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[0:00] Please turn to the Old Testament, back to the book of Isaiah. And this morning we'll be in Isaiah chapter 35.

[0:12] And in my Bible, prior to chapter 35, it says, Zion's happy future.

[0:36] The wilderness and the desert will be glad. And the Ereba will rejoice and blossom like the crocus.

[0:55] It will blossom profusely and rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it.

[1:07] The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the Lord, the majesty of our God. Encourage the exhausted and strengthen the feeble.

[1:22] Say to those with anxious heart, take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance. The recompense of God will come, but he will save you.

[1:38] Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will shout for joy.

[1:55] Waters will break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the Ereba. The scorched land will become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water.

[2:10] In the haunt of jackals, its resting place. Grass becomes reeds and rushes. A highway will be there, a roadway, and it will be called the highway of holiness.

[2:28] The unclean will not travel on it, but it will be for him who walks that way. And fools will not wander on it.

[2:43] No lion will be there, nor will any vicious beast go up on it. These will not be found there, but the redeemed will walk there.

[3:00] And the ransomed of the Lord will return, and come with joyful shouting to Zion. With everlasting joy upon their heads, they will find gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

[3:21] What a remarkable passage of Scripture. And it is well titled, before the reading began, as Gary indicated, Zion's Happy Future.

[3:39] It is not really the nation of Israel, but it is the church, which is the body of Christ.

[4:03] And that we are now experiencing all of these things, none of which are literal, but all of which are spiritual. That's the position taken by our friends in the replacement theological position, or otherwise known as covenant theology, or reform theology.

[4:23] They do not see a literal future on the earth for Israel, nor a literal reign of Christ on the earth at all. We are convinced that the passage is as it stands, and it should be taken at face value.

[4:40] So in connection with this, and what is going to follow this morning, it is my intent that, if at all possible, to deliver this in one sitting. But the content is such, and it may become more involved as we go along, so we just may end up breaking it into two parts.

[4:58] If we do, I cannot think of a more fitting way to end a year or to begin a new year than a couple of messages of this stripe for this particular season of the year in light of what is coming.

[5:12] So may I remind you that for the past entire year, we have pursued this theme, which we have titled, The Jewish Final Solution to the World's Problems.

[5:26] We have seen the Bible in the Old and New Testaments to reveal the plan and program of God for all humanity. And we have noted in particular how God has determined to use the man Abraham, who was born and lived about 4,000 years ago, to strategically and actually affect the realization of his plan.

[5:53] It is through the unconditional promise God gave to Abraham in Genesis 12, confirmed in Genesis 15, and again in Genesis 17.

[6:04] We will not now revisit those key portions, because we have adequately dealt with them in the past, but we would, however, encourage you to reinforce your memory of them by consulting them privately at your leisure.

[6:20] That's Genesis 12, 15, and 17. Principally, the Abrahamic covenant assures the seed of Abraham that they will become a great nation, they will possess the land of Canaan or Israel in perpetuity, they will produce a Savior Messiah from the tribe of Judah, and this Savior will one day occupy the throne in Israel, whereby he will reign and rule the entire world.

[6:53] In short, the nation of Israel will be the key vehicle through which the worldwide king and the worldwide kingdom will be established in a very literal fulfillment.

[7:09] There is much that will yet occur on earth before this king and kingdom will be established, but it is coming. And for a New Testament reference, I'd like to refer you to Luke's Gospel, chapter 1, for just a few verses.

[7:27] Luke's Gospel, chapter 1, and beginning with verse 26. This is so key. This, in this particular session, will address the issue of when everything is wrapped up, when Christ has returned and has defeated the enemies of Israel and defeated the Antichrist and establishes his kingdom, what will it be?

[7:59] What will we have? What will have been accomplished? Everything is moving toward that objective right now. So what will it be like when we get there?

[8:13] In Luke, chapter 1, and in verse 26, we read that in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph of the descendants of David, and the virgin's name was Mary.

[8:35] And coming in, he said to her, Hail, favored one, the Lord is with you. She was greatly troubled and kept pondering what kind of salutation this might be.

[8:49] And the angel said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.

[9:04] He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

[9:19] Now, let me stop there for just a brief moment. At the time the angel told Mary this, David the king had been dead and buried for a thousand years.

[9:32] Yet, Jesus Christ is a direct descendant of David the king through the line of Nathan, through which his mother would be born.

[9:47] And that's what the angel has in reference here when he talks about giving him the throne of his father David. And, verse 33, he will reign over the house of Jacob forever.

[10:03] What was Jacob's name changed to? Israel. Jacob is Israel and the twelve tribes. And that's that to which it is referring.

[10:16] He will reign over the house of Jacob forever and his kingdom will have no end. While we are still here in chapter 1, look at verse 46.

[10:27] This is Mary's response, commonly referred to as the Magnificat. This is what Mary has to say in regard to what the angel said to her about informing her that she was going to be the mother of the Messiah.

[10:40] And Mary said, My soul exalts the Lord and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For he has regard, has had regard for the humble state of his bond slave.

[10:56] Of course, she's talking about herself. For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed. For the mighty one has done great things for me and holy is his name.

[11:12] And his mercy is upon generation after generation towards those who fear him. He has done mighty deeds with his arm. He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.

[11:25] He has brought down rulers from their thrones and has exalted those who were humble. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent away the rich empty-handed.

[11:36] He has given help. I want you to note this very carefully now. He has given help to Israel, his servant, in remembrance of his mercy as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his offspring forever.

[11:58] And how long had Abraham been dead and gone when Mary said this? Another thousand years. She is very familiar with the fact that God had made certain promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and now she sees herself as a humble servant who is going to be very strategic in God fulfilling those ancient promises given thousands of years earlier.

[12:25] And verse 55, as he spoke to our fathers to Abraham and his offspring forever. forever. Who are Abraham's offspring?

[12:37] Every Jew who ever lived because Abraham was the first one. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the direct descendants of those are the ones to whom Mary is referring.

[12:54] The kingdom, well, before we do that, let's take one more reference. It's in chapter 1, still in the same chapter. And verse 68, let's get this on the record as well.

[13:08] Well, verse 67, his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, now this is talking about Zacharias who is the father of John the Baptist who will be the forerunner of Christ.

[13:22] And Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, blessed be the Lord God of Israel for, or because, he has visited us and accomplished redemption for his people.

[13:35] No, he hasn't. Redemption hadn't been accomplished for his people when Zacharias said this. But Zacharias, like a number of prophecies, is speaking of a promise that God has given as though it's already fulfilled.

[13:52] because if God promised it, consider it done. It might as well be history because it is just as good as history simply because God promised it.

[14:03] And that's exactly what Zacharias is talking about here. He's visited us and accomplished redemption for his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of David, the lineage of David, his servant, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us, to show mercy toward our fathers.

[14:33] And he's not talking about fathers as of removed from one generation. He's talking about the fathers of Israel, namely Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

[14:44] They are the fathers of all the Jews. To show mercy toward our fathers and, here's the clincher, and to remember his holy covenant, the oath which he swore to Abraham, our father.

[15:02] Over a millennia and a half earlier, God made this promise to Abraham as recorded in chapters 12, 15, and 17, and God has not forgotten one whit of all that he has promised to Abraham.

[15:17] Abraham. His timetable, however, is something with which we often have difficulty. As I've said in many times in the past, God has never done anything as quickly as I wanted him to.

[15:30] He has his own timetable, but his is always accurate. Who in the world would have ever dreamed that from the time God promised Eve that her seed would see the coming of a Messiah and would be the Redeemer who would successfully undo all of the wreckage that Adam and Eve had brought upon the earth?

[15:53] Who would have ever dreamed that God would take 4,000 years to fulfill it? And when Jesus left from the Mount of Olives as the disciples saw him go up and taken out of sight in front of them, after promising them that he would come again and the angel confirming that he would come again as you have seen him go, who would have ever imagined that it would be 2,000 years later and Christ still hasn't returned?

[16:23] So I remind you, we are waiting for the second return only half as long as the Jews waited for the first coming. So keep that in mind. It is the oath which he swore to Abraham our father.

[16:39] Wow. The kingdom and its attendant promises given to Abraham have only partially been fulfilled.

[16:51] What Jesus Christ accomplished in his first coming was the payment of the price required for the right to establish that kingdom and rule over it.

[17:03] This he did when he balanced the moral scales of the universe by offering himself as the only sufficient payment for the sins of those whom he would eventually rule over.

[17:17] Half of the mission of Christ was accomplished in his first coming. the remaining half will be accomplished with his second coming.

[17:29] Both his first coming and his second coming are clearly established and often repeated as prophecies in the Old Testament. In fact, the second coming of Christ is predicted and mentioned far more times and in greater detail than was his first coming.

[17:47] And as his first advent was realized in a very literal way as the babe of Bethlehem, so also will his second advent be every bit as literal as the conquering one designated the lion of the tribe of Judah.

[18:06] The first advent saw our Lord as a helpless baby likened to the innocent lamb, the lamb of God, of which John the baptizer spoke in John chapter 1.

[18:18] The second advent will be nothing to do with the innocent lamb. He will be the lamb of God come as the lion of the tribe of Judah.

[18:32] And in his second advent it will be in complete regality opposite of that which he came the first time. He will come in ferocity and in vengeance and in justice with a majesty the likes of which the world has never seen.

[18:51] Christ's task in his first coming as regards the worldwide kingdom of God was to pay for it. And he did. His task in his second coming as regards this worldwide kingdom is to set up, establish, and administer that kingdom for which he paid.

[19:13] He will come to collect on what he previously paid for. Only briefly in this present session will we see what Christ will be getting for the payment he made.

[19:26] It will be what the world will be getting as well. It will be what you will be getting. It will be what everyone who is in Christ either before the first coming as a believer like Noah and Abraham Isaac and David and Jacob and so on and those in the body of Christ will be receiving this is going to be your heritage.

[19:55] This is where you're going to be living. This is the conditions under which you are going to be living. We are currently all functioning in a severely broken world.

[20:13] Have you noticed? In enumerating what is wrong what has gone amiss with our planet one can scarcely know where to begin.

[20:27] There is so very much that is wrong in every nook and cranny of our globe. It is not at all a stretch nor an exaggeration to say this weary old world is in such dire straits and brokenness it will take nothing and no one less than God himself to fix it.

[20:51] This is what Christ will be doing when he returns to finish what he began two thousand years ago. So what kind of a world will this be then?

[21:02] Christ has his work cut out for him but you may be sure he is up to the task. Here is but a scant outline of what we may expect the world to become when the Son of God brings the times of refreshing to the earth spoken of by Peter in his post-Pentecostal message in Acts chapter 3.

[21:26] He talked about the seasons of refreshing and the time of renewal that will be coming. Here comes this kingdom the Bible makes so much of regarding the earth and these are just some of the dramatic things that will be occurring.

[21:44] First of all it will be a completely subdued earth. Armies from multiple nations will have been vanquished during the campaign of Armageddon and Christ will be utterly victorious in every way.

[22:05] Second, Israel will have been rescued by her Messiah after having been on the brink of total annihilation. Third, the curse imposed upon the animal and vegetable kingdom will be removed a la Isaiah 35.

[22:25] And if you still have that portion there, would you turn to it please? I just want to point out a few things to you. We will also spend a little bit of time in Isaiah 65 and Isaiah chapter 11.

[22:38] Let's return to Isaiah 35 and just take a brief glance at some of the things that will be occurring during this time. What we're talking about is paradise, a real paradise.

[22:52] It is Milton's paradise regained. It is utopia. it is the kingdom of heaven come to and situated upon the earth. It is the first time since creation.

[23:06] It is the first time since before Genesis 3 when everything came crashing down. It will be the first time the planet will ever have been restored to what God will be able to say.

[23:24] it is very good. He said that at the conclusion of chapter 2. He's never been able to say that again. But when this kingdom is established and realized, it will be returned to what it ought to be.

[23:41] Injustice will be a thing of the past. Unrighteousness will be a thing of the past. It will be a whole new order. Christ himself will be ruling and reigning. in Isaiah chapter 35 as we just glanced through here in connection with the curse being relieved and removed.

[24:02] The wilderness and the desert will be glad. There won't be any more desert. Desert now is barren and unproductive and virtually worthless. But that which is desert is all going to be converted into absolutely arable land.

[24:17] The world wide will know a plush, a verdance that it has never known since Genesis chapter 2. The araba will rejoice and blossom like the crocus.

[24:30] It will blossom profusely. You know the big problem that they have now in the Mideast and in Israel in particular? It's the shortage of water. They have huge costly desalinization plants set up to take the saline, the salt out of water so as to make it usable for irrigation and for drinking.

[24:53] Water is a priceless commodity in Israel and if you go over there today and you frequent any of the restaurants, they will give you a glass of water, but only if you ask for it.

[25:07] You have to request it. Here, a waitress is likely to set a glass of water down in front of you automatically without you even thinking about it, but not there. The time is coming, however, when that will be a thing of the past and water will be in great abundance.

[25:22] These things will be blossoming like they never have from the time of the beginning. If you look further down the chapter, the eyes of the blind will be open.

[25:36] Blindness will be a thing of the past. Nobody is going to be walking around with a white cane. Nobody is going to be walking around with a walker. There won't be any crutches. There won't be any need for them because human bodies are going to be restored in a way that we cannot imagine.

[25:53] Matter of fact, I guess that would completely eliminate the healthcare industry. I can't wait. Just think. Doctors and nurses are going to have to have a different kind of occupation.

[26:06] I'm sure there will be plenty of new things for people to do, but caring for the needs of people with terminal illnesses and things like that, you just can't imagine that not being part of our picture.

[26:17] It is so much a part of our picture today. We all have our aches and pains. We all have our conditions. If you're not there yet, you will be when you will be welcomed to the arthritis club.

[26:32] It goes with the territory. It's part of the aging process. It's part of a fallen world. The time is coming. Those will be no more. You know, when we were over at Riverside Methodist in Columbus where Marie had her surgery, we were in this state of the art facility, nine stories high.

[26:54] They called it their latest tower. It had just been dedicated a mere five or six months earlier. And it is a splendid facility.

[27:07] I mean, I was really impressed with everything about it. I mean, even, ladies, I was even impressed with the decor, if you can imagine that, a man being impressed.

[27:18] Everything was just right up to snuff. Latest this, latest that, everything. And they spent hundreds of millions of dollars to provide this facility.

[27:33] and there's nothing rare about it because there are similar facilities all throughout the land. We not only spend billions, we spend trillions of dollars just trying to keep people healthy and able to function without pain, to provide the surgeries that are needed and everything.

[27:59] Why do we do that? Why do we go to all this trouble? why do we have medical schools and train doctors and nurses and build these hospitals and pay for this expensive machinery, some of which cost a million dollars just for one of them?

[28:15] Why do we do that? We do it because people are valuable. Human life is precious. We do it because we have high regard for the value of human life.

[28:30] so why is it we allow 50 million of them to not even see the light of day because we snuff them out in the womb?

[28:44] Is there something wrong with this picture? Is this some kind of contradiction or what? Is this amazing? Is this amazing? It's just one more evidence of what I have often said that man thinks with a warped intellect.

[29:02] That's the only thing that will allow him to justify the wanton deaths by murder of the unborn. Incredible! That will not be occurring when Christ establishes his kingdom.

[29:19] them. The ears of the deaf will be unstopped, verse 5. The eyes of the blind will be opened. The lame will leap like a deer.

[29:29] The tongue of the dumb will shout for joy. Now, all due respect, those who deny the idea of an earthly reign of Christ on earth, see all of these things mentioned here in Isaiah 35, as having been true of Israel at one time.

[29:56] But they believe, because of the rejection of Israel toward their Messiah, God has removed all of these promises from Israel and has instead given them to the church.

[30:12] Because the church has replaced Israel in their thinking, and all of these things that originally were promised to the nation Israel are now being fulfilled in the church.

[30:25] And we say, but now wait a minute. We still have blind people, we still have deaf people, and we still have people who are amputees and need prosthesis to walk.

[30:39] They say, well, these are not being fulfilled in the church literally. they're being fulfilled in the church spiritually. I'm not sure how you heal the blind spiritually, or heal the deaf spiritually, or enable the lame to walk spiritually.

[31:04] It just doesn't fit. Far better to simply take it at face value, which of course is what we do. The text goes on to explain other things.

[31:18] Wild animals will be a thing of the past. I don't understand how that's going to happen, the nature of these animals. Look at verse 9. No lion will be there, nor will any vicious beast go up on it.

[31:32] These will not be found there, but the redeemed will walk there. Prior to the fall, and prior to the flood, animals were not carnivorous. They were all vegetarian.

[31:44] And God had given the plant life for food, not only for man, but for all of the animals. Man was a vegetarian originally, and it wasn't until after the fall and after the flood that man has given permission to eat animals, and it wasn't until then that animals became predators of other animals.

[32:07] That's another thing that's going to be reversed. when the kingdom of God is set up on this earth, animals will not prey upon one another for their life continuation.

[32:21] It's going to be a remarkable time. In other words, what it's going to be is it's going to be like it's supposed to be. It's going to be as good as it can be. It's going to be as good as God can make it.

[32:33] It is remarkable. And in Isaiah chapter 65, if we may go there while we're still in the neighborhood, Isaiah chapter 65.

[32:48] Matter of fact, the prophet Isaiah has more to say about this than perhaps any of the other writers, but then again, he's got several chapters assigned to him that he has given us by inspiration.

[33:03] In Isaiah chapter 65, look at verse 17. For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind, but be glad and rejoice forever in what I create.

[33:24] For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing, and her people for gladness. How much gladness are the people of Jerusalem experiencing right now?

[33:36] They're just trying to stay out of the way of the next suicide bomber, or the next one who wants to blow up a public transportation vehicle and kill innocent women and children. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people, and there will no longer be heard in her the voice of weeping and the sound of crime.

[33:58] No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days. infant mortality will not be known in the kingdom. I don't know if you've had occasion to visit any cemeteries that have been there for a long time, but if you visit any of the really historic cemeteries where there are even Revolutionary War veterans buried, it is amazing as you walk through there to see how many gravestones there are of children who never saw their first or second year of life because the infant mortality rate was so great back then.

[34:39] Medication was so limited and was so ill effective that many, many children were lost before they saw their second birth. That will not be true during this millennial reign.

[34:51] Or an old man who does not live out his days, for the youth will die at the age of 100. There will be some kind of longevity.

[35:02] I don't know if this is going to be a reestablishment of the length of days that people had before the flood, during which time Methuselah seemed to hold the record, having lived 969 years.

[35:17] We can't imagine longevity like that. Even Abraham lived to be, I think, 180. But as you move on through Genesis, the time factor keeps decreasing more and more and more, until it gets down to where, guess what the norm is?

[35:33] Three score and ten. That's not what it used to be. That's what it has become. That's part of the fallenness. Because what has invaded the gene pool over these thousands of years is every kind of a negative, I don't know what you would call a negative element, negative genetics.

[35:55] Things gone wrong in the genetic pool because of different negative things that have been inserted in it that make disease take a toll that it wouldn't have taken originally.

[36:07] Youth will die at the age of 100. I like the sound of that. I'm not even a youth yet. How about that? And the one who does not reach the age of 100 shall be thought accursed, and they shall build houses and inhabit them.

[36:27] They shall also plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit. They shall not plant and another eat. In other words, there won't be any unjust confiscation.

[36:38] There isn't going to be any thievery. There isn't going to be anybody capitalizing on somebody else's work. Things are going to be fair and equitable like they ought to be. The lifetime of a tree, so shall the days of my people be.

[36:52] And my chosen ones shall wear out the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain or bear children for calamity, for they are the offspring of those blessed of the Lord and their descendants with them.

[37:04] It will come to pass that before they call, I will answer, and while they are still speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall graze together.

[37:16] Imagine that. This is a reversal of animal nature. And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. Now, I just can't imagine that.

[37:31] If you throw a bale of straw or hay into a lion's cage in the zoo today, chances are he may lie down on it and go to sleep.

[37:42] But I can promise you he's not going to eat it. But the time is coming when that will be normal fare for carnivorous animals. No, I have no idea what God is going to do to their digestive system or how that's going to be revamped.

[37:59] But I suspect whatever it is, that is no problem for him. All this is to say is now, now, nature is red in tooth and claw.

[38:11] It won't be then. No animals will be living and preying upon other animals for their sustenance. It simply will not be. This is going to be a time the likes of which we can't imagine.

[38:27] It is unprecedented. The wolf and the lamb shall graze together. The lion shall eat straw like the ox. There's an old story that went around years ago about the Soviet Union when it was still intact before it was broken up.

[38:41] And they were still pursuing and promoting all of the glorious things that were supposed to be true of communism. And it was said that the Russians had actually succeeded in causing a wolf and a lamb to be able to lie down together in the same cage.

[38:59] And that communism had been able to accomplish something that capitalism had not. And the fellow says, really, how in the world were they able to do that? They made a wolf and a lamb lied down together in the same cage.

[39:13] I can't imagine. How did they pull that off? He said, wasn't a problem for them. Under communism, all you do is toss in a new lamb every now and then. Well, that's the way man does it.

[39:25] But that's not the way God is going to do it. And quickly, in Isaiah chapter 11, if you will, please. Isaiah chapter 11, while we're still in the same book, I'm trying to confine these passages to this one book for convenience and time's sake.

[39:42] And in Isaiah chapter 11, beginning with verse 6, we read, And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and the little boy will lead them.

[40:04] Also, the cow and the bear will graze. Their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

[40:16] And the nursing child, that's a child that is so young it hasn't even been weaned yet from his mother, will play by the hole of the cobra.

[40:28] A cobra is one of the deadliest of all of the serpents. Its venom is highly toxic. But it won't be then. We look at this and we say, hey, this is unnatural.

[40:42] No, it isn't. This is natural. What we have today, this, this is unnatural. Death is unnatural.

[40:55] Disease is unnatural. Animals being predators, that's unnatural. What Jesus Christ is going to do when he reigns is not turn the world upside down.

[41:08] It already is. He's going to turn it right side up. And what is now unnatural will then be natural. In other words, it will be the way it was intended.

[41:21] It will be the way it was before man's sin brought everything crashing down. all of which resulted in the need for a redeemer.

[41:33] And Christ has accomplished that redemption. Here in Isaiah chapter 6, chapter 11, and verse 6, the animal kingdom is what it is supposed to be.

[41:50] And that's going to radically rearrange our entire environment in ways that you cannot imagine. Now you have to be careful, you know, if you have a very small child, you have to have a fenced-in yard, you have to have parameters, you have to have somebody watching them almost all the time that they don't get away, get out, and get hurt.

[42:08] But that will be a thing of the past. There will be nothing to fear. And you may be sure that there will not be any kidnapping, there will not be any sexual predators out roaming the neighborhood looking for victims.

[42:22] These things will simply not occur when this time comes. And the knowledge of the one true God will be as universal with no competitors.

[42:33] Physical life will be strengthened and lengthened. And a true worldwide peace will prevail. In Isaiah chapter 2, and if you're wondering about Isaiah, he was assigned the task of revealing through the plan and program of God what Israel is one day going to be able to enjoy.

[42:54] And I can't imagine what Jews make of this as they read it today because most of them have difficulty with the authority of scripture anyway. But in chapter 2 of Isaiah, we read, The word which Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

[43:10] Now it will come about that in the last days. These are not them. We are not living in these last days.

[43:21] We may be close to it. Matter of fact, let me just throw this out for your consideration. The events that we are talking about here conceivably could become a reality on the planet in less than eight to nine years.

[43:47] I'm not saying they will. If I were to take a guess, I would say they probably won't. But they could. Time-wise. And we're not talking about setting dates.

[43:58] We are talking about the time coming when Christ, having conquered his enemies and Israel's enemies, will establish this kingdom.

[44:09] and those items that remain between where we are now and the realization of these events described here in the millennium.

[44:21] The time factor begins with the translation of the church. We don't know when that's going to be. It might be before I finish the next sentence.

[44:32] It might not be for 50 years yet. We do not know when Christ is going to return and call us away and we will be as believers caught up together with them in the clouds to be with the Lord.

[44:44] So shall we ever be with the Lord. That is the rapture or the translation of the church. Then, after that occurs, we don't know how long it will be before the 70th week of Daniel commences, which we'll be looking at later.

[45:01] But that is a period of seven years. And that will begin when the Antichrist signs a pact with Israel in Daniel chapter 9 and then in the middle of the seven years, three and a half years into it, he breaks the pact and things really begin getting very, very difficult on the earth.

[45:22] So, we know what the time frame will be once we get there, but we don't have any way of knowing when this rapture is going to occur. Conceivably, if it occurred very, very soon, I mean, within the next couple of weeks, then how long after the rapture before that pact is signed with Israel, we don't know.

[45:42] That too could be months or it could be years. We don't know. But we do know that once it begins, and that's the kickoff, the signing of that pact, that's the start of the 70th week of Daniel, it will last seven years.

[45:57] That's very clear. At the end of the seven years, when Israel has its back against the wall and is right on the brink of complete annihilation, Christ returns, and Armageddon takes place.

[46:12] And when that is concluded, then this kingdom will be established. So, that gives you some idea of the time frame. A true worldwide peace will prevail as indicated in Isaiah chapter 2.

[46:27] In the last days, the mountain of the house of the Lord will be established as the chief of the mountains, and will be raised above the hills, and all the nations will stream to it.

[46:43] Why will they? Because that will be the worldwide seat of government and authority. And all the nations throughout the world, wherever they are, however large or however small, they will report to Jerusalem, to the king of kings who will be enthroned there.

[47:07] All the nations will stream to it, and many peoples will come and say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob.

[47:18] Can you imagine people saying this today? Why, this would be politically incorrect today. But it won't be then. That he may teach us concerning his ways, and that we may walk in his paths.

[47:31] For the law, the law will go forth from Zion. This will be God's law. And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he will judge between the nations.

[47:44] Nations that now have a national sovereignty will forego that. There will not be any national sovereignty then. There will not be any independent national governments.

[47:57] They will all be subservient to this one government rule. Christ will judge between the nations. He will render decisions for many peoples.

[48:09] And they will hammer their swords into plowshares. That is, implements of war will be converted into implements of peace.

[48:21] And their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation. and never again will they learn more.

[48:39] Wow. This will not come about as a result of the United Nations. This will come about as a result of the sovereign Lord of the universe sitting and ruling and reigning.

[48:58] And we are told that he will rule and reign with a rod of iron. That means it will be a very decisive kind of government.

[49:09] It will be one where any iniquity or injustice that should surface because there will be people in it who will not have a glorified body and they will have the same kind of nature that we have today as people.

[49:22] And there will be pockets of rebellion that will arise and they will be summarily dealt with because Christ will rule with a rod of iron. The rod refers to the scepter. It is that which royalty holds in their hand.

[49:36] It is the symbol of power and authority. If ever you see a picture of the Queen of England seated with a crown on her throne you'll see she's holding a scepter in her hand. It is symbolic of the authority that is vested in her.

[49:50] Jesus Christ is going to rule with a rod of iron. That means it will be forceful, it will be decisive, it will be something that no one will be able to stand or to withstand.

[50:04] It will be supreme in every way. There will not be any polls taken to see what people think about this or that because it won't make any difference. The decisions that he hands down will be just and righteous decisions.

[50:18] They will be for the benefit and welfare of everyone. Wisdom will rule and reign supreme. It is a time the likes of which we cannot imagine. I am not going to ask you to turn to the last reference because some of you will struggle with finding the book of Zephaniah.

[50:36] You would have to go to the table of contents to find it. But just let me give you the reference. It is in Zephaniah chapter 3 verses 8 through 17 and the text talks about the earth being restored to one language.

[50:52] We had one language of humanity before the Tower of Babel in Genesis chapter 11 and God confused the languages and thwarted their plans at that time.

[51:09] Apparently that is going to be reversed and there will be but one language spoken worldwide. I do not know this for sure. My suspicion is it will be Hebrew but we are not told that.

[51:23] That is just a guess. So for convenience sake I sought to group these key passages that depict the kingdom conditions that will prevail when Christ returns and establishes it.

[51:37] The only theological alternative to these literal fulfillments is that espoused by those of the amillennial or covenant theology or replacement theology who deny that a literal fulfillment is in the plan and program of God.

[51:54] They again insist that all of the above characteristics are being fulfilled right now as I speak. All of these things, physical, etc., are being fulfilled right now but only in a spiritual sense in the church which has replaced the nation of Israel as they believe.

[52:17] I want to close with this thought. everyone who has ever lived or will yet live on the earth will be included or excluded from this renewed and restored kingdom of God on earth, also known as the millennial reign or the thousand-year reign of Christ.

[52:43] Believers of all ages, past, present, and yet future, will be included and will participate in some capacity.

[52:53] I have no idea exactly what we will be doing but we will all be gainfully occupied and no one will be under stress or laboring under disappointment.

[53:04] It will be as things are supposed to be. this coming earthly kingdom of heaven established here is not to be confused with the heaven to which believers go at the time of physical death.

[53:22] Here, when we die as a believer, we exit the body and our spirit is absent from the body and present with the Lord in heaven. That is not the heaven of which we are speaking.

[53:35] That is the present abode of God and this is going to be the kingdom of heaven come to earth. It's going to be here on this planet.

[53:47] That heaven is where Christ presently is and at death believers will be joined with him. So, this is where we are going. This is what the so-called bottom line will be.

[54:01] When we get there, this is what we will find. This is the kind of world it will be. It will be a new heavens and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness.

[54:15] As I said, everyone, without exception, will either be in it or excluded from it. And those who are in a vital union and connection with the king will be there in that kingdom as one of his subjects in some happy capacity later to be revealed.

[54:39] You can look forward to this. We have no idea what all it's going to entail, but no one will be disappointed. The question is, will you be one who is included or excluded?

[54:56] if you are in Christ, you will be in that kingdom because he will be and we will forever be with the Lord.

[55:11] Those who are not in Christ will be cast out, Revelation says, into the outer darkness. We do not know exactly what that involves, but we know it is tragic beyond belief.

[55:28] Christ died for our sins that we might have that place in that kingdom with him when he comes and establishes that.

[55:39] Would you pray with me, please? Father, we recognize that this has been a very superficial treatment of what's coming, and there is so much more involved than we've been able to touch on, and so much more involved than what we even know or understand, but we are grateful for limited understanding that we do have.

[56:03] It gives us a sense of real purpose and hope and meaning that otherwise would not be ours, but because we are in Christ, it is ours, and his destiny will be a destiny that we as well will share in, and we recognize that that is all because of your wonderful grace.

[56:25] Our prayer right now is for anyone who may be here this morning, who has never made that decision to be in Christ. We pray that you will convey to them that you have given them a will, an ability to make a decision, an ability to submit themselves to you for your salvation in acknowledgement of their inadequacy and their sin and their inability to save themselves, and if anyone is here today, young or old, struggling with that issue, we pray you will weigh heavily upon their heart until they come to put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus.

[57:03] And dear friend, if you are here this morning with our heads bowed, eyes closed, if you are here this morning looking for answers, wondering where things are going and where you're going to be when they get there, and this time is for you.

[57:18] you need to know that right now, in the privacy of your own heart and mind, you can exercise that will, and you can say, Lord Jesus Christ, I want this, especially since you gave your life in order to pay for this and to make me able to be a part of it.

[57:42] I want to commit myself to you and receive you as my Savior. I want you to take this life of mine for which you paid and make of it whatever you want to make of it.

[57:56] I want to recognize myself as your servant and you as my Lord. Here I am. With all my questions and doubts and fears, I know I want Jesus and I take him as my Savior.

[58:12] And if you've made that your prayer this morning, be sure to tell someone so they can rejoice with you. And let me know so I can give you some literature that would be helpful to you.

[58:23] Thank you, Father, for your great faithfulness to us all throughout this year and for the faithfulness we anticipate for the year upcoming. We bless you for being the God you are and for having orchestrated this incredible plan that you've been pleased to reveal to us through your word.

[58:39]  In Christ's wonderful name. Amen.