Hi Brian,
While I do agree with much of what you say, I do have a couple of thoughts regarding the above quotes.
1. The rapture, the catching away, is specifically tied to when God sends Jesus to bring the body of Christ to His own throne in the third heaven. That is the first rulership to be restored. (Acts 3: 21 Rev. 3: 21)
2. The word in Jude is NOT saints, but `holy ones.` The Gk. word `hagio` referring to sacred ones, which can be either angels or saints, and thus more scriptures are needed to specify which. Then we see the Lord Himself specifically says that He is coming with His holy angels to deliver Israel and judge the rebellious nations. (Matt. 25: 31)
And that is a big difference.
regards, Marilyn
I disagree with you that Jesus ever lost that authority in the 3rd heaven. We see Job presenting himself to the LORD and the LORD said to him have you considered my servant Job. The LORD had the authority up there and never lost it. I agree the rapture those is Christ are taken to the 3rd heaven. The kingdom of Christ is on earth and Jesus will reign here for 1000 years. The throne of David is an earthly throne and Christ will sit upon it. In Acts 1 just before Jesus ascended;
Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. ..
Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This
same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
Acts 1 shows the disciples expected the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. Jesus said that the times of this is under the Fathers authority. Later the angels said Jesus would descend the same way He ascended. So now the question is to establish that Jesus reigns from earth for the 1000 years and not from the 3rd heaven.
Act 3:21 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before,[fn] 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.
In Acts 3 is this restoration of the kingdom of Israel with Jesus reigning or is it Jesus restoring things in the 3rd heaven. The verses are said to be contained in the words of the prophets so I will present a case for the restoration being the throne of David on earth being restored and you would have to show that things in heaven also needed restoring. I frankly do not see anything in heaven that needed restoring as from the garden man lost his life and needed a savior and the earth was cursed and this is taken away and restored. In heaven I see the rebellion of Lucifer and his angels but no curse or redemption and restoration promised.
The prophecies that support the return of Jesus as the king on earth are many. Dan 2 is a prime example of the vision of Nebuchadnezzar. The image of the metal statute is the kingdoms of man and the stone cut without hands will descend and destroy the kingdoms man leaving no trace of them and this stone becomes a kingdom that shall not end that covers the entire earth. Isaiah 7 point to Jesus being on the throne of David from that point on forever.
For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of
His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
Luke 1 The angel Gabriel to Mary
Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
Luke 1 Zacharias
67 Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
68 “Blessed
is the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited and redeemed His people,
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who
have been since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
72 To perform the mercy
promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
73 The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
74 To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
Here Jesus is a horn of deliverance saying He will save them from their enemies and from that point on they will worship and serve the LORD without fear all the days of their lives. Zech 14 shows the day of this deliverance and the beginning of the kingdom of the LORD on earth. This chapter clearly shows the 2nd coming of Jesus with His saints destroying his enemies and delivering Israel. It says in that day the LORD will be king over all the earth. It says in that day the LORD'S feet shall stand on the MT of Olives and it will split in two. It shows a new river flowing from there year round and a clear continuation of live on earth as now the nations must keep the feast of tabernacles or they get no rain. Jesus has come and the kingdom established just as Dan 2 says and acts he descends and this kingdom destroys all others and this is the kingdom which will have no end.
Psalm 110
The LORD said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
2 The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion.
Rule in the midst of Your enemies!
The LORD says to Davids Lord sit at my right hand until...until what? I make your enemies your footstool. Zech 14 the enemies are now the footstool and the decree to now Rule in the midst of the enemies is taken effect.
Dan 7 shows the same thing
13 “I was watching in the night visions,
And behold,
One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion
is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom
the one
Which shall not be destroyed.
He shall speak
pompous words against the Most High,
Shall persecute[fn] the saints of the Most High,
And shall intend to change times and law.
Then
the saints shall be given into his hand
For a time and times and half a time.
26 ‘But the court shall be seated,
And they shall take away his dominion,
To consume and destroy
it forever.
27 Then the kingdom and dominion,
And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven,
Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High.
His kingdom
is an everlasting kingdom,
And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.’
You see Satan was king of this earth until the 2nd coming which is a times times and half a time from the abomination of desolation or 42 month and he loses his dominion and is bound for 1000 years.
Dan 7
1 “I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time
Revelation says the serpent gave his authority to the beast and again 42 month later the beast and false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire. Satan is bound for 1000 years and released. In Dan 7 hear says the beast was slain but the other beasts lost their dominion but their lives were prolonged a season and a time. The season is 1000 years bound. the time is the time to be loosed at the end of the millennium. Then it says in Rev 20
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then
I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received
his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished.
They lived and reigned with Jesus for 1000 years.
7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number
is as the sand of the sea. 9 They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. 10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet
are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
In John before Pilate:
36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
That, " for now my kingdom is not from here" is important. This seems a long reply and yet it is really brief as these subjects there is much richness and revelation.