Expected End, New Beginning

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King James Bible Study[Mark 8:34  And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]

Date: Friday, December 31, 2021
Chapters: Revelation 19-22
Message: Expected End, New Beginning

Hello My Friend,

Happy New Years Eve! I almost forgot that this is the last day of the year. I for one am glad, but also sad, I feel like much of the year was vanity and vexation of spirit. No, I am not reading Ecclesiastes, but those words did come to mind as I think about the year that is gone now. As I was praying this morning, I had a hard time staying focused, I kept stopping and reading the chapters for today or got distracted trying to reschedule the shift that I had so that I could take another shift, (I got a temp job doing some work at convenience stores) as it would have been on the way. The one thing that kept coming to mind is this verse, [Jeremiah 29:11  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.]

We have an amazing merciful and gracious God, who is also a just God and we should not want it otherwise. Could you imagine this world as bad as it is right now with no laws? It would be like living in hell. Granted, many of man’s laws are ridiculous, because they are not to serve any purpose other than financial gain, but God’s law are not, there is a very good reason why He tells us not to do something. Remember, all the pain and suffering that we deal with is a result of sin, it is that curse passed down to us. And we can blame Adam and Eve all we want for passing all this down to us, but all we would be doing is blaming ourselves because we are just as guilty. No one is without sin, which is why God sent Jesus, [Matthew 5:17-18  Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.  18  For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.]

It is kind of scary to think that everything from the beginning of creation until the end of the world that all this was planned out. While we do have freewill, God knows exactly what is going to happen to us, we have a beginning and an end, but it is actually what we do in the middle that makes all the difference of where we will spend eternity. As we complete the reading of Revelation and the Bible, we can get a sense of accomplishment knowing that there is a beginning and expected end that will be of peace and not of evil. Until then, we have to muddle through the pains and sufferings that come from those choices that we make. Now, remember what read about the great tribulation and the destruction of the world. If you could imagine, there were actually some people who survived all that, and did not worship the beast. After we read about the woman in the purple and scarlet and the beast, and how they we both be judged, now comes the blessing.

[Revelation 19:1-2,69  And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: 2  For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. 6  And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.  7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.  8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.  9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.]

[For true and righteous are his judgments:] God’s judgments are true, He is no respecter of persons, we all have a choice, but we can expect that if we are going to choose God, then He would want us to come to Him as He chooses. After all, because He is righteous and we are covered in all this sin, there is no way that we can stand before Him and live. And again, that is why He sent Jesus, the only way we can stand before God is through His Son, because He is righteous. [for the marriage of the Lamb is come,] When all the pain and sorrow has come to pass, after we shed our souls of this flesh and get our new glorified bodies, there will be the expected end of eternal life, which will only be the beginning of our new lives, []

Dead or alive, we will all stand before Jesus, and if you have not received Him as our Saviour in this life, then the destruction of the world is the least of your problems, you have hell, and then the lake of fire to deal with. Now to those who are saved, we have something incredible awaiting us, a marriage supper, in fact, it will be our own wedding with our KING. The bride of Christ is no fleshly woman, she is the body of Christ. And we are the saved born again saints who were made righteous through our faith in Him alone. Amen! In this world, we are always going to face challenges just for our faith, some with great force, but the pain we suffer in this life will all be over when Jesus reigns as KING. Now, Jesus reveals His glorious return, and we too will be with Him.

[Revelation 19:11-16  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.  12  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.  13  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.  14  And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.  15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.  16  And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.]

[And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword,] That sharp sword in none other than the Word of God, and that is all that Jesus will use to judge the people. Notice something else from Jesus that we did not see when He was here the first time, He is not the meek and mild man that He was, He is coming with a vengeance.

[Revelation 19:17,19-21  And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;   19  And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.  20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.  21  And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.]

[with the sword of him that sat upon the horse,] Again, all Jesus is going to do us speak the Word of God, and they will immediately be killed, and not only that, eaten by the birds. Jesus Himself, the Word of God made flesh, at this time will cast the devil in prison for a thousand years, and remove every bit of evil from the earth. The bottomless pit will be opened revealing the lake of fire, where the Antichrist, and false prophet will be cast as well. This is when Jesus would reign on this earth for a thousand years, and we will reign with Him.

[Revelation 20:1-3  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.  2  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,  3  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.]

[and after that he must be loosed a little season.] This is another thousand years, but during the time, that Christ reigns, that is when He will judge the living, [Revelation 20:4-6  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.  5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.  6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.]

[But the rest of the dead lived not again] These are the unsaved who died, they will not resurrect until Satan is released. I could imagine Satan pacing the floor, angry, coming up with all sorts of wicked schemes for when he would be released, only to be oblivious to the fact that he was in the best place he could be as when he does get released it will be to his own death. Yes, he is in denial, and does not believe that he will die.

[and shall reign with him a thousand years.] And here we are given an account of the reign of the saints, which is called the first resurrection, with which none, but those who serve Christ will resurrect first. However, when Satan is released he will gather up a multitude to fight the saints for one last battle, only that battle will never take place. As soon as this great army is gathered together, God will send fire down from heaven and devour them all, and Satan himself will get cast into the lake of fire.

[Revelation 20:8-10  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.  9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.  10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.]

[and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.] Eternal death, it is nothing to rejoice over, and we should be fearful of going there, that should be what brings us to believe in Christ and receive Him as soon as we know about Him. Remember, we will all stand before Jesus, but those who died without knowing Him as their Saviour will resurrect also for one final judgment.

[Revelation 20:11-15  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.  12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.  13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.  14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.  15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.]

[And the sea gave up the dead which were in it;] All in one swoop, all of those unsaved will get cast into the lake of fire. This includes those who trusted their religion to save them, and those who were ignorant to the truth of the Gospel and refused to listen when they had the several opportunities. It does not matter if we know Jesus as the Angel of the LORD, [Exodus 3:20], the Son of God, [Daniel 3:25], or Immanuel, [Isaiah 7:14], we must know Him as LORD and Saviour or our names will not be written in the book of life. Now, Jesus shows John one more vision. Remember when Jesus said that He was preparing a place for us, [John 14:2]? Well, this is the new heaven and earth, and it will where we will remain with Him for eternity.

[Revelation 21:1-5  And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.  2  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.  4  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.  5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.]

[And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes;] This is the expected end and new beginning to everyone who receives Christ as their Saviour, no more pain, no more sorrow, no more sin, and no more death. We cannot say that for the dead, they will be cast into the lake of fire, [Revelation 21:7-8  He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.  8  But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.]

If you have received Christ as your Savior, you are a child of God, you have the victory, you are one of His very own because you believed in His Son. You believe that God’s only Son, who was sinless took the punishment for all your sins, and that He suffered and died, and shed His precious blood to save your life. Christ defeated death and arose three days later to prove that even death cannot get the victory over the power of God. While we often suffer for things without sin, in the end we always see the victory through the power of God. Now, as Jesus continues to show John what it will look like on the new earth, there is a river, which is the water of life

[Revelation 22:1-4,6-7  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.  2  In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.  3  And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:  4  And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.  6  And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.  7  Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.]

[And he shewed me a pure river of water of life,] Jesus freely gives the water of life to all who believe in Him and receive Him, this is what runs through our souls, [Revelation 22:14,17-20  Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. 17  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.  18  For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:  19  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.  20  He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.]

[God shall take away his part out of the book of life,] All who believe in and ask Christ to save them will get to be a part of Christ’s Kingdom. Praise God! There is a stern warning here to all those who have taken out or add words to His book, and there will be hell to pay for it. [Even so, come, Lord Jesus.] As much as we would all love to accomplish some things in this life before Jesus returns, the sooner He sends for us the better. I for one, with each passing year, realize that the best thing we can do in this life is to live for Christ as we have an expected end and a new beginning awaiting us, [Revelation 3:20-21  Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.  21  To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.]

Let Us Pray: God, Thank You for giving those who have truly accepted and received Your Son eternal life and victory not only over death, but the devil’s attempts to destroy our faith in You. To the world, the thought of being the bride of Your Son makes no sense, and even we can have a hard time comprehending that, but His bride is not a man or woman, we are the very souls who put our faith and trust in You as our Saviour alone. Lord, as we head into a new year, lead us and guide us, give us Your power and strength to endure every pain and sorrow as we await the day You bring us home. Let us never give up on You, no matter what we face, strengthen our faith to keep us true and faithful with the reminder that we do have an expected end and a new beginning with You. We will endure, we will resurrect, and we will live with You forever on the new earth. I pray these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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