Scripture Reading: Rev. 20:1-6; 19:11-16, 19-21

DAY 1 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 2 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 3 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 4 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 5 Outline　MorningRevival

DAY 6 Outline　MorningRevival

«　WEEK 46　DAY 1　»

　　Rev. 20:1-2 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.

　　In Revelation 20:1-4 we see that Christ is the Establisher of the kingdom. After fighting all His enemies, Christ will establish the kingdom of God on the earth, the millennial kingdom, and reign with His overcoming believers for a thousand years. Between the rapture of the overcomers and the beginning of the millennial kingdom, many things will take place. Immediately after the rapture of the man-child, a loud voice in heaven says, “Now has come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ” (12:10). Actually, the kingdom will not come at that time, for the three and a half years of the great tribulation are yet to come. Nevertheless, in the eyes of those who have been raptured to the heavens, the kingdom has already come. During the last three and a half years of this age, the following things will take place: the rapture of the majority of the saints; the destruction of religious Babylon, that is, the annihilation of Catholicism; the destruction of Judaism; and the fall of material Babylon. Following all this, there will be the war at Armageddon. The whole earth must be cleared up as a preparation for God's kingdom to come. At the time of Revelation 20, nearly everything has been cleared up. Only one thing remains, and that is Satan, the source of all the problems. Therefore, the first item mentioned in Revelation 20, a chapter concerning the millennium, is the binding of Satan. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4349-4350)

　　According to the prophecies of the Bible, the millennial kingdom is in two sections: the upper, heavenly, section and the lower, earthly, section. The upper section of the millennium is called the kingdom of the Father (Matt.

　　13:43), and the lower section is called the kingdom of the Son of Man (v. 41). The kingdom of the Messiah, or the Messianic kingdom, is another name for the lower section of the millennium.

　　In the millennial kingdom there will be three peoples. The first are the overcoming saints, including those of both the Old Testament and the New Testament. These overcoming saints will be co-kings of Christ. Christ is the highest King, and we will be His sub-kings. Therefore, the upper section is the royal portion of the millennium.

　　The second group, found in the lower section, is the preserved and proper Jews, who will be saved at the time of the Lord's coming back. According to Zechariah 12:10-14, these Jews will look on Him whom they have pierced, and then they will repent. These are the Jews who will be the third part who will pass through fire and be refined (13:9). These saved Jews will enter into the millennium as priests and will teach the nations to seek God and to know Him. Isaiah 2:2-3 will be fulfilled at that time…The nations will learn of God through the instruction of the Jews, who will be priests. Isaiah 61:6 says, “You will be called the priests of Jehovah; / People will speak of you as the ministers of our God.”

　　Zechariah 8:23 says, “Thus says Jehovah of hosts, In those days, from all the languages of the nations, ten men will take hold, indeed, they will take hold of the skirt of a Jewish man, saying, Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.” This verse indicates that every Jew will be precious. In those days the Jews will be warmly welcomed.

　　The third group of people in the millennial kingdom will be the “sheep” spoken of in Matthew 25.

　　In the lower section of the millennium, called the kingdom of the Son of Man, Jesus as the seed of David will be King over the Jews and, through the Jews, over all the nations…This is the kingdom of the Son of Man and the kingdom of the Messiah. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4352-4353)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 427

«　WEEK 46　DAY 2　»

　　Rev. 20:4-6 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them…This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no authority, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.

　　Revelation 20:4-6 reveals that Christ as the Establisher of the kingdom will reign with the overcoming saints. Because the overcomers bring in the kingdom of Jesus Christ, the Lord will reign for a thousand years, and the overcomers will also reign with Christ for a thousand years…To have the authority to judge means to have the kingdom (cf. Dan. 7:10, 18, 22). Therefore,…verse 4 in Revelation 20 indicates that the overcomers have received and are enjoying the kingdom.

　　Verse 4 also says, “I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and of those who had not worshipped the beast nor his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.” Those who have been “beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God” are the martyrs throughout the church age, as mentioned in 6:9. Undoubtedly, Peter, Paul, James, Stephen, and the many others slain throughout the centuries will be included in this group. These saints, martyred for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, will be resurrected to be co-kings of Christ. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4353-4354)

　　The overcomers become qualified to reign with Christ by the humanity of Jesus being worked into them. Christ who is the unique proper man dwells in our spirit as the Spirit of Jesus. Such a One with all the proper human virtues is in us to be our humanity. When we have His humanity, we will put Satan to shame and be the kingdom of God.

　　Revelation 20:6 speaks of “the first resurrection.” The Greek word translated “first” is the same word translated “best” in Luke 15:22, where the father says in relation to the returned prodigal, “Bring out quickly the best robe and put it on him.”…The overcomers will enjoy this resurrection.

　　The first resurrection is also the “out-resurrection,” that is, the extraordinary resurrection for which the apostle Paul sought (Phil. 3:11)…It is the resurrection set apart from the common resurrection, the resurrection with honor, comparable to graduation with honors. This resurrection is a resurrection of kingship as a reward to the overcomers that they may reign as co-kings with Christ in the millennial kingdom. Hence, “blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection” (Rev. 20:6). Not only the resurrected overcomers, such as the man-child in 12:5 and the later martyrs in 15:2, but also the raptured living ones, such as the firstfruits in 14:1-5, have part in this resurrection.

　　Revelation 20:6 says, “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection.” This must be the highest blessing—to inherit the kingdom manifested on earth and even to be the kings within it.

　　Verse 6 also says that the overcomers…will be priests to contact God and co-kings with Christ to reign over the nations in the millennium (2:26-27; 12:5). As priests they will bring man in his need to God and minister God to man, and as kings they will bring God in His authority to man and represent God to shepherd man. This is a reward to them.

　　Through our priesthood and kingship both God and man will be fully satisfied…The overcomers will be priests to contact God and co-kings with Christ to reign over the nations in the millennium. In this realm, there will be no weakness, no sickness, no trouble, and no hardship. Christ's kingdom will be for His reigning with His overcomers. How wonderful this will be! (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4355-4356, 4359)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 427

«　WEEK 46　DAY 3　»

　　Rev. 19:11 …I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sits on it called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.

　　14 And the armies which are in heaven followed Him on white horses, dressed in fine linen, white and clean.

　　In Revelation 19:11-16 and 19-21, Christ is revealed as the Word of God—King of kings and Lord of lords—who returns to defeat and destroy Antichrist and the false prophet. After His wedding feast, Christ will come as a fighting General with His bride, the overcoming believers who are His army, to fight Antichrist, the kings under him, and their armies at Armageddon… Under the instigation of Antichrist, man will even wage war directly against the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Antichrist, the false prophet, and the ten kings and their armies will make war against the Lamb. This war will be a fighting of the earth against the heavens, of man against God…It is indeed astounding that man could actually declare war on God. Therefore, Christ, the Bridegroom, will come with His bride to fight against them. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 4333)

　　In Revelation 19:11-21 we see that the Bridegroom comes to fight against His enemies with the help of His bride. The Bridegroom is the Commander- in-chief, and the bride is the army. This will be a honeymoon for the newlywed couple. During His honeymoon Christ will clear up the universe. Antichrist and the false prophet will be cast into the lake of fire (v. 20), and Satan will be bound and cast into the abyss (20:1-3). At that time Christ will be happy, and we, His bride, will also be happy as we enjoy a wonderful honeymoon with our Bridegroom.

　　The war at Armageddon will remove all the obstacles to the coming millennial kingdom…In the millennial kingdom the entire universe will be the feasting room, and Christ and His bride will work together to sweep away the dirt, which will be put into the “trash can,” the lake of fire. God's sweeping in the universe began in Genesis 1. First, God swept the dirt into the sea (v. 2); at that time the sea was the trash can in this universe. Eventually, all the dirt will be put in the ultimate trash can, the lake of fire. In Matthew 25:41 the Lord Jesus said, “Go away from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Because the “goats” followed the devil, they will be cast into the lake of fire prepared for him and his angels. God has prepared the lake of fire as a “trash can” to dispose of all the trash in the universe. Antichrist, the false prophet, and their armies will be swept into the “dust pan” and then dumped into the lake of fire. After the millennium Satan himself will join them there. After the judgment at the great white throne, all the dead unbelievers will also be cast into the lake of fire. From that time onward, there will be no more dust. In the New Jerusalem there will be only gold, pearl, and precious stones. The Lord's fighting in the war at Armageddon will actually be a sweeping of the dirt into the universal trash can. Antichrist's declaration of war on Christ will give Him the perfect opportunity to sweep Antichrist away, and the bride of Christ will cooperate with Him in doing this.

　　Instead of being cast into the lake of fire, we will be gathered into the New Jerusalem. In order for the Lord to enjoy a pleasant honeymoon and the thousand-year kingdom, all the trash must be swept away. We should look forward to participating in this cleaning work. How pleasant it will be!

　　Faithful and True will be a title of Christ [Rev. 19:11]. Christ is faithful both to God and to those who believe in Him. In His faithfulness He defeats and destroys those who oppose God and persecute the believers. He is true in carrying out God's economy and in caring for those who believe in Him. He is trustworthy, and with Him there is no falsehood. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4333-4335)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 425

«　WEEK 46　DAY 4　»

　　Rev. 19:12 And His eyes are a flame of fire,…and He has a name written which no one knows but Himself.

　　15 And out of His mouth proceeds a sharp sword, that with it He might smite the nations…

　　2 Thes. 2:8 And then the lawless one will be revealed (whom the Lord Jesus will slay by the breath of His mouth and bring to nothing by the manifestation of His coming).

　　Christ is God's faithful and true Witness who sits on a white horse, judges in righteousness, and makes war. Christ will come back to fight against Satan's power of unrighteousness, which today operates in the world as the mystery of lawlessness and which will issue in Antichrist, the man of lawlessness…In righteousness Christ will return to make war against the unrighteousness practiced by Antichrist and all his partners.

　　Christ will not only judge in righteousness but also fight in righteousness. He judges by fighting. Even today, no wrongdoers would accept the judgments of our courts if the government had no police force to back up these judgments; judgment can be executed only by police power. When Christ comes to judge Antichrist, Antichrist will be utterly rebellious. Thus, there will be the need for Christ to fight to subdue this rebellion and to judge these rebels in righteousness. His judging by fighting is not only according to righteousness; it is also to maintain righteousness. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 4335)

　　In Revelation 19 Christ, the Bridegroom as the Commander-in-chief, appears riding on a white horse. The horse of the first seal in 6:2 is also white and signifies the preaching of the gospel. Thus, both Christ and the gospel ride on a white horse. In the book of Revelation, white indicates being clean, pure, just, and approvable…Even today we are riding on this white horse. Our preaching of the gospel is clean, pure, just, and absolutely approvable by the Lord. Christ will ride on this horse as He fights against His enemy.

　　According to the Bible, we should preach the gospel to lead sinners to salvation. We all need to bear fruit. Although we may admit that this is scriptural, we may not be bearing any fruit. This means that we are not on the white horse. If we are preaching the gospel, our interest on the earth is in God's kingdom. We should be those who are laboring to help people to be saved in order to build up the Body of Christ for the kingdom of God…We have no excuse for not preaching the gospel. We must be on the white horse for the spreading of the gospel.

　　The white horse includes not only preaching the gospel but also having home meetings, feeding the young ones, holding group meetings for perfecting, and prophesying to build up the church. If we do not preach the gospel to save sinners, feed, nourish, and cherish the young ones, gather the new ones together for a group meeting, or have the capacity and ability to prophesy for the building up of the church, we are not on the white horse…We must not stop the white horse.

　　Christ's eyes being “a flame of fire” [Rev. 19:12] signifies His judging eyes. He will judge according to what He sees. His flaming eyes will carry out His judgment. As the Warrior, Christ has many diadems on His head…Because He has been crowned with many kinds of glory (Heb. 2:9), He wears many diadems.

　　As the One on the white horse, the Lord has “a name written which no one knows but Himself” [Rev. 19:12]. This indicates that there are certain aspects of Christ that we have not experienced and that only He Himself knows. These are secrets concerning Christ that He keeps within Himself. Even though we may experience and enjoy Him to the uttermost, there will still be aspects of Christ that will be kept secret from us; they will not be known even by His closest overcomers. This indicates that the Christ whom we experience is inexhaustible. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4335-4337)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 425

«　WEEK 46　DAY 5　»

　　Rev. 19:13 And He is clothed with a garment dipped in blood; and His name is called the Word of God.

　　15 And out of His mouth proceeds a sharp sword, that with it He might smite the nations; and He will shepherd them with an iron rod; and He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

　　Revelation 19:13…indicates that the Lord Himself is the Word of God. The Lord is clothed with a garment dipped in blood because of His fighting at the battle of Armageddon. The garment of Christ is dipped in blood and becomes red by His treading the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God (v. 15; Isa. 63:1-3) at Armageddon (Rev. 16:14, 16), where the blood will rise up to the bridles of the horses (14:20). (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 4337)

　　That the Lord's name is called the Word of God means that He is the expression, the testimony, and the speaking of God…In order to know God, we need to read, study, behold, contemplate, and gaze on Christ as the Word of God.

　　In Revelation 19, as the Word of God, Christ speaks for God by executing God's judgment upon the rebellious people. Even as the Lord fights, He speaks for God and expresses God. The fighting of Christ is the speaking of the Word of God. God is righteous and sovereign. He is also a God of order, and as such He cannot tolerate disorder and rebellion. As Christ fights against the enemy, He will speak that God is sovereign, righteous, and orderly. He will declare that God is the God over everyone and that He does not tolerate rebellion against His authority. Hence, the Warrior is the Word. His fighting is the speaking of God's Word. The Lord's fighting in the war at Armageddon will be a powerful speaking. It will tell Satan, Antichrist, the false prophet, and the entire universe that God is sovereign and that no one can rebel against Him.

　　God is not a God of confusion; He is the sovereign God, a God of order who does not tolerate rebellion. The God of order will sweep away all rebellion.

　　The Word of God is mentioned both in the Gospel of John (1:1) and in the Revelation of John [19:13]. In the Gospel of John the Word of God… speaks of redemption, light, life, and building. In the Revelation of John the Word of God speaks not only of life and building but also of fighting. Before God can have the building He desires, He must first clean up His universe. In Revelation Christ's fighting is also His speaking for God. As the Word of God, His fighting proclaims to the whole universe what kind of God He is. In the Gospel of John, the Word of God is for the impartation of life into us, but in Revelation the Word of God is for fighting against and defeating God's enemy.

　　In Revelation 19 the Lord Jesus who comes down out of heaven appears as a General fighting a battle. He is riding on a white horse, and His name is called “the Word of God” (vv. 11, 13). The word of God that we speak today is the Lord Jesus…When the Lord comes,…He will fight for His kingdom. In the warfare for the kingdom of God, Christ is the Word of God, speaking for God's purpose. In His fighting against God's enemies for the kingdom, Christ is God's speaking. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 4337-4338)

　　As the Son of God, the Lord Jesus not only spoke the word of God, but He Himself was even called the Word (John 1:1, 14; Rev. 19:13). God spoke in His Son and not merely through Him. Wherever the Son was, there the Word was also. Furthermore, when the Son spoke, God spoke in the Son's speaking.

　　On the day of Pentecost Christ came down as the all-inclusive Spirit upon His disciples to make them members of His Body…Now, just as my whole body speaks whenever I speak, so the Body of Christ speaks whenever Christ speaks as the Head…All the members of the Body can speak the word of God. (Life-study of Colossians, p. 558)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Colossians, msg. 64; CWWL 1985, vol. 4, “Meeting to Speak the Word of God,” ch. 1

«　WEEK 46　DAY 6　»

　　Isa. 32:1 Indeed a King will reign according to righteousness, and the rulers will rule according to justice.

　　Jer. 23:5 Indeed, days are coming, declares Jehovah, when I will raise up to David a righteous Shoot; and He will reign as King and act prudently and will execute justice and righteousness in the land.

　　Rev.…He has on His garment and on His thigh a 19:16 name written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

　　After Christ takes possession of the earth, He will reign over the earth as the King in the kingdom, ruling over the nations with His overcoming believers (Rev. 20:4, 6; 2:26-27). As the coming King He will be the Head and the center in the upcoming kingdom of God in the millennium…As Christ has redeemed the earth and all its peoples (Col. 1:20) to be the sphere and components of His kingdom, as He has sold all to buy the kingdom (Matt. 13:44), and as He has rescued the earth with all its peoples from the usurpation of Satan (Rev. 20:2-3), He will have the full right to be the King of the restored earth and the restored nations. In His upcoming reign God's authority and glory will be fully manifested (Matt. 6:13), and the whole earth with its peoples will be brought into righteousness, peace, joy, and the full blessing of God's creation (Isa. 32:1, 16-18; 35:1-2, 5-7). (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 356)

　　Matthew 13:41 says, “The Son of Man will send His angels, and they will collect out of His kingdom all the stumbling blocks and those who practice lawlessness.” After Christ comes back, He will set up the kingdom of God on earth. Then in the kingdom He will still be the Son of Man.

　　God's enemy, Satan, rebelled against God's authority (Isa. 14:13-14). For dealing with him God created man and gave man dominion to rule over the earth (Gen. 1:26). After man was seduced by Satan to follow him (3:1-6), God became a man by the name Jesus to undo the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and destroy him (Heb. 2:14), that He might reclaim the earth to be His kingdom (Rev. 11:15; 12:10). In this upcoming kingdom, which Christ as the Son of Man will bring in (Dan. 7:13-14; Luke 19:12-15), He will surely be the Son of Man, not only as a sign of God's victory and glory but also as a sign of Satan's defeat and shame. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 355-356)

　　Zechariah 14:9 says, “Jehovah will be King over all the earth.” This verse… prophesies that at His coming back Christ will establish His kingdom on the earth [cf. Matt. 25:31-34; 1 Cor. 15:25]. When the Lord comes back, He will save Israel, crush the Gentile nations, and judge the peoples on earth. Afterward, He will establish His kingdom on the earth for a thousand years; this is the millennial kingdom. In the millennium there will be three realms: the first will be the realm of the earth, where God's creation will be blessed (Gen. 1:28-30); the second, the realm of the nation of Israel in Canaan, from the Nile to the Euphrates, where the saved Jews will rule over the earth (Isa. 60:10-12; Zech. 14:16-18); and the third, the heavenly and spiritual realm where the overcoming believers will enjoy the kingdom reward (1 Cor. 15:50-52; Matt. 5:20; 7:21).

　　In the millennium Christ with His overcomers as co-kings will reign over the nations (Rev. 20:4, 6; 2:26-27; 19:15b). These nations will be the last stage of human nations on the old earth, and they all will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (11:15), being ruled by Christ and His overcomers. Such a reigning will be the unique work of Christ in the millennium to show to the entire universe His kingship with His divine and heavenly authority for the shame of Satan, the defeated enemy of God. (Truth Lessons—Level Four, vol. 1, p. 126)

　　We are awaiting the day when Christ will come as the King to reign over the earth. Christ will reign in His kingdom, and we will be His co-kings. (Life- study of Revelation, p. 24)

　　Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 32