God's Kingdom on Earth?
Notice some conclusive scriptures. In the mysterious vision seen by Nebuchadnezzar, and interpreted by God through Daniel, it is revealed the Kingdom of God will be ON EARTH!
Read the entire 2nd chapter of Daniel. "Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth" (verse 35).
Now notice the INTERPRETATION of the dream in verse 44. "And in the days of these kings [shown by the ten toes, which were smashed by the Stone from heaven) shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever."
God repeatedly uses the type of a mountain as a symbol of a nation or a kingdom. The Kingdom, or the Nation, of GOD will consume, destroy, supersede all these worldly kingdoms — and will RULE them ON THIS EARTH!
Describing the events surrounding Christ's return, and the setting up of His world rule, Isaiah was inspired to write, "And it shall come to pass, in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
"And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for OUT OF ZION [on this EARTH] shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from JERUSALEM [on THIS EARTH)" (Isa. 2:2-3). Micah was inspired to write the same thing in his 4th chapter.
Read each of these other vital scriptures! ". . . When the Lord of hosts shall reign IN MOUNT ZION, and IN JERUSALEM, and before his ancients gloriously" (Isa. 24:23). "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous BRANCH, and a KING shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice IN THE EARTH. In his days JUDAH shall be saved . . ." (Jer. 23:5-6). This PROVES this scripture is for the future, and refers directly to the SECOND coming of Christ, since it describes the salvation of the JEWS — a yet future event!
"The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The Lord also shall roar OUT OF ZION, and utter his voice FROM JERUSALEM . . . So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God, DWELLING IN ZION, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be HOLY" (Joel 3:15-17).
". . . for the Lord dwelleth IN ZION" (Joel 3:21).
"And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the Lord shall reign Dyer them IN MOUNT ZION from henceforth, even FOR EVER" (Micah 4:7).
"Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for lo, I COME, and I will DWELL IN THE MIDST OF THEE, saith the Lord" (tech. 2:10).
Is this enough? God says OVER AND OVER AGAIN that Christ is coming TO THIS EARTH! David is to be resurrected (Ezek. 34:23; 37:24) to be KING over Israel, ruling under Christ.
Think of it! David, a man after God's own heart, "IS NOT ASCENDED INTO THE HEAVENS" (Acts 2:34) but is dead today — awaiting a glorious resurrection to RULERSHIP with His Lord!
These are only a few of the plain scriptures showing Christ is to reign on this earth!
Your TREMENDOUS Reward
Salvation is GOD'S FREE GIFT!
You can only be saved by the LIFE of Christ (Rom. 5:10) after having been reconciled to God by His death (same verse). But after God's loving PARDON for your past sins — there is something you can EARN, believe it or not!
Jesus said, "To him that OVERCOMETH will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also OVERCAME, and am set down with my Father in his throne" (Rev. 3:21).
Overcoming means GROWING in grace and knowledge (II Peter 3:18). It means growing in ability, in stature and character — becoming more and more LIKE CHRIST! "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13).
When we have clearly demonstrated Our OBEDIENCE to God — our FAITHFULNESS to His authority, His RULE, His GOVERNMENT in our lives — HE WILL THEN APPORTION POSITIONS OF GOVERNMENT TO US!
"Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou AUTHORITY over ten cities" (Luke 19:16-17).
Yes, Jesus PROMISES A BUSY ETERNITY! He promises RULERSHIP over His world! He guarantees an active, busy, constructive, scintillating, interesting, absorbing, satisfying, happy eternity of RESPONSIBILITY — of worm!
Think of it! INSTEAD of a lazy, BORING, INTERMINABLE, EMPTY ETERNITY ON A CLOUD — NOTHING TO DO JESUS SAID, "And he that overcometh and keepeth MY WORKS unto the end, to him will I give POWER OVER THE NATIONS [ON THIS EARTH]: and he shall RULE them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father" (Rev. 2:26-27).
The saints are to REIGN ON THIS EARTH (Rev. 5:10). They are to be kings and priests of God for ONE THOUSAND YEARS — RIGHT HERE ON THIS EARTH (Rev. 20:4).
What a tremendous opportunity! What a GLORIOUS hope! Notice it WE ARE NOT GOING TO GOD IN HEAVEN — GOD IS COMING HERE!
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, COMING DOWN FROM GOD OUT of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is WITH MEN, and HE WILL DWELL WITH THEM and they shall be his people, and God himself shall Be WITH them, and be their God" (Rev. 21:1-3).
How PLAIN it is! No amount of "rationalization" or of arguing, or of merely "supposing" can change these plain, straightforward truths of YOUR OWN BIBLE!
You need to KNOW the wonderful reward God promises those truly living lives of overcoming — and you need to be STRIVING to enter into His glorious Kingdom that is going to be set up HERE ON THIS EARTH!