ALL  ABOUT  HEAVEN
. What does anyone really. KNOW .about Heaven?
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Who is going? .How will they get there? .Exactly what is required?
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READ WHAT..SCRIPTURE..SAYS ABOUT HEAVEN
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Perhaps the most important aspect of Heaven is who is presently there, and who will get to go there.  In that vein no other verses of Scripture establish the facts better than Revelation 20:4 through 20:6, which make it clear that, at the Second Coming of Christ, the only people in Heaven who will be returning to earth with Him are His twelve apostles and those who have been physically murdered for their witness of Christ, and/or witness for the Word of God.

Revelation 20:4
"And I saw thrones, and saw they who sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them:".

Matthew 19:28 identifies those sitting on these thrones:
"And Jesus said unto his apostles,  Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory,.ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones,.judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Notice there are only twelve thrones available.

Revelation 20:4 identifies those who will reign with Christ:
"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 worshipped the beast (materialism), neither its image, neither had received its mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; and THEY lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.  This is the first resurrection."
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Revelation 20:6 reiterates verse four:
"Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection:  over such the second death (eternal death) hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ,.and .THEY. shall reign with him a thousand years."

Please take note that at least in part, the above described resurrection took place at the time of Christ's resurrection, but could be "added to" by Christ at any time.

"And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,  And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.    (Matthew 27:52-53)

Verse four and verse six, make it clear that only Christ's twelve apostles and those who have been murderedfor their testimony will be returning with Christ to reign over the earth, and that only His apostles will have thrones.

Jesus put it this way:
"And then shall he (Jesus) send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven."   (Mark 13:27)

Revelation 1:1 makes it clear that the Book of Revelation was given to none other than Jesus, by none other than Almighty God:  And, since Jesus had already used Revelation 20:4 and 6 to make it clear who is now in Heaven, and who will be returning to reign with Him:  It is reasonable to conclude that by the phrase "HIS ELECT", Christ is referring to His twelve apostles and all those who were martyred in accordance with Revelation.

Revelation 1:1 states:
"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him ...  (which Christ then gave to an angel to give to John).
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Which makes CHRIST the Revelator, not John.
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Now, read Revelation 20, verse 5:
"But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished."

Therefore EVERYONE who has died, except the twelve apostles and those who were in fact murdered for their testimony for Jesus, and/or for The Most High God,  will remain in their graves until the Great White Throne Judgment by Christ, which does not take place until  AFTER  his thousand year Reign.

The above does not apply to those who are Raptured.

Please take note from Daniel 7:9-14 (which we quote below) that Christ's thousand year reign does not BEGIN until immediately AFTER his heavenly father, The Most High God, has destroyed the fourth empire (kingdom) by fire.
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The often taught church doctrine that people who have just died have somehow instantly "gone" to be with The Lord,.and the church doctrine that believers are "going straight to heaven" when they die, are obviously in direct conflict with what Christ has emphatically stated in the above Scriptures.
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As you can see from Scripture,  both of these church doctrines are simply false teachings, since at no place in the Bible does God's Word either say or even imply any such thing.  Neither will any church institution claiming it, or your pastor saying it, be able to make it happen.  These are false teachings.  Simple as that.
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Moreover, there's no Scripturally supporting verses for the church doctrine that claims Jesus promised that you would go to heaven to be with Him:  Because, Jesus never made any such promise.
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Instead:   What Jesus did promise, is that if you publicly accept Him as your Savior, and are faithful to confess your sins to His Heavenly Father in Jesus' Name, and do your best to stop committing them, you will be granted Salvation, which by all definitions means Eternal Life.  Which simply means you will be spared eternal death and live forever.

SALVATION:  1. The act of saving;  preservation or deliverance from destruction, danger, or great calamity.   (Dictionary.com/salvation)

However, since Salvation is by no means the same as going to Heaven, this leaves you with the predicament as to where you will SPEND your Eternal Life.

Note:  The only exception to the above is made for those who qualify to be Raptured, which we cover in a different article (see link titled RAPTURE at the bottom of this page).  Those who are Raptured do not suffer death, but go to be refined by God Himself, and are excluded from anything that is being discussed within this immediate text.

The problem is, unless you happen to be martyrd for Christ, which isn't likely:  Short of being a candidate for the Rapture,..those who have died, and those who are going to die, are going to spend the next thousand years in the ground as they wait for the Great White Throne Judgment by Christ.
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Understand that it's not us telling you that, God Himself has made it clear in the verses of Scripture we are citing.
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Read where those mentioned in the next three paragraphs will be spending their Eternity.
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Those in the following paragraph will spend Eternity in.HELL.
Please take note that with reference to  non-believers,.the abominable, the fearful,  murderers,  whoremongers,  sorcerers,  idolaters,  and all liars:  Revelation 21:8 makes it clear that these shall have their part in the lake of fire: which is Hell,  otherwise known as the second death.

"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."..  (Revelation 21:8)

Those in this paragraph will spend Eternity in.HEAVEN.
Now, take note, that with regard to Believers,  Revelation 22:14 makes it clear that those who keep his commandments, will have a right to the tree of life, and will be permitted to enter the gates of Heaven.

"Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."   (Revelation 22:14)

Keep in mind that after publicly accepting Christ as your Savior, sincere confession of sin erases it from God's record, and thereby makes it as though it never happened, so long as you repent, and resign yourself to do your best to no longer commit it.  But even confession is not a permission slip to freely continue to commit the same sin over and over again.

REPENT: 1. to feel sorry, self-reproachful, or contrite for past conduct; regret or be conscience-stricken about a past action, attitude, etc.  -  He repented after his thoughtless act. ..(Dictionary.com/repent).

Those mentioned below will spend Eternity just outside. HEAVEN.
Note, that in the very next verse (Revelation 22:15),  God makes it clear that those who do not keep His Commandments, will be forced to remain OUTSIDE the gates of Heaven for Eternity.

"For without (the Great City - Heaven) are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie."  (Revelation 22:15)

Believe it or not, those spending Eternity just outside the Gates of Heaven, never being permitted to enter, are those who in fact made their personal commitment to Christ, but then had no WORKS when it came time to be Judged.   (more later)

So then, as far as where a person could spend Eternity, there are only three possible choices:  (1) In hell,  (2) In Heaven,  or, (3) Just outside the Gates to Heaven, never being allowed to enter,  and, as stated in Daniel 12:2, spending it in shame and everlasting contempt.
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As for how you will spend YOUR Eternity:
Scripture makes it very clear that in addition to the requirement that a person must publicly accept Christ as their personal Savior and confess their sins in the manner we described above: .Every person will be Judged by Christ at the Great White Throne Judgement, based on their WORKS.

"For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works." . (Matthew 16:27)
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"And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." ..(Revelation 20:12)
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"And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works."..(Revelation 20:13)

We encourage you to search Scripture trying to prove this report wrong.  In fact, we not only encourage you to use SCRIPTURE to verify what we are telling you, we will even give you a totally FREE copy of a fully searchable Original King James Bible to make it easy for you to do so.  Just click on this link and follow the downloading instructions.

http://www.theamericannightmare.org/Entire_Bible-open_with_Word_Pad.rtf

As you search you will note that as far as WORKS are concerned:
In addition to requiring you to give to the poor,  care for widows and orphans,  and visit those in prison, The Lord placed A LOT of emphasis on diseminating (spreading) His Holy Word.

"But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.   (Matthew 10:6-7)

"What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light:  and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops."  (In other words be very vocal about it) ..(Matthew 10:27)

"Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God."  (Luke 8:60)

"Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word." ..(Acts 8:4)

"And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach..." ..(Mark 3:14)

"And he said unto them,  Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." ..(Mark 16:15)

Paul also put it this way:  " ... that they be rich in good works, .ready to distribute, .willing to communicate (The Word of God);  Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.   (1-Timothy 6:18-19)
 

As a matter of fact, in Jeremiah 50:2, God Himself literally COMMANDED every believer to PUBLISH it, saying:

"Publish, and conceal not:  say, Babylon is taken, Bel (the god of materialism) is confounded, Merodach (the god of immorality) is broken in pieces;  her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces."   (Jeremiah 50:2)

Which is exactly what each of the 150 or so articles in this report proclaim.
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However, in order to truly understand that which is written above, one must first understand the prophesied sequence of events that will lead up to the Second Coming of Christ.  And in doing so, one should then understand the REASONS WHY  things are as they are;  and why WORKS is generally defined as spreading The Word Of God.
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In other words, once a person understands the sequence of events, they can better understand what the war is all about that we as Christians are .SUPPOSED.to be fighting.
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However:  In order to understand the prophesied sequence of events, one must first understand and accept that Christ did not come to save the world, .but instead,  as is made clear by Matthew 12:18,   Christ came to bring Judgment to the gentiles.

"Behold my servant, whom I have chosen;  my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased:  I will put my spirit upon him,  and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles."   (Matthew 12:18)

This also means that neither God nor Christ are here to serve you,  but that instead, YOU were created to serve THEM.  So much for the "gimme - gimme" doctrines that claim God promised great wealth.

Having established the above:
As you will see from the verses below:  God used Daniel 2:37 and 38 to establish the Scriptural fact that He first set up king Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the original Babylon, to be the "king of kings".

"Thou, O king Nebuchadnezzar, art a king of kings:  for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.   (Daniel 2:37)
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And wheresoever the CHILDREN of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath He given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all.  Thou, king Nebuchadnezzar,  art this head of gold.  (The term "gold" is used to imply something that will last forever.)   (Daniel 2:38)
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Please take note that it says "where ever the CHILDREN of men dwell,  king Nebuchadnezzar will be the king of kings.
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Which means that until Jesus unseats Nebuchadnezzar as the King of kings (the king of materialism), THAT is what the war that Christians are SUPPOSED to be fighting is all about.

And how do we as Christians accomplish this ?

There is only one way,  and that is to actively spread The TRUE Word Of God,
MINUS all the false doctrines that are now pouring out of our churches !!

However, in his capacity as the original "king of kings",  king Nebuchadnezzar betrayed God and turned the original Babylon into an Empire that worshipped materialism instead of HIM: .So, God gave him a Vision in which he (Nebuchadnezzar) was told to:

"Hew down the tree [reduce the size of this form of government],.and cut off his branches [colonies],
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Shake off his leaves [reduce the burden of its workers],..Scatter his fruit [production]:
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Let the beasts [governments].get away from under it.[out from under its protection],
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And the fowls from its branches [make its entrepreneurs stay out of its colonies]:"....(Daniel 4:14)

To which the following discernment was then added:
"Nevertheless leave the roots of materialism in the earth, so as to not kill materialism altogether, but instead, build very strong controls over it, to contain it; Because the effect of materialism can be overwhelming to other nations.  Let materialism be nourished by God Almighty, and let HIM control the earth's governments, for the benefit of His people ..."...(also see Daniel 4:14-15)
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Simply stated, The Most High God will not tolerate materialistic, expansionist, and/or protectionist types of governments.
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But, of course, history documents that instead of listening to God, king Nebuchadnezzar betrayed Him and built the original, very much expansionist, protectionist, world-wide Babylonian empire, which, as documented by its still famous outrageous "Hanging Gardens" was based on the principles of materialism.
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Keep in mind that the first time the word "BABYLON" appears in the Bible is at Joshua 7:21, where Achan coveted a "Babylonish" garment, et al, and hid them in his tent.  For which God had Achan and his entire family stoned to death.  That should tell you what God thinks of people, and of nations, who covet material THINGS !!

COVET:...1. to desire wrongfully, inordinately, or without due regard for the rights of others: to covet another's property.  2. to wish for, especially eagerly: He won the prize they all coveted. (Dictionary.com/covet)

Verses 39 and 40 (quoted below) are then used to establish the identity of what is thereafter referred to as the fourth Babylonian (materialistic) empire, otherwise known as the nation God has vowed to destroy by fire.

And after thee king Nebuchadnezzar shall arise another (a second) kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.   (Daniel 2:39)

Please take note that along with the original Babylonian Empire, the British Empire has been the only empire in history that has ruled the entire world.  Which makes England the only possible choice as the third empire.

"0'Daughter of Babylon, who is to be Destroyed..."  (Psalm 137:8)
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Now, let me ask you, does the phrase "Mother England" sound familiar?  It should! It was a very common term clear up through the 1960's.  Because America is indeed the DAUGHTER of England.
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You might also want to read Jeremiah 50:42, and 51:33.
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Which leaves The United States as the only choice for the subject fourth empire.

And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.     (Daniel 2:40)

Now note that the remainder of chapter two,  as well as most of the remainder of the entire Book of Daniel, is then used to describe what Almighty God considers to be the abominable conducts and attributes of the FOURTH materialistic empire mentioned in verse 40 above, referring to it's government as a beast all the way through the Book of Revelation.
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Daniel 7:9 through 14 (which is quoted below) is then used to clearly establish the sequence of events that will lead up to the Second Coming of Christ,  and to JESUS unseating Nebuchadnezzar as the king of kings:
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First, while continuing to refer to the subject fourth empire (kingdom) Daniel 7:11 declares that God will destroy this "beast" (government), along with its body (landmass), with fire.

"I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn (leader) spake: I beheld even till the beast  (government)  was slain, and its body (landmass) destroyed, and given to the burning flame. (Daniel 7:11)
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These verses further describe the destruction of the fourth empire:
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:   (Jesus, in Matthew 24:29)
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"And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise." (Revelation 8:12)
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"And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.  And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power." (Revelation 9:2)

Now, notice that in the very next verse (verse 7:12) the nations that remain after the fourth empire has been destroyed by fire, are granted an additional thousand years to continue to exist.

"As concerning the rest of the beasts (governments), they had their dominion (authority to govern men) taken away:  yet their lives (existences) were prolonged for a season and time..(A thousand years plus some time.) (Daniel 7:12)

"And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,"   (Revelation 20:7)   (The period during which satan will be loosed represents the "and time" aspect of verse 7:12.)
 

Also notice from verse twelve (above) that the nations which remain after God has destroyed the fourth empire with fire, are stripped of their authority to govern men.  That's because the very next two verses (verses 13 and 14 below) declare that these remaining nations will be Ruled by Jesus, The Risen Christ, .and become HIS Kingdom on earth, thereby unseating king Nebuchadnezzar,.making.JESUS.the new KING of kings.

"I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man (Jesus) came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days (Almighty God), and they brought him (Jesus) near before him.   (Daniel 7:13)
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And there was given him (Jesus) dominion, and glory,  and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him:  his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away,  and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed."   (Daniel 7:14)
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"And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.   (Matthew 24:30)
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"And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.   And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.  (Revelation 19:13-14)
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"And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.   (Matthew 24:31)

We just told you what God said would happen,  and what Christ said would happen.  Although on the surface there appears to be a conflict with what Paul says will happen:  Because in 1-Thessalonians 4:13 Paul appears to say that when people die they go straight to Heaven.

That is, unless you read and analyze every word he says,  because once you do, you will realize Paul's describing an entirely different event from the one we've been discussing, which doesn't take place until AFTER the thousand year reign of Christ.

So, as you read what Paul says will happen, do just exactly that,  analyze each and every word he says in 1-Thessalonians 4:13-17.  Then read Revelation 20:5-12, which we also quote below.

1-Thessalonians 4:13
"But I (Paul) would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep (dead), that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.  (Those going to hell.)

(14).. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,  even so them also which sleep in Jesus (the saved) will God bring with him.

(15).. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord,  that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord (referring to those Christians who will be alive when Christ returns) shall not prevent them which are asleep.  (Shall not prevent the dead from being resurrected.)

(16).. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: .and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  (Yes, in view of all the above, it would be very hard to imagine God raising non-believers before He raised those who believe.)

(17).. Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds,.to meet the Lord in the air: .and so shall we ever be with the Lord.  (1-Thessalonians 4:13-17)

As just a side note, please absorb the fact that verse 16 makes it clear that Jesus uses the voice of Michael the Arch Angel.

Now then, it's important that you notice two things in Paul's above quoted writing.  First, take note that he is specifically referring to those who will be. ALIVE .at the point in time he is referring to.  Secondly, he specifically states that the "dead in Christ" shall rise first.

Ok, those two facts make it obvious that people. DO NOT .go straight to Heaven when they die, because if they did, there would. BE .no dead in Christ to require being resurrected !!

Second Timothy 2:12 also makes it clear that only those who suffer will reign with Christ.   "If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us."   (2-Timothy 2:12)
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However, allow us to straighten out any possible conflict between what Paul said, and what God and Christ have said, because in his declarations made in 1-Thessalonians 4:13-17, Paul is referring to the time of the Great White Throne Judgement, which as Scripture makes clear, will not take place until AFTER Christ's thousand year reign,  and in the meantime (unless you qualify to be Raptured),  if you should die, you will be spending the next thousand years in the ground.  Thus, says all discernable Scripture,  as per Revelation 20:5-12, which we quote below.

Revelation 20:5-6
"But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. .This is the first resurrection.

(6)...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.

Verses 5 and 6 above pertain to the event that God and Christ were referring to in Revelation 20:4-6, which we described in detail at the beginning of this text.

Now, in the NEXT verse take note that the thousand year reign of Christ is being said to have PASSED !!

(7)...And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,

Although they are important, since they do not concern the subject matter we are describing we have put the next three verses in smaller print.

(8)...And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog, and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

(9)...And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

(10)...And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

HERE,  IS THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGEMENT:
NOTICE THAT IT TAKES PLACE .AFTER.CHRIST'S THOUSAND YEAR REIGN.
Revelation 20:11
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

HERE'S THE EVENT PAUL WAS DESCRIBING, WHERE THE DEAD IN CHRIST ARE RAISED FIRST.
(12)...And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

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