♪ And God in your love was near ♪ ♪ By and by we'll see the King ♪ ♪ By and by we'll see the King ♪ ♪ By and by we'll see the King ♪ Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning. We'll sing the first and the last verse. Give me oil in my lamp. Have we got it on the screen? Give me oil in my lap, keep me burning. Give me oil in my lap, I pray. Give me oil in my lap, keep me burning. Keep me burning till the break of day. Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna to the King of Kings! Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna to the King! Give me love in my heart, keep me serving. Give me love in my heart, I pray. Give me love in my heart, keep me serving. Keep me serving till the break of day. Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna to the King of Kings! Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna! Sing Hosanna to the King! All right, you're warmed up now. We're going to stand and sing 181. I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene. One at one, we'll stand as we sing. A sinner condemned on three A sinner condemned on three Verse two, the ladies only. Once in the garden, he prayed, not my will, but Thine. He had no tears for his own face, but strength and some love for mine. OK, together. Now, the ladies did well, actually. Exceeded my expectation. You men were in the minority tonight, so sing out and speak out. All right, let's sing. And pity angels beheld him, and he came from the world on high. To comfort him in the sorrows he bore for my soul. And my song shall ever be a marvelous, oh, how wonderful. This fourth verse is my favorite verse. It's so profound. He took my sins and my sorrows and he made them his very own. He bore the burden to Calvary and he suffered and he died alone. Let's sing it. He took my sins and my sorrows He made them His very own He bore the burden to come free And He suffered and He died alone The last verse is a happy verse, so you sing it in a happy way. You can clap your hands on the chorus. Let's sing it. The ransomed in glory His face I at last shall see. T'will be my joy through the ages To sing of His love for me. Let's sing it! Oh, how wonderful and my song shall ever be! How marvelous! Oh, how wonderful is my Savior's love for me! Remain standing for prayer. Let us pray. Lord, we thank you that we've been singing about this great love that Jesus has for us. And tonight we want to lift up his name, magnify his person, magnify his great work on the cross. Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe. We thank you for the gospel. We thank you that there is this way of forgiveness, men and women and boys and girls, can make their way to the cross and there find peace, find forgiveness, find cleansing, find mercy at the foot of the old rugged cross. We pray for any in our meeting tonight that have come in here, maybe outside of Christ, maybe grown cold in their faith, maybe backslidden, We pray, O God, that you would come down into our meeting tonight, that you would touch them at the point of their need. May no one leave this hall tonight on the broadway. May no one leave here on their way to hell, but may everyone leave here rejoicing that they're saved, that they're justified, that they're born again, and one day soon they're about to be glorified. Bless every aspect of the service we ask. We beseech the presence of God in everything we do and say. For we ask all these things in Jesus' precious name. Amen, and amen. You may be seated, thank you. Well, we're delighted to have Stephen Patterson here tonight. He's come a long way from an old place I used to live nearby, Analong. And Stephen is coming to sing to us on two occasions here. But he's going to come first, and he's going to bring us a couple of messages in song. Let's welcome Stephen to Long Island. I survey the wondrous cross On which the Prince of Glory died My riches gained I count but loss and pour contempt on all my pride. Forbidden Lord, that I should boast, save in the death of Christ my God. All the vain things that charm me most I sacrifice them to His blood See from His head, His hands, His feet Sorrow and love, oh, mingle down. Did e'er such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose so rich a crown? The whole realm of nature am I That were an offering far too small Love so amazing, so divine Demands my soul My life, my all His robes for mine, O wonderful exchange. Clothed in my sin, Christ suffered neath God's praise. Draped in His righteousness, I'm justified. In Christ I live, Or in my place He died I cling to Christ and marvel at the cost Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God But by such love my life is not my own. My praise, my all, shall be for Christ alone. His robes for mine, what cause have I for dread? God's daunting law, Christ mastered in my stead. All blessed I stand, with righteous works not mine, Saved by my Lord's vicarious deathline. His rose for mine, God's justice is appeased Jesus is crushed, and thus the father's pleased Christ drank God's wrath on sin, then Christ is done Sin's wage is paid propitiation won. I cling to Christ and marvel at the cost. Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God. But by such love my life is not my own. My praise, my all, shall be for Christ alone. His robes for mine, such anguish none can know. Christ God's beloved Condemned as though His foe He as though wild Accursed and left alone I as though healed Embraced and welcomed home I cling to Christ and marvel at the cost Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God But by such love my life is not my own My praise, my all, shall be for Christ alone. My praise, my all, shall be for Christ alone. Thank you, Stephen. Isn't that beautiful? His robes for mine. It's a modern song, but it has an old meaning. I'm going to ask Colin, would you come and give us the notices? Thank you. A very warm welcome to each one gathered this evening for our gospel service. Great to see the hall so well filled. We thank you for coming. Trust the Lord will bless you, particularly if you're visiting with us this evening. Just leave you with the announcements for the rest of tonight and throughout the week. There's a ladies choir practice just immediately after the service this evening, and there's also youth fellowship on for the young people tonight as well. Then Tuesday, 8 o'clock, indoor football for secondary school and above. Then Wednesday, our Emanuel Cafe in the morning from 10 o'clock to 12.30. So come along if you haven't been before. And if you've been before, make sure you come back again. Enjoy the scones and other delights and that cup of tea and fellowship with others on Wednesday morning, 10 to 12.30. Then Bible Explorers, 6.30 for the boys and girls. And then at 8 o'clock, our midweek Bible study and prayer time. Come along, enjoy that time as we meet around God's word and as we pray and thank God for all he's done for us. Don't forget that Wednesday at 8 o'clock. Tuesday, Mums and Tots at 10 in the morning. And then on Friday, Young Life. We'll probably move it to 7 o'clock. It's normally at 7.30. We'll probably move it to 7 o'clock for the young people. And then hopefully a number will stay then for our special night with John Weir on Friday night. So first of our mission weekend services is 8 o'clock on Friday night. So don't miss that. And there's invites at the back. I know the pastor all mentioned that tonight as well, that whole weekend. So our special weekend, Friday, 8 o'clock. Then Saturday at 7.30 is our musical night. Quite a number of people taking part in music and song, and then John will bring a closing word. Saturday night, don't forget that time, 7.30. And then that brings us round to Sunday, Sunday morning, 10.30 Sunday school and Bible class or morning service, 11.30, preceded by a time of prayer, and then our evening gospel service at seven o'clock. John will be preaching at both of those services. So, Make sure, as I say, you take those invites and give them out and pray much for that weekend of meetings. Thank you. Thank you, Colin. Yes, I do want to emphasise these invites. If you have time, take some at the back. They're a beautiful graphic and they tell of the meetings Friday, Saturday and on Sunday. And our meeting on Friday night, we will have Everett Smith coming to give his testimony. Our brother John Porter will be singing, and John will be here, John Weir, to preach the gospel. This will be John's first time here as a married man, and we'll see has he lost anything in getting married. But he'll be here Friday night, and then Saturday night's the night of music, and there'll be a number taking part. Alan Craig on the flute, the Castle Gore Men's Choir, Ladies, don't worry, we have a ladies choir from Lorne Mission Hall that will be singing. Catherine and Ruth Mitchell will be singing. And we will have at least one piper from Bali Boli to play for us as well. So it'll be a wonderful night of music and of gospel witness. And then on Sunday, we will have the two services. And one of our own, Keira Lester, will be testifying. Keira's from a Roman Catholic background. saved in John Weir's mission and comes here faithfully and Kira will be coming along to tell us how God stepped into her life and changed her. So do remember those meetings. Don't sit at home and watch football or Coronation Street or some other rubbish. You bring the cat, the dog, everything and you be here. on Friday night and on Saturday night, and you'll be blessed, I promise. But don't just come by yourself, fill your car, talk to your neighbors, and don't be ashamed. Time is running out for this world, and this is your opportunity to sow a seed. Go and ask, pray and ask somebody, maybe a relative, maybe a neighbor. They can only say no, isn't that right? Make an effort. for the gospel's sake. Someone invited you. Somebody prayed for you. And now it's your turn to do it for someone else. So remember those meetings. We'll be going out on Tuesday, those who are available. All those retirees can come and join John and myself as we go around the doors in Lauren on Tuesday morning at 10. We're going to sing another hymn, 262 Days Are Filled With Sorrow and Care. This is a beautiful hymn written by a man who passed away just a few years ago, John Moore. A friend of mine actually met him in Canada. He's originally from Scotland, moved to Canada, and he was telling the story. John Moore was telling my friend the story that he was traveling across Canada in a car and he was listening to Dr. John MacArthur speak. And John MacArthur said, we're going to sing a hymn now written by a man who's now in the glory. Days are filled with sorrow and care. And he said, I'm not in the glory, I'm still here. So he wrote a letter to John MacArthur and he said, I'm still alive. And I wrote that hymn. And he got a letter back from Dr. John MacArthur saying a thousand apologies, my dear brother, but you'll soon be in the glory. So he's now in the glory, John Muir, great preacher, great evangelist. Burdens are filled. Days are filled with sorrow, and hearts are lonely and weary. We'll stand and sing these three verses. Days are filled with sorrow. Burdens are lifted at Calvary, Jesus is very near. Burdens are lifted at Calvary, The burdens are lifted at Calvary, Jesus is bearing me. Cast your care on Jesus today, leave your worry and fear. Jesus is buried here. Burdens are lifted at Calvary. Calvary, Calvary. Burdens are lifted at Calvary. ♪ Jesus is wearing thee ♪ God's purse. ♪ Troubled soul the Savior can see ♪ ♪ Every heart in empty ♪ ♪ Burdens are lifted and calvary ♪ ♪ Jesus is wearing thee ♪ I'm going to ask Stephen if you would come for the final time and sing for us. Let's welcome Stephen. I believe. in a hill called Mount Calvary I believe whatever the cost and when time has surrendered and earth is no more I'll still cling to the old rugged cross I believe that the Christ who was slain on the cross has the power to change lives today. For He changed me completely. A new life is mine. That is why by the cross I will stay. I believe in a hill called Mount Calvary I believe whatever the cost And when time has surrendered And earth is no more, I'll still cling to the old rugged cross. I believe that this life with its great mysteries surely someday will come to an end. But faith will conquer the darkness and death And will lead me at last to my friend I believe in a hill called Mount Calvary I believe whatever the cost And when time has surrendered And earth is no more I'll still cling To the old rugged cross And when time has surrendered And earth is no more I'll still cling To the old rugged cross Stephen, and thank you for coming on that journey. I forgot to mention Stephen's cousin is Victoria Salt, isn't that right? So there's a bit of singing in the jeans there, so we're delighted to have you here with your wife tonight, Stephen. I'm going to turn in God's Word to Revelation chapter 20. Revelation chapter 20. I said this morning this is a very controversial chapter. And churches have split over this chapter. People have fallen out. Christians have fallen out over this chapter. I know at least one denomination that's split over this chapter in the United States. And it's a very important chapter. It's one that we should read and study and think about and come to a position, not just many positions, come to a position on this chapter. Knowing the future has been a fascination for humanity for all generations. People spend a fortune on tarot cards, going to see these palm readers, horoscopes, movies, books. They spend a fortune and you can chase after all those things and two things will happen to you, you'll lose money. And number two, you'll be dumber than when you started out. You'll know less. You'll be even more confused. Well, the Bible has the answer. God has put it down in great detail here. And here's the good news, it's free. You just have to read it. And he set it down in a very clear, chronological, transparent way. God's not trying to trip you up or confuse you. It's all put down here for you and I to read. And tonight, as we come to these first six verses of this chapter, I just want you to do two things. Open your Bible and open your mind, leaving aside all preconceptions. And I'm going to just go through this, these six verses, and we're going to look at the evidence from within the chapter as to what it means. And then we'll look at the evidence from within the book of Revelation. There's lots of clues, what this first six verses means. And then we'll see the evidence from all the totality of scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, Old and New Testament. And they'll all teach the same thing. They'll all teach that everything that's stated in this chapter is literal, is real, and is going to come to pass. And you'll see that God knows the future because God controls the future. And you'll see that all history is not some random movement of events and peoples. You'll see everything is working together for good, for God's ultimate plans and purposes. for this world. Let's read the first six verses because I know, very sure, we'll not get through any further. We might not even get through the six verses, but we're going to read the six verses. It says, and I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. So he's coming from heaven. He's coming down. So what you're about to see is on earth. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent which is the devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled. And after that, he must be loosed, and it'll season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them, and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands, and they lived and reigned with Christ, a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. On such the second death hath no power but they shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years." We'll stop there. And what a reading it is, what a promise it is. And I believe right up front that this chapter should be taken the way it's written. That Jesus Christ is going to come back to this earth after the great tribulation. He's going to reign on this earth for 1,000 years, exactly what the Bible says. In fact, he repeats it six times, just in case somebody doubts it. 1,000, 1,000, 1,000, 1,000, 1,000, 1,000. Just mention it over and over again. And in fact, if you read these six verses, when God wants to give an indefinite period of time, he uses a phrase in these six verses. For example, when it says of loosing the devil at the end of the thousand years, verse three, it says, he must be loosed and it'll season. So it gives an indefinite phrase to describe an indefinite phase of time. But when it comes to the thousand years, God's very definite and he repeats it six times in this chapter. So I believe that Jesus will come back, as he says, to the Mount of Olives. His feet will touch the Mount of Olives. That will usher in the end of the battle of Armageddon. And then he's going to reign on a rejuvenated, renovated earth for a thousand years. And that, I think, will complete the 7,000 years of human history. And after the thousand years is up, Revelation 20 tells us the devil who's been bound for a thousand years in the bottomless pit is released. And then there's one final confrontation. And then we enter a new heaven and a new earth. The old earth is completely burned and the old heaven, which was contaminated by sin, when Lucifer and his angels sinned against God in heaven, That old heaven, that old earth is going to be burned up, as Peter tells us in his epistle. And then we'll enter Revelation 21 and 22, what's sometimes called the eternal golden age. And in that eternal golden age, there is no sin, there is no sorrow, there's no suffering, there's no temptation, and there's no Satan. It's all glorious forevermore. So let me just say that right up front. And if you don't like that, well, you're going to discover you're wrong. And you're going to have to apologize to me when you get to heaven. But that's how I see it, just as the Bible says it's going to be. But I want to prove it to you. Sometimes it's called premillennialism, where we get the millennium, the word thousand. pre the idea that Jesus comes before the millennium physically, personally to reign and rule on this earth for a thousand years. I'm going to prove that not just by my opinion, not by just lining up a list of authorities and say this preacher and this famous theologian, he believed this. I'm going to demonstrate this from three strands of evidence. that this is an earthly reign of a thousand years from this chapter, from this book of Revelation, and then from the rest of Scripture. And I won't go through all the references, but I'll go through some that are helpful in understanding. So let's look firstly at the evidence of this chapter. And you'll see, as you look at it carefully, that it begins in heaven, but then the angel comes down to earth. And then the devil is seized on the earth. And then he's cast into the bottomless pit. And then you notice in verse four, it doesn't switch back to heaven. It doesn't say that, I now look up to heaven. No, he says, he suddenly sees one, the vision on earth, the thrones that are on earth. and those who were beheaded for the witness of Christ, those who had gone to heaven, who've returned with the Lord Jesus Christ at the battle of Armageddon, they've come back down to earth with him, and they're going to reign with Christ a thousand years. And when the thousand years is up, verse seven tells us Satan is loosed from his prison, and he's allowed to go out to deceive the nations which are on the four quarters of where? So the whole thing's on the earth. It's not in heaven. The whole context of this vision is earthly. So it's not illogical to assume that everything that you see here plays out upon the earth. Now, there are people who say that Satan was bound at the cross. that this thousand years is really just a period of time reflecting from the Calvary to the return of Christ. They call themselves amillennialists. The idea is no millennium. They don't believe in a literal, physical millennium. And they say, the devil is bound, but he's bound at the cross. Well, I'm sorry to tell you the Bible teaches no such thing. Just look at the state of the world that's in. And if you read the Bible very carefully, especially the New Testament, it makes it clear repeatedly that the devil is not bound. In fact, it says the very opposite. It says, he goeth about like a roaring lion. It tells us that Satan entered into the heart of Judas. It tells us that Satan entered into the heart of Ananias and Zephariah. He's not bound. If he was, it'd be very long cheating. If he was truly bound, it's a pretty ineffective binding when he's free to wreak havoc across the nations of the earth. But then notice something else from this six verses. It says, This is the first resurrection, verse five. The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Now the resurrection that's described here of the first group of people, the godly, is a Greek word that's only used ever in the New Testament to describe physical resurrection. It's used over 40 times. It's never, ever used to describe a spiritual resurrection. Always a physical. And the contrast here at the start of the millennium is those who are in Christ, those who have died, gone to glory, have come back with Christ, they now reign upon this earth with him in this first resurrection. But then at the end of the millennium, we have another resurrection of the rest of the dead. And who are the rest of the dead? The ungodly. At the end of Revelation chapter 20, we discover that they have to face what's called the great white throne judgment. And they have to stand before God. Now, let me show you something else. You may say, well, are you sure that it literally means that they're going to reign on the earth? How do you know verse four is not in heaven? Well, I can prove it, not just from the internal evidence and the context of Revelation 20, but from the book itself. If you turn to Revelation 5, from the book of Revelation, we're told of a group of men, representative men, who John, in AD 96, saw in heaven. And he saw them worshiping in heaven. So these are people who have either died physically through natural death, believers, or people who've been martyred, maybe Paul and Timothy and Peter and James, people who've been martyred and already gone to heaven when John sees this vision in AD 96. And they're singing a song in heaven. And verse nine tells us they sing a new song. Now, what are they singing? It says, thou art worthy to take the book, they're speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to open the seals thereof, for thou was slain. Now these seals, if you remember, were the first seven seals of the 21 judgments of the tribulation period. It says you were worthy to open the book. Why? Because thou was slain. Speaking of Christ, you have redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation. And then here, notice what they say next, and has made us unto our God kings and priests. And then there's a colon. And the Greek verb here is very interesting. It's what we call the future, simple future. or the future active. Because these people are in heaven. Many of them are martyrs in heaven. In a sense, you could say they're reigning in heaven. They're at peace in heaven with the Lord Jesus Christ there. But notice what they sing, we shall reign in the future. Now, where will they reign in the future? Now, please don't take my word for it. What does the verse say? It even gives us a location. Lest there be any ambiguity, we shall reign where? On the earth. The saints in heaven are singing a song of praise, and they use the future tense in the original to demonstrate that they're coming back from there. to reign on this earth. That's the second line of evidence from the book of Revelation. Just let the Bible talk. Just let the Bible speak on this subject. It's going to be a future reign of Jesus Christ and his saints in heaven on this earth. But then the third line of evidence, and this I'll take a little bit longer. I've been pretty fast, haven't I? You're hoping you'll be out by quarter to eight. You won't. The third line of evidence is the evidence from the rest of Scripture. Does the rest of Scripture back up what Jesus has, what the saints in heaven are singing about, and what this vision that John has in Revelation 20 of a reign of Christ on this earth with the saints. Does the rest of Scripture back that up, yes or no? Well, we'll see. Turn with me to Luke's Gospel, chapter 1. Luke's Gospel, chapter 1. And the angel comes to Mary, verse 30. This is before Jesus Christ is even born. And the angel has a message for Mary. He says, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God. He says, And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. We love to quote that. And it's a great verse. And it says, he shall be great, and he shall be called the son of the highest. But then it says this, and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. Now where did David reign from? Jerusalem on the earth. And then it goes on, "...and he shall reign over the house of Jacob," the Jewish people, the house of Israel, "...forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." Now, every statement there is literal. And don't try to play games and split it up into literal and non-literal, because there's no footnote. The Holy Spirit doesn't put a footnote and says, everything you see from the half of verse 32 onwards is all to be spiritualized. No, let me read it again. He shall be great, literal. He shall be called the son of the highest, literal. And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. Has to be literal. The Bible doesn't play games. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, literally. There's no hint in this text that you're to divide this up, and part of it is to be fulfilled in a literal, physical way, and the other part is just to be spiritualized and believe anything. But then turn to Zechariah chapter 14. Here we go to the Old Testament. And there's just so much I could turn to in the Old Testament, but we'll pick just this one for the sake of time. Zechariah 14. And the context of this chapter is the battle of Armageddon, Revelation 19, that we looked at last week, and the physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, I'll prove it's speaking of the physical return of the Lord Jesus Christ from the passage. It says, verse two, for I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle. Now, even if you just think in a historical way, you'll know that this has never been fulfilled yet because this has never happened. in history, all the nations of the world. The Romans have come against Jerusalem with their armies. The Greeks have come against Jerusalem. The Babylonians and the Persians and all of these great empires and civilizations, the Muslims from North Africa, or Salah ad-Din. But never once in the history of mankind has all the nations of the world gathered against Jerusalem. Never once happened, but it's going to happen. Right now, they're preparing for it. You can see it at the United Nations, they're all ready to go. They'd love to send an army to get involved and to intimidate the Jewish people to doing what they want them to do. But he says, the nations will gather, and then verse three, then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle, Now, who is the Lord who's coming to fight against these nations? Here's the answer, verse 4, and His feet. Whose feet? You don't need me to spell it out. The child in the Sunday school could work this out. His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives. You say, well, Jesus did stand in the Mount of Olives before. Well, look what comes next, just so you don't misinterpret it. He says, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof, be cut in two, and be driven apart. Now, I know a number of you in this room have gone to the land of Israel on a holiday. You should go. I keep telling people everywhere I go, it's the safest place to go on holiday, because it's the only city that will not be destroyed. The Bible tells me. It'll last for all of eternity. So if you'd like to invest in real estate, there's a good way to invest. Buy an apartment in Jerusalem. Don't buy in Bali Gali or Karn Lock or Port Stewart. Buy it in Jerusalem. And he says, his feet shall stand, and the earthquake will drive the Mount of Olives. Now, I have stood on the Mount of Olives. I took a group from Singapore onto the Mount of Olives, and we had a service on the Mount of Olives. But the Mount of Olives is still there. It's never been split. Why? Because this verse hasn't been fulfilled yet. Because this is only going to be fulfilled when Jesus' feet touch the Mount of Olives and splits the Mount of Olives. I don't think it could be any clearer. I don't know why there's so much confusion. But then notice something else. Verse 9, same chapter, same unfolding of the end times. It says, and the Lord, who's the Lord? The one who came to fight against the nations, the one whose feet touched the Mount of Olives and split it in two. He shall be what? King over where? The earth. In that day. Jesus is coming, Old Testament, New Testament teaches, repeatedly, unequivocally, to reign and rule from the city of Jerusalem, from the throne of David, on the earth. Revelation 20 tells us just exactly how long? A thousand years. A thousand years. and I believe it. God says it, and it's true, and I believe it. I don't think there's any need for any further discussion on the point. It's so clear. But if you read on through the rest of the chapter, you'll discover there's unbelievers during the millennium, or during this period of time when he reigns on the earth, because we're told, verse 17, and it shall be that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth to Jerusalem to worship. Then it says in verse 18, there'll be no rain, there'll be plague and he will smite the heathen and punishment will come upon them. So this millennium, this thousand year reign of Christ is going to have the presence of sinners. That's what it's teaching. And of course, when you read the book of Revelation, It tells us that Jesus Christ is coming to rule, and it uses an expression which can only be used of sinners. It says, he will reign and rule with a rod of iron. You know, when your children leave your house, and those of you in this room who said goodbye to them, you say, thank the Lord. What do you do with that stick? You can throw it away, can't you? or give it to your grandchildren or the parents of your grandchildren. Because you no longer need it. You're a grandparent now. You don't need to do the discipline. It's not your problem anymore. You're free. And in heaven, there is no sin. There's no temptation in sin. So Christ doesn't rule with a rod of iron in heaven because he doesn't need to. The spirits of just men made perfect. In Revelation 21 and 22 in the eternal golden age, he doesn't need to rule with a rod of iron because there's no Satan, there's no sin, there's no sorrow, there's no sickness, there's no death, there's no temptation. So when does he need to rule with the rod of iron? The millennium, the thousand years. And we're told here in Zechariah chapter 14, there will be sinners. Of course, people ask this question. Where do these sinners come from? When Jesus returns in Revelation 19, at the end of the tribulation, he destroys all the armies of the Antichrist and all the ungodly. So where do these sinners come from? And I think the only obvious answer is this. Those saints who survive the tribulation period, who enter this thousand-year reign on earth, from earth into the millennium, They're children who are below the age of understanding, who grew up during the millennium. Some of them are sinners, born with a sinful nature. And at the end of Revelation 20, you'll see a rebellion when Satan is loosed, and he'll gather up the children and grandchildren of the saints who've entered the millennium, and they will turn against God. And that's why he needs to rule with a rod of iron. It's a renovated earth, Revelation 20, the millennium, but it's not a completely new earth. It's not an earth with no sin, no sickness, no sorrow. That comes in Revelation 21 and 22, the eternal golden age. I hope I've made myself clear. But then we turn to another passage, Acts chapter one, just to nail this down. in the New Testament, Acts chapter 1, verse 6. Now, Jesus has spent forty days teaching His disciples about the things, verse 3 tells us, pertaining to the kingdom of God. Now, inclusive in that message must be the teaching of the Millennium Kingdom, when he will come back to reign and rule for a thousand years. Because notice what the disciples say, verse 6. And no doubt, there was some vested interest in their question, because they're still sinners. Even though they're saints, they have the contamination of sin. And we know the disciples loved to argue with one another who would have the greatest position in the kingdom of God. And some of them, no doubt, were hearing this teaching about Jesus coming back to reign over the earth for the thousand years, and those from heaven who would come with him to reign over the earth. No doubt they were thinking, well, where am I going to reign? Where am I going to rule? I think I'll ask for Bershane. I don't know about you. You can have lorn if you're from Lorn. Some of you from Kilwater, you can have Kilwater. But no doubt that's what the disciples are thinking. And they ask the question, verse 6, Lord, wilt thou at this time You've dealt with the problem of sin. You've dealt at the cross. You've been resurrected from the dead. You've spent 40 days teaching us about the kingdom of God. Is this the moment, they said, that thou will restore again the kingdom to who? Israel. They still believed what the Old Testament taught. in book after book, in prophecy after prophecy, that Jesus Christ is coming back to reign and rule on the earth, and Israel will be at the center of it. And they're asking Jesus, is this the time? Is this the moment? We understand that that thing about the cross and salvation and is such a vital part of the work of redemption, that has now been dealt with. Is this the moment? Now, if Jesus Christ was an amillennialist, this was the perfect time for him to say to his disciples, you've got it all wrong. There's no physical kingdom. There's no thousand-year reign. Israel is not going to be restored to their land again. Israel is not going to have a savior reigning from the throne of King David in the city of Jerusalem again. This is a spiritual thing. This was the golden moment for Jesus Christ to say that to them, correct them and say, have you not been listening to what I've been teaching for 40 days? Have you not been listening to what all the Old Testament has been saying? This is not a literal kingdom. This is not a physical kingdom. This is a spiritual kingdom. But he doesn't say any of that. In fact, notice what he does say. He just says to them, it is not for you to know the times or the seasons. which the Father hath put in his own power." In other words, he says to them, it's none of your business to know exactly when and who the Father will establish his earthly kingdom for me, the son. Keep out of it. You'll find out in the time. So here we have evidence from Old Testament New Testament, from the book of Revelation itself, that's unambiguous, unequivocal, repeated over and over again, that Jesus Christ will come back to reign and rule on this earth. And do you know something? The devil knows that. The tragedy is there are so many Christians and they're blind to it. Satan's not blind to it. That's why he's doing everything he can, using every force he can, whipping up every demon he can to pour out his hatred and stir up the world against the nation of Israel. Because Satan knows Jesus is coming back. And he's coming back to the land of Israel. He's coming back to them. In fact, have you noticed the most disputed piece of real estate in the world? is not just the land of Israel. And it's greatly disputed, and fought over, and argued over, and protested over. But there's one particular area of Israel that the world is focused on with a laser focus, that the United Nations has passed more resolutions over than any other. And it's just this tiny little place within this tiny little state, and it's called the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Now, why do you think the devil and his forces are so focused on that little piece of real estate? Well, if you've been following what we've done tonight, you'll know. Because Satan knows Jesus is coming back to there. And where is he going to reign from? Not from Galilee or Nazareth or Bethlehem. He's going to rule from which city? Jerusalem. And whose throne? David's throne. And that's why the devil is whipping up all this hysteria and all this animosity and all this hatred, and he's trying to get all the forces of the world marshaled to get them off the land, to get them out of there. You see, the great sign of the prophetic clock, and I know my time is gone, is the nation of Israel. I said last week, the greatest sign that God exists is the Jewish people. The greatest sign that the Bible is true is the continual existence of the Jewish people. But the greatest sign that Jesus is coming back again is the existence of the state of Israel. We've had Jews on this planet for the last 2,000 years, since the destruction of Jerusalem, since they were scattered in A.D. 70. And their existence is evidence that the Bible is true, and that God's promises are true, and God's Word is true. The fact that they continue to exist in all the nations of the earth, scattered but not dissolved and integrated. is proof that God exists, but the fact that God in the last 70-odd years has gathered them from every corner of the earth, and now a majority of them live in the land of Israel, and they're in control of the city of Jerusalem, exactly where God says they would be, at the exact place that God says they will be when Jesus returns, is evidence that Jesus Christ is coming soon. Let me finish by saying this. Sad to say, you know, the Bible also speaks of a great falling away that's going to happen as the world heads towards Armageddon, great falling away within Christianity. And we see it all over our country, don't we? I read this week the Church of England. band a hymn, a Christmas carol, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. They wrote a letter to all their priests and ministers and priestesses, let's give them all the right names, to tell them, don't play this. And the reason they give is because it keeps saying to people that Jesus Christ alone is the Messiah and we don't want that message. Imagine being ashamed of what Christianity is all about. For thousands of years, people knew that there was male, female, and nothing. And now they tell us that there's 98 genders. Oh, there's so much confusion, isn't there? And when you're confused about the Creator, you'll be confused then about the creation. And this is great falling away within Christianity. And there's a great turning against the nation of Israel, even by evangelical and so-called Reformed. I call them deformed theologians. I ran into one last week, a man who, in many respects, is a good person and believes the Bible. And he wrote this. He said, Israel has no right to be in the land of Israel, the Jewish people. He says, it would be better for them just to go. And I said, well, where do you get that? He says, it says nowhere in the Bible that they have a right to that land. This is a reformed, theological-trained minister of the gospel. And I said, have you read Genesis 17? Let's turn to Genesis 17 with this, we're close. If you're running into these people, it's worth just telling them what the Bible says. God speaks to Abraham when he's 99 years of age, Genesis 17. Verse six, God says, I will make thee exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. Does that happen? Just as God said. He had no son. Isaac wasn't born at this point, but God says it's gonna happen. But then so God says this, verse seven. And notice, this is all coming unilaterally from God. This is not Abraham saying to God, listen, I've got a few ideas here. Maybe we could negotiate and come up with an agreement. And you do this for me and I'll do this for you. No, this is all God. It's coming from him and him alone. And God says in verse seven, and I, oh notice the pronoun, I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee and their generations for an everlasting covenant. Now underline that in your Bible, everlasting covenant. Now what will be in that covenant? Verse eight, and I will give unto thee and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession." Now, either that means what it means, or the Bible means nothing. If you can't trust God to keep an everlasting promise to the nation of Israel, then you can't trust God to keep a promise to you to give you everlasting life. It's as black as that. And these people who say they believe in covenants will dare to come up, even in evangelical Christianity, and say, they have no right to be there. God says, I've made it theirs. Under the terms of an ever, God says, I bind myself. with the most solemn oath I can bind myself. It's their land under an everlasting covenant. Nothing further to say. What should we do as Christians in light of Revelation chapter 20? Well, we should be constantly speaking about the second coming of Jesus. Andrew Bonner, that great Presbyterian minister, As his custom was, every night he opened his curtains before he went to bed and he looked up and he said, maybe tonight Jesus will come. Maybe tonight. Keep reminding yourself, keep talking about it, but then keep telling others, particularly those who are lost, that Jesus is coming soon. That the world's in a mess because of sin and the chaos and the confusion is not because of Brexit or because of Donald Trump or because of some other figure that can be blamed. It's because of sin. And that Jesus is coming and he's coming in judgment. And you've got to be ready. You've got to be ready. Unseen person here tonight. You've got to be ready. I was reading a story today of three men who were in a restaurant, two unsaved, two ungodly men that fell out. And they began to argue. And there's a Christian man sitting, listening, and he could hear this going on. And at the end of the discussion, one shouted to the other, I hope you go to hell! And he stormed out of the restaurant. The Christian man came over to him and he said to this man who was shaking in anger, he said, I have good news for you because I have God's instruction book here. And it tells me you don't have to go to hell. It tells me there's a way for you to go to heaven. It tells me there's a way that you can escape the judgment. And it's not found in a church. It's not found in another religion. It's not found in some New Age philosophy or self-help or this other claptrap wellness that you see every day. They keep sending me these things on Facebook, all these adverts. No. It's found in a person, Jesus Christ. You know what the Bible says? He that hath a son hath life, life more abundant in Jesus. If you want to be saved, you can be saved tonight by coming the same way everybody comes to the cross. Seeking forgiveness, seeking repentance, seeking salvation. And he says, whosoever will may come. Thank God the Jews are going to find that forgiveness. But you too must come. Be saved before it's too late. Let us pray. Father, we thank you that we have heard your voice tonight. Your word is clear that the end times are upon us and Jesus is coming soon and the tribulation is about to begin. And then there's these horrific judgments of God pouring out his wrath upon this earth. And then there's a thousand years of a glorious reign of Christ from Jerusalem. And we say like John, Maranatha, even so come, Lord Jesus. Bless your word to all of our hearts. Stir our imagination, stir our hearts, stir our minds as we go out to face the world of flesh and the devil, that we're on the winning side, that victory is just around the corner. For these things we ask in Jesus' precious name. Amen. 270, with this we close. I must needs go home by the way of the cross. You know, tonight you will go to your physical home, but one day very soon you'll go to a permanent home. And it's either called heaven or hell. And the only way to heaven is through the way of the cross. If you don't come that way, you'll have to go to the other place. I must needs go home by the way of the cross. 270, let's stand as we sing. For the way of peace. I shall bear this sign of the gates of life In the way of the cross I peace. The way of the cross, they told, It is sweet to know, as I overcome, the way of the cross is home. I must be strong in the blood-sprinkled way, the path and the Savior's home. life where the soul lives and world will come. To the way of the cross, please hold. To the way of the cross, please hold. It is sweet to know that I offer Then I bid farewell to the way of the world, to walk in it nevermore. For my Lord sits far, and I seek my home where He waits at the open door. Father, this old hymn says it so well. I've got to say farewell to the way of the world. Be willing to walk in it nevermore. For my Lord says, come, and he bids me home where he waits at the open door." Jesus is here tonight. He's passing through Lauren tonight. He's willing to save. He's willing to reach. He's willing to touch. He's willing to forgive to the one who's willing to come. Pardon us with your love and with your blessing. Take us to our homes in safety. But most of all, take us to our homes here on earth rejoicing that we have full, free forgiveness and salvation. That Jesus is waiting for us there. For we ask all these things in Jesus' precious name and all God's people say, amen. Maybe.