Part 5 - HEAVEN
New heaven, New Earth & New Jerusalem
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith Church | www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
INTRODUCTION
2 Thessalonians 2:1-4
1Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, 2not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. 3Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for (that day will not come) until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
This is the sign that the rapture is near!
The rebellion in the Greek (great falling away) means the departure of people from God.
1. THE RAPTURE
a. first resurrection (all saved)
i. Luke 17:34-36 "34I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left."
ii. I Thessalonians 4:15-17 “...15According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”
b. Judgment Seat of Christ
c. Rewards
2. TRIBULATION
3. THE SECOND COMING
a. Evil locked up until Judgment Day
b. We rule with Christ for 1000 years (millennial age)
i. Revelation 20:4-6 4I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
c. At the end of the 1000 years, evil released for judgment
d. The second resurrection takes place (all unsaved)
e. The Great White throne Judgment with the Books Opened
Revelation 20:11-12
11Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.
It is during this Great White Throne judgment when God will judge not only man for having sin...but heaven, earth and Jerusalem.
In the end, NOTHING which contains sin will be allowed to exist outside of Gehenna, the lake of fire...the second death, eternal damnation.
I. NEW HEAVEN
a. Heaven has had sin
i. Isaiah 14:12-14 12How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
ii. Ezekiel 29:12-19 (Account of Satan’s beginning and end) 12 "Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says:
" 'You were the model of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
13 You were in Eden,
the garden of God;
every precious stone adorned you:
ruby, topaz and emerald,
chrysolite, onyx and jasper,
sapphire, turquoise and beryl.
Your settings and mountings were made of gold;
on the day you were created they were prepared.
14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub,
for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
you walked among the fiery stones.
15 You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created
till wickedness was found in you.
16 Through your widespread trade
you were filled with violence,
and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
and I expelled you, O guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
17 Your heart became proud
on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
I made a spectacle of you before kings.
18 By your many sins and dishonest trade
you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire come out from you,
and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes on the ground
in the sight of all who were watching.
19 All the nations who knew you
are appalled at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.' "
b. Heaven was redeemed
i. Heaven was redeemed from the presence of sin by Satan and his followers being cast out.
ii. Revelation 12:7-9 7And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
iii. What did Satan do after being cast from heaven to earth?
1. Genesis 3:1-6 where he is referred to as the serpent...
2. Because he couldn’t take over heaven and be God, he decided to destroy man.
3. Satan now lays claim to the earth and everything in it as his kingdom...still trying to be a god. Luke 4:5-6 5The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
c. Heaven will be made new
i. So God will create a New Heaven at the time of the great White Throne Judgment of the wicked. A heaven which has never been touched by sin.
II. NEW EARTH
a. Earth has sin
i. Because of Satan’s coming here and trying to establish his kingdom and become a god.
b. Earth has been redeemed
i. Redemption comes through Jesus Christ as His sacrifice reclaims the earth (not just man).
c. Earth will be made new
i. So God will create a new earth, for this one is going to pass away at the great White Throne Judgment.
III. NEW JERUSALEM
a. Jerusalem will see sin
i. When the anti-Christ comes and is revealed just before the rapture, where he will stand in the holy place and declare that he is god.
b. Jerusalem will be redeemed
i. During tribulation God will redeem 144,000 Jews, 12,000 virgin males from each of the 12 tribes of Israel, and they will go to Petra, where God will miraculously sustain them until the second coming of Christ, where they will look upon the one whom they have pierced, and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord.
c. Jerusalem will be made new
i. At the Great White Throne Judgment, and the New Jerusalem will come down from heaven, and set upon the New earth which resides in the New heaven.
CONCLUSION
Do you see a pattern?
1. YOU TO HAVE SINNED
a. Romans 3:22-23 22This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
2. YOU CAN BE REDEEMED
a. Romans 3:24 24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
3. YOU WILL BE MADE NEW
a. I Corinthians 15:53-54 53For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
