In order to understand end-time events, we must first understand the judgment. Contrary to what some believe, the judgment is not a quick decision made by God either at the time of a person’s death or at the end of the world. The sanctuary service that God set up with the Israelites under Moses shows us the process of salvation. Through the rituals in that service, in particular on the Day of Atonement, we see how seriously God takes the process of judgment.
It is important to note that the millennium is not the reward. It is actually an important part of the lengthy judgment process.
Since the beginning of time, people have accused God of being unfair. When terrible things have happened, people have railed against God, blaming Him for the tragedy, the trial, and the pain.
Probably nearly everyone has had an experience in his or her life where they questioned God. The millennium is God’s answer to those questions. It is a beautiful part of the plan by which God will prove that His judgments, His actions, and His dealings have been just. It is the time when God will lay open the books of heaven to be examined.
During the millennium, we will be examining what God has been up to all this time, and why things turned out the way they did. We will be able to understand what really happened. We will be able to read the secret conversations, the private thoughts of each and every person who did not make it to heaven. We will finally be able to understand the “why” of the trials and pain of our lives.
So we see that the judgment involves more than just God judging us. In fact, the purpose of the judgment is three-fold:
- To decide who must be stricken from the Book of Life because they have chosen to reject God’s sacrifice on their behalf (see Psalm 62:12; Proverbs 24:12; Romans 2:5-11; and Revelation 3:5, 20:15, 21:27, 22:12).
- To set the record straight about the origin of sin and to vindicate God's character and dealings with humanity (see 1 Corinthians 4:5, 6:2-3).
- To mete out the reward or sentence to each person who has ever lived, either by pronouncing them worthy of eternal life, raising them in the resurrection at Christ’s Coming, and taking them to heaven, or by permitting them to perish (see Revelation 22:12). Why does God not save everyone?
Not all of these purposes are fulfilled at the same time. The first purpose is fulfilled before Christ’s Second Coming. Before He comes, Christ must judge every person and decide who will receive the reward. At Christ's Second Coming, He comes to collect those that have chosen His sacrifice and lived their lives in submission to His principles. Read about what it really means to live for Christ and to live by faith
In the thousand years of peace that follow, known as the millennium, these people will be given the opportunity to review the judgments of God and determine their justness. In the meantime, those that have chosen to reject Christ's offer of eternal life will be dead, smote by the brightness of His coming. There will be no one left on Earth during the millennium.
After the millennium, when God returns with His people, those that have been left on earth and that chose to reject Christ’s offer of eternal life are resurrected, shown that they were wrong, and then perish forever. Only when this final phase takes place will every aspect of judgment be officially complete.
The millennium is actually an opportunity for us to make sure that God has not made a mistake in His judgment before the rejecters of His mercy receive their reward. It is like a safety measure to ensure that we're all in agreement with God's decisions concerning each person. There will be many in heaven who will have loved ones missing. Each person will examine the records and see that God's judgments are just. The millennium serves as an opportunity for God to be vindicated in all His dealings with humanity since the beginning of time.
The following articles further explain the Biblical judgment:
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This article is adapted from Truth Matters by Professor Walter J. Veith, an international speaker who has studied Biblical issues in-depth in his quest for truth. His popular series Genesis Conflict brings the debate between Creation and evolution to a new climax as he dissects the arguments with a scientific eye. His highly-acclaimed series Total Onslaught sheds light on the state of the world today as we move to a one-world government and an anticipated apocalypse.
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Understanding the Creation Week
The Rise of Evolutionary Thinking
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Lamarck Proposes Natural Selection
Age Of The Earth Is Carbon-Dating Accurate?
Flood Chronology
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Persecution in the First Centuries
An Era of Spiritual Darkness The Waldenses
John Wycliffe Huss and Jerome
Luther's Separation From Rome
Luther Before the Diet The Swiss Reformer
Progress of Reform in Germany
Protest of the Princes The French Reformation
The Netherlands and Scandinavia
Later English Reformers
The Bible and the French Revolution
The Pilgrim Fathers Heralds of the Morning
An American Reformer Light Through Darkness
A Great Religious Awakening A Warning Rejected
Prophecies Fulfilled What is the Sanctuary?
In the Holy of Holies God's Law Immutable
A Work of Reform Modern Revivals
Facing Life's Record The Origin of Evil
Enmity Between Man and Satan
Agency of Evil Spirits Snares of Satan
The First Great Deception
Can Our Dead Speak to Us?
Liberty of Conscience Threatened
The Impending Conflict
The Scriptures a Safeguard The Final Warning
The Time of Trouble God's People Delivered
Desolation of the Earth The Controversy Ended
Is Revelation a Sealed Book?
Revelation 1: Jesus, The Heart of Revelation
Revelation 1 Commentary: The Revelation of Jesus
Revelation 2 Commentary: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira
Revelation 2-3: Letters to Seven Churches
Revelation 3 Commentary: Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea
The Lamb and the Sealed Book
Revelation 4 Commentary: The Throne in Heaven
Revelation 5 Commentary: The Scroll and the Lamb
Revelation 6 Commentary: The Vision of Seven Seals
Revelation 7 Commentary: The 144,000
Revelation 8 Commentary: Seven Trumpets
Revelation 9 Commentary: The Bottomless Pit
Revelation 10 Commentary: A Little Book
Revelation 11 Commentary: Two Witnesses
Revelation 12 Commentary: The Woman and the Dragon
Revelation 13 Commentary: Two Beasts
Revelation 14 Commentary: Three Angels' Messages
Revelation 15 Commentary: Seven Angels, Seven Plagues
Revelation 16 Commentary: Seven Bowls of God's Anger
Revelation 17 Commentary: A Woman Rides the Beast
Revelation 18 Commentary: Babylon Falls
Revelation 19 Commentary: The Rider on the White Horse
Revelation 20 Commentary: Millennium and the Judgment
Revelation 21 Commentary: The New Jerusalem
Revelation 22 Commentary: Invitation and Warning