The Resurrections And Judgments Associated With The Second Advent Of Jesus Christ
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday May 3, 2009
The Day of the Lord: The Resurrections And Judgments Associated With The Second Advent Of Jesus Christ
Lesson # 25
Please turn in your Bibles to Daniel 12:1.
This morning we will continue with our study of the prophetic subject known as “the Day of the Lord” by continuing to note the “Second Advent of Jesus Christ.”
At His “Second Advent,” the Lord Jesus Christ will destroy the Tribulational armies, have Antichrist and the False Prophet thrown into the Lake of Fire (Rev. 19:11-19), will imprison Satan for a thousand years (Rev. 20:1-3) and will establish His millennial reign on planet earth (Rev. 20:4-6).
In our last two classses we have studied this subject as it is recorded in Revelation 19:11-20:3 as well as recorded in the Gospels and Old Testament prophets.
This morning we will study the Second Advent of Jesus Christ by noting the resurrections and judgments that are associated with this great event.
The Old Testament associated confident expectation of resurrection with the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.
For instance, in Daniel 12:2, the resurrection of Old Testament believers is seen to be an event subsequent to Daniel’s Seventieth Week when Antichrist is reigning.
Daniel 12:1, “Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued.”
The statement “there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time” is a reference to Daniel’s Seventieth Week and specifically, the last three and a half years of this period, which is also denoted by the phrase “at that time” that follows it.
“Your people” is a reference to the nation of Israel since Daniel was a member of it and the statement “everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued” refers to those born-again Jews who will be rescued from the Western and Eastern Confederacies at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.
Daniel 12:2, “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.”
The statement “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life” teaches that those born-again Jews who died will be raised from the dead subsequent to the nation of Israel’s deliverance from the Tribulation period.
The statement “but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt” refers to those non-believers in Israel who will raised from the dead subsequent to Israel’s deliverance by the Second Advent of Jesus Christ but in contrast to the believers, they will suffer eternal condemnation in the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:4 teaches that subsequent to the Second Advent of Jesus Christ when Satan is thrown into prison for a thousand years, both Jewish and Gentile believers who died for the cause of Jesus Christ during the Tribulation period will be raised from the dead to reign with Christ during His millennial reign.
Revelation 20:1, “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.”
Revelation 20:2, “And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.”
Revelation 20:3, “And he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.”
Revelation 20:4, “Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.”
Revelation 20:5, “The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection.”
The “first resurrection” is a reference to Old Testament and Tribulation believers who will be raised from the dead at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ.
The statement “The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed” is a reference to every non-believer in human history who will be raised after the millennium.
Revelation 20:6, “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.”
“The second death” is a reference to the perpetuation of real spiritual death in the eternal lake of fire, which every non-believer in human history will experience as a result of rejecting Jesus Christ as their Savior.
The chronological order of events in God’s resurrection program: (1) The humanity of Christ in hypostatic union (Matthew 28; Mark 16:1-14; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-9). (2) The Church at the rapture, which takes place prior to Daniel’s Seventieth Week (1 Cor. 15:51-58; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; Philippians 3:21). (3) Old Testament believers and Tribulation martyrs at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ, which ends Daniels’ Seventieth Week (Daniel 12:2-3; Revelation 20:4). (4) Every non-believer in human history will be raised from the dead at the Great White Throne Judgment of unbelievers at the end of human history (Daniel 12:2; Revelation 20:11-15).
Next, we must note that there will be two judgments conducted by the Lord Jesus Christ immediately after His Second Advent and just prior to His millennial reign.
In fact, only believers will be living at the start of the millennial reign of our Lord as a result of these judgments.
Those Israelites and Gentiles who reject Jesus Christ as Savior are removed from the earth whereas those who trust in Him as Savior will enter the millennium.
The judgment of those Israelites who survive the Tribulation is referred to in Ezekiel 20:33-37 and Malachi 3:2-6 whereas Matthew 25:31-46 speaks of the judgment of those Gentiles who survive the Tribulation.
The chronology of prophesied events by our Lord in Matthew 24 and 25 indicates that the Lord Jesus Christ will judge Israel immediately upon returning at His Second Advent and then after this He will judge the Gentiles.
The chronology of events listed in Matthew 24 and 25: (1) First three and a half years of Daniel’s Seventieth Week (Matthew 24:4-6) (2) Last three and a half years of Daniel’s Seventieth Week (Matthew 24:7-28) (3) The Second Advent of Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:29-30) (4) The elect angels will regather Israel (Matthew 24:31). (5) The Lord Jesus Christ will judge Israel (Matthew 25:1-30) (6) The Lord Jesus Christ will judge the Gentiles (Matthew 25:31-46). (7) Millennium.
A comparison of Daniel 9:27, 12:11 and 13 teaches that the Lord Jesus Christ will conduct these judgments for 45 days.
This is indicated in that Daniel 9:27 teaches that Daniel’s Seventieth Week is divided into two periods of 1,260 days (Daniel 9:27).
Daniel 12:11 speaks of 1,290 days from the time of Antichrist abolishing the sacrifice and setting himself up as God, which indicates that there will be a 30 day interval to cleanse the temple.
Then, Daniel 12:12 says that blessed is the person who attains to the 1,335 days, which gives us an additional 45 days beyond the 30 day interval, giving us a total of 75 days, which refers to the period in which the Lord will judge both Israel and the Gentiles to determine who will enter His millennial reign.
The following is a chronology of judgments that will take place subsequent to the rapture of the church:
(1) “Bema Seat Evaluation”: The name “Bema” is taken from the Greek noun bema and this judgment takes place immediately after the rapture and is an “evaluation” of the church age believer’s life after salvation to determine if they merit rewards or not (1 Corinthians 3:11-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 1 John 2:24).
(2) The judgment of “Israel” will take place immediately after the Second Advent and prior to the millennial reign and involves the removal of unregenerate Israel from the earth leaving only regenerate Israel to enter into the Millennial reign of Christ (Ezekiel 20:37-38; Zechariah 13:8-9; Malachi 3:2-3, 5; Matthew 25:1-30).
(3) The judgment of the “Gentiles” and also takes place immediately after the Second Advent of Christ and prior to His millennial reign and involves the removal of unregenerate, anti-Semitic Gentiles from the earth (Matthew 25:31-46).
(4) The judgment of Satan and his fallen angels and will take place at the end of the appeal trial of Satan, which runs co-terminus with human history and is the execution of Satan and the fallen angels sentence for their pre-historic rebellion against God (Matthew 25:41; 1 Corinthians 6:3; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6; Revelation 20:10).
(5) The “Great White Throne” judgment, which will take place at the end of human history and is the judgment of all unregenerate humanity in human history for their rejection of Christ as Savior (Revelation 20:11-15).
This leads us to the communion service and so therefore, could we have our ushers pass out the communion elements and let us take a few minutes to meditate upon the Lord and prepare ourselves for the Lord’s Supper.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26, “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ In the same way {He took} the cup also after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink {it} in remembrance of Me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.”