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Now let’s see that again here in 1 Corinthians 15. The apostle Paul wrote about this too. We’ve already covered this but I think we just need to look at it from a little different perspective. Now here, 1 Corinthians 15:50, “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep,…” Now at this time he was saying, “We’re all not going to be dead.” He knows that those who are dead in Christ will be raised, but at this point he was also talking about those who would not be dead. “…We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,…” When? When Christ returns. When we’re caught up in the air to meet Christ in the air. We are changed, as it says here in verse 52, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” That is all of us, whether we were dead in the grave, or whether we are alive, because he said there in 1 Thessalonians 4 that “We which are alive and remain shall be caught up in the clouds together with them.” So for those who are converted and are righteous the penalty of death has been removed. So what we will be doing during the Millennium is this, and I think that I’ve mentioned this before. Now I’ve also said that since it’s given to men once to die, that when they come to the one hundred years, they die instantly and are changed instantly. Well, there will be no need for them to die because they have died the death of baptism. So they have already died. They have died in Christ. So when it comes time for their life to come to an end because they have been righteous, what would be the need for them to die at that time if there was no need for those who are Christ’s today and are alive when Christ returns, that there is no need for them to die. But to be changed instantly in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye and be caught up in the clouds to meet Christ and to be with Him forever.

Now then I think this helps explain concerning the sinner that dies accursed. He’s going to have to wait the second death because God has decreed that all human beings who have committed the unpardonable sin must die the second death. Now we’ll cover a little bit more of that tomorrow. But let’s come back here to Isaiah 65 and let’s finish this section of scripture here, and we can see that this can apply to the Millennium. And this can apply to the length of time that people will be living. Now let’s notice verse 21, “And they shall build houses, and inhabit them, and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of My people, and Mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands” (Isa. 65:21-22). So we’re talking about the elect. Now are those who are called during the Millennium the elect? Have to be. No doubt about it. We are today, we are called the elect.

“They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.” And here’s what it’s going to be like. I mean you talk about instant answered prayer, notice. “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together..” Put in your margin there chapter 11:6. “…And the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, saith the LORD” (vs. 23-25). So here we have at least ten generations, one hundred years long. Of course with people being born all the time then the one hundred year period is not going to be a set fixed one hundred years, but it’s going to be a hundred years for each one as it comes.

Now what’s going to happen to these people? What kind of attitude are we going to find toward the end of the Millennium? What is it that we are going to see? What is it that human nature always does? Now especially considering the last generation, the last one hundred year period there, those who are born into the society, they come into a ready made society that for nine hundred years has been blessed of God, has been perfect, has been just absolutely marvelous. Now, they will also know that those who sin, and sin is the transgression of the law, that they are going to die accursed. Now when we come to the last generation we have a little bit different situation here that we need to deal with. What is going to happen with people who sin?

Well, let’s come back here to Revelation 3, and let’s draw a parallel from the last era of the Church. And I think we are going to understand, and I think we can say with safe assurity that the last generation is going to be Laodicean, big time. Why is that? Because everything is there. Everything has been provided. And they are going to become, how shall we say, there will be a lot of people and their sin is going to be the sin of indifference and callousness. There will be a lot of people then who will not accept the salvation that God is giving them. Now remember that this last generation is going to be a multitude of people. We don’t know what the population of the earth will be when we come toward the end of the Millennium. But the way that it’s described here in the Bible, there are going to be people, and they’re going to have children, and children, and children, and children and God is going to glorify Himself with all the children and human beings all during the Millennium.

Now you see, not only is that going to happen, but that tells you what kind of job that we are going to have to have, right? And each generation there are more people to deal with. So those that are righteous accept the salvation of God. They will be born into the Kingdom of God when it comes to the end of their one hundred year lifetime. There would be no need for them to die, because the sinner dies accursed. The death that God will accept will be the death of baptism into Jesus Christ. And if they are faithful unto the end they’ll be born into the Kingdom of God and be spirit beings. So, you know, what do we have today when people die? Well, the Irish have what is called a wake, and they all get drunk. They should call it a drunk instead of a wake. But it is to be having good memories of the person that died, rather than be all sorrowful. Well, can you imagine what the going out part is going to be like when people are ready to be born into the kingdom of God, because they’ve been righteous and lived their life properly, they have been humble, they have served God, they’ve kept His commandments, they understand and know God’s plan. Boy, I tell you, it’s going to be something, isn’t it? Now I don’t know, but would there be…and I think that would be an appropriate thing, wouldn’t it?…there would be a “coming in” feast, a “going out - coming in” feast. Going out from physical life, and coming into spiritual life. Now that would be something, wouldn’t it. Ok, so we’ll just kind of use our imagination here just a little bit.

Now here, let’s come to Revelation 3:14. You know all about the Laodicean church but let’s just pick up on a few things here, ok? “And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the [beginner] beginning of the creation of God…” So here we are again with the beginning. “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot…” (Rev. 3:14-15). Now, with everything provided, with everything physical thing that you need, isn’t it going to be hard for some people to repent? Isn’t it going to be hard for them to not be complacent? For them to not be lukewarm? I think it’s going to be very difficult. You know sometimes living in this evil world we see all the evil around us and that really stirs us up, you know to really desire God’s kingdom and to do right and to love God and to serve Him. But all of that is going to be removed. It’s going to be a whole different thing for them.

Let’s go on. “…I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of My mouth.” Now they’re removed from the Church. That’s an interesting thing. What happens when you’re removed from the Church but you haven’t yet died? Is that not an exile? It surely is. Now, can there be repentance and reentrance? Yes, indeed. Let’s go on. “Because thou sayest…” Now I just imagine there will be a lot of people who will say to God, “Boy, look at all these things around here. Look how fantastic this is. I’m rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing.” “…And knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:…”(vs. 15-17). Because, you see, human nature is still going to be there, isn’t it? They are going to turn aside the salvation of God. So what’s going to happen to them? There’s not enough time for them to die the first death because the end of the Millennium is coming. So we’ll see what God does.

Let’s go on here. “I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye-salve, that thou mayest see.” You know, isn’t that going to be true? Aren’t those people then going to have to really see things from a spiritual perspective? Yes, they will. “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock…” Now is God going to give those that He vomits out an opportunity to come back? Yes. Jesus is the door (John 10), and you’ve got to go through Him. Now also He’s standing at the door and knocking, this is also likened unto the door of your mind. “…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” (vs. 18-20).

Now, let’s come back to Genesis 3 and let’s see if we can put this together, because here we have something that is really quite unusual, isn’t it, with the Laodiceans. They’re spued out but they’re still living. They’re still living in their sin. They are given an opportunity to repent. Now let’s see what happened here when Adam and Eve sinned, ’cause we’re going to get a parallel, we’ll see what happened. And then we’ll see what happened when Cain sinned. So what’s going to happen to these people at the end of the Millennium that sinned. Yet there is not enough time for them to complete their lives and die at one hundred years old accursed. Well, let’s see.

Let’s pick it up here in verse 23, “Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” They were vomited out of the garden of Eden, weren’t they? They were driven out. They were cut off from God, weren’t they. In other words they were exiled. They could no longer go back into the garden of Eden. They could come up to the gate where the Cherubims were, but they couldn’t go in. God would meet with them there, but they were cut off from going back into the garden of Eden, weren’t they?

Now, let’s see what happened here with Cain when he sinned. Genesis 4:16, “And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.” So he was removed even further. The land of Nod is called the land of wandering. So when Cain sinned he was removed. Now he still was alive, wasn’t he? He was being punished for his sin because of being exiled. That was his punishment. But you see, Adam and Eve were one step removed from God, now then Cain and his descendants were two steps removed from God.

Now let’s look and see another example here of what happened to Israel and what happened to Judah when they sinned and God did not want to execute all of them. Remember, the wages of sin is death, but if there is not time to die then something else has to happen. Let’s come to 2 Kings 17 and let’s see what God said concerning the children of Israel. I won’t go through the whole chapter because that will take too long, but let’s just catch a couple of verses here which tells us that they were exiled. They were removed from the land that God gave them.

2 Kings 17:6, “In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods…” (vs. 6-7) So they were carried away because of their sin. They were taken away. Now verse 11, “And there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the heathen whom the LORD carried away before them;…” So God did the same thing with the heathen, didn’t He. Did not God expel the Canaanites from the land because of their sin? Yes, and He told the Israelites, “If you sin like they sinned you’re going to be expelled from the land too.” So they were exiled.

Now this is undoubtedly what God is going to do in that last generation for those in the Millennium that sin. Now we also know that Judah was carried away, or exiled, into Babylon. So since that’s the way that God works, we can conclude with great assurity that that’s probably what God is going to do at the end of the Millennium.

Now let’s come back to Revelation 20 and let’s look at that. Let’s understand this. Let’s put it together in a way that is going to give us the understanding we need. Now let’s follow right along here. Let’s pick it up here in verse 5. “But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.” So there is a category of people that died that were not called during their lifetime. That cannot be anyone who lives into the Millennium because all are called during the Millennium. So this has to be those, and we’ll cover that tomorrow, as pictured by the Last Great Day. “But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection [that is referring back to verse 4 about thrones being set down, as we’ve already covered]. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection:…” Now isn’t it interesting, if it were just the resurrection it would say ‘the resurrection’. This says ‘the first resurrection’. And if the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years are finished - that’s got to be another resurrection. So as we will see, we know there are two resurrections. Now notice, “…on such the second death hath no power [that is those in the first resurrection], but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years” (Rev. 20:5-6).

Now we come to the end of the Millennium and here is Satan. God put him in the abyss, bound him there for a thousand years so he wouldn’t deceive the nations any more and now He’s got another job for Satan to do. Now let’s read it. “And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,” Why? Let’s read on. “And shall go out to deceive the nations…” (vs. 7-8) Now remember, all of those who have sinned, and there is time for them to die, have been exiled into the area of Gog and Magog. Now this has to be the geographical location. This has to be a geographical location in Gog and Magog. Why? Because if it were just the people of Gog and Magog, then God is a respecter of persons and has for the people of Gog and Magog, cut them off so none of them will ever have salvation. So this has to be the geographical area. Just like we saw the children of Israel were carried off into Assyria and into the cities of the Medes. So here we have that they are in Gog and Magog.

Now why are they there? They have to be there because they did not accept the salvation of God, and they were removed. Now when you get all these sinners together out there in Gog and Magog… Now they’re probably being witnessed to all the time. There may be some who repent and are able to come back out of Gog and Magog. Even some people have brought up the question, well, will there be a place of exile all during the Millennium? I don’t know, the scriptures don’t tell us. But this at least tells us that there are going to be human beings at the end of the Millennium living out there in Gog and Magog, and why are they there? They have to be there because they have sinned. They have to be there because they have rejected the salvation of God. They have to be there because they were exiled since there is not time for them to live out their physical lives because the end of the Millennium is coming.

Now let’s read on here. “…Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth…” So these are all nations, see, not just Gog and Magog. That’s where they are. “…To gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea” (vs. 7-8). Now why would Satan be loosed to gather them together for battle? Remember, before the great white throne judgment starts, the Last Great Day, all sinners have to be removed. They don’t have time to die their first natural death and be sinners accursed at one hundred years old. So God uses Satan the devil to go out and deceive them. They’ve already rejected salvation so they’re not being deceived out of salvation. God is not condemning the people of Gog and Magog but there is an area of Gog and Magog where the sinners are exiled.

Now when Satan comes out, you know you can almost write the script. Now the Catholics say that the antichrist will come and he will reign a thousand years. And after that the true Catholic faith will revive. Now you just switch the places, see. Because the antichrist of the Catholics is the true Christ. And Satan is their god so when he comes out what is he going to do? He’s going to say, “Hey, I am the true god, look at me. Now let’s get this thing organized.” And with their carnal seared conscience and rejecting the salvation of God, they’re going to say, “Hurray.” Satan is probably going to perform some great miracles. He’ll probably reinstitute the Catholic religion. And he’s going to form the armies, see, “Because this is going to be an easy target down here in Jerusalem, see, because they don’t have any weapons. So we’re going to make some weapons.” Now it says for a little season. We don’t know how long it’s going to be. We don’t know what kind of weapons they can develop within whatever period of time that is. A short season can refer to a time of about 3 ½ years. Now I suppose with great diligence in 3 ½ years they could raise up a good army. They could develop all kinds of weapons. They could have them ready to go.

Now notice what’s going to happen. He’s going to lead them in this battle against Jerusalem. “And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about…” Now why does it say the camp of the saints. Could it be that this is the time of the keeping of the Feast of Tabernacles at Jerusalem? That, “That’s the time to come and get them because there are the most there at that time, so we’ll come and encircle them. And if we can get Jerusalem we will gain control and power over this world.” See because Satan has always thought that he could defeat God. Satan has always thought that he is just like God. And he knows he’s failed a couple of times, but he himself is so deceived he is convinced that he is going to do it this time. So he comes down, “…compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city:…” And God executes His vengeance. “…And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them” (vs. 9). That means they died. That is their first death.

Now at this point what do we have? At this point we have all of those who are then ready to enter into the Kingdom of God because they were faithful. We have all of those who have just been exterminated by the fire of God having gathered together for this battle, having come out of their place of exile in Gog and Magog. And now the judgment comes upon Satan. This is when we judge the angels. God is going to judge Satan. There’s going to be that time of judgment and let’s see what’s going to happen here.

Verse 10, after this great battle, “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet [were cast] are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” And he’s never getting out ever again. There is no more need or purpose for Satan the devil. When we come to the time of the great white throne judgment Satan is not allowed back, because as we will see, all of those people who will come up in the great white throne judgment, who God did not call during their physical lifetime, they have already lived one life under Satan the devil. And living one life under Satan the devil is plenty enough. No question about that. So Satan will not be around. His final judgment has taken place right here in verse 10.

And I think that that’s what it’s telling us here. As far as I am able to understand it. Because you see, if you have the beginning and you have an ending, you’ve got to take care of the problems at the beginning, and you’ve got to take care of the problems at the end. And since God has decreed that all sinners must die twice, experience the second death, therefore that is God’s way to execute the first death upon them at the end of the Millennium.

Now then, there’s one more day, the Last Great Day. And the meaning of that is so absolutely profound brethren. So y’all come back tomorrow and we’ll get into the Last Great Day.

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