 |
 Official Service(date) |
| Sunday Morning |
| Sunday Evening |
| Friday All-night |
|
 |
|
| 1 John Lecture |
| Revelation Lectures |
| Genesis Lectures |
|
|
|
| The message of the cross |
| Measure of Faith |
| Ten Commandments |
| Heaven |
| Hell |
| Spiritual Love |
| Spirit, soul and body |
| Sinful mind |
| Goodness |
| Nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit |
|
|
|
|
  |
 Sermon > Revelation Lectures |
 |
|
|
Title |
Revelation Lectures(83) |
|
|
|
Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
Revelation 20:7-11 |
Date |
2008-11-21 |
|
|
Scripture
Revelation 20:7-11
[7] When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison,
[8] and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore.
[9] And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
[10] And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
[11] Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
During the Millennium Kingdom, a beautiful (picture perfect) life is unfolded on earth.
In the beginning, there won't be that many people who started over again. While living in such comfort and peace, people gradually forget the memories of the misery during the 7 Year Great Tribulation.
he population grows to fill the earth, but people don't cause trouble or pain to each other. They don't even suffer from the hardness of life.
They lack nothing and they live peaceful lives in a world where lions and lambs play together.
At the end of the Millennium Kingdom when Satan is released for a short period, however, such peacefully living people are instantly deceived.
They were never discontented with the lives they given before, but now all kinds of evil thoughts and the mindsets of arrogance, envy, jealousy, hatred, and ill temper are irritated.
They no longer like to serve the people of the Spirit, but they also want to be served.
Just as the people of the spirit live in a bright city respected by others, they, too, want to enjoy the good things.
Those who are first to be deceived begin to show their discontent and complain to others, and they cause temptations for others as well.
They convey their evil thoughts to their family, friends, and neighbors. They rally men of the same mind, and in almost no time at all large groups form.
It is as if the people had been infected with a serious and contagious disease, people become stained with evil thoughts instantly.
Even though they cannot communicate though phones or wire, all of the dissatisfied and complaining people become allied together instantly.
This group of countless people is called 'Gog and Magog' as in Revelation 20:8.
The terms, 'God' and 'Magog' also appear in Ezekiel Ch. 38, but they are different from tonight's 'Gog and Magog.'
I may interpret 'Ezekiel' in the future, but for now, it will be fine if you just understand the spiritual meaning of them.
Just remember that 'Gog and Magog' is the group or organization that consists of the people of the flesh.
As the population grows in the Millennium Kingdom, people naturally organize their own groups.
Those people of the flesh who survived in the 7 Year Great Tribulation already experienced the civilization and social structure in the past.
They teach their descendants their social organizations, so the people of the earth can easily set orders and form groups.
Because they are under the control of the Lord and of the people of the spirit, however, the leaders of the people of the flesh cannot set up autocratic rule.
The people of the flesh themselves set up organizations which are controlled under rules and regulations, and there are leaders in charge of such organizations.
I already explained that the people of the flesh are different from each other even though they all live in a good environment.
Their strengths, wisdom, talents, and characters are different.
People of relatively outstanding qualities among them are set up as leaders.
As the enemy devil and Satan are released, they target these leaders first and deceive them.
That's because once the leaders are deceived it has greater influence and a definite ripple effect on others.
Those who are deceived with the evil thought spread it to their family, their nations, their continent, and finally the whole world.
Since the scripture says, 'the number of them is like the sand of the seashore,' we can see countless souls are deceived.
Of course, not all of the people of the flesh are deceived.
Chances are that there are some who remember the teaching of the people of the spirit not to side with the evil people.
However, more than expected - more than half of them are deceived to stand against God.
Just as Revelation 20:9 says, 'they come up on the broad plain of the earth and surround the camp of the saints and the beloved city.'
'The beloved city' is where the people of the spirit live.
nd 'the camp of the saints' is where the people of the flesh who are not deceived but keep their faith live.
Those people of the flesh who are deceived by Satan attack the people of the spirit as well as the people of the flesh who don't side with them.
Even though I say 'they attack the city,' it doesn't mean they fight against the people of the spirit face to face.
At the moment the people of the flesh surround and then attack the city, fire comes down from heaven and consumes them.
The immediate judgment of God comes upon them.
The people of the flesh who are judged by fire fall to Hell, and the enemy devil and Satan that deceived the people are confined in the Abyss again.
The enemy devil and Satan can never come out again; they are confined in the Abyss forever.
Those who didn't betray but kept their faith during this incident of temptation; they are saved.
However, though they go through normal human cultivation they don't go to a better dwelling place, but stay in the outskirts of Paradise.
Now, you may find Revelation 20:10 strange.
It says, "And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."
'The lake of fire' and 'the lake of brimstone (the lake of sulfur)' is the place where the unsaved souls go.
The devil is not a man but an evil spirit, and thus the devil falls down to the Abyss, not the lake of fire or of sulfur.
But, why does the scripture say, "the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone"?
'The devil' in this verse doesn't refer to the actual devil; it refers to those who received the work of the devil directly to lead the betrayal.
They are those who were completely instigated by the devil to do the work of the devil.
Once a man accepts the work of Satan, he comes to have evil thoughts, and when he accepts the work of the devil, his evil thought will be put into an evil action.
However, being completely controlled by the devil is greatly different from just receiving the work of the devil.
Sometimes, there are happenings we cannot understand; we say, "How can he do such a thing as a human being?"
He forsakes the duty of a man, and commits a crime that he would never do if he had conscience.
At this, even the people of the world say that he does 'the work of the devil.'
Such a thing is only possible when the devil captivates him and controls and instigates him as it pleases.
He may think he does such an evil thing by his own will, but he is actually completely controlled by the devil.
He does commit such abominable crimes as if the devil itself works.
In the Millennium Kingdom, the people of the flesh who lead the betrayal in advance of the others are those who receive this direct control of the devil.
Such people who are directly controlled by the devil are thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, and tonight's scripture describes it as 'the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone.'
As the Millennium Kingdom ends, the Final Judgment before the Great White Throne actually takes place.
Dear brothers and sisters.
From the moment the Millennium Kingdom begins, the people of the spirit teach and tell the people of the flesh;
"You will live a peaceful life during the Millennium Kingdom, but when the time comes, the enemy devil and Stan will be released. You should never be deceived. If you are deceived by the enemy devil and Satan, you will fall down to the horrible hell. You should worship God and the Lord till the end."
In addition, some the people of the flesh went through the times of human cultivation and the miserable Tribulation, and they also know how good the Millennium Kingdom is.
They do know how happy it is to live in the world where the Lord reigns; the place where there is no evil.
Their descendants who don't experience the Tribulation saw the Lord and the people of the spirit; they experienced only the peace of the Millennium Kingdom.
They do know the word of God is true.
When they are taught by the people of the spirit, they make up their mind to remember what they are taught and not to be deceived.
Despite all these things, how could more than half of the people be deceived into betrayal?
It is the same as being given the answers to a test, but still failing the test.
Some of you may say, "I can't understand them. I would never be deceived if I were there."
Or, you may be curiously thinking, "Isn't it better that God just finishes human cultivation? Why does God arrange the Millennium Kingdom and allow so many people to go to destruction?"
However, when God does something, it is not without meaning or purpose.
Since He has His will and providence that He has to reveal in the justice and love, He manages all these procedures.
Now, let me answer the first question.
Why are the people of the flesh deceived by Satan even though they saw and heard the truth?
To understand this, try to remember how Adam and Eve came to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
Many people don't understand why Adam ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
You may say, "He lived in such a good environment, but why did he eat the fruit? I would never do it, if I were he."
Even though they lacked nothing, when the serpent which was instigated by Satan and tempted Eve, Adam and Eve were deceived.
The serpent said that they would not die but they would become like God if they eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
It was a tempting word; when they ignored God's warning, the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil looked delicious.
It was the same with Cain, the son of Adam and Eve.
Just how many things that Adam remembered did he teach Cain in great detail?
"I became a man of the flesh like this because I disobeyed the will of God. I came to live this life of sorrows, pains, and death. You should surely obey the will of God." He should have taught his son like this.
In addition, he should have taught Cain, "The sacrifice that God accepts is the sacrifice of blood, and thus you should slaughter an animal and give the sacrifice of blood."
However, Cain didn't listen to Adam. He gave the fruits of the soil as an offering to God.
When God didn't accept it, he came to complain, instead of repenting and turning back.
Even at this time, God had mercy on him to make him realize his evil, and reprimand him to obey the will of God.
But still, Cain didn't turn back, but rather envied his brother who was loved by God, and later he killed his brother.
Among those who say they believe in God, there are some who behave like Cain these days.
Even though they give the sacrifice of the flesh to God, in other words, they don't practice the truth that they heard, they complain against God, saying. "Why doesn't God give me an answer? Why don't I receive blessing?"
Or sometimes, some people stay away from the truth at the critical moment even though they experienced the works of God and said they live a diligent believing life.
For example, they face a temptation.
Once they bow down before an idol, they can be promoted and receive increase in their wages. But, when they don't, the boss will hate them and they may be fired.
Will you say at this moment, "No matter how difficult the situation is, I will never commit sin before God"?
Some of you may do so. But, some others may say like this; "God the Father! What if I am fired? It's difficult to find a job at this age. Besides, what about my family? Since it's not actually worshiping the idol, please allow me to bow down to the idol this one time. When I receive increase, I give more tithes and give more in charity offerings."
They, indeed, give the sacrifice of the flesh the why Cain did.
What about Judas Iscariot?
He was called as a disciple of Jesus, and he heard and learned the truth all the time.
He saw Jesus revive the dead and walk on the water.
But, when he was deceived by Satan, he betrayed Jesus and sold Him.
It is the same in the Millennium Kingdom.
No matter how many times they hear the truth, if they don't keep their heart, they eventually become like this at the temptation of Satan.
Those who lived like a lamb instantly stand against God and to evil things.
Now, here comes the second question regarding the Millennium Kingdom.
Why does God plan the Millennium Kingdom at the end of all these things?
All He has to do is judge people because human cultivation is over, and that is it, isn't it? What is the reason for putting another process, the Millennium Kingdom, in place?
It is, at the time of finalizing the cultivation, to remind and confirm the reason why God should cultivate the human beings.
Of course, just as God rested on the seventh day after He completed the Creation, it has a meaning of resting for a thousand years after the 6,000-year-long human cultivation.
It also has a meaning of allowing us to take a close look all around the earth so that we won't retain any lingering attachment.
Besides all these, the important providence contained in the Millennium Kingdom is that, in order to get true children, it is necessary to make human beings experience relativity throughout the human cultivation.
For a man to think something is truly good and to make a choice of his own accord, he has to experience some others that are bad.
In other words, when he experiences the pain that resulted from sin and evil, he can truly realize that the goodness and truth is good, and then he can choose the truth by himself.
There was nothing that was needed when Adam lived in the Garden of Eden.
But, he didn't realize how happy and thankful he should be for all the things he enjoyed.
He didn't even understand how valuable the knowledge of the truth he learned.
It's because he didn't experience pain, sorrow, sin, and death; he hadn't felt anything unfortunate.
Of course he heard it and knew it by knowledge, but he couldn't feel it deep in his heart.
He couldn't give love and thanks from the depth of his heart to God who gives only the good things.
That's why he disobeyed the word of God and ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil even though he lived lacking nothing.
It is the same with the people of the flesh in the Millennium Kingdom.
Even though they are taught countless times, when Satan deceives, there are people who are deceived and accept it by their free will.
It is because they haven't suffered from any pain for a thousand years, and thus they can't actually feel the fear of death.
Free will is something like this.
They can either choose goodness or evil by their free will.
If they truly realized how good the goodness is, they would never choose evil.
However, if they don't know how painful the evil is, just like Eve who was deceived by the serpent, their heart may sway when they are deceived, and choose the evil.
Therefore, in order to become true children who can choose goodness and love God from the depth of their heart, they have to experience relativity.
That's why the human cultivation is necessary. And for the human cultivation, there is a need for the enemy devil and Satan, and Hell.
Then, you may come up with the third question at this point.
Even if given the same free will, some choose goodness, but others choose evil and go to the way of destruction.
Then, why does God, who is Almighty, full of love, create chaff-like souls who betray, not creating only the good people?
Some may ask this kind of question.
They say God needs to create only the good people, not evil people.
However, becoming a man of goodness or of evil is absolutely up to people; it's their choice, not God's.
Let me give you an example.
When a farmer does farming, he sows good seeds.
He waters all the seeds, and weeds and fertilizes his land with all his strength.
Among the same seeds however, some become good grain, but others become the bad weeds and the chaff.
The farmer doesn't grow the chaff, but they are the by-products resulted from his cultivation of his crops.
If he doesn't want to have chaffs, all he has to do is just no farming.
But, without farming, he cannot gain the good grains, either.
Likewise, God cultivates the human beings to gain true children, and allows them to experience the relativity.
He not only gives them free will, but also teaches them which one to choose between goodness and evil through numerous evidences.
He allows them to realize God the Creator through the universe and everything in it.
God gives us the Bible, and has sent the prophets and the servants of God. He also reveals that He is alive through signs and wonders.
However, no matter how many evidences God shows, and no matter how earnestly He says, the choice is up to people in the end.
Those who choose the truth by their free will; they will be saved, and receive eternal life and heaven.
However, those who choose evil by their free will; they will go to hell according the law of justice, which dictates, "The wage of sin is death."
If God controls the free will of a man, and forces him to choose only the goodness, there will be no one who will choose evil to go to hell; but there will be no true children that God desires.
Besides, if God wants to have a certain being who chooses only the goodness, there are angels who do works only in obedience; there is no need of the human cultivation.
If there are parents who bring up their own child, however, even when they have a robot which only obeys them, they will not say they don't need their child
No matter how fine the robot looks like a man, and not matter how well the robot behaves like a man, it is completely different from a true child.
Also, if a little child says only "Yes" to everything without expressing their will, the child may look strange.
Instead of receiving praise for the goodness, the child might look somewhat dumb.
Children don't always obey but sometimes cause trouble because they have their free will.
When something is not in accordance with their thoughts, they disobey.
However, when they grow up, they realize the grace of their parents and they truly love their parents; then the parents receive incomparable comfort and joy that cannot be acquired through a robot.
Of course there might be children who give only troubles to the parents. But when parents bring up their children, they hope their children will grow up well in goodness.
God also wanted to share His love with the true children, and that's why He gave mankind free will.
People can choose either goodness or evil when they have free will; it is unavoidable to have chaff that will choose evil.
Through the Millennium kingdom, God allows us to understand the various meanings contained in the human cultivation.
If you truly understand this providence, you will be lost in admiration just as Romans 11:33 says, which reads, "Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!"
In order to get true children, He planned everything before the ages, and when he cultivates us, He arranges and achieves everything in a perfect manner until the last moment.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
For the last 26 years since this church was founded, you have seen, heard, and experienced the power of God countless times.
Through your own period of cultivation, you have come to realize how meaningless the evil is, and how painful it makes people feel.
And thus, you not only believe in God, but you also long for sanctification, and run the race toward New Jerusalem.
How blessed you are since you are living a Christian life understanding all of these!
However, you should truly make a decision in order to bear the perfect fruit of faith.
Instead of covering the evil attributes, you should find them and cast them off.
Since the people didn't cast off the evil from their hearts while living a peaceful life in the Millennium Kingdom, when they face with the work of the enemy devil and Satan, their evil was revealed.
By the same token, some people stumble on temptations even when they diligently live a believing life after experiencing the works of God.
Only when you get rid of the evil nature from the depth of your heart can you be faithful before God, not going to the evil way.
When you still have a chance before the Lord comes to take us back, please diligently adorn your heart.
I urge you to make a confession, saying, "I truly have undergone the period of cultivation without any regret," when you welcome the Lord.
By doing so, may you stand in the most glorious place when you enter the 7 Year Wedding Banquet, the Millennium kingdom, and eternal heaven, in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, I pray!
[Amen] |
|
