he live." 06:38 So all of the righteous dead sleeping in the grave 06:43 will be raised from their graves, when? 06:47 As Jesus returns. 06:48 In fact, Isaiah even tells us the very words 06:52 that Jesus shouts, with a voice of thunder. 06:55 "Awake, awake, ye that sleep in the dust 06:59 and earth shall cast out the dead," it says. 07:03 What a glorious day that will be 07:05 to be in Forest Lawn Cemetery. 07:08 Angels scurrying around with little babies, 07:10 reuniting them with their parents over there 07:13 in Arlington National Cemetery in Washington. 07:15 Husbands who died in Vietnam or World War II 07:18 or the Gulf Wars, reunited with their wives. 07:21 Todd Beamer, who perished because terrorists sabotaged 07:24 United Airlines Flight number 93, September 11, 07:29 he will be reunited with his precious Lisa. 07:32 I wish you could read that Book of Lisa's 07:35 and that precious little baby Morgan. 07:37 You know, folks, 07:38 cemeteries will be the happiest places on this planet. 07:42 The most moving, touching scene ever in history. 07:45 Christ's wonderful promise made so long ago 07:47 will be fulfilled in John 14:2, 3. 07:51 "I go to prepare a place for you. 07:53 And if I go and prepare a place for you, 07:55 I will come again and receive you to Myself, 07:57 that where I am, there Ye may be also." 08:02 All the saved on resurrection morning, 08:04 finally, we rise up and we go to Paradise, to be with Jesus, 08:10 which leads us now to our next major point 08:12 that we can nail down. 08:14 We're not going to be tearing out the Book of Revelation 08:16 from our Bibles tonight. 08:18 We're gonna find out what it says. 08:19 What is next, then? 08:21 What will we do up there in Paradise 08:23 for a thousand years? 08:26 Ah, that's a crucial question. 08:29 Because, friend, it has something to do 08:31 with God's plan to close the book 08:34 on the problem of sin. 08:37 In Revelation 20:6, 08:40 prophecy reveals an amazing insight 08:42 about what we do up there during the millennium. 08:47 Listen, "Blessed and holy is He 08:50 who has part in the first resurrection. 08:53 Over such the second death has no power, 08:56 but they shall be--" What? 08:58 "Priests of God and of Christ, 09:00 and shall reign with Him a thousand years." 09:04 It says, we're priests, 09:05 another translation in some Bible says we are judges, 09:09 we reign or we hold court for a thousand years. 09:15 What does this mean? 09:17 Now aside from Heaven, 09:18 aside from the unspeakable joy when we finally get there, 09:21 getting acquainted with everyone, 09:23 aside from the travel and all of the glory, 09:25 John gives this unique insight as to what we saints do 09:30 for God during the millennium. 09:33 Notice verse 4 09:35 "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them. 09:39 And judgment was committed to them." 09:43 You see before God finally eradicates sin 09:46 and burns up this old ball of mud here, 09:49 God first insists that every human being 09:52 who has ever lived on planet earth, 09:54 clearly understands why He's going to destroy it. 09:58 And we help God finally resolve the sin problem. 10:03 The thousand year millennium opens up an altogether 10:07 different final phase to the last judgment 10:10 that we discovered began back in 1844. 10:13 But God won't carry out what the Bible calls His 10:16 "strange act," 10:18 His final ultimate sentence of judgment and destruction, 10:23 eradicating sin and sinners. 10:25 No, not until all the universe sits as grand jury 10:29 and together renders the verdict and understands 10:32 why God must do this and destroy. 10:36 God is gonna wait until you understand. 10:41 So Revelation 20 describes this time 10:43 when God amazingly includes us, mortals, in the final verdict. 10:50 Feeble men and women, you and I 10:53 are assigned the solemn task of judging 10:56 fallen angels and the wicked unsaved. 11:00 You see, before God finally annihilates them, 11:03 including Satan, in the "executive phase" of Hell fire, 11:07 this one thousand year period is when the 11:10 "sentencing of the wicked" takes place. 11:14 Now, folks, I'm not making this up. 11:16 Paul states in 1 Corinthians 6:2, 3. 11:21 He says, "Do you not know 11:23 that the saints will judge the world? 11:26 Do you not know that we shall judge angels?" 11:31 You see, friend, God wants to secure His universe 11:34 so that as Nahum 1:9 says, 11:36 "Affliction shall not arise the second time." 11:40 Aren't you glad for that promise? 11:42 Guaranteed God says, it will be sinless forever. 11:47 How can He do that? 11:49 It must become crystal clear once and for all 11:52 to every created being that's ever lived, 11:55 that God is just, that He is fair, 11:58 that He is good. 12:00 You see, for over 6, 000 years now 12:03 Satan has been leveling the accusation, 12:05 God's unfair, God's unfair. 12:08 The thousand year millennium 12:10 must finally put this notion to rest. 12:14 But how is that gonna happen? 12:16 Why do we need to judge the evil angels 12:18 and the wicked sinners? 12:20 I mean, haven't they already been judged 12:22 before Christ comes? 12:24 True, in the sense 12:27 that they didn't get to go up to Heaven. 12:30 But if you ever wondered what your reaction 12:32 might be up in Heaven. 12:34 If you went up there looking for someone you expected 12:36 to find there only to discover, 12:40 they are not here, they are lost forever. 12:45 God, how come? 12:48 You might call the fairness of God's justice into question. 12:53 And you know wonderful, merciful God, 12:56 during the millennium, Bible says, 12:58 He opens the records of all of the lost for our scrutiny. 13:03 And God patiently sits there and He waits for us 13:07 to make up our minds that He was right in judging 13:09 every person the way that He did. 13:12 We get to investigate the evidence 13:14 to see why He judged how He did. 13:17 You see, before He eliminates and eradicates sinners, 13:21 the most guarded secrets harbored 13:23 in each evil person's mind will be exposed. 13:26 And as we, we go through the records, 13:27 we inspect them. 13:30 Bible says, we are gonna be left with only one response, 13:33 we'll get down on our knees and we'll say, "God, 13:36 we agree with Your love, we know You were just. 13:41 We bow in tears and worship." 13:43 Revelation 16:7 we will say, "Even so, Lord God Almighty, 13:48 true and righteous are Your judgments." 13:53 But now wait a minute. 13:56 How did the wicked settle their score with God? 14:00 How do they have their say 14:01 whether God's been just and fair? 14:03 They're all dead. 14:05 Revelation 19:21 describes that when Jesus comes, 14:10 the impact of course destroys them. 14:12 It flattens everyone who rejects God. 14:15 It says here "And the rest of the dead were killed 14:19 with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him 14:22 who sat on the horse." 14:24 You see, the splendor and the beauty 14:26 and the brilliance of millions and millions of angels 14:28 and God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit, 14:30 when they all come together is so overwhelming, 14:32 2 Thessalonians 2:8 says "That the wicked are destroyed 14:36 by the brightness of His coming." 14:39 In fact, you remember when Jesus rose from the grave, 14:42 one angel on Easter Sunday morning, 14:45 that one angel caused a 100 Roman soldiers to collapse 14:49 in a heap like dead men. 14:52 Jeremiah 25:33 says, about this day 14:56 when Jesus comes and the impact on the wicked people, 14:59 it says, "And at that day the slain of the Lord 15:02 shall be from one end of the earth 15:04 even to the other end of the earth." 15:06 What that means is every single wicked person is now dead. 15:10 And it goes on and says. 15:12 "They shall not be lamented, nor gathered, or buried, 15:15 they shall become refuse or fertilizers--" 15:20 somebody who translated it, "--on the earth." 15:24 The righteous, remember they went up to heaven, 15:26 to be with Jesus at His second coming. 15:28 But all the unsaved who are alive when Jesus comes, 15:31 they are slain by the brightness of His coming. 15:34 So we can nail this down, too. 15:37 All of the wicked are now dead. 15:40 Revelation 20:5, let's look at that again. 15:44 "But the rest of the dead lived not again 15:47 until the thousand years were finished." 15:52 And now, folks, we're gonna see from Scripture 15:54 an amazing revelation how God finally resolves 15:57 and ends the problem of sin in this universe forever. 16:02 How the wicked will have their day in court 16:05 and they too will have their turn to judge God. 16:10 But first, let's quickly review the events 16:12 that prophecy reveals take place at Christ's coming. 16:17 1. Jesus returns, 16:19 with all of the holy angels, Mathew 25:31 16:22 2. The dead in Christ rise, 1Thessalonians 4:16 16:26 3. The living are caught up to meet Jesus in the air. 16:30 1 Thessalonians 4:17 16:32 4. And the saved, 16:34 they all go home with Jesus and reign with Him. 16:36 How long? Thousand years. Revelation 20:4, 5. 16:40 The unsaved are slain 16:45 by the brightness of His coming 16:46 2 Thessalonians 2:8, Jeremiah 25:33 16:50 6. And the wicked dead stay dead 16:54 during the thousand years. Revelation 20:5 16:57 7. And Satan is bound for a thousand years by a chain. 17:03 It's really a chain of circumstances 17:05 because he has nobody left to tempt, 17:07 nobody to destroy. 17:08 That's Revelation 20:2. 17:10 8. Since all of the righteous are up there in heaven, 17:13 and all the wicked are dead, everybody is gone. 17:17 Everywhere, there is absolute ruin, 17:19 Jeremiah 24:23-26. 17:23 Let's look at prophecy and what it says now 17:27 about what's happening down here on planet earth 17:30 during the millennium? 17:32 Ladies and Gentlemen, I must tell you this, 17:34 it is not at all like Tim LaHaye's 17:36 "Left Behind" fiction. 17:39 The Bible tells the truth. 17:42 This earth, during the millennium, 17:45 becomes the Devil's prison. 17:48 Satan is chained up to this abyss. 17:51 He is bound, the Bible says for a thousand years. 17:54 How is Satan chained? 17:57 I believe it's a simple chain of circumstances 18:01 because it's impossible for him to go anywhere. 18:03 There's nobody left to tempt. 18:04 No one to destroy. There's nobody here. 18:07 The saved are up with Jesus for a thousand years. 18:09 The wicked, they are all dead. 18:10 So this earth becomes his prison. 18:14 Now remember, this is important, too, 18:16 in God's final plan. 18:18 Because you see ever since creation, 18:21 Lucifer always jealously wanted to show everybody 18:24 how he would rule a world. 18:28 Now God finally gives him his chance. 18:31 And the watching universe 18:32 is able to see in vivid technicolor 18:34 what kind of a ruler he really is 18:36 when given complete control of a planet. 18:40 But you know what, it looks like ground zero. 18:43 Destroyed, little curls of smoke 18:45 and stench and death, 18:46 chaos like a bombed out 18:48 bottomless pit, if you wish. 18:51 In fact, for those of you English majors, 18:54 let me do just a little 18:55 etymological word study for you. 18:57 That Greek word "bottomless pit" 19:00 in Greek is "Abussos" 19:04 from which we get our English word "abyss". 19:07 By the way, that is the same exact word used in Genesis 1 19:10 when God first created the heavens and the earth 19:12 out of chaos. 19:13 It says, "Without form and void." 19:17 That's Abussos. 19:20 In fact the Prophet Jeremiah, 19:21 he foresaw this bottomless pit 19:24 during the thousand years in Jeremiah 4:23, 19:28 he says, "I beheld the earth, 19:31 lo, it was without form and void; and the heavens, 19:35 they had no light." 19:37 You see it there, friend, it's coming. 19:39 Complete world blackout 19:42 on this Abussos or this bottomless pit. 19:44 And it is going to be totally dark. 19:48 Jeremiah 4:24-26, 19:50 "I beheld the mountains, and lo, they trembled, 19:53 all the hills moved lightly. 19:56 I beheld, and lo, there was no man, 19:59 all the birds of the heavens were fled. 20:00 I beheld, and lo, 20:01 the fruitful place was a wilderness, 20:03 and all the cities thereof were broken down 20:05 at the presence of the Lord, 20:06 and by His fierce anger." 20:11 Pretty grim place for the old Devil 20:12 to take a thousand year vacation, 20:14 wouldn't you say? 20:16 Satan has nothing to do down here. 20:18 Except walk to and fro over this dark, devastated, 20:21 lonely planet and do a lot of reflecting. 20:24 You know, I've tried to imagine Satan down there 20:27 during the thousand years all by himself. 20:31 Everything is absolutely pitch black. 20:33 The old Devil's walking all over this earth, 20:35 nothing to do. 20:36 So here he is on this banged up, 20:38 burned out, broken down, bottomless pit, 20:41 just kind of kicking at things. 20:44 And suddenly perhaps he looks down 20:45 and somehow he can see the face, 20:50 the face of a man, 20:53 slain by the glory of the Lord. 20:57 He recognizes that man. 20:59 That's someone he knew well, that's Joe Cool. 21:03 He was a good citizen, everybody liked him. 21:06 He was honest. He paid his debts. 21:07 People were attracted to him. 21:09 He had a fine personality, great neighbor. 21:12 And there were times when Joe really wanted to make 21:15 a decision to follow the Lord Jesus all the way, 21:18 but the Devil was right there to say, 21:20 "No, Joe, not now. 21:24 This is only the year 2003. 21:26 Just give yourself a little more time. 21:28 Things will look better. 21:29 You'll have a better chance later to become a Christian." 21:34 So Joe didn't make his decision. 21:37 But then you see the Devil arranged an accident 21:39 on the highway to snuff out Joe's life. 21:43 And now there's a hideous smile on the face of the Devil 21:45 as he looks on the countenance of this man Joe. 21:49 Satan knows he is lost forever! 21:57 Friends, Revelation 20 21:58 is trying to tell us something tonight. 22:01 Don't postpone your decision for Jesus Christ. 22:05 Don't put it off. 22:06 It will be too late during the millennium. 22:10 So in review, the events that take place 22:13 during the millennium on this earth. 22:16 It is absolutely desolate, devastated. 22:19 All the unsaved are dead, 22:23 slain by the brightness of Jesus' coming. 22:25 All the saved are up there in heaven, 22:27 reigning with Christ. 22:29 And, Satan, 22:30 well, he is bound down here on this dark devastated planet. 22:34 He gets to reflect a little bit on his rebellion. 22:38 Now someone asks, "Lonnie, will Satan perhaps reform?" 22:44 Maybe he will change 22:45 after a thousand years of solitude down there? 22:47 Will he have any regrets? 22:49 Believe it or not that there are churches in North America 22:53 and outside of this country who worship Satan. 22:57 They worship the Devil. 22:59 Now because they believe that 23:01 Satan is gonna be converted during the millennium. 23:04 Will he? 23:07 You see, one of God's crucial reasons 23:09 for putting the millennium into His prophetic timetable 23:12 is to help us understand something. 23:15 God's going to demonstrate to the universe 23:17 that given another chance, any evil being 23:21 would still make the same decision all over again. 23:24 They choose the same master. They'd still reject God. 23:28 And now here it comes, a second chance, 23:33 for the Devil and for all of the wicked. 23:37 I want you to notice carefully what happens, 23:38 and profoundly what it tells us about God 23:42 when the millennium closes. 23:44 What does Bible say in Revelation 20:7, 8? 23:48 "Now when the thousand years have expired, 23:53 Satan will be released out of his prison, 23:56 will go out to deceive the nations 23:57 which are in the four corners of the earth 23:59 to gather them together to battle, 24:01 whose number is as the sand of the sea." 24:04 Well, you say, where do all of these 24:06 wicked people come from? 24:07 How can they be in this battle if they are all dead? 24:10 Ah, remember, Revelation 20:5 says, 24:13 "But the rest of the dead lived not again 24:16 until the thousand years were finished." 24:21 So right here God raises up the rest of the dead 24:25 in the second resurrection. 24:28 The resurrection as Jesus called it, 24:30 of damnation, at the end of the millennium, 24:33 that's for the unsaved dead. 24:35 Notice Revelation 20:8, 24:38 "The number of whom is as the sand of the sea." 24:42 You know, what a sight as they come up from their graves 24:45 identically the same, still with pain and sickness, 24:48 in wheel chairs, still cursing and swearing, 24:51 doing drugs, smoking weed, toting guns, terrible, 24:54 horrible, an awful mess of humanity. 24:57 They are anti-God and they are the lost. 25:01 Revelation 21:2 says, 25:04 at precisely this identically same time 25:07 that they are raised up, 25:09 the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, 25:10 with all of God's saints and Jesus, 25:13 all of God's holy angels inside, 25:16 that begins to descend down from heaven to earth 25:19 right at the end of the millennium. 25:21 In fact, Zechariah 14 describes 25:23 how God prepares a great big special landing place 25:26 for that big city, over there in the Mount of Olive 25:29 located just outside Old Jerusalem. 25:33 The gorgeous New Jerusalem comes down, 25:35 God's eternal, splendiferous city. 25:38 Whoa, think the wicked, awesome. 25:43 Whoa, amazing. 25:44 This City then becomes the focal point, 25:47 the final target of Satan's 25:49 last cunning campaign of conniving. 25:53 Notice what it says, Revelation 20:7, 8, 25:56 "And when the thousand years are expired, 25:58 Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 26:00 he shall go out to deceive the nations 26:02 which are in the four quarters of the earth 26:04 to gather them together to battle." 26:08 Of course, Satan is loosed 26:10 because when that second resurrection 26:12 raises up the wicked, well, that automatically triggers 26:14 Satan's release from being chained up 26:16 in this bottomless pit. 26:17 He's free again to tempt, to fool, to beguile 26:21 with his old scheming bag-of-tricks. 26:24 You know what? He is the same old deceiver. 26:26 He hasn't changed, hasn't reformed. 26:29 He goes out, the Bible says, 26:30 to deceive these billions of wicked people. 26:33 "Listen up, Saddam, he says listen up, Hitler. 26:36 Hey, Judas, Benedict Arnold, Jezebel, Sennecharib. 26:40 Look at you. 26:43 Oh, you're resurrected from the dead. 26:45 Do you know who raised you from the dead? 26:48 I did. You see that city over there? 26:53 I was once a great prince in that city. 26:56 They threw me out. They didn't treat me right. 27:00 I want you to help me capture it and we'll rule. 27:04 We've still got a chance. 27:06 Verses 8-9 says, billions of these people, 27:08 they listen to him and somehow he convinces them 27:11 they can take the city. 27:13 So you see, they haven't changed either. 27:16 Again they choose Satan as their leader. 27:19 And so they start marching, 27:20 advancing closer and closer to this massive city, 27:24 this mighty army 27:25 in earth's last cosmic final battle of Armageddon. 27:32 Verse 9 says, notice. 27:34 "They went up on the breadth of the earth 27:36 and surrounded the camp of the saints 27:38 and the beloved city." 27:41 Can you picture them? 27:43 All of the wicked of all of the ages. 27:46 Satan, the grand marshal lines them all up 27:48 with their devastating nuclear weapons, 27:50 they've got atomic missiles, B-1, B-52 bombers, 27:54 loaded to the nuclear teeth with smart bombs and anthrax 27:57 and all other destructive explosive weapons 27:59 that could seemingly shatter that city 28:01 and blow it into smithereens. 28:04 Picture all of these men and women, 28:06 they're raised up with the same diseased bodies, 28:08 same evil characters, 28:09 still cursing and swearing and everything else. 28:12 And Satan finally gives the order, "March! 28:16 Take the city!" 28:19 Now God suddenly intervenes 28:24 with the final cosmic "moment of truth." 28:29 God unveils what the Bible calls his "strange act." 28:33 And all of a sudden, 28:34 these billions of wicked men and wicked angels and women, 28:38 who ever they are there, they stop in their tracks, 28:40 the Bible tells us, because 28:42 now you see it's the wicked people's chance to judge God. 28:48 Jesus starts to ascend higher and higher above that city, 28:52 suspended up there in space, and He begins to radiate 28:56 brighter and brighter in glory and majesty and power. 28:59 And I believe that first at the Book of Philippians Chapter 2 29:03 describes this scene specifically in something 29:06 like a fantastic replay of a cosmic video screen, 29:12 where every evil eye will suddenly look at his own life 29:17 replayed in virtual reality. 29:19 His whole life portrayed in 3-D Cinerama. 29:23 And every wicked person will see their entire life, 29:26 every wicked deed and what they are really like 29:29 when they stand before our holy God and before the saints, 29:32 and before that Holy City 29:34 filled with all the holy angels. 29:36 And they see the awful difference. 29:39 They see the saints there with perfect bodies, 29:41 perfect health, perfect happiness, 29:43 full of love and joy and smiles and radiant with holy glory. 29:47 And they see themselves, 29:50 their wretchedness, their misery, 29:52 and their ugliness, their hopelessness. 29:56 You see, God is now giving the wicked 29:59 their chance to judge Him, too. 30:02 And the record says in Philippians 2:10-11, 30:06 that becomes the molten moment, the flashpoint 30:11 of total self-realization for the wicked. 30:16 God, You were right. You were right. 30:22 Bible says that at the knee of Jesus-- 30:25 "At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, 30:29 those in heaven and those on earth, 30:31 and of those under the earth, even Satan and his angels, 30:34 that every tongue should confess Jesus Christ is Lord, 30:39 to the glory of God the Father." 30:42 Before the entire universe, 30:44 they finally admit God, Your justice was fair. 30:49 We worship You in spite of our wicked selves. 30:51 We really don't want to change. 30:52 We'd rather go to hell than live on with You. 30:55 We're not sorry for our sins. 30:57 We're just sorry we got caught. 30:59 You're right. God just get rid of us. 31:02 Put us out of our misery. 31:05 But that awful dramatic moment lingers a little longer. 31:09 Because God for the first and last time 31:11 gives all of those wicked now 31:13 a chance to see Him as He really is. 31:17 Not that they'd change. 31:19 But He says, "My children, 31:23 you still don't understand Me. 31:25 You don't know Me. I need to show you." 31:30 And the wicked watch transfixed 31:33 as God no longer conceals His glory, 31:36 but now He permits it to shine brighter and brighter. 31:39 And it becomes like intense heat, 31:41 flames of fire to these wicked people. 31:44 And in anguish they realize, 31:45 oh, how awful their sinful selves 31:47 are compared to this fantastic and perfect being. 31:50 And they begin to turn and fight with each other, 31:53 and attacking Satan as the fire of God's glory shines brighter, 31:56 and more powerful than ever. 31:58 And the whole earth erupts in seething flames, 32:01 a great big lake of fire. 32:03 This is what Revelation 20:9 is talking about when it says 32:07 "And fire came down 32:09 from God out of heaven and devoured them." 32:13 Completely burning up all evidence of sinful life 32:17 here on earth once and for all. 32:18 In fact the Bible says it's so hot, in 2 Peter 3:10 32:22 it melts the surface of the earth. 32:24 Notice, "The heavens shall pass away with a great noise, 32:28 and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, 32:30 the earth also and the works 32:32 that are therein shall be burned up." 32:36 Revelation 20:10, 14, 15 says 32:39 even "The devil, who deceived them, 32:41 was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone. 32:43 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. 32:47 This is the second death. 32:49 Anyone not found written in the Book of Life 32:51 was cast into the lake of fire." 32:54 Forever gone. 32:57 The cosmic battle of the ages is over. 33:01 Sin and sinners are no more. 33:04 Only the saints and the Holy City 33:07 are miraculously spared in that big holocaust. 33:12 You know, sadly, we may have relatives. 33:16 We may have some friends, 33:18 whom we love dearly, who will perish in that fire. 33:22 You know, I believe that there is gonna be 33:23 some agonizing scenes as they burn. 33:27 You know, the Bible says that the walls of the city 33:28 are made of transparent jasper. 33:32 The wicked just might be able to come up right to the city 33:34 and see right inside. 33:37 Maybe as one man runs up to the walls, 33:39 God's glory is getting brighter and brighter, 33:42 turning him into fire and starting to burn him. 33:44 He sees the very throne of God inside it, 33:47 the rainbow of promise encircling it. 33:49 He sees the River of Life, the Tree of Life, bright, 33:54 glorious angels radiant and happy. 33:56 Can you picture him seeing the streets of gold, 33:58 and standing spellbound wondering 34:00 why he was such a fool to lose all of that? 34:04 Then picture that man suddenly freezing in his track 34:07 as he sees someone coming who looks very familiar. 34:13 It's his own wife and children. 34:16 He remembers how they used to pray for him 34:18 to give his heart to the Lord but he never made his decision. 34:21 He never said yes to Jesus. Now there is that wall between. 34:27 He wants to escape the hot fire 34:28 and he just goes to pieces and he falls down 34:30 and he screams and he cries out, 34:32 begs God that, 34:33 would you just give me one more chance. 34:36 But there will never be another chance. 34:39 You see, He's not sorry, really, for his choice. 34:43 He's sorry he got caught, 34:45 and he only regrets the awful result. 34:49 It's too late. 34:52 Friend, I wish I could paint this picture 34:54 so graphically and share this so tenderly, 34:57 concerning surrender and its importance. 34:59 I don't wish to be melodramatic. 35:02 I'm not trying to scare you. 35:04 True love must be your motive for choosing Jesus Christ. 35:09 But right now Jesus invites you to settle it with God. 35:14 He pleads. 35:16 You know, I'm amazed how we preachers 35:18 sometimes soft-pedal this business of hell fire, 35:21 and we say well-meaning things to people 35:22 that we know should make a definite decision. 35:26 Sometimes, people are held back 35:28 by their possessions, or may be their family or job, 35:31 some friends, bank account. 35:34 Folks, what comfort will those be 35:35 if you're looking on the outside into the city? 35:41 Where are you going to be then, friend? 35:43 At the end of the millennium, 35:45 you and I are going to be in one of two places. 35:48 We'll be either inside that city, 35:50 reigning with Christ, immortal forever, 35:54 or we'll be on the outside with the ranks of the wicked, 35:57 lost, left out eternally. 36:02 We have the opportunity today 36:04 to make our decision before it's forever too late. 36:09 But I haven't quite finished yet. 36:12 This isn't the end, 36:14 that flaming holocaust burning up the earth. 36:17 Yes, there will be tears. 36:19 How could it be otherwise? 36:21 But here's the good news of the Voice of Prophecy, 36:24 Revelation 21:4 says, 36:26 "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, 36:30 and there shall be no more death, 36:32 nor sorrow, nor crying. 36:33 There shall be no more pain, 36:35 for the former things have-" What? 36:37 "Passed away." 36:39 We're gonna discover on another night 36:41 that hellfire isn't forever and ever 36:43 an eternal fry in the sky by and by. 36:45 God's saints won't have to look 36:47 on this ghastly holocaust scene forever. 36:49 No. 36:50 Those fires will become-- go out and the Bible says 36:52 they become ashes under our feet. 36:54 And in Revelation 21:5 God says, 36:57 "Behold, I make all things new." 37:01 New heaven, new earth. 37:03 Only you know what, this time, 37:05 you and I will be there to watch. 37:09 Friend, I'm here tonight to tell you that 37:10 no one seated here needs to be caught in that lake of fire. 37:15 You know, my Bible says that that's being prepared 37:17 for the Devil and his angels. 37:20 God isn't stoking that fire for people. 37:23 The only way you can possibly get there 37:25 is if you choose not to be saved. 37:30 Right now tonight I want to invite all of you 37:32 wonderful people seated in auditoriums 37:34 all across North America and around the world. 37:37 Friend, I want you to meet me there 37:39 inside those pearly gates. 37:42 Will you plan to meet me at the Tree of Life? 37:44 Voice of Prophecy has got a very special place 37:46 staked out, we're gonna meet all of our friends there. 37:49 Won't you surrender your life to Jesus right now 37:52 and make your decision? 37:54 Today, I want to invite you to come forward 37:56 here at the front of this auditorium, 37:58 I want you to stand in front of this great big screen 38:00 on either side wherever you are down there, 38:03 and your downlink locations, 38:04 take your decision card with you. 38:06 The row captains are passing those down right now. 38:09 Take that decision card, 38:12 bring it with you as Joey sings in just a moment. 38:15 If you're watching at home, watching on a video 38:18 you might want to slip to your knees, 38:19 or move down toward that television set. 38:22 Friend, if you have some habit that you need victory over, 38:25 come forward for prayer and if you're struggling 38:27 with the temptations come on down to the front 38:30 and turn your life over to Jesus. 38:32 If you want to receive Jesus Christ, 38:34 friend, please come, 38:35 Jesus will hear you, Jesus will answer. 38:38 I'm going to wait a few minutes as you come forward 38:40 and then I'll have prayer with you but please 38:42 get out of your seats right now, 38:44 come on down to the front as Joey sings. 38:47 Right now in the quiet of this moment 38:55 Right now He is near 39:02 Right now you can find Him 39:08 If you seek him 39:10 Right now He is here 39:16 Right now He is waiting to forgive your sin 39:27 Right now you can know His perfect peace within 39:38 Right now as you hear Him gently calling 39:46 Right now don't wait 39:52 Right now He is waiting to receive you 39:59 It's not too late 40:05 Right now if you'll open up the door Of your heart 40:13 And let Him in 40:19 New life will come to you 40:27 Right now 40:34 Amen, amen. 40:36 What a beautiful sight here in our Dallas 40:38 oblique location in Colombia. 40:41 Many, many people and I hope in your downlink location 40:43 you would join us even as I pray. 40:45 Let's bow our heads but please move to the screens, 40:47 wherever you are as we pray this prayer. 40:50 Heavenly Father, Lord I want to thank You 40:52 for the glorious picture of how sin will end one day soon. 40:58 But, Lord, it means the moment of truth has come right now. 41:04 Father, there are people here 41:05 who need to make that full surrender 41:08 and I want to pray for them just now 41:10 that You'll speak to their hearts 41:11 as I am praying this prayer. 41:14 Just speak as earnestly as you know how 41:16 that trouble our souls and realize 41:18 that if we choose to hold back, 41:22 we're rejecting You, not me. 41:25 Lord, this isn't my appeal, it's the Savior's. 41:30 So, Lord, right now we want to make a choice. 41:33 We choose You. 41:36 We choose to make that eternally important decision 41:39 before it's for ever too late. 41:41 Friend, out there whatever your congregation, 41:44 wherever you're sitting and watching 41:46 these satellites tonight, 41:48 all our heads are bowed and that organ is still playing. 41:51 Heaven is cheap enough, please make your decision. 41:56 Time is short. Choose to follow Jesus. 42:01 Maybe you are someone that's not been baptized 42:04 or you haven't made a public profession of Jesus, 42:07 would you settle that tonight? 42:10 Just stand up to your feet 42:11 and come on down to the front here. 42:13 Your instructors and hostesses will be there waiting for you 42:16 and as the spirit speaks, 42:17 friend, don't pass another opportunity to stand up 42:21 and profess Jesus Christ right now, come forward. 42:26 Maybe some have already stood, 42:28 you've already made a decision for Jesus Christ. 42:30 You come on down too and be an encouragement to someone else. 42:33 Or maybe you want to slip back to the seat 42:35 and encourage them that you'd be 42:36 willing to walk up with them. 42:38 I see number of people standing, 42:39 God bless each of you. 42:41 Would you take that response card right now, 42:44 let's fill it in together. 42:46 Those of you here at the front if you need to go back 42:48 later in a moment that's all right. 42:49 We'll let you fill it out then. 42:51 The first choice says, I want to be with Jesus 42:54 during the thousand years inside the New Jerusalem. 42:57 I hope every one will check number one. 43:00 Secondly, I accept Jesus into my life 43:03 for the first time today. 43:06 You check that if that's appropriate in your decision. 43:10 The next one is I want to prepare for baptism soon. 43:14 I hope many people who have been thinking about this 43:16 would put a check there. 43:17 We will be in touch with you to plan how and when for you. 43:20 And finally number four, there may be someone who says 43:23 I really need some prayers for my life, 43:26 please pray for me. 43:27 Would you check that and you can have a place there 43:28 to put your prayer request, do that just now as Joey sings. 43:33 Right now as you hear Him gently calling 43:41 Right now don't wait 43:47 Right now He is waiting to receive you 43:55 It's not too late 44:00 Right now if you'll open up the door 44:06 Of your heart and let Him in 44:14 New life will come to you 44:22 Right now 44:30 Father in heaven, 44:31 as we close this prayer time and our commitment time, 44:35 there are individuals still seated 44:36 and I would like to invite them to participate 44:39 in standing to their feet wherever they are to say, 44:42 Lord, I'm making myself Your subject of Your kingdom. 44:48 I'm declaring that I'm on Jesus' side. 44:51 Just stand where you are 44:52 and you're all across the congregation, 44:54 many, many people almost every person is standing 44:57 or you're raising your hand, God bless you, 44:58 if you can't stand, raise your hand, 45:00 God will see your hand. God bless you. 45:03 Lord, here we are, Your people, God's saints, 45:10 please bless each commitment and seal them for eternity 45:14 for we pray this in the wonderful name of Jesus 45:17 and the church said amen, amen, amen. 45:22 I'm gonna invite you quietly to move back to your seats 45:24 in all the locations. 45:25 I have a brief announcement before we go off the satellite. 45:30 Remember that tomorrow is a double header, 45:34 11 o'clock, Turn Back The Clock. 45:38 And we're gonna have a thrilling, 45:39 healing and anointing service for any one who would 45:41 like to participate right here and in your downlink locations. 45:46 That's at 11 o'clock. 45:47 Of course there is a study time called Sabbath school 45:49 begins at 9:15, 9:30 some places, 45:52 a little later, here it's at 9:30. 45:55 But then tomorrow night, the Bible's grand finale, 45:58 The Best Is Yet To Come. 46:02 We're about to have a graduation here 46:03 in our site in Colombia. 46:05 All of the sites down there 46:06 wherever you are across the globe, 46:09 this is the chance for you to meet 46:10 the discover Bible school students 46:11 who've completed most of the lessons, 46:13 some of them not quite finished, 46:15 but we're gonna give you diploma just the same, 46:17 because we want you to get a graduation diploma tonight. 46:20 As we leave, let me say 46:21 as we always close our broadcast, 46:24 friend, whoever you are, 46:26 wherever you are in your spiritual journey, 46:28 please remember, God really does love you. 46:34 Good night. God bless. |
Revised 2014-12-17