THE ETERNAL STATE

THE ETERNAL STATE

When the thousand-year Mediatorial kingdom on earth has come to an end, the Lord Jesus will turn it over to His Father. "For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. (All unsaved people are completely dealt with and removed.)The last enemy that will be abolished is death ... then the Son Himself will also be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all" (1 Cor. 15:25-26, 28).

The New Heavens and the New Earth

Then will come "a new heaven and a new earth," which will continue forever (Rev. 21:1). Peter described it as "new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13). What will it be like? First, we find an amazing list of negatives: there will be no longer any sea (things that divide - Rev. 21:1); there will be neither sun nor moon (21:23); and there will be no night because Christ will be the light of the world (Rev. 21:23-25). For God's people there will be no more shedding of tears, for there will be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain, for "the first things have passed away" (Rev. 21:4). In fact, "nothing unclean, and no one who practices abominations and lying, shall ever come into it" (Rev. 21:27), and thus "there will no longer be any curse" (Rev. 22:3).
Even more surprising, perhaps, in contrast to the thousand-year kingdom, there will be "no temple in it." Why not? Because "the LORD God, the Almighty [the Father], and the Lamb [the Son], are its temple" (Rev. 21:22). Thus, there will be no need for an altar, with priests to offer animals. Animals are no longer needed and present. Worship is now pure - in spirit and truth. (John 4:23-24) How different that will be for the nation of Israel!

 

The New Jerusalem

But what about the positive aspects of this eternal kingdom? "The New Jerusalem" will be an enormous structure, 1,500 miles long, wide, and high (Rev. 21:16)! It will be surrounded by a gigantic wall made of jasper, with twelve gates named for the twelve tribes of Israel (Rev. 21:12). The city will have twelve foundation stones named for the twelve apostles (essentially equivalent to the Church). Through these gates and into the city "the kings of the earth ... will bring their glory and the honor of the nations" (Rev. 21:24, 26). Thus, forever the distinctive characteristics of the true Church, the redeemed nation of Israel, and the believing Gentile nations will be perpetuated.

The Great White Throne

What will happen to unbelievers who have died? Their destiny, like that of believers, will, be fixed (Rev. 22:11). As our Lord explained, all unbelievers "will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (Matt. 25:46). He told us that this place of punishment, "Gehenna," will be a "Lake of Fire" that burns forever (Matt. 5:22, 29, 30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43, 45, 47; Luke 12:5; cf. Rev. 14:11; 20:10, 14). How will this be determined? When our present universe disappears, God will establish "a great white throne," before which all unbelievers will stand (Rev. 20:11-12). Books will be opened, especially "the book of life," and the dead will be "judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds ... And if anyone's name [is] not found written in the book of life, he [will be] thrown in to the lake of fire" (Rev. 20:12, 15).
It would be inconsistent to accept Christ's teachings on salvation or on ethics as authoritative but deny His assertions about eternal punishment. Those who respect Jesus Christ will believe in the existence of an eternal Lake of Fire.
Four thousand years ago, God told Abraham that He was about to judge the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah-where his nephew Lot lived- for their awful depravity. Abraham had no comprehension of the magnitude of their sin, but he did know that "the Judge of all the earth" would indeed "deal justly" (Gen. 18:25). Hundreds of years later, God told the prophet Ezekiel, "As I live!' declares the Lord GOD, 'I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked' (Ezek. 33:11).
The Lord Jesus told us of a wealthy unbeliever who died and went to "a place of torment" called Hades (Luke 16:1931). Amazingly, he did not call for justice! Nor did he say God was treating him unfairly. Instead, he cried out: "Father Abraham, have mercy on me." In other words, he knew he was experiencing exactly what he deserved. So will it be for all unbelievers throughout eternity. Repeatedly, our Creator tells them, "I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you 'according' to your deeds" (Rev. 2:23; cf. Ps. 62:12; Jer. 1.7:10; Matt. 16:27; Rom. 2:6; Rev. 20:12-1.3; 22:12).
When this present world disappears, unsaved persons who have died will not be confronted by Abraham but by Christ Himself! They "will be tormented ... in the presence of the Lamb" (Rev. 14:10). They will be in the presence of the One who not only created them in His image but also died for them on the cross! He paid the awful price "for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world" (1 John 2:2).
Friend, "there is no partiality with God" (Rom. 2:11), because "the God who inflicts wrath is not unrighteous, is He? ... May it never be! For otherwise, how will God judge the world?" (Rom. 3:5-6).

A Final Invitation

Let us accept His infinite gift of salvation and receive what we do not deserve - eternal life! Let us respond to those precious words of invitation with which the Bible ends: "The Spirit and the bride [the Church] say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.' And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.... He who testifies to these things says, 'Yes, I am coming quickly.' Amen. Come, Lord Jesus" (Rev. 22:16-17, 20).