THE STRANGE FATE OF THE RICH
Christ said that it is harder for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God, than for a camel to go though the eye of a
needle. Many have explained this in various ways, but the answer is simple. "You can't take it with you."
It is impossible for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God because a man doesn't take his wealth with him into the
judgment, which is the resurrection of the "rest of the dead, also called The "Great White Throne Resurrection." (Rev.
20)
The ancient Egyptians believed that one could take it forward with them, and they packed the tombs of the pharaohs
with gold and finery, food, embalmed pets, and all that they would need or want for a luxurious future life. The real truth
is that rich men will not stay rich." And due to that, when they come up in the resurrection, they will have no extra money
over anyone else in the coming Kingdom of God. They won't have the accolades, power, and influence they knew in this
life. It will be a step down for them.
NO LONGER RICH....
They will be no better than anyone else, they will not be given special attention due to their former status. So will that be a
problem? It might, but, what Christ said can be taken in more than one way. Some take the parable of the
rich man where he looked up and saw the fire coming, and they assume all rich men will burn in hell. The rich
man saw the fire coming didn't he? What is this fire really that he saw coming? What does the Bible say?
According to Peter, there is a day coming in which the whole earth will burn up, and the elements will melt with fervent
heat. Is this ever burning hell? Well, Peter says it is a fire that comes on one day. Before we dig into that, we have to
understand about the plan of salvation for all who have ever lived. Let's start with the first resurrection (of the saints.)
The ones who come up in this Resurrection will rule a 1000 years with Christ. This is the first resurrection.
THE FIRST RESURRECTION
The first fruits also called the saints (converted people who have God's spirit which is given to those who obey God) will
have a higher position in the Kingdom of God, they will come up in the first resurrection which occurs at the return of
Christ. Whether they are dead or alive at the return of Christ, in a twinkling of an eye, they will be made a spirit being and
rule the earth with Christ for a 1000 years, in a physical world. This has been prophesied to happen, the Kingdom of
God will be established on the earth according to Zechariah 14:9.
"And the LORD shall be king over all the earth:in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one."
Is this a physical kingdom? Yes it is. The Bible says that those who refuse to come up and keep Easter will be punished by
God. Whoops! Doesn't say Easter does it? (Named for pagan fertility goddess Ishtar) It says that those who do not send a
representative to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, their nations will receive no rain! Physical rain, physical nations.
PUNISHMENT ON NATIONS WHO REFUSE TO WORSHIP THE KING
"And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from
year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will
not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall
be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the
LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and
the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles." Zechariah 16:19
Some will say, that's Old Testament, I only go by the New Testament, Ok....here is New Testament on that.
THE KINGDOMS OF THIS WORLD HAVE BECOME THE KINGDOMS OF OUR LORD AND OF HIS CHRIST AND HE
SHALL REIGN FOR EVER AND EVER Revelation 11:14-17 confirms that Christ will rule the earth...
"And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become
the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders, which sat
before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
which are, and was, and is to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. This is
gospel! It is the good news that God's Kingdom is coming! We see part of the layout of this future government when
Christ promised each of His 12 disciples they would rule one of the 12 tribes of Israel. 12 tribes...12 discipes.
"Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne,
you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel." Matthew 19:28
UNDERSTANDING RESURRECTIONS...
First and second???
We clearly see that Christ will rule a physical earthly Kingdom for 1000 years, (the millennium) and that the saints
(converted) will be resurrected as Spirit beings at Christ's return and will rule the earth with Him, as Zachariah and
Revelation both say, but what about all the rest of the people who have ever lived? Are they lost, all those who have
lived and died since Adam and Eve? What happens to them?
In Matthew 12:41, Christ speaks of a future time when all men will be resurrected. He said, "The men of Nineveh will stand
at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater
than Jonah is here. The queen of the south (Sheba) will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she
came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and now One greater than Solomon is here.
The rest of the dead, which is everyone who has ever lived and died, will come up in a massive resurrection at the end of
the 1000 year Millennium. This resurrection is called "the Judgment" by Christ, and called the Great White Throne
Judgment in Revelation. Is this judgment a judgment to condemnation? Not necessarily. It is a time of judgment, but the
word judgment can mean 2 things, evaluation or condemnation.
This judgment is one of evaluation, after which, one of two outcomes will appear. When they are resurrected
and come up in this Great White Throne Judgment, they will be taught out of the books (Biblios) and the book of life will be
opened to them. During their lifetime, they can go one of 2 ways. They can choose to obey God and live His way, if so, they
can become part of God's Kingdom on a permanent basis, they will be added to the book of Life. Or.....they can reject
obedience to God and his principles and if so, they will not be added to the book of life. But will be burned up.
UNDERSTANDING THE SECOND DEATH
If you have ever heard the mysterious phrase "the second death," now you begin to understand, you begin to see a
picture. In this "second life", they are given a chance to understand clearly what God wants from them. The books are
opened to them, (Biblios) and they are taught God's ways clearly, their minds are opened and they can understand and
apply God's law and teaching to their lives. If they are willing and obedient, they will be added to the book of
life...they will liver forever.
BUT.....
If they reject obeying God, and don't accept God's deal, then they will experience what is called the second death. It
involves being burned up permanently, never to exist again. They experience what is called the "second death." Ready or
not, the old earth will be burned up, as Peter described. But, for those who are willing to obey God and live forever, a new
earth and new heavens are coming. We also see a fire coming, just like the rich man don't we? We see ahead that this
earth that we live on now is going to burn up, even our Sun will be gone. There is going to be a new heavens and a new
earth, wherein righteousness dwells, and the things that have happened on this earth will not be remembered or even
come to mind.
NEW HEAVENS AND NEW EARTH
...after the Great White Throne Judgment
Those that become spirit beings will not be harmed by the coming fire that will burn this earth up. Those that become Spirit
beings at the end of the Great White Throne Judgment will not be burned up. But the wicked will not be changed to spirit
beings and they will be left as physical beings who will be burned up on that day and destroyed as the earth burns up.
This is the second death. It is a permanent one. They will never be again. They have been given 2 lives, 2 deaths, and now
they are done. Never to exist again. Isaiah 65 tells us that this earth is not permanent, because there will be a new earth.
"For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind."
THE RICH MAN'S FATE?
The 1000 year reign of Christ will be a time of preparing the earth for a massive resurrection of all the rest of the dead.
Billions and billions of people will live again. When it happens, the rich man could be resurrected standing
next to a child who starved to death in the Potato famine. The Tsar of Russia could come up standing next to a homeless
man who died on the street.
They are now equals. One is not better than the other, and they all get the same things. Shelter and food and
clothes and the things that they need, it will seem wonderful and a joy to the child who died of starvation but to the rich
man, it will be a step down. He had everything before. Even a glass of milk would be a great gift to a child who starved.
The rich man who wielded power and crushed his foes, all that is over. He might be angry, resentful. Not an attitude
that leads to eternal life...
To the Lazarus's of the world, God's Kingdom will be paradise on earth, they had nothing before, now they are loved and
taken care of. The rich could become resentful, bitter, because they have lost everything they had. But...as with everything,
there will be some who will chose God and eternal life and some who will not. The rich man looked up and saw the fire
coming, some assume it was ever burning hell, the rich man did see fire coming didn't he? Those that understand about
the earth burning up with fervent heat right after the Great White Throne Judgment will know that those are the flames he
saw coming. Those that don't qualify at their second chance, will be afraid of the coming fire that will burn them up with the
earth, the rich man was tormented by the flames. But, the main reason no rich person will enter the Kingdom of God is
because no one will carry their money into the future, but what they can carry forward is their embedded disobedient
attitude toward God and their bad character, which has a great possibility of being a real problem for them.
THE STRANGE FATE OF THE RICH
Christ said that it is harder for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God, than for a camel to go though the eye of a
needle. Many have explained this in various ways, but the answer is simple. "You can't take it with you."
It is impossible for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God because a man doesn't take his wealth with him into the
judgment, which is the resurrection of the "rest of the dead, also called The "Great White Throne Resurrection." (Rev.
20) The ancient Egyptians believed that one could take it forward with them, and they packed the tombs of the pharaohs
with gold and finery, food, embalmed pets, and all that they would need or want for a luxurious future life. The real truth
is that rich men will not stay rich." And due to that, when they come up in the resurrection, they will have no extra money
over anyone else in the coming Kingdom of God. They won't have the accolades, power, and influence they knew in this
life. It will be a step down for them.
NO LONGER RICH....
They will be no better than anyone else, they will not be given special attention due to their former status. So will that be a
problem? It might, but, what Christ said can be taken in more than one way. Some take the parable of the
rich man where he looked up and saw the fire coming, and they assume all rich men will burn in hell. The rich
man saw the fire coming didn't he? What is this fire really that he saw coming? What does the Bible say?
According to Peter, there is a day coming in which the whole earth will burn up, and the elements will melt with fervent
heat. Is this ever burning hell? Well, Peter says it is a fire that comes on one day. Before we dig into that, we have to
understand about the plan of salvation for all who have ever lived. Let's start with the first resurrection (of the saints.)
The ones who come up in this Resurrection will rule a 1000 years with Christ. This is the first resurrection.
THE FIRST RESURRECTION
The first fruits also called the saints (converted people who have God's spirit which is given to those who obey God) will
have a higher position in the Kingdom of God, they will come up in the first resurrection which occurs at the return of
Christ as spirit beings, they will not be subject to the fire that the rich man is afraid of. They are spirit, it will not hurt them.They will rule the earth with Christ for a 1000 years, in a physical world. This has been prophesied to happen, the Kingdom of
God will be established on the earth according to Zechariah 14:9.
"And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD,
and his name one."
Is this a physical kingdom? Yes it is. The Bible says that those who refuse to come up and keep Easter will be punished by
God. Whoops! Doesn't say Easter does it? (Named for pagan fertility goddess Ishtar) It says that those who do not send a
representative to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, their nations will receive no rain! Physical rain, physical nations.
PUNISHMENT ON NATIONS WHO REFUSE TO WORSHIP THE KING
"And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from
year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will
not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall
be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the
LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and
the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles." Zechariah 16:19
Some will say, that's Old Testament, I only go by the New Testament, Ok....here is New Testament on that.
THE KINGDOMS OF THIS WORLD HAVE BECOME THE KINGDOMS OF OUR LORD AND OF HIS CHRIST AND HE
SHALL REIGN FOR EVER AND EVER Revelation 11:14-17 confirms that Christ will rule the earth...
"And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become
the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders, which sat
before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
which are, and was, and is to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. This is
gospel! It is the good news that God's Kingdom is coming! We see part of the layout of this future government when
Christ promised each of His 12 disciples they would rule one of the 12 tribes of Israel. 12 tribes...12 disciples.
The angel told Mary when Christ was born that he would rule over the House of Jacob (12 tribes) and that His Kingdom would have no end!!! Luke 1:32 and 33 say:
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
"Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel." Matthew 19:28 His disciples were to be some of those that would rule the earth with Christ!Each one ruling a tribe of Israel!
UNDERSTANDING RESURRECTIONS...
First Resurrection (For the (converted) saints who will rule 1000 years with Christ as spirit beings) and the Second Resurrection...(is a physical resurrection of all the rest of the dead, where they will be taught and evaluated to see if they can qualify to be spirit beings too.)
We clearly see that Christ will rule a physical earthly Kingdom for 1000 years, (the millennium) and that the saints
(converted) will be resurrected as Spirit beings at Christ's return and will rule the earth with Him, as Zachariah and
Revelation both say, but what about all the rest of the people who have ever lived? Are they lost, all those who have
lived and died since Adam and Eve? What happens to them?
In Matthew 12:41, Christ speaks of a future time when all men will be resurrected. He said, "The men of Nineveh will stand
at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater
than Jonah is here. The queen of the south (Sheba) will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she
came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and now One greater than Solomon is here.
The rest of the dead, which is everyone who has ever lived and died, will come up in a massive resurrection at the end of
the 1000 year Millennium. This resurrection is called "the Judgment" by Christ, and called the Great White Throne
Judgment in Revelation. Is this judgment a judgment to condemnation? Not necessarily. It is a time of judgment, but the
word judgment can mean 2 things, evaluation or condemnation.
This judgment is one of evaluation, after which, one of two outcomes will appear. When they are resurrected
and come up in this Great White Throne Judgment, they will be taught out of the books (Biblios) and the book of life will be
opened to them. During their lifetime, they can go one of 2 ways. They can choose to obey God and live His way, if so, they
can become part of God's Kingdom on a permanent basis, they will be added to the book of Life. Or.....they can reject
obedience to God and his principles and if so, they will not be added to the book of life. But will be burned up.
UNDERSTANDING THE SECOND DEATH
If you have ever heard the mysterious phrase "the second death," now you begin to understand, you begin to see a
picture. In this "second life", they are given a chance to understand clearly what God wants from them. The books are
opened to them, (Biblios) and they are taught God's ways clearly, their minds are opened and they can understand and
apply God's law and teaching to their lives. If they are willing and obedient, they will be added to the book of
life...they will liver forever.
BUT.....
If they reject obeying God, and don't accept God's deal, then they will experience what is called the second death. It
involves being burned up permanently, never to exist again. They experience what is called the "second death." Ready or
not, the old earth will be burned up, as Peter described. But, for those who are willing to obey God and live forever, a new
earth and new heavens are coming. We also see a fire coming, just like the rich man don't we? We see ahead that this
earth that we live on now is going to burn up, even our Sun will be gone. There is going to be a new heavens and a new
earth, wherein righteousness dwells, and the things that have happened on this earth will not be remembered or even
come to mind.
NEW HEAVENS AND NEW EARTH
...after the Great White Throne Judgment
Those that become spirit beings will not be harmed by the coming fire that will burn this earth up. Those that become Spirit
beings at the end of the Great White Throne Judgment will not be burned up. But the wicked will not be changed to spirit
beings and they will be left as physical beings who will be burned up on that day and destroyed as the earth burns up.
This is the second death. It is a permanent one. They will never be again. They have been given 2 lives, 2 deaths, and now
they are done. Never to exist again. Isaiah 65 tells us that this earth is not permanent, because there will be a new earth.
"For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind."
THE RICH MAN'S FATE?
The 1000 year reign of Christ will be a time of preparing the earth for a massive resurrection of all the rest of the dead.
Billions and billions of people will live again. When it happens, the rich man could be resurrected standing
next to a child who starved to death in the Potato famine. The Tsar of Russia could come up standing next to a homeless
man who died on the street.
They are now equals. One is not better than the other, and they all get the same things. Shelter and food and
clothes and the things that they need, it will seem wonderful and a joy to the child who died of starvation but to the rich
man, it will be a step down. He had everything before. Even a glass of milk would be a great gift to a child who starved.
The rich man who wielded power and crushed his foes, all that is over. He might be angry, resentful. Not an attitude
that leads to eternal life...
To the Lazarus's of the world, God's Kingdom will be paradise on earth, they had nothing before, now they are loved and
taken care of. The rich could become resentful, bitter, because they have lost everything they had. But...as with everything,
there will be some who will chose God and eternal life and some who will not. The rich man looked up and saw the fire
coming, some assume it was ever burning hell, the rich man did see fire coming didn't he? Those that understand about
the earth burning up with fervent heat right after the Great White Throne Judgment will know that those are the flames he
saw coming. Those that don't qualify at their second chance, will be afraid of the coming fire that will burn them up with the
earth, the rich man was tormented by the flames. But, the main reason no rich person will enter the Kingdom of God is
because no one will carry their money into the future, but what they can carry forward is their embedded disobedient
attitude toward God and their bad character, which has a great possibility of being a real problem for them.