A Study of Revelation

Those who believe that death is the end of it all have a shocking revelation ahead, for everyone faces a final destination, which will last for all eternity. I have conducted numerous funerals throughout my ministry – the youngest person was a seven-day old baby and the oldest person was a ninety-seven year old saint of God. Some of these funerals were for people that I am confident went to be with the Lord, others I am not quite sure what their earthly relationship was with God, and some I am pretty certain did not go to be with the Lord. No matter their age and no matter their relationship with God, all of them have a final destiny. In fact, the only factor which really matters at death is which destiny we have prepared for. In this final article of the series “To Infinity and Beyond,” we will briefly take a look at the two choices that are available. (One is actually a “default” setting that everyone will go to unless active measures are taken during this lifetime to change that setting.)

At the end of the thousand-year period of total peace upon the earth discussed in the last article “Peace on Earth,” the Bible tells us that Satan will once again be loosed for a short time.

He will head out and induce many to follow him in one last upraising against Almighty God. God will send a fire from heaven and devour this army, and Satan will be cast for the remainder of eternity into the lake of fire to join the anti-christ and false prophet who were cast there following the battle of Armegeddon described in the earlier article “Divine Wrath & The Final Conquest.” At this time God will set up the Great White Throne Judgment and all those who have died without accepting God’s provision of salvation through Jesus Christ will be resurrected to stand judgment based upon their works. The Bible plainly declares that none can justify themselves through their own works, and therefore all who stand before this judgment seat will receive their just sentence of eternal death (an eternal existence of torment and pain without God), and they will be cast into the lake of fire to join Satan, the anti﷓christ, and the false prophet for ever and ever. Here they will realize the truth of the saying, “Born once – Die twice. Born twice – Die once.”

Meanwhile all who have been “born twice” by recognizing Jesus Christ as the eternal son of God, confessing their sins to Him to receive forgiveness, and accepting Him as the Lord of their lives will be ushered into the eternal destiny of the righteous – the new heavens and the new earth.

Many have wondered how all the righteous dead of all the ages could ever fit at one time upon the earth. There is no way we can totally understand the description found in Revelation 21 & 22, but based just upon what we can determine from these chapters, fitting everyone upon the earth will not be a problem at all. Chapter 21, verse 1, states that there will no longer be a sea and, when you consider that the oceans and seas of our present earth cover about 71% of the surface, that opens up a tremendous amount of land – plus, I am quite sure that the present deserts and uninhabitable land will no longer be waste lands. Why just the dimensions of the city of New Jerusalem in chapter 22 that will then reside upon the new earth would allow for plenty of room! It is described as a city of approximately 1400 miles in width, length, and height – that is approximately the distance from western Kansas to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Some portray this as a square, but personally I believe that it is probably a pyramid shape with the throne of God right in the center at the very peak. The beauty of what is described is beyond comprehension, but the most important factor of all is that God will be there. The light of His glory will light all of the world and the warmth of His love will fill it. There will no longer be sickness, tragedy, war, death, or any form of sorrow at all. This was God’s original plan for mankind that was destroyed because of mankind’s rebellion and will be realized for all eternity by those who accept God’s provision found only in Jesus Christ.

Which destination do you choose?

You can accept the default destination of sharing Hell for all eternity with Satan and every form of wickedness and torment that goes beyond even the wildest imaginations of mankind today (in fact the combining of all the horror movies ever written wouldn’t touch the reality of Hell), or you can choose to fall on your knees and surrender your life and eternity to the Lord Jesus Christ who loves you so much that He was willing to leave His glory in heaven, come to earth to be born to a virgin, and be crucified upon Calvary to pay the price necessary for the forgiveness of your sins. Jesus arose from the grave and resides forevermore in heaven where He desires to receive you unto Himself to share His inheritance with you for all eternity. Which do YOU choose?