| The Work of Christ Past, Present and Future by Arno C. Gaebelein |
Part 3: His Future Work
The Lord Jesus Christ, who finished the work on earth the Father gave Him to
do, who is now bodily present in the highest heaven, occupying the Father's
throne and exercising His priesthood in behalf of His people, is also King. To
Him belongeth a Kingdom and a kingly Glory. He has therefore a kingly work
to do. While His past work was foretold by the Spirit of God and His priestly
work foreshadowed in the Old Testament, His work as King and His glorious
Kingdom to come are likewise the subjects of the Word of God.
Predicted by the Prophets
His kingly work was announced by Gabriel to the virgin. "The Lord God shall
give unto Him the throne of His father David: And He shall reign over the
house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end." (Luke
1:32,33). According to this message He must occupy the throne of His father
David, He must reign and possess a Kingdom. This is but heaven's
confirmation of what God's prophets for many centuries had uttered in
announcing the coming of the Messiah. The entire prophetic Word has its
climax in the visions of the King and the Kingdom, He will receive on this
earth. These visions of glory to come, for Him who was despised and rejected
of men, are the glittering stars shining throughout the dark night of the past and
present age. They dazzle the eyes of faith. They inspire hope and courage. We
quote a few Scriptures which relate to the Christ as King.
"Yet I have set my King upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree:
the LORD has said unto Me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten Thee.
Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the
uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession" (Ps. 2:6-8).
"...He shall judge the world in righteousness." (Ps. 9:8).
"All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the
kindreds of the nations shall worship before Thee. For the kingdom is the
LORD's: and He is the governor among the nations" (Ps. 22:27-28).
"Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and
the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The LORD of
hosts, He is the King of Glory" (Ps. 24:9-10).
"O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
For the LORD most high is terrible; He is a great King over all the earth" (Ps.
47:1-2).
"He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and the poor with judgment."
"Yea, all kings shall fall down before Him: all nations shall serve Him." "His
Name shall endure forever ... all nations shall call Him blessed" (Ps.
72:2,11,17).
"Also I will make Him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth" (Ps.
89:27).
"Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness..." (Is. 32:1).
"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" (Jer. 23:5).
"I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of Man ... and there
was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations,
and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away, and His kingdom which shall not be destroyed"
(Dan. 7:13-14).
"Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of
his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: Even he shall build the
temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon
his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace
shall be between them both" (Zech. 6:12,13).
"And the LORD shall be king over all the earth" (Zech. 14:9).
All these prophecies and many more speak of the Lord Jesus as King and bear
witness of His Kingdom. The glories of His Kingdom are likewise described by
the holy men of God, the mouthpieces of the Spirit of God.
Not Yet Fulfilled
Were these predictions fulfilled since the Lord Jesus Christ suffered on the
Cross? Have they been fulfilled since He entered the Father's presence in
Glory? Is He now exercising His kingly rule and authority? Is the promised
Kingdom of righteousness, of peace, of power and glory now on this earth?
These questions arise at once in reading these divine predictions. They must be
answered in the negative. The Lord Jesus Christ has not even begun His work
as King. The Kingdom promised unto Him, He has not yet received. There is
now no such Kingdom of glory and power on earth.
The New Testament Evidence
The New Testament furnishes the most complete evidence that our Lord is not
King over all the earth, and that His kingly rule is still in the future. The notion
that the church is the Kingdom in which the Lord Jesus Christ rules as King,
and that the Old Testament predictions of the Kingdom glories are realized
spiritually in the church, is a pure invention. Nowhere is the church called the
Kingdom, nor do we find the Lord Jesus ever called "the King of the Church."
He is the Head of the church, which is His body. The New Testament still
looks forward to the Kingdom to come. The Lord has left the earth to receive
a Kingdom and to return (Luke 19:11-28). He occupies the Father's throne,
which is not His permanent place, for He is to have His own throne. "When
the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then
shall He sit upon the throne of His glory" (Matt. 25:31). He waits in heaven for
the time when all enemies will be made the footstool of His feet (Heb. 10:13).
"But now we see not yet all things put under Him" (Heb. 2:8). No nation
serves Him and the Kingdoms of this world are not His Kingdoms during this
age. They will become His and heaven will resound with many voices saying:
"The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His
Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 11:15). But that is future.
When the seventh angel sounds His trumpet, when heaven opens and He
appears as King of kings, crowned with many crowns (Rev. 19:11-16), then
He will receive the nations for His inheritance.
1. How Christ Begins His Future Work
The beginning of Christ's future work is revealed in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18.
This Scripture contains a great and unique revelation, unknown in the Old
Testament. The Lord had made the promise to His disciples, "I will come
again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also"
(John 14:3). He did not tell them in what manner He would keep this most
precious promise. In the first Epistle to the Thessalonians the Lord gives the
details of His coming for His own, and how He will fulfill the promise given to
His disciples. He promises that He will descend from heaven with a shout.
When He accomplished His work on the cross, He gave a shout, for He cried
with a loud voice "Tetelestai" -- "It is finished!" As the risen One, He met His
beloved ones and said "All Hail!" The Greek gives only one word, "Chairete"
-- "Oh! the Joy!" This is His resurrection shout, the shout of joy and victory.
And when He ascended He went up with a shout (Ps. 47:5). First
Thessalonians 4:16 tells us He is going to descend with a shout. He passed
through the heavens in His glorious ascension and entered into the presence of
God, His Father. Some day He will arise from the place He occupies on the
Throne of God. He will leave the place on the right hand of the Majesty on
high and pass out of the third heaven. Once more He passeth through the
Heavens, not upward but downward. He comes to call His Saints to meet
Him. The meeting-place is not the Mount of Olives, Jerusalem or any earthly
place; the meeting-place will be in the air. We repeat, this is a revelation, which
is not found in the Old Testament prophetic Word, nor did the Lord announce
it fully in His earthly ministry. According to the passage containing this
revelation, the shout of the Lord as He descends into the air will be followed
by the resurrection of the dead in Christ. All the Saints of God will be raised
physically from the graves. This includes the Old Testament and New
Testament believers. When this shout is heard and the righteous dead are
raised, all belonging to Christ and living in that day, will be caught up together
with them in clouds to meet the Lord in the air. For the sake of some, we add,
that all who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour, who received
eternal life and the Spirit of God, belong to Him and their blessed Hope and
destiny is to be "caught up ... in clouds, to meet the Lord in the air." Some
teach that in order to share this rapture certain attainments are needed. Such,
however, is not the case. No service, suffering, separation or any works we
do, could ever fit us for such a marvelous event. Grace has accomplished it for
us. In 1 Cor. 15:51-52 we read: " Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not
all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment ..." The "all" means all that
are Christ's at His Coming, independent of their knowledge about
dispensational truths, independent of their waiting for Him, or any other thing.
That they belong to Him and are redeemed by His precious blood is a
sufficient title to be caught up and to meet Him in the air.
Of this double company, saints who died and who will be raised from the
dead, and saints who live and will be changed in a moment and caught up to
meet Him, we find a hint in His words in John 11:25-26. "I am the
resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet
shall he live (Resurrection). And whosoever liveth (when He comes) and
believeth in Me shall never die (The changing of living believers). Believest
thou this?" May we answer Him, Yea, Lord, I believe. We may not
understand all the details of this wonderful event, an event which will come
suddenly, but we can believe His promise and wait daily for its glorious
fulfillment. This is the blessed Hope of the Church. For this we are told to
wait. Ere He begins His judgment work, before the last scenes of tribulation
and wrath can be enacted upon this earth and He returns as the King of Glory
to claim His blood-bought inheritance, He will come into the air to meet His
redeemed host and co-heirs. This is the first event in connection with His
future work.
The Judgment Seat of Christ
All judgment is to be executed by the Lord Jesus Christ. "For the Father
judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son" (John 5:22).
Up to the present time no judgment work has been done by Him. Nor have
His people received their crowns and rewards for service and faithfulness. The
meeting of the Saints in the presence of the Lord will be immediately followed
by the judgment seat of Christ. "For we shall all stand before the judgment
seat of Christ" (Rom. 14:10). "For we must all appear before the judgment
seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body,
according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad" (2 Cor. 5:10). No
unsaved person appears before this judgment for they were not raised from the
dead, nor changed in the twinkling of an eye. This judgment concerns only
believers. This judgment, however, does not decide their eternal salvation.
That was settled when they believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. The words of
our Lord in John 5:24 make this clear. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that
heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and
shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." "There
is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus" (Rom.
8:1). The works and the service of His people will be dealt with by the Lord in
this first judgment act in His future work. Of this we read in I Cor. 4:5
"Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will
bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the hidden
counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God."
Everything will be made manifest before that judgment seat. The unconfessed
sins in the believer's life will be brought to light and all hidden things will be
uncovered. Then the works of the believer will be made manifest. "Every
man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall
be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If
any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a
reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself
shall be saved, yet so as by fire" (I Cor. 3:13-15). It will be the time when
God's people will receive their rewards and crowns. Then the Apostles, the
faithful martyrs, the self-sacrificing missionaries and servants of God will
receive praise and reward for their labors. The judgment seat is the award seat
of Christ. In view of this the Apostle wrote to the faithful Thessalonians: "For
what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the
presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For ye are our glory and
joy" (I Thess. 2:19-20). And the Apostle John exhorts: "And now, little
children, abide in Him; that when He shall appear, we [the apostles and
teachers] may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His
Coming" (1 John 2:28). All believers in Christ are saved and have eternal life;
but not all receive a reward. Their works will be consumed by the fire of that
judgment, for they were nothing but wood, hay and stubble. They will go
rewardless, while the faithful saints, who toiled and served, who spent and
were spent, following closely in His steps, will receive rewards. What these
will be, no Saint does know at this time.
When all is accomplished in connection with this judgment seat of Christ, He
will lead His Saints into the Father's house, that they may behold His glory
(John 17:24). He will present the church to Himself, "a glorious church, not
having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and
without blemish" (Eph. 5:27). He presents His church "faultless before the
presence of His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 24).
2. His Future Work in Connection with the Earth
When the Saints of God have left the earth and met the Lord in the air, when
the events took place we have briefly outlined, then the Lord Jesus Christ will
begin from heaven a work which will be severely felt on the earth. He begins
to deal with the world in a series of judgments. From the Book of Revelation
we learn that the "Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed
to open the book, and loose the seven seals thereof." (Rev. 5:5). The book He
receives contains the judgments decreed for this earth with its apostate masses.
The Lamb is seen opening the seals of the book, and as He breaks the seals
the events described under each seal happen. It is His work in judgment. In the
eighth chapter of Revelation an Angel is seen before an altar with a golden
censer. "And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and
cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings
and an earthquake. And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets
prepared themselves to sound" (Rev. 8:5,6). This Angel is the Lord Jesus
Christ. He casts down the fire of divine displeasure and judgment upon the
earth. The seven trumpeting angels with their judgments for the earth are sent
forth by Him. Then come seven other angels, who pour out the bowls filled
with the wrath of God. We cannot examine all those judgments separately.
There is no human being who can realize what they all mean and what it will
be when the Lord deals with this earth in righteousness.
Israel and the Nations
Israel and the nations will pass through those judgments executed from above.
Christendom apostate, God defying and Christ rejecting Christendom, will, like
Pharaoh, be hardened by them. They do not repent, but rather believe the
strong delusion and accept the man of sin with his lying wonders. The Jewish
people will in part be restored to their land. The great tribulation centers in
their land and will be felt there in its severest form. The apostate portion of the
Jews will worship the false Christ and will therefore be visited by these
righteous judgments. But there is also a remnant of God-fearing Jews, who
believe the Word of God, who expect the Kingdom and the King. While these
believing Jews suffer, they also serve. They are the last messengers of the
King. They herald once more the Gospel of the Kingdom and will bear witness
of it to all the nations of the earth, before the end comes (Matt. 24:14).
Nations Learning Righteousness
"When Thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn
righteousness" (Isaiah 26:9). A work of salvation will go on during those seven
years of judgment, tribulation and wrath. A great multitude, which no man can
number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, come out of the
great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb (Rev. 7:9-17). They heard and believed the final testimony
as preached by the Jewish remnant. Heathen nations will accept the Gospel of
the Kingdom, while apostate Christendom is excluded, for they received not
the love of the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thess. 2).
His Glorious Appearing
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and
the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the
powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the
Son of Man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and
they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and
great glory" (Matthew 24:29-30). "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every
eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the
earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen" (Rev. 1:7). "And I saw
heaven opened, and behold a white horse: and he that sat upon him was called
Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war. His eyes
were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a
name written, that no man knew, but He Himself. And He was clothed with a
vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God. And the
armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine
linen, white and clean. And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it
He should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He
treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He
hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND
LORD OF LORDS."(Rev. 19:11-16).
The King in His Glory
Every eye shall see Him, when He appears in glorious majesty as the King of
Kings. His glory will cover the heavens (Hab. 3:3). Every tongue which denied
Him will be forever hushed. His second, personal, visible and glorious coming
will be the crowning and unanswerable proof of His Deity. His incarnation and
all the work He accomplished on earth and in glory, can then no longer be
denied. His glorious appearing will silence all His enemies. His rejection ends
and His glory as God's appointed King and ruler over this earth, He purchased
with His blood, begins. Every knee must then bow before Him and every
tongue confess that He is Lord. And when He appears in all His glory, He does
not come alone. His Saints come with Him. When He appears, then shall we
also appear with Him in glory (Col. 3:4). In that day of triumph and glory, He
will be glorified in His Saints and admired in all them that believed (2 Thess.
1:10). Wonderful spectacle it will be, when He brings His many sons with Him
unto glory! All will be conformed into the same image.
His Judgment-Work
His feet will stand once more upon the Mount of Olives (Zech. 14:4). Before
Him is Jerusalem and all nations are gathered against it to battle (Zech. 14:2).
The Beast will be their leader, while the Man of Sin, the Anti-christ, will do his
dreadful work in the city itself. The remnant of Israel in great distress will then
pray and look for deliverance. The coming of the King will bring that
deliverance. They will shout then for joy and say in that day, "Lo, this is our
God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the LORD; we have
waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation" (Isaiah 25:9).
They will welcome the once rejected One. "Blessed is He that cometh in the
name of the Lord" (Matt. 23:39). And He will fight against those nations. The
great battle of Armageddon will then take place. "The beast, and the kings of
the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him that sat
on the horse, and against His army" (Rev. 19:19). But their opposition will
suddenly be broken to pieces. "And the beast was taken, and with him the
false prophet [the Anti-christ] that wrought miracles before him, with which he
deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that
worshipped the image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning
with brimstone" (Rev. 19:20).
On His Throne
"When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with
Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory" (Matt. 25:31). The
judgment which will then be executed by Him is not a universal judgment (the
dead are not mentioned), but it will be a judgment of the living nations in the
day when He appears the second time. Some nations are put on His right side
and He calls them "the blessed of my Father;" they inherit the Kingdom which
will then be established on the earth. That these righteous nations are not
church saints is obvious, for the church, as we have seen, was caught up in the
beginning of His future work to meet Him in the air and is associated with Him
when He comes in power and glory. Then there are other nations which are
put on His left hand and they shall go away from that judgment throne into
everlasting punishment (Matt. 25:46). But what is the standard of this
judgment? What they did to the Lord's brethren or what they did not unto
them. The Lord's brethren according to the flesh are the Jews. During the
tribulation period believing Jews will preach the Gospel of the Kingdom to all
nations (Matt. 24:14). The nations who believed this last offer of mercy
treated the messengers in kindness; those who did not believe the message did
not treat them in that way. And when this great judgment is passed, His
Kingdom of righteousness and peace will be established on this earth.
Righteousness will begin to reign as grace reigns now through righteousness.
3. The Glories of His Kingdom
"And in the days of those kings 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" (Dan. 2:44). "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like
the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancients of
days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him
dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations and languages,
should serve Him; His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not
pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed" (Dan.
7:13-14). A closer study of these two fundamental passages from Daniel's
great prophecies will establish the fact that this promised Kingdom comes with
the second coming of Christ. It will be preceded by a judgment blow at the
earthly kingdoms; Nebuchadnezzar beheld this in his prophetic dream.
This Kingdom is an earthly Kingdom and all the nations will be gathered into
that Kingdom. Jerusalem and a converted Israel will be the center of it. The
Lord Jesus Christ and His Saints will reign with Him over the earth and over
this Kingdom. And what will be His work then? But a few of the many things
can be mentioned. "He shall speak peace unto the heathen[nations]" (Zech.
9:10). "With righteousness shall He judge the poor, and reprove with equity for
the meek of the earth." (Isaiah 11:4). "He shall bring forth judgment to the
Gentiles" (Is. 42:1). "And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke
many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears
into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall
they learn war any more" (Isaiah 2:4). He shall also "set up an ensign for the
nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the
dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth" (Isaiah 11:12). "And
many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people"
(Zech. 2:11). "And the LORD shall be King over all the earth" (Zech. 14:9).
"Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness" (Isaiah 32:1). "A King shall reign
and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth" (Jer. 23:5).
Many more passages predicting and describing the Kingdom and its glories
might be added. All these blessed words mean exactly what they say.
Righteousness and peace will characterize that world-wide Kingdom of the
Lord Jesus Christ. His glory will cover the earth as the waters cover the deep.
Nations will worship Him. "He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and
from the river unto the ends of the earth" "Yea, all kings shall fall down before
Him: all nations shall serve Him." (Ps. 72:8,11). Every wrong will be righted
on earth and present-day evils and oppression, crime and vice, poverty and
sickness will be abolished. Only He has the power to do this. Oh! the glories of
the Kingdom! May we pray, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus." Thy Kingdom
come.
Creation Delivered
"For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the
sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by
reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope. Because the creature
itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth
and travaileth in pain together until now (Rom. 8:19-22) Sin has brought a
curse upon creation. The thorns and thistles are the result of the fall of man as
well as the blight and misery which rests upon a creation, which was
pronounced good by the Creator. But this condition into which creation has
been plunged will not continue forever. A better day is coming. Groaning
creation is to be delivered. The curse will be removed. This cannot be the
work of man. Scientists attempt to set things in order in this ruined creation;
but they fail. The things which destroy, the heat and the drought, the storms
and earthquakes, cannot be arrested by the arm of man.
The Son of God wore the crown of thorns. The curse was put upon Him. And
He who created all things and paid for redemption by His precious blood, will,
with omnipotent power, deliver groaning creation. It will take place when the
sons of God are manifested. The sons of God (the redeemed) will be
manifested with Him, as we have seen, in the day of His visible appearing.
Then the great vision of Isaiah will find its fulfillment. "The wolf also shall
dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf
and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together:
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the
hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice den"
(Isaiah 11:6-8).
All Under His Feet
The dispensation of the fulness of times has come (Eph. 1:10). All things are
put under Him. All His enemies are made His footstool. He is Lord of all. The
glorious reign of Christ, in kingly glory, in fulfillment of the Prophet's visions,
will be followed by another judgment.
The Great White Throne
The second resurrection, that of the wicked dead, takes place at the end of the
Kingdom reign of Christ. This great judgment and the final destiny of the
wicked is revealed in Rev. 20:11-15. The Lord Jesus Christ will be the judge in
that awful scene, for it is written that all judgment is committed unto the Son
(John 5:22).
Then Cometh the End
"Then cometh the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God,
even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and
power. For He must reign, till He hath put all enemies under His feet. The last
enemy that shall be destroyed is death ... And when all things shall be subdued
unto Him, then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him that put all
things under Him, that God may be all in all" (1 Cor. 15:24-28).
Then He will create a new heaven and a new earth, the eternal dwelling place
of redeemed and glorified mankind. "And I saw a new heaven and a new
earth" (Rev. 21:1). "And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all
things new. And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful"
(Rev. 21:5). "And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of
the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him: And they shall see
His face; and His Name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night
there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God
giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 22:3-5).
This will be the ultimate result of the blessed Work of Christ. His past work is
finished. Soon His present Work may end and then His future, kingly work
begins, when He comes the second time.
"Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus."
The Work of Christ: Past, Present and Future by A. C. Gaebelein. New
York: Publication Office "Our Hope", ©1913.
Other Works by A. C. Gaebelein:
THE RETURN OF THE LORD by Arno C. Gaebelein (written in 1925)
BEHOLD THE MAN by Arno C. Gaebelein
THE APOSTASY SWEEPING OVER THE CHURCHES (preached in 1919)
The Lord Jesus Christ, who finished the work on earth the Father gave Him to
do, who is now bodily present in the highest heaven, occupying the Father's
throne and exercising His priesthood in behalf of His people, is also King. To
Him belongeth a Kingdom and a kingly Glory. He has therefore a kingly work
to do. While His past work was foretold by the Spirit of God and His priestly
work foreshadowed in the Old Testament, His work as King and His glorious
Kingdom to come are likewise the subjects of the Word of God.
Predicted by the Prophets
His kingly work was announced by Gabriel to the virgin. "The Lord God shall
give unto Him the throne of His father David: And He shall reign over the
house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end." (Luke
1:32,33). According to this message He must occupy the throne of His father
David, He must reign and possess a Kingdom. This is but heaven's
confirmation of what God's prophets for many centuries had uttered in
announcing the coming of the Messiah. The entire prophetic Word has its
climax in the visions of the King and the Kingdom, He will receive on this
earth. These visions of glory to come, for Him who was despised and rejected
of men, are the glittering stars shining throughout the dark night of the past and
present age. They dazzle the eyes of faith. They inspire hope and courage. We
quote a few Scriptures which relate to the Christ as King.
"Yet I have set my King upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree:
the LORD has said unto Me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten Thee.
Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the
uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession" (Ps. 2:6-8).
"...He shall judge the world in righteousness." (Ps. 9:8).
"All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the
kindreds of the nations shall worship before Thee. For the kingdom is the
LORD's: and He is the governor among the nations" (Ps. 22:27-28).
"Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and
the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of Glory? The LORD of
hosts, He is the King of Glory" (Ps. 24:9-10).
"O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
For the LORD most high is terrible; He is a great King over all the earth" (Ps.
47:1-2).
"He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and the poor with judgment."
"Yea, all kings shall fall down before Him: all nations shall serve Him." "His
Name shall endure forever ... all nations shall call Him blessed" (Ps.
72:2,11,17).
"Also I will make Him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth" (Ps.
89:27).
"Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness..." (Is. 32:1).
"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" (Jer. 23:5).
"I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of Man ... and there
was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations,
and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away, and His kingdom which shall not be destroyed"
(Dan. 7:13-14).
"Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of
his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: Even he shall build the
temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon
his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace
shall be between them both" (Zech. 6:12,13).
"And the LORD shall be king over all the earth" (Zech. 14:9).
All these prophecies and many more speak of the Lord Jesus as King and bear
witness of His Kingdom. The glories of His Kingdom are likewise described by
the holy men of God, the mouthpieces of the Spirit of God.
Not Yet Fulfilled
Were these predictions fulfilled since the Lord Jesus Christ suffered on the
Cross? Have they been fulfilled since He entered the Father's presence in
Glory? Is He now exercising His kingly rule and authority? Is the promised
Kingdom of righteousness, of peace, of power and glory now on this earth?
These questions arise at once in reading these divine predictions. They must be
answered in the negative. The Lord Jesus Christ has not even begun His work
as King. The Kingdom promised unto Him, He has not yet received. There is
now no such Kingdom of glory and power on earth.
The New Testament Evidence
The New Testament furnishes the most complete evidence that our Lord is not
King over all the earth, and that His kingly rule is still in the future. The notion
that the church is the Kingdom in which the Lord Jesus Christ rules as King,
and that the Old Testament predictions of the Kingdom glories are realized
spiritually in the church, is a pure invention. Nowhere is the church called the
Kingdom, nor do we find the Lord Jesus ever called "the King of the Church."
He is the Head of the church, which is His body. The New Testament still
looks forward to the Kingdom to come. The Lord has left the earth to receive
a Kingdom and to return (Luke 19:11-28). He occupies the Father's throne,
which is not His permanent place, for He is to have His own throne. "When
the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then
shall He sit upon the throne of His glory" (Matt. 25:31). He waits in heaven for
the time when all enemies will be made the footstool of His feet (Heb. 10:13).
"But now we see not yet all things put under Him" (Heb. 2:8). No nation
serves Him and the Kingdoms of this world are not His Kingdoms during this
age. They will become His and heaven will resound with many voices saying:
"The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His
Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 11:15). But that is future.
When the seventh angel sounds His trumpet, when heaven opens and He
appears as King of kings, crowned with many crowns (Rev. 19:11-16), then
He will receive the nations for His inheritance.
1. How Christ Begins His Future Work
The beginning of Christ's future work is revealed in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18.
This Scripture contains a great and unique revelation, unknown in the Old
Testament. The Lord had made the promise to His disciples, "I will come
again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also"
(John 14:3). He did not tell them in what manner He would keep this most
precious promise. In the first Epistle to the Thessalonians the Lord gives the
details of His coming for His own, and how He will fulfill the promise given to
His disciples. He promises that He will descend from heaven with a shout.
When He accomplished His work on the cross, He gave a shout, for He cried
with a loud voice "Tetelestai" -- "It is finished!" As the risen One, He met His
beloved ones and said "All Hail!" The Greek gives only one word, "Chairete"
-- "Oh! the Joy!" This is His resurrection shout, the shout of joy and victory.
And when He ascended He went up with a shout (Ps. 47:5). First
Thessalonians 4:16 tells us He is going to descend with a shout. He passed
through the heavens in His glorious ascension and entered into the presence of
God, His Father. Some day He will arise from the place He occupies on the
Throne of God. He will leave the place on the right hand of the Majesty on
high and pass out of the third heaven. Once more He passeth through the
Heavens, not upward but downward. He comes to call His Saints to meet
Him. The meeting-place is not the Mount of Olives, Jerusalem or any earthly
place; the meeting-place will be in the air. We repeat, this is a revelation, which
is not found in the Old Testament prophetic Word, nor did the Lord announce
it fully in His earthly ministry. According to the passage containing this
revelation, the shout of the Lord as He descends into the air will be followed
by the resurrection of the dead in Christ. All the Saints of God will be raised
physically from the graves. This includes the Old Testament and New
Testament believers. When this shout is heard and the righteous dead are
raised, all belonging to Christ and living in that day, will be caught up together
with them in clouds to meet the Lord in the air. For the sake of some, we add,
that all who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour, who received
eternal life and the Spirit of God, belong to Him and their blessed Hope and
destiny is to be "caught up ... in clouds, to meet the Lord in the air." Some
teach that in order to share this rapture certain attainments are needed. Such,
however, is not the case. No service, suffering, separation or any works we
do, could ever fit us for such a marvelous event. Grace has accomplished it for
us. In 1 Cor. 15:51-52 we read: " Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not
all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment ..." The "all" means all that
are Christ's at His Coming, independent of their knowledge about
dispensational truths, independent of their waiting for Him, or any other thing.
That they belong to Him and are redeemed by His precious blood is a
sufficient title to be caught up and to meet Him in the air.
Of this double company, saints who died and who will be raised from the
dead, and saints who live and will be changed in a moment and caught up to
meet Him, we find a hint in His words in John 11:25-26. "I am the
resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet
shall he live (Resurrection). And whosoever liveth (when He comes) and
believeth in Me shall never die (The changing of living believers). Believest
thou this?" May we answer Him, Yea, Lord, I believe. We may not
understand all the details of this wonderful event, an event which will come
suddenly, but we can believe His promise and wait daily for its glorious
fulfillment. This is the blessed Hope of the Church. For this we are told to
wait. Ere He begins His judgment work, before the last scenes of tribulation
and wrath can be enacted upon this earth and He returns as the King of Glory
to claim His blood-bought inheritance, He will come into the air to meet His
redeemed host and co-heirs. This is the first event in connection with His
future work.
The Judgment Seat of Christ
All judgment is to be executed by the Lord Jesus Christ. "For the Father
judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son" (John 5:22).
Up to the present time no judgment work has been done by Him. Nor have
His people received their crowns and rewards for service and faithfulness. The
meeting of the Saints in the presence of the Lord will be immediately followed
by the judgment seat of Christ. "For we shall all stand before the judgment
seat of Christ" (Rom. 14:10). "For we must all appear before the judgment
seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body,
according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad" (2 Cor. 5:10). No
unsaved person appears before this judgment for they were not raised from the
dead, nor changed in the twinkling of an eye. This judgment concerns only
believers. This judgment, however, does not decide their eternal salvation.
That was settled when they believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. The words of
our Lord in John 5:24 make this clear. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that
heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and
shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." "There
is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus" (Rom.
8:1). The works and the service of His people will be dealt with by the Lord in
this first judgment act in His future work. Of this we read in I Cor. 4:5
"Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will
bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the hidden
counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God."
Everything will be made manifest before that judgment seat. The unconfessed
sins in the believer's life will be brought to light and all hidden things will be
uncovered. Then the works of the believer will be made manifest. "Every
man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall
be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If
any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a
reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself
shall be saved, yet so as by fire" (I Cor. 3:13-15). It will be the time when
God's people will receive their rewards and crowns. Then the Apostles, the
faithful martyrs, the self-sacrificing missionaries and servants of God will
receive praise and reward for their labors. The judgment seat is the award seat
of Christ. In view of this the Apostle wrote to the faithful Thessalonians: "For
what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the
presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For ye are our glory and
joy" (I Thess. 2:19-20). And the Apostle John exhorts: "And now, little
children, abide in Him; that when He shall appear, we [the apostles and
teachers] may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His
Coming" (1 John 2:28). All believers in Christ are saved and have eternal life;
but not all receive a reward. Their works will be consumed by the fire of that
judgment, for they were nothing but wood, hay and stubble. They will go
rewardless, while the faithful saints, who toiled and served, who spent and
were spent, following closely in His steps, will receive rewards. What these
will be, no Saint does know at this time.
When all is accomplished in connection with this judgment seat of Christ, He
will lead His Saints into the Father's house, that they may behold His glory
(John 17:24). He will present the church to Himself, "a glorious church, not
having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and
without blemish" (Eph. 5:27). He presents His church "faultless before the
presence of His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 24).
2. His Future Work in Connection with the Earth
When the Saints of God have left the earth and met the Lord in the air, when
the events took place we have briefly outlined, then the Lord Jesus Christ will
begin from heaven a work which will be severely felt on the earth. He begins
to deal with the world in a series of judgments. From the Book of Revelation
we learn that the "Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed
to open the book, and loose the seven seals thereof." (Rev. 5:5). The book He
receives contains the judgments decreed for this earth with its apostate masses.
The Lamb is seen opening the seals of the book, and as He breaks the seals
the events described under each seal happen. It is His work in judgment. In the
eighth chapter of Revelation an Angel is seen before an altar with a golden
censer. "And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and
cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings
and an earthquake. And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets
prepared themselves to sound" (Rev. 8:5,6). This Angel is the Lord Jesus
Christ. He casts down the fire of divine displeasure and judgment upon the
earth. The seven trumpeting angels with their judgments for the earth are sent
forth by Him. Then come seven other angels, who pour out the bowls filled
with the wrath of God. We cannot examine all those judgments separately.
There is no human being who can realize what they all mean and what it will
be when the Lord deals with this earth in righteousness.
Israel and the Nations
Israel and the nations will pass through those judgments executed from above.
Christendom apostate, God defying and Christ rejecting Christendom, will, like
Pharaoh, be hardened by them. They do not repent, but rather believe the
strong delusion and accept the man of sin with his lying wonders. The Jewish
people will in part be restored to their land. The great tribulation centers in
their land and will be felt there in its severest form. The apostate portion of the
Jews will worship the false Christ and will therefore be visited by these
righteous judgments. But there is also a remnant of God-fearing Jews, who
believe the Word of God, who expect the Kingdom and the King. While these
believing Jews suffer, they also serve. They are the last messengers of the
King. They herald once more the Gospel of the Kingdom and will bear witness
of it to all the nations of the earth, before the end comes (Matt. 24:14).
Nations Learning Righteousness
"When Thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn
righteousness" (Isaiah 26:9). A work of salvation will go on during those seven
years of judgment, tribulation and wrath. A great multitude, which no man can
number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, come out of the
great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb (Rev. 7:9-17). They heard and believed the final testimony
as preached by the Jewish remnant. Heathen nations will accept the Gospel of
the Kingdom, while apostate Christendom is excluded, for they received not
the love of the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thess. 2).
His Glorious Appearing
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and
the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the
powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the
Son of Man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and
they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and
great glory" (Matthew 24:29-30). "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every
eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the
earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen" (Rev. 1:7). "And I saw
heaven opened, and behold a white horse: and he that sat upon him was called
Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war. His eyes
were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a
name written, that no man knew, but He Himself. And He was clothed with a
vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God. And the
armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine
linen, white and clean. And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it
He should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He
treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He
hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND
LORD OF LORDS."(Rev. 19:11-16).
The King in His Glory
Every eye shall see Him, when He appears in glorious majesty as the King of
Kings. His glory will cover the heavens (Hab. 3:3). Every tongue which denied
Him will be forever hushed. His second, personal, visible and glorious coming
will be the crowning and unanswerable proof of His Deity. His incarnation and
all the work He accomplished on earth and in glory, can then no longer be
denied. His glorious appearing will silence all His enemies. His rejection ends
and His glory as God's appointed King and ruler over this earth, He purchased
with His blood, begins. Every knee must then bow before Him and every
tongue confess that He is Lord. And when He appears in all His glory, He does
not come alone. His Saints come with Him. When He appears, then shall we
also appear with Him in glory (Col. 3:4). In that day of triumph and glory, He
will be glorified in His Saints and admired in all them that believed (2 Thess.
1:10). Wonderful spectacle it will be, when He brings His many sons with Him
unto glory! All will be conformed into the same image.
His Judgment-Work
His feet will stand once more upon the Mount of Olives (Zech. 14:4). Before
Him is Jerusalem and all nations are gathered against it to battle (Zech. 14:2).
The Beast will be their leader, while the Man of Sin, the Anti-christ, will do his
dreadful work in the city itself. The remnant of Israel in great distress will then
pray and look for deliverance. The coming of the King will bring that
deliverance. They will shout then for joy and say in that day, "Lo, this is our
God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the LORD; we have
waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation" (Isaiah 25:9).
They will welcome the once rejected One. "Blessed is He that cometh in the
name of the Lord" (Matt. 23:39). And He will fight against those nations. The
great battle of Armageddon will then take place. "The beast, and the kings of
the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him that sat
on the horse, and against His army" (Rev. 19:19). But their opposition will
suddenly be broken to pieces. "And the beast was taken, and with him the
false prophet [the Anti-christ] that wrought miracles before him, with which he
deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that
worshipped the image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning
with brimstone" (Rev. 19:20).
On His Throne
"When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with
Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory" (Matt. 25:31). The
judgment which will then be executed by Him is not a universal judgment (the
dead are not mentioned), but it will be a judgment of the living nations in the
day when He appears the second time. Some nations are put on His right side
and He calls them "the blessed of my Father;" they inherit the Kingdom which
will then be established on the earth. That these righteous nations are not
church saints is obvious, for the church, as we have seen, was caught up in the
beginning of His future work to meet Him in the air and is associated with Him
when He comes in power and glory. Then there are other nations which are
put on His left hand and they shall go away from that judgment throne into
everlasting punishment (Matt. 25:46). But what is the standard of this
judgment? What they did to the Lord's brethren or what they did not unto
them. The Lord's brethren according to the flesh are the Jews. During the
tribulation period believing Jews will preach the Gospel of the Kingdom to all
nations (Matt. 24:14). The nations who believed this last offer of mercy
treated the messengers in kindness; those who did not believe the message did
not treat them in that way. And when this great judgment is passed, His
Kingdom of righteousness and peace will be established on this earth.
Righteousness will begin to reign as grace reigns now through righteousness.
3. The Glories of His Kingdom
"And in the days of those kings 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" (Dan. 2:44). "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like
the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancients of
days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him
dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations and languages,
should serve Him; His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not
pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed" (Dan.
7:13-14). A closer study of these two fundamental passages from Daniel's
great prophecies will establish the fact that this promised Kingdom comes with
the second coming of Christ. It will be preceded by a judgment blow at the
earthly kingdoms; Nebuchadnezzar beheld this in his prophetic dream.
This Kingdom is an earthly Kingdom and all the nations will be gathered into
that Kingdom. Jerusalem and a converted Israel will be the center of it. The
Lord Jesus Christ and His Saints will reign with Him over the earth and over
this Kingdom. And what will be His work then? But a few of the many things
can be mentioned. "He shall speak peace unto the heathen[nations]" (Zech.
9:10). "With righteousness shall He judge the poor, and reprove with equity for
the meek of the earth." (Isaiah 11:4). "He shall bring forth judgment to the
Gentiles" (Is. 42:1). "And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke
many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears
into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall
they learn war any more" (Isaiah 2:4). He shall also "set up an ensign for the
nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the
dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth" (Isaiah 11:12). "And
many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people"
(Zech. 2:11). "And the LORD shall be King over all the earth" (Zech. 14:9).
"Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness" (Isaiah 32:1). "A King shall reign
and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth" (Jer. 23:5).
Many more passages predicting and describing the Kingdom and its glories
might be added. All these blessed words mean exactly what they say.
Righteousness and peace will characterize that world-wide Kingdom of the
Lord Jesus Christ. His glory will cover the earth as the waters cover the deep.
Nations will worship Him. "He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and
from the river unto the ends of the earth" "Yea, all kings shall fall down before
Him: all nations shall serve Him." (Ps. 72:8,11). Every wrong will be righted
on earth and present-day evils and oppression, crime and vice, poverty and
sickness will be abolished. Only He has the power to do this. Oh! the glories of
the Kingdom! May we pray, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus." Thy Kingdom
come.
Creation Delivered
"For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the
sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by
reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope. Because the creature
itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth
and travaileth in pain together until now (Rom. 8:19-22) Sin has brought a
curse upon creation. The thorns and thistles are the result of the fall of man as
well as the blight and misery which rests upon a creation, which was
pronounced good by the Creator. But this condition into which creation has
been plunged will not continue forever. A better day is coming. Groaning
creation is to be delivered. The curse will be removed. This cannot be the
work of man. Scientists attempt to set things in order in this ruined creation;
but they fail. The things which destroy, the heat and the drought, the storms
and earthquakes, cannot be arrested by the arm of man.
The Son of God wore the crown of thorns. The curse was put upon Him. And
He who created all things and paid for redemption by His precious blood, will,
with omnipotent power, deliver groaning creation. It will take place when the
sons of God are manifested. The sons of God (the redeemed) will be
manifested with Him, as we have seen, in the day of His visible appearing.
Then the great vision of Isaiah will find its fulfillment. "The wolf also shall
dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf
and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together:
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the
hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice den"
(Isaiah 11:6-8).
All Under His Feet
The dispensation of the fulness of times has come (Eph. 1:10). All things are
put under Him. All His enemies are made His footstool. He is Lord of all. The
glorious reign of Christ, in kingly glory, in fulfillment of the Prophet's visions,
will be followed by another judgment.
The Great White Throne
The second resurrection, that of the wicked dead, takes place at the end of the
Kingdom reign of Christ. This great judgment and the final destiny of the
wicked is revealed in Rev. 20:11-15. The Lord Jesus Christ will be the judge in
that awful scene, for it is written that all judgment is committed unto the Son
(John 5:22).
Then Cometh the End
"Then cometh the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God,
even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and
power. For He must reign, till He hath put all enemies under His feet. The last
enemy that shall be destroyed is death ... And when all things shall be subdued
unto Him, then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him that put all
things under Him, that God may be all in all" (1 Cor. 15:24-28).
Then He will create a new heaven and a new earth, the eternal dwelling place
of redeemed and glorified mankind. "And I saw a new heaven and a new
earth" (Rev. 21:1). "And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all
things new. And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful"
(Rev. 21:5). "And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of
the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him: And they shall see
His face; and His Name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night
there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God
giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 22:3-5).
This will be the ultimate result of the blessed Work of Christ. His past work is
finished. Soon His present Work may end and then His future, kingly work
begins, when He comes the second time.
"Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus."
The Work of Christ: Past, Present and Future by A. C. Gaebelein. New
York: Publication Office "Our Hope", ©1913.
Other Works by A. C. Gaebelein:
THE RETURN OF THE LORD by Arno C. Gaebelein (written in 1925)
BEHOLD THE MAN by Arno C. Gaebelein
THE APOSTASY SWEEPING OVER THE CHURCHES (preached in 1919)
