Enter The
Kingdom of Heaven
“I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, 'Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.'”
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Revelation 21:3-4
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This is what God has for those who find the narrow gate and walk the constricted way that leads to life. (Matthew 7:13-14). In Remain in Christ, you read that the victorious are not harmed by the second death (Revelation 2:11). Not only are they safe from the lake of fire, but they are recipients of promises given at the end of each of the seven letters to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3. One of them listed in Revelation 3:21, says, "Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne."
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Salvation is most definitely a rescue, but it's also a very great inheritance as you will soon glimpse further.
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Our bodies will be transformed into immortal bodies:
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1 Corinthians 15:51-57 tells us:
"But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.
Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:
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“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”
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For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ."
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"If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." Romans 8:10-11
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Take a look at a mysterious passage in 1 Corinthians 2:6-9 that describes what we have waiting for us:
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Notice, that God's plan was surprisingly for our ultimate glory! You read that right. Our glory.​
And his plan was hidden. Read what would have otherwise happened:
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"'Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,"​
​​​​What could God have for us that is so outside the limits of our imagination?
This is more that just heaven:
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"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true. And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.” Revelation 21:1-7 (See also 2 Peter 3:9-13, Isaiah 65:17-25)
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Take a look at the size of the city:
​The Bible tells us the holy city, the new Jerusalem, will come down from the present heaven as a large, square-shaped city with a wall around it decorated with precious stones. Both the city and the streets are made of gold, like transparent glass. Based on the measurements provided in the book of Revelation, there are those whose calculations have drawn estimates for us. The ground level would be nearly two million square miles, which is almost two-thirds the size of the United States. The Bible doesn't tell us if there is more than one level, but it does tell us the height of the city is as tall as the ground level is wide. However, as a gauge for its size, if it had different levels with each story at 12 feet high, it would have room for 600,000 stories.
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Revelation 21:10-20 describes:
"So he took me in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious stone—like jasper as clear as crystal. The city wall was broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates. There were three gates on each side—east, north, south, and west. The wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
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​"The angel who talked to me held in his hand a gold measuring stick to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. When he measured it, he found it was a square, as wide as it was long. In fact, its length and width and height were each 1,400 miles. Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick (according to the human standard used by the angel). The wall was made of jasper, and the city was pure gold, as clear as glass. The wall of the city was built on foundation stones inlaid with twelve precious stones: the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst."
To give you an idea, using the United States as a reference, it's about 1500 miles from the Canadian border of the US to Dallas Texas. For an international reference it's about the on average distance from the Canadian border to the Mexican border.
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More details revealed
The passage continues in Revelation 21:21-27
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"And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.
In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life."
​​​Get ready to reign
Who are these kings of the earth entering the holy city? Given that "nothing unclean" can ever come into the city, and our current reference to modern day kings brings unclean to mind, this question is raised. And these kings have glory. This passage does not answer the question, but there are other scriptures below which may hold big clues:
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"If we endure hardship, we will reign with him." 2 Timothy 2:12a
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"Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne." Revelation 3:21
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​"and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— and He made us into a kingdom, priests to His God and Father." Revelation 1:5-6a
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"And they sang a new song, saying,
“Worthy are You to take the scroll and to break its seals; for You were slaughtered, and You purchased people for God with Your blood from every tribe, language, people, and nation.
You have made them into a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign upon the earth." Revelation 5:9-10
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"Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him for a thousand years." Revelation 20:6
​​Here's an especially curious passage found in Revelation 2:26-28 :
"To all who are victorious, who obey me to the very end, To them I will give authority over all the nations.
They will rule the nations with an iron rod and smash them like clay pots.
They will have the same authority I received from my Father, and I will also give them the morning star!"
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​Why do the victorious smash the nations like clay pots?!
The passage does not say. However, as you just read and will read about further, there is a 1000 year reign of Christ (often referred to as the Millennial Kingdom). Satan is bound during this time, but released afterward and then finally cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:1-10). It is hard to distinguish time frames in scripture regarding end time events and the ages to come, but this smashing of the nations seems to be occurring just prior to that time period when the Lord returns in wrath.
Why does this seem to be the timing? Although we know from Matthew 25:32 that all the angels are with Jesus when he returns, Revelation 19:11-16 refers to another group specifically using this same iron rod reference in the passage above. It states that he is returning with the armies of heaven who are stated to be "dressed in bright, clean, fine linen.” Who are these armies? In Revelation 19:7c-8, these armies are identified with that same language again: "his bride has made herself ready. She was permitted to be dressed in bright, clean, fine linen (for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints)." We know the bride of Christ are the saints from other passages, but take special note here that the saints are coming back with the “King of kings and Lord of lords” when he comes to "strike down the nations" and "rule them with a rod of iron."
As you just read, the victorious are given the same authority Jesus received from the Father. Both are indicated in this role! These scriptures seem to suggest that we, the victorious saints, are likely the kings of the earth bringing their glory into the city in Revelation 21:21-27. It is with absolute certainty, however, that the saints will reign with Christ.
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The overwhelming truth is that all the kingdoms are given to the saints of the Highest One:
"Then the sovereignty, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the empires will serve and obey Him.’" Daniel 7:27
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Then we discover this in the Bible's final chapter:
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Revelation 22:1-7
"Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.
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Then the angel said to me, “Everything you have heard and seen is trustworthy and true. The Lord God, who inspires his prophets, has sent his angel to tell his servants what will happen soon.” “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book.”
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Revelation 22:12-15
“Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” Blessed are those who wash their robes. They will be permitted to enter through the gates of the city and eat the fruit from the tree of life. Outside the city are the dogs—the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idol worshipers, and all who love to live a lie.
​According to Strong's Concordance, the original word for soon can mean either without delay or suddenly, so it's possible that this means he is coming suddenly.
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The culmination of history will be the establishment of God's kingdom with all things put under his authority.
He will establish His kingdom on earth as well where Christ will reign 1000 years prior to the final destruction of Satan and the final judgment (Zechariah 2:10-12, 8:3,14:9, Obadiah 1:21c, Revelation 20:1-15).
God is already sovereign, but in his wisdom and plan, he saw fit to give Satan power in this world after the fall of Adam. In Luke 4:6, Satan admits while tempting Jesus, "I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me." It had to be given to him by God. He is a creation of God (Colossians 1:16, John 1:3) and merely an enemy; not his equal counterpart. Scripture shows us Satan could not act apart from God's permission (Job 1:12). Even during the temptation of Christ, Jesus was "led by the Spirit in the wilderness" under God's will and not Satan's. Nevertheless, "the whole world lies in the power of the evil one," 1 John 5:19 (see also in Ephesians 2:1-2, 2 Corinthians 4:4, John 14:30 and his destruction Revelation 20:7-10).
​"So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back."
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"After that the end will come, when he will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having destroyed every ruler and authority and power. For Christ must reign until he humbles all his enemies beneath his feet. And the last enemy to be destroyed is death. For the Scriptures say, “God has put all things under his authority.” (Of course, when it says “all things are under his authority,” that does not include God himself, who gave Christ his authority.) Then, when all things are under his authority, the Son will put himself under God’s authority, so that God, who gave his Son authority over all things, will be utterly supreme over everything everywhere." 1 Corinthians 15:20-28
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His plan for us and our very creation was based on His love.
(Even our suffering will be used for our benefit. See 2 Corinthians 4:11-17).
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"Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan." Ephesians 1:4-11​​
"He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding."
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Ephesians 1:8
It was with kindness that He chose us in advance to be adopted into his own family through Jesus Christ. It's only going to get better for those who are in Christ. Though the creation is suffering now, God will redeem it too. Scripture says:
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"Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are.
Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay." ​Romans 8:18-21
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It continues, "For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)" Romans 8:22-25
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Enabled to share in the inheritance and filled with joy that will overflow!
"He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins." Colossians 1:12b-14
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“I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!" John 15:9-11
"You will make known to me the way of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever." Psalm 16:11