Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:6—NIV)

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. (Revelation 20:12—NIV)

The Day of the Lord

As I understand it, the Day of the Lord will last throughout the thousand-year period often referred to as the "Millennium," but which I term the "Kingdom Age." I think the purpose of the thousand years is to prepare the Bride, the new Jerusalem, for her descent to the new earth as the eternal dwelling place of God.

The Day of the Lord will begin with a resurrection and end with a resurrection.

The resurrection at the beginning is for the royal priesthood, the Lord's victorious saints. This resurrection must be attained.

The resurrection that will occur at the end of the thousand years is the general resurrection. It will include all who were not raised in the first resurrection. It is at this second resurrection that the determination will be made whether an individual will be brought forward into the new heaven and earth reign of Christ, or whether he or she will be thrown into the Lake of Fire and separated from God forever.

The Apostle John refers to the resurrection at the beginning of the Kingdom Age as the "first resurrection." It is for the blessed and holy royal priesthood.

As I interpret the language of the Scripture, most people will be spared the Lake of Fire. But they will be ushered into eternal life in the Kingdom in various states of personality.

If we of today would aspire to the resurrection and catching up when Jesus appears, then we must, as Paul stated, attain to this resurrection by leaving all else aside and pursuing Christ with all the diligence we can muster. We must learn to live in the power of His resurrection. We must choose to share His sufferings and be conformed to His death.

The current notion that all who have made a profession of Christ will be raised and caught up when He appears is contrary to the Scripture. The rewards we associate with being a Christian, as described in the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation, are assigned by the Scripture to the overcomers—to the believers who have pressed through to victory in Jesus.

It is demonstrably true that numerous Christian believers are not living in victory in Jesus. To teach them they will be rewarded with authority and power even though they have not lived victoriously in the Lord Jesus is cruel and heartless beyond belief. We indeed are a false prophet, a false shepherd, when we tell the American believers of today they will rule with Christ over the nations.

The best numerous American believers can hope for is to be saved as by fire. This means all of their inheritance and most of their personality will be burned away and they will enter eternity as a naked spirit. Why is this? Because they have not served Christ. They and their teachers who curried favor with them are facing a frightful future. Most of the punishments outlined in the Gospel accounts are directed toward the Lord's servants, not the unbelievers.

I know this is true because it is what the Scriptures state; and the Scriptures cannot possibly be changed even though we American Christians think we are so favored of God that He would never let us suffer. We are greatly deluded.

It still is not too late to turn away from our lukewarm discipleship and seek the Lord with a fervent heart. But the day may come when we have passed the point of no return. Then, like Esau, we will seek the inheritance but it is lost to us forever and ever.

To be continued.