The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Twenty-Two - C Oct 25, 2020 by: John Herbert | Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Audio Study Notes PDF https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T008_20201025.mp3 Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Isa 43:10 “You are My witnesses,” says the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen We will today look at the Gentile nations with respect to the Millennial Kingdom. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday October 25th 2020 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Lesson 22C This is the Day 1). Mt 24:13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. We will remember that these are Jesus’ words to His disciples in response to their question concerning the sign of His coming and the end of the age. a). The promise in v13 is that ‘he who endures to the end’, quite literally means, ‘he who is still alive’ at the end of the tribulation, will be ‘saved’ or ‘delivered’ out of the tribulation. This is not a reference to eternal salvation or the salvation of the soul. b). And in conjunction with this promise of deliverance we see that, immediately prior to the end of the tribulation, when the Lord will return to the earth, bringing an end to Man’s Day and taking us to the end of the age, ‘this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all nations.’ c). And as we have seen from our previous studies, this ‘gospel of the Kingdom’, will be preached to the Gentile nations by the 144000 Jewish evangelists, saved and sealed under the ministry of the 2 witnesses, who will preach this message during the final 3 ½ years of Daniel’s 70th seven; that time which the Lord describes as ‘great tribulation such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.’ d). We will remember that the nation of Israel, created in Jacob to be God’s firstborn son, was commissioned to be God’s witnesses to the nations – Isa 43:10 “You are My witnesses,” says the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen, That you may know and believe Me, And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, Nor shall there be after Me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD, And besides Me there is no savior. But Israel, like Jonah in the type, has fled from the face of the Lord with respect to fulfilling this commission. e). During the final 3 ½ years of great tribulation the 144000 will be the firstfruits of the entire nation, that will then fulfill this commission during the Millennial Kingdom, in the antitype of Jonah going to Nineveh, that great city, following repentance, having spent 3 days and nights in the place of death. 2). The ministry of the 144000 returning from the heavens to the earth having been given the ‘good news’ they are to preach will be the vehicle through which countless numbers of Gentiles will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and hear the message of the imminent return of the Christ to the earth to establish His Kingdom. a). Now, the ministry of the 144000 during this 3 ½ years must be seen within the context of Satan’s and the beast’s savagery towards the Jewish people, as the Gentile nations try to annihilate Israel in order to prevent Christ from taking the Kingdom – Ps 83:4 They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” Not only will the 144000 find themselves in an unimaginably perilous situation because of their ethnicity and message, but so will those who hear and receive their message, who will also be the target for Satan’s savage intent. b). And the result of his relentless targeting of anyone who is looking to Christ’s Kingdom, we have seen in – Re 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. These of course are the ones we know as the tribulation martyrs, a group that is first seen in – Re 7:9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” The martyrs are described here as ‘a great multitude which no one could number’, but this innumerable multitude of executed eternally saved Gentiles will not be the only Gentiles reached by the ministry of the 144000. c). There will also be an unknown number of Gentiles, eternally saved through their ministry, who will survive until the end of the tribulation; having escaped death and will come out of the tribulation alive – they will have endured to the end. d). And it is this unknown number of eternally saved Gentiles who are alive at the end of the tribulation who are seen at what we have come to call the ‘sheep and goats’ judgment; a judgment that will take place during the 75 days that follow the end of the tribulation – Mt 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: Let’s note at once that what is in view at this judgment is an inheritance, ‘inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’, and as we will know, inheritance is something reserved for family members only. Those seen here then are all part of God’s family because of their eternal salvation. e). We also know that the saved and the unsaved never appear together in judgment, because their judgments relate to 2 entirely different time periods. The eternally saved are judged prior to and with a view to the Millennial Kingdom, whereas the unsaved are judged prior to and with a view to the endless ages of eternity. f). Therefore, ‘all the nations’ seen in v32 of Matthew Chapter 25, cannot be understood to be inclusive of all Gentiles, but rather is to be understood in line with the way the eternally saved Gentiles are described in Revelation 7:9 - of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues. Exactly when during the 75 days this judgment will take place we don’t know, but it would be reasonable to assume that the Lord will complete His dealings with the Jewish people first. If this is the case, then we would expect to see the sheep and goats’ judgment immediately prior to, or immediately following, the destruction of Gentile world power at Armageddon. g). And the basis for this judgment, as with all judgment, is works – Mt 25:35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ Those on the Lord’s right hand, the hand of power, described as sheep, are shown to have ministered to the Jewish people during the tribulation, and this would presumably also include the 144000. And in this ministry to the Jewish people, the ‘sheep’ are shown to have ministered to Christ Himself. This is their work of faithfulness. h). And let’s not forget the context in which this will take place – Remember Satan’s savagery in his attempt to annihilate the 144000 and all other Jews along with the eternally saved Gentiles, anyone who will offer them help. Remember, that during this time no one will be able to buy or sell without the mark of the beast. Remember, the unprecedented famine that will produce those horrific scenes of cannibalism we have seen described in previous weeks. i). To minister to the Jewish people within this context is no small thing and will involve life-threatening risk and sacrifice that are hard for us to comprehend. j). And it is likely, because of what is involved in this and the fear that will come with it, that we find an unknown number of eternally saved Gentiles, described as ‘the goats’ who will turn away from such works - Mt 25:41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ 44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting [age lasting] punishment, but the righteous into eternal [age lasting] life.” The righteous, those described as ‘the sheep’ will have life for the age to come and will receive an inheritance with respect to the Kingdom. And both of these terms, ‘life for the age’ and ‘an inheritance’, we have seen in connection with a position of rulership in the Kingdom Age. k). Faithful, martyred, eternally saved Gentiles, as we have seen in Revelation 20:4, live and reign with Christ for the 1000 years. And as we had seen last week, because this scene is in the heavens it is likely this is where these individuals will rule from. l). The ‘sheep’ in Matthew Chapter 25, are shown to be on the earth and so it is likely that this is where their rulership will be. But what is not said with respect to either group, is what the nature of their rule will look like. m). Both faithful Israel and faithful Christians will have been adopted as firstborn sons, as only firstborn sons can rule in the Kingdom age. But nowhere in Scripture is there any reference to Gentiles being adopted into this position. Those Gentiles in the heavens cannot be a part of the Wife of Christ or joint heirs with Christ, and those on the earth cannot be counted with national Israel. n). So, what are we to do with them? Nothing. We will leave it alone and not get into speculation. o). Suffice it to say, that God’s arrangements for rulership within the Kingdom will be completely in line with His righteousness and justice and in that we can be assured. 2). To go back to where we began this morning - Isa 43:10 “You are My witnesses,” says the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen We know that during the Millennial Kingdom national Israel will fulfill their calling to be God’s witnesses to the nations - Acts 1:7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Now as we think of Israel’s ministry during this time, let’s not just transport the nations as we see them today into that future setting. Things will be quite different. In fact, let’s not imagine the Millennial Kingdom as today’s world just with new rulers either. Today’s world will be unrecognizable in the Kingdom Age. Acts 3:19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. These verses come from Peter’s sermon to his eternally saved Jewish audience on the Day of Pentecost following the Lord’s resurrection marking the beginning of the reoffer of the Kingdom to Israel by the Church, and there is one phrase, in v21, that it would be good to draw our attention to, ‘the times of restoration of all things’. And this word translated ‘restoration’ has to do with returning things to their original condition. And the times when all things will be restored is clearly seen in Acts Chapter 3 in connection with Christ’s return. And given the context in which this is being presented, we are looking at Christ in His Kingdom. a). The Millennial Kingdom then constitutes ‘the times of restoration of all things.’ b). God had, from the beginning, set in place certain arrangements to facilitate Israel’s evangelism, so let’s go back into Genesis, to the time following the flood of Noah – Ge 11:7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.” 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. Ge 10:25 To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother's name was Joktan………………..32 These were the families of the sons of Noah, according to their generations, in their nations; and from these the nations were divided on the earth after the flood. Now look at the commentary on these verses in – De 32:8 When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, When He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the children of Israel. By comparing Scripture with Scripture, we can see that ‘after the flood’ the nations were divide on the earth and their boundaries set, ‘according to the number of the children of Israel.’ c). And immediately we will realize that when this was done, the children of Israel did not exist. d). The events recorded in Genesis Chapter 10 took place early on in Shem’s life, and although Shem was alive until about 25 years before Abraham’s death, the creation in Jacob, the 12 sons and the adoption of the Children of Israel as a firstborn son still remained distant. e). God’s organization and distribution of the nations in Genesis Chapter 10, would have been in anticipation of the future creation in Jacob receiving their calling to be His witnesses to the nations. f). If we now add in another Scripture we can see the purpose for God’s organization and distribution of the nations in Genesis Chapter 10 Acts 17:26 And He has made from one blood [one man] every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; Clearly then, God had organized and distributed the nations after a particular fashion for the purpose of these nations, seeking the Lord ‘in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him.’ g). And if we remember that Israel, coming through the lineage of Shem, has always been the only nation with a God, we will understand how Israel’s evangelistic calling would dovetail into this picture. h). As we know though, Israel like Jonah, has been fleeing from her calling, and has not yet been God’s witnesses to the nations. And we might also consider that the proliferation of new nations throughout the world in recent history has been the god of this world’s attempt to corrupt God’s purpose from Genesis Chapter 10, to compound Israel’s disobedience. i). However, with the overthrow of Gentile world power and the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom will come the times of the restoration of all things. j). Just as God had done following the flood, so He will do with the unsaved Gentiles again following that which the flood typifies. He will divide and distribute them into nations and set their boundaries in accordance with His purpose for them, that the appointed number of the children of Israel will reach them with God’s message, that the newly organized and distributed nations may seek Him and that they might find Him – Zec 8:20 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Peoples shall yet come, Inhabitants of many cities; 21 The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Let us continue to go and pray before the LORD, And seek the LORD of hosts. I myself will go also.” 22 Yes, many peoples and strong nations Shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, And to pray before the LORD.’ So, in the Millennial Kingdom, the various nations as we perceive them today, born out of patriotic fervor, will not exist in that form and instead God will divide and distribute the sons of Adam as He did in the beginning, for exactly the same purpose as set out in Acts Chapter 17. 3). Ro 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. So far, we have been dealing with the people on the earth during the Millennial Kingdom, but let’s not forget the earth itself that has been placed under a curse. a). And as we consider this within the context of the restoration of all things, let’s call to mind the physical conditions that existed prior to the flood of Noah – Ge 1:6 Then God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” 7 Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day. 9 Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. As a result of Satan’s rebellion, we have learned from Genesis 1:2 that not only was there complete darkness, but the surface of the earth was covered with raging waters. A worldwide flood, the depth of which we are not told, but presumably it would have to be similar to that seen in Noah’s day as we are dealing with the same quantity of water. a). On Day 2 of the restoration in Genesis Chapter 1 we see how God dealt with this vast quantity of water that covered the earth. b). An unspecified amount was placed above the atmosphere, presumably as water vapor, that encompassed the entire globe. The water that remained on the face of the earth was stored in subterranean locations under the earth and as seas on the earth. c). And the canopy of water above the atmosphere would have been responsible for entirely different atmospheric, meteorological and hydrological conditions to that which we experience today. d). According to Genesis Chapter 2, rain was non-existent – Ge 2: 5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground. And this was a condition that existed until the beginning of the flood of Noah. A period of about 1600 years. e). Now let’s go beyond the simple fact that there was no rain, to that which the absence of rain would mean. No rain did not mean drought as it would today, but the absence of the weather systems that would produce it. In other words, conditions that produce the water cycle, thunderstorms, hurricanes, high- and low-pressure fronts etc. that we see today, did not exist. Why? The encircling canopy of water vapor above the atmosphere holds the key. f). Not only would this quantity of water have deflected the sun’s harmful rays but would also have distributed the sun’s heat uniformly throughout the earth. g). No deserts, not polar icecaps, no fluctuating temperatures, just the most perfect conditions in which everything could grow in abundance. h). So, what happened at the flood of Noah to change this? What happened to all that water from the flood? And what will the times of restoration of all things in the Millennial Kingdom mean for the physical conditions on the planet? I am glad you asked – but this will have to wait until next time – If the Lord is willing. The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Twenty-Two - C Oct 25, 2020 Speaker: John Herbert Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Category: Sunday Morning https://s3.amazonaws.com/cornerstonejax/sermonfiles/T008_20201025.mp3 Download Audio x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon Isa 43:10 “You are My witnesses,” says the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen We will today look at the Gentile nations with respect to the Millennial Kingdom. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday October 25th 2020 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Lesson 22C This is the Day 1). Mt 24:13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. We will remember that these are Jesus’ words to His disciples in response to their question concerning the sign of His coming and the end of the age. a). The promise in v13 is that ‘he who endures to the end’, quite literally means, ‘he who is still alive’ at the end of the tribulation, will be ‘saved’ or ‘delivered’ out of the tribulation. This is not a reference to eternal salvation or the salvation of the soul. b). And in conjunction with this promise of deliverance we see that, immediately prior to the end of the tribulation, when the Lord will return to the earth, bringing an end to Man’s Day and taking us to the end of the age, ‘this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all nations.’ c). And as we have seen from our previous studies, this ‘gospel of the Kingdom’, will be preached to the Gentile nations by the 144000 Jewish evangelists, saved and sealed under the ministry of the 2 witnesses, who will preach this message during the final 3 ½ years of Daniel’s 70th seven; that time which the Lord describes as ‘great tribulation such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.’ d). We will remember that the nation of Israel, created in Jacob to be God’s firstborn son, was commissioned to be God’s witnesses to the nations – Isa 43:10 “You are My witnesses,” says the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen, That you may know and believe Me, And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, Nor shall there be after Me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD, And besides Me there is no savior. But Israel, like Jonah in the type, has fled from the face of the Lord with respect to fulfilling this commission. e). During the final 3 ½ years of great tribulation the 144000 will be the firstfruits of the entire nation, that will then fulfill this commission during the Millennial Kingdom, in the antitype of Jonah going to Nineveh, that great city, following repentance, having spent 3 days and nights in the place of death. 2). The ministry of the 144000 returning from the heavens to the earth having been given the ‘good news’ they are to preach will be the vehicle through which countless numbers of Gentiles will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and hear the message of the imminent return of the Christ to the earth to establish His Kingdom. a). Now, the ministry of the 144000 during this 3 ½ years must be seen within the context of Satan’s and the beast’s savagery towards the Jewish people, as the Gentile nations try to annihilate Israel in order to prevent Christ from taking the Kingdom – Ps 83:4 They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” Not only will the 144000 find themselves in an unimaginably perilous situation because of their ethnicity and message, but so will those who hear and receive their message, who will also be the target for Satan’s savage intent. b). And the result of his relentless targeting of anyone who is looking to Christ’s Kingdom, we have seen in – Re 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. These of course are the ones we know as the tribulation martyrs, a group that is first seen in – Re 7:9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” The martyrs are described here as ‘a great multitude which no one could number’, but this innumerable multitude of executed eternally saved Gentiles will not be the only Gentiles reached by the ministry of the 144000. c). There will also be an unknown number of Gentiles, eternally saved through their ministry, who will survive until the end of the tribulation; having escaped death and will come out of the tribulation alive – they will have endured to the end. d). And it is this unknown number of eternally saved Gentiles who are alive at the end of the tribulation who are seen at what we have come to call the ‘sheep and goats’ judgment; a judgment that will take place during the 75 days that follow the end of the tribulation – Mt 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: Let’s note at once that what is in view at this judgment is an inheritance, ‘inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’, and as we will know, inheritance is something reserved for family members only. Those seen here then are all part of God’s family because of their eternal salvation. e). We also know that the saved and the unsaved never appear together in judgment, because their judgments relate to 2 entirely different time periods. The eternally saved are judged prior to and with a view to the Millennial Kingdom, whereas the unsaved are judged prior to and with a view to the endless ages of eternity. f). Therefore, ‘all the nations’ seen in v32 of Matthew Chapter 25, cannot be understood to be inclusive of all Gentiles, but rather is to be understood in line with the way the eternally saved Gentiles are described in Revelation 7:9 - of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues. Exactly when during the 75 days this judgment will take place we don’t know, but it would be reasonable to assume that the Lord will complete His dealings with the Jewish people first. If this is the case, then we would expect to see the sheep and goats’ judgment immediately prior to, or immediately following, the destruction of Gentile world power at Armageddon. g). And the basis for this judgment, as with all judgment, is works – Mt 25:35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ Those on the Lord’s right hand, the hand of power, described as sheep, are shown to have ministered to the Jewish people during the tribulation, and this would presumably also include the 144000. And in this ministry to the Jewish people, the ‘sheep’ are shown to have ministered to Christ Himself. This is their work of faithfulness. h). And let’s not forget the context in which this will take place – Remember Satan’s savagery in his attempt to annihilate the 144000 and all other Jews along with the eternally saved Gentiles, anyone who will offer them help. Remember, that during this time no one will be able to buy or sell without the mark of the beast. Remember, the unprecedented famine that will produce those horrific scenes of cannibalism we have seen described in previous weeks. i). To minister to the Jewish people within this context is no small thing and will involve life-threatening risk and sacrifice that are hard for us to comprehend. j). And it is likely, because of what is involved in this and the fear that will come with it, that we find an unknown number of eternally saved Gentiles, described as ‘the goats’ who will turn away from such works - Mt 25:41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ 44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting [age lasting] punishment, but the righteous into eternal [age lasting] life.” The righteous, those described as ‘the sheep’ will have life for the age to come and will receive an inheritance with respect to the Kingdom. And both of these terms, ‘life for the age’ and ‘an inheritance’, we have seen in connection with a position of rulership in the Kingdom Age. k). Faithful, martyred, eternally saved Gentiles, as we have seen in Revelation 20:4, live and reign with Christ for the 1000 years. And as we had seen last week, because this scene is in the heavens it is likely this is where these individuals will rule from. l). The ‘sheep’ in Matthew Chapter 25, are shown to be on the earth and so it is likely that this is where their rulership will be. But what is not said with respect to either group, is what the nature of their rule will look like. m). Both faithful Israel and faithful Christians will have been adopted as firstborn sons, as only firstborn sons can rule in the Kingdom age. But nowhere in Scripture is there any reference to Gentiles being adopted into this position. Those Gentiles in the heavens cannot be a part of the Wife of Christ or joint heirs with Christ, and those on the earth cannot be counted with national Israel. n). So, what are we to do with them? Nothing. We will leave it alone and not get into speculation. o). Suffice it to say, that God’s arrangements for rulership within the Kingdom will be completely in line with His righteousness and justice and in that we can be assured. 2). To go back to where we began this morning - Isa 43:10 “You are My witnesses,” says the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen We know that during the Millennial Kingdom national Israel will fulfill their calling to be God’s witnesses to the nations - Acts 1:7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Now as we think of Israel’s ministry during this time, let’s not just transport the nations as we see them today into that future setting. Things will be quite different. In fact, let’s not imagine the Millennial Kingdom as today’s world just with new rulers either. Today’s world will be unrecognizable in the Kingdom Age. Acts 3:19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. These verses come from Peter’s sermon to his eternally saved Jewish audience on the Day of Pentecost following the Lord’s resurrection marking the beginning of the reoffer of the Kingdom to Israel by the Church, and there is one phrase, in v21, that it would be good to draw our attention to, ‘the times of restoration of all things’. And this word translated ‘restoration’ has to do with returning things to their original condition. And the times when all things will be restored is clearly seen in Acts Chapter 3 in connection with Christ’s return. And given the context in which this is being presented, we are looking at Christ in His Kingdom. a). The Millennial Kingdom then constitutes ‘the times of restoration of all things.’ b). God had, from the beginning, set in place certain arrangements to facilitate Israel’s evangelism, so let’s go back into Genesis, to the time following the flood of Noah – Ge 11:7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.” 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. Ge 10:25 To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother's name was Joktan………………..32 These were the families of the sons of Noah, according to their generations, in their nations; and from these the nations were divided on the earth after the flood. Now look at the commentary on these verses in – De 32:8 When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, When He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the children of Israel. By comparing Scripture with Scripture, we can see that ‘after the flood’ the nations were divide on the earth and their boundaries set, ‘according to the number of the children of Israel.’ c). And immediately we will realize that when this was done, the children of Israel did not exist. d). The events recorded in Genesis Chapter 10 took place early on in Shem’s life, and although Shem was alive until about 25 years before Abraham’s death, the creation in Jacob, the 12 sons and the adoption of the Children of Israel as a firstborn son still remained distant. e). God’s organization and distribution of the nations in Genesis Chapter 10, would have been in anticipation of the future creation in Jacob receiving their calling to be His witnesses to the nations. f). If we now add in another Scripture we can see the purpose for God’s organization and distribution of the nations in Genesis Chapter 10 Acts 17:26 And He has made from one blood [one man] every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; Clearly then, God had organized and distributed the nations after a particular fashion for the purpose of these nations, seeking the Lord ‘in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him.’ g). And if we remember that Israel, coming through the lineage of Shem, has always been the only nation with a God, we will understand how Israel’s evangelistic calling would dovetail into this picture. h). As we know though, Israel like Jonah, has been fleeing from her calling, and has not yet been God’s witnesses to the nations. And we might also consider that the proliferation of new nations throughout the world in recent history has been the god of this world’s attempt to corrupt God’s purpose from Genesis Chapter 10, to compound Israel’s disobedience. i). However, with the overthrow of Gentile world power and the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom will come the times of the restoration of all things. j). Just as God had done following the flood, so He will do with the unsaved Gentiles again following that which the flood typifies. He will divide and distribute them into nations and set their boundaries in accordance with His purpose for them, that the appointed number of the children of Israel will reach them with God’s message, that the newly organized and distributed nations may seek Him and that they might find Him – Zec 8:20 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Peoples shall yet come, Inhabitants of many cities; 21 The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Let us continue to go and pray before the LORD, And seek the LORD of hosts. I myself will go also.” 22 Yes, many peoples and strong nations Shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, And to pray before the LORD.’ So, in the Millennial Kingdom, the various nations as we perceive them today, born out of patriotic fervor, will not exist in that form and instead God will divide and distribute the sons of Adam as He did in the beginning, for exactly the same purpose as set out in Acts Chapter 17. 3). Ro 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. So far, we have been dealing with the people on the earth during the Millennial Kingdom, but let’s not forget the earth itself that has been placed under a curse. a). And as we consider this within the context of the restoration of all things, let’s call to mind the physical conditions that existed prior to the flood of Noah – Ge 1:6 Then God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” 7 Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day. 9 Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. As a result of Satan’s rebellion, we have learned from Genesis 1:2 that not only was there complete darkness, but the surface of the earth was covered with raging waters. A worldwide flood, the depth of which we are not told, but presumably it would have to be similar to that seen in Noah’s day as we are dealing with the same quantity of water. a). On Day 2 of the restoration in Genesis Chapter 1 we see how God dealt with this vast quantity of water that covered the earth. b). An unspecified amount was placed above the atmosphere, presumably as water vapor, that encompassed the entire globe. The water that remained on the face of the earth was stored in subterranean locations under the earth and as seas on the earth. c). And the canopy of water above the atmosphere would have been responsible for entirely different atmospheric, meteorological and hydrological conditions to that which we experience today. d). According to Genesis Chapter 2, rain was non-existent – Ge 2: 5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground. And this was a condition that existed until the beginning of the flood of Noah. A period of about 1600 years. e). Now let’s go beyond the simple fact that there was no rain, to that which the absence of rain would mean. No rain did not mean drought as it would today, but the absence of the weather systems that would produce it. In other words, conditions that produce the water cycle, thunderstorms, hurricanes, high- and low-pressure fronts etc. that we see today, did not exist. Why? The encircling canopy of water vapor above the atmosphere holds the key. f). Not only would this quantity of water have deflected the sun’s harmful rays but would also have distributed the sun’s heat uniformly throughout the earth. g). No deserts, not polar icecaps, no fluctuating temperatures, just the most perfect conditions in which everything could grow in abundance. h). So, what happened at the flood of Noah to change this? What happened to all that water from the flood? And what will the times of restoration of all things in the Millennial Kingdom mean for the physical conditions on the planet? I am glad you asked – but this will have to wait until next time – If the Lord is willing.