THE
LAST
History
records many great and bloody battles that have been fought between tribes,
ethnic groups, empires and nations. Most wars were fought due to the ambition
of some power-hungry leaders in order to bring others with their lands and wealth
under their control, causing the untimely death of millions of young men in
their prime of life as well as the destruction of entire civilizations.
During the past
one hundred years, mankind has experienced two World Wars, and countless other
“conflicts” in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq, China, Ireland; in many African
nations, Central/South America, and the list goes on and on even to our present
day. When will it all end?
We have the
Biblical assurance that once the Lord Jesus Christ returns to assume full
control of earth’s affairs, He will cause wars to cease. People will not learn
war anymore (Isaiah 2:4; Micah 4:3). The Prince of Peace, the Lord Jesus, will
rule the earth with an “iron rod,”
showing His total and absolute control (Revelation
There will be one
final war to be fought at the end of this Kingdom. The Bible speaks of it in
Rev. 20:3 as “a little season”. This battle will be under the direction of
the victorious “King of kings and Lord of
lords,” and will see the final end of all evil and death.
We know that
Satan, after being released from his imprisonment, will still be unrepentant
and as ambitious as ever to carry out his original plan of ruling over mankind.
Strange as it may seem he will gather a following and set out to do battle
against God’s people and conquer the Kingdom, but his end will be sudden and
swift when he and all that align themselves with him are destroyed by a fire
that comes down from heaven (Revelation 20:7-10).
If God knows all of
Satan’s evil plans, the question is “why
does He not destroy him at the beginning of the Kingdom?” The Lord has
a good reason. During Satan’s
confinement all resurrected mankind
will be
given a full opportunity to learn the ways of
righteousness.
It is said that
today there are billions of Christians living in the world who can be divided
into two general classifications. One group has undergone a mind-conversion while the other group
has experienced a heart-conversion as
well. What is the difference between the two? Mind-converted Christians may claim belief in God, in Jesus, and in
the Bible. They often attend church
regularly and follow the rules of their denomination being fully satisfied with
their limited spiritual condition, but their
hearts have not been affected nor do they live by the spirit of the Lord.
These, unfortunately, form the great majority of Christians. They live their lives according to their own
will and as they please. Some have repented of sin, some have not, but they
know nothing or little of a life fully devoted in heart obedience and loyalty
to the Lord, His will and teachings. Then there are a minority of Christians
who are both heart and mind converted. These have asked the Lord to take full
control of their lives and seek to live in faithful obedience, acknowledging
God as their Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and the
Bible as God’s inspired Word of Truth. (See John 17:17.) These are promised to
“live and reign with Christ 1,000 years.”
In God’s Kingdom
on earth, all of resurrected mankind will come to an accurate knowledge of
truth (1 Timothy 2:4). They will be required to outwardly obey the laws of that
Kingdom but only the final test will reveal whether there has been a true heart
conversion and a full embracing of the ways of righteousness. Those who merely
profess righteousness outwardly will fail the test when given the opportunity
of choice and slip back into their evil ways following their true hearts’
desire for self-gratification and lust. Rev.
21:7, 8 says, “He who overcomes will
inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be My son. But the cowardly,
the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who
practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars -- their place will be in the
fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." Those who fail the final test in the last battle will be destroyed
forever along with Satan and his evil angels. This also is an act of God’s love
for those who would not be happy to live under just and righteous conditions.
They will be as though they had never had life, extinct forever. The righteous
shall be rewarded with everlasting life and will live for all eternity on a
restored and perfect earth. Yes, God will be their God, they will be His
children, and “God will be All in All!” (1
Corinthians 15:28).
Gaetano Boccaccio