The Bride of Christ- an elect group of Christians
The Bride of Christ
The bride of Christ are those that are one with Jesus just as the Father and Jesus are one; those that have been faithful and had a heart toward the things of God. All Christians that believe in Him will have eternal life, but those that are faithful and overcome will reign with Jesus as His bride, Rev 20:4, 2:26, 3:21, Rom 5:17, 8:17, 2 Timothy 2:11–12.
This is the prize of the high calling, Phil 3:14.
He has invited me to be a part of his family and to participate in all that He has to offer me.
He has invited me to spend eternity with Him and made it extremely easy to do so. He offered the free gift of grace to me. That, if I believe in Jesus, my sins are forgiven and I am washed by the blood of the Lamb and I can live forever with the King of the universe, but wait there is more. It doesn’t stop there; this is just the starting point. This is actually where it all starts, but unfortunately, some Christians don’t even get off the starting blocks. Paul is constantly referring to Christianity as a race. Besides the gift of grace, there is another commonality to Paul’s writings; an urgency and a desire he is always striving for. Is this his salvation? No, of course not; we are saved by grace, that not of ourselves it is a gift of God. Our justification does not have anything to do with our works. It is all based on Jesus and the works He performed on the cross. So what is this that Paul is so concerned and motivated for? It is the pleasure of knowing the Father and Jesus; becoming one with them and walking faithful and worthily of Him, 1Tim 4:8-10, 15-16. This is the Christian walk. It is not bogged down with rules and law that forces us to do these things. This is a matter of the heart. Faithfulness comes from the heart and if we choose to be faithful to Him and commit our life to live for Him only; desire Him, know Him, seek Him, then great is the reward in heaven. This is what Jesus has in store for us beyond eternal life with Him. To rule and reign with Him as One, as His bride seated next to Him, Eph 2:4-10, 1Tim 5:17.
How do I become one with Jesus?We are living in a special dispensation of time that God has chosen to build the body of Christ, His Church. This opportunity, this chosen period of time to form His church, began when Jesus was raised from the dead and it will last until the Marriage Supper of the Lamb which will happen sometime just before Jesus returns to set up His kingdom at His second coming, (not the rapture, but His true second coming to the earth).
The Father sent His Son Jesus to reconcile man to Himself thru Jesus. Jesus paid for all our sins on the cross and made the righteousness of God available to all men who believe in Him. If you believe in Jesus, you have been made new, all your sins, past and future, have been removed from your account and you have been reconciled to the Father and made righteous thru the precious blood of Jesus, 2Cor 5:17-21, Eph 1:7.
Only the first fruits of Jesus’ death and resurrection are allowed to be in the body of Christ, Eph 1:10. We are those that first believed in Him, Eph 1:11-12, and we are those that believed without seeing, Jn 20:29.
If you are in Him and He is in you, then you are part of the body of Christ. A group of elect that is only available to those that believe in Jesus in this dispensation.
Ro 12:5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
1Co 12:12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.
Eph 1:22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Col 1:18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
Col 2:9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; 10 and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
There is no question that those who believe in Jesus are in the body of Christ, but what does it mean to be one with Him and to be the bride of Christ? Is there a difference? Does everyone in the body of Christ become the bride of Christ? I used to be one of those people who thought these were the same, until I discovered all thru the Word, an elect group of the body with special privileges and rights. The bride of Christ is an elite group of the body of Christ; those who were most faithful to Him and for Him. There are several parables from Jesus and many scriptures that help define what it means to be the bride of Christ.
The first and foremost concept to being His bride is the idea of being made one with Him. This is something God put forth between man and woman from the very beginning. Of course this has physical implications that lead to procreation and sustaining life, but life would and could continue without the concept of being made one with your partner. Use the animals for instance. They unite physically, but that is the extent of it, yet they still produce offspring. God could have made this the same for man, but instead he wanted to show us and offer us so much more. This concept of being made one is a foreshadow, an allusion, to what He wants us to have with Jesus on a spiritual level. Of course, the physical rules don’t apply here, that is only something we needed on this earth to procreate with other humans. The idea of being one with Jesus is so much more than physicality; it is oneness, being unified, together in all things, never being separated or divided, always in agreement. Once you understand what unity means from God, then you can apply this back to your personal relationship with your spouse and see things grow to the next level beyond just the physical implications, Eph 5:29-32.
We have the opportunity to get a first-hand discourse of Jesus’ prayer to the Father on the night before He was crucified. This insight helps us gain understanding of what it means to be One with Him.
John 17:20–26
20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;
21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22 “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;
23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.
24 “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
25 “O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me;
26 and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
It is the Father’s earnest desire that we be made one with Him. This is why He paid the ultimate price and sent His Son to die for us. So He could reconcile us to Him.
But do you notice there is not a guarantee to be made one with Him. Any time Jesus mentions us being one with the Father it is always preceded by “may”. Compare this to any salvation scripture. When it comes to salvation, there is nothing else for us to do except believe in Him to be saved. All the work and responsibility is on Him and any works that we try to contribute to salvation is actually blaspheming the name of Jesus and counting the work on the cross as no effect, like it wasn’t good enough.
But when you see any scripture that has to do with being one with Him or reigning or ruling with Him, there is a contingency, something we need to do. God has made it available to all who believe in Him to be one with Him and rule and reign with Him, but not all will achieve this ultimate prize. This is what Paul was striving for all his life and what he wanted for the body of Christ as well.
Eph 1:10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory
Eph 5:23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body, , Eph 4:11-16, Jn 17:21.
Ro 7:4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another--to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God
2Co 11:2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
Being made the bride of Christ is the ultimate prize and should be what every Christian is striving for while he is alive on the earth, Phil 3:14. Not for personal gain or selfish motivation, but because in this process and in the future with Jesus, if we are His bride, this means we will know Him and have such a close intimate relationship with Him we will be as One with Him. This is what every Christian should be longing for and desiring.
Ephesians 5:29–32
29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church,
30 because we are members of His body.
31 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.
32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.
Let us take a look at more scripture surrounding the bride of Christ and the marriage feast.
Now if you are in the body of Christ you have the opportunity to become the bride of Christ.
The rapture
The rapture is the event when Jesus rescues or catches away His church from the coming wrath of the Great Tribulation. This event is commonly known as “the rapture”; although this word is not used in the English bible, it is found in the Latin bible. We get this term from the Greek word ἁρπάζω, harpazo, to catch, take away, seize, or snatch, 1Thes 4:17. The Greek word harpazo is translated as rapturo in the Latin bible.
The word harpazo is used several places in scripture. Paul used this word in describing his experience being caught up to the third heaven, 2Cor 12:2. Luke uses this word when Phillip was snatched by the Spirit after he baptized the eunuch, Acts 8:39.
The rapture is different than Jesus’ second coming. In the rapture, we meet Jesus in the air, 1Thes 4:14-17. At the second coming, Jesus comes to the earth with His saints, 1Thes 3:13, Jude 14-15.
The rapture is a special event for the body of Christ that will rescue or snatch Christians out of this world before the Great Tribulation begins,
2 Thessalonians 2:3
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
This falling away could actually be the rapture. Not a falling away from God, but a separation from the world. The Greek word is ἀποστασία, apostasia- fall away, rebellion. The root word is apostation- separation, divorce. This is a separation or divorce from this world. This coincides with the next few verses in which Paul says the hinderer or restrainer of lawlessness, this is us, Christians, must be taken out of the way before the anti-christ can be revealed.
2 Thessalonians 2:7
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.
We, Christians, those that are filled with the Holy Spirit, are restraining evil. Jesus has all authority over sin and death. As long as the Holy Spirit in us is on the earth, death cannot rule, Heb 2:14-17. Once we are taken out of the way by the rapture, the Holy Spirit also leaves and the anti-christ will have full reign on the earth and there will be no restraint for evil, Rev 13:5.
Sometime after the rapture, probably within months after the catching away, the anti-christ makes a covenant with Israel. This starts the 70th week prophesied by Daniel and the Day of the Lord begins. This is the start of the next dispensation. The Day of the Lord is the Day of Christ, Phil 1:6-10, 2:16. The Day of the Lord cannot start until the son of perdition, the anti-christ is revealed, 2Thes 2:3. The son of perdition is revealed by making a covenant with Israel. He must be revealed before the Day of the Lord can start. This covenant triggers the 70th week of Daniel, Dan 9:27, 2Thes 2:3.
The purpose of the 70th week of Daniel is to bring the Jews back to Glory, Ezek 20:34-38, Zech 12:9-10, 13:8-9, Jer 30:7, Matt 24:15-22.
At the harpazo, not all Christians are caught up and not all Christians who have already died are raised out of the ground; only those who were expectant of the Lord’s coming, those who lived for Christ will be caught up with Him, Lk 21:34-36, Lk 12:35-48, Matt 24:22, 36-44, Matt 25:10, Mk 13:33. Those that are alive at the rapture and also those resurrected out of the ground at this time go back to heaven with Jesus; escaping the wrath of the Great Tribulation, 1Thes 4:13-18.
1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
The elect are saved by the Rapture
Mt 24:22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, Mk 13:20 whom he chose, Mt 24:22 those days will be cut short.
Mt 26:28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
At this time in heaven there are two groups of the elect:
1)Old testament saints rescued out of Abraham’s bosom. Those that were expectant of the Messiah before His first coming. This happened when Jesus died and went to hell for three days; after three days, Jesus was raised out of hell and He rescued all those that believed in Him, , Eph 4:8, Ps 68:18.
2)New testament saints that believe Jesus did come and is the Messiah. These are they that had an expectancy of the rapture and either physically died and were then raised again at the rapture or were still alive at the time of the rapture. These Christians are part of the body of Christ, Rom 10:9-10, Rom 12:5, 1Cor 12:12, Eph 1:22, Col 1:18, 2:9.
In the book of Revelation, we see two groups of Christians in heaven that participate in the rapture.
1)The seven lampstands
2)The 24 elders
The seven lampstands represent raptured Christians, as a whole, filled with the Spirit of God, standing in front of the throne of God, Rev 1:4-5, 3:1, 4:5, 5:6, 11.
The 24 elders represent an elect group of new testament Christians; those that were most faithful and are given authority to reign with Jesus.
Who do the 24 elders represent?
The Day of the Lord begins sometime after the rapture; when the anti-christ makes a covenant with Israel, Dan 9:27, 2Thes 2:3-10. Some Christians have been left behind because they did not have an expectancy for the rapture. These Christians still on the earth have a choice, die for Christ or be a part of the world.
Those Christians that die for Christ are called tribulation martyrs. They are beheaded and exalted by Jesus. These Christians, however, are not a part of the 24 elders seated on thrones. They are at the feet of Jesus in front of the throne, Rev 5:11,6:9-11, 13:10, 14:12-13, 15:2-4.
Now in heaven we have three groups of elect:
1)Old testament saints
2)New testament saints represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones
3)New testament saints standing in front of the throne of God. These consist of:
a.Saints represented by seven lampstands. These were part of the rapture but are not seated on thrones.
b.Tribulation martyrs- these are Christians who did not participate in the rapture because either were not expectant of the Lord’s coming or they were Jews who didn’t believe in Jesus. I believe that it will be very hard, if not impossible, to become a Christian after the rapture if you had a chance to accept Jesus as Lord before He came. The Lord will send a strong delusion and those that had a chance to believe in Jesus but rejected Him, will believe the lie of the devil and never come to Jesus, 2Thes 2:8-12.
Towards the end of the 70th week, after many tribulation martyrs are killed during the Great Tribulation; up in heaven, there is the Bema seat judgement. This is where all new testament Christians in heaven, the body of Christ, are judged by their faithfulness to Jesus on the earth. From this judgement, rewards are given based on faithfulness and condition of the heart toward God, 2Cor 5:10, Rev 22:12,3:11, Dan 7:10,1Cor 9:25,Matt 5:12, 20:8, 16:27, Jn 4:36,2Jn 1:8,Lk 14:4.
Authority and responsibility to rule and judge are
given to those that proved themselves faithful,
Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27.
The faithful are promised to reign and rule with Christ. This is not all Christians, only those who have proven faithful and overcame, Rev 20:4, 2:26, 3:21, Rom 5:17, 8:17, Phil 3:14, 1Tim 4:10, 16, 5:17, 6:6, 11-12, 19, 2 Tim 2:11–12.
Eternal life with Jesus is promised to all Christians that believe in Him, but there is so much more than just getting into heaven. The Bema seat judgement distinguishes and starts to separate these different categories.
Out of this judgment, three groups are defined:
1)Those Christians who will be exalted to the highest status, the prize of the upward calling, to be named the bride of Christ; those who are most faithful, see notes below on the Bride of Christ.
2)Those who are a part of the wedding ceremony, but not the bride, just guests. See notes below on the parable of the wedding, the parable of the dinner, and the parable of the guests at the wedding feast.
3)Those who were not faithful, but still Christians. What little they have will be taken away from them, Lk 19:13 parable of the ten minas. They are allowed into the kingdom of God, but not into the wedding ceremony or the wedding feast.
The Return of Christ
- Be on guard and ready for the rapture so we can have strength to escape the Great Tribulation
Luke 21:25–38
25 “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,
26 men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
27 “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 “But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
29 Then He told them a parable: “Behold the fig tree and all the trees;
30 as soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is now near.
31 “So you also, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near.
32 “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place.
33 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
34 “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap;
35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth.
36 “But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
37 Now during the day He was teaching in the temple, but at evening He would go out and spend the night on the mount that is called Olivet.
38 And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.
The parable of the ten virgins gives us an insight to this event.
The ten virgins are those who say they are Christians, but 5 of them do not have the oil for their lamps. Oil represents the Holy Spirit. All ten virgins had oil at one time. You cannot be a Christian without the Holy Spirit dwelling in your heart. Jn 3:3-6, 14:17, Rom 8:14, Eph 4:30. These ten virgins were all Christians but five of them let their oil run out and quenched His fire by their unbelief and un-readiness, 1Thes 5:19. This doesn’t mean they lost their salvation. They just forfeited their rewards and inheritance in heaven.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins- be prepared and keep the fire of the Spirit burning in your life
- those that quenched the fire of the Spirit did not make the rapture
Mt 25:1 "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. 6 And at midnight a cry was heard: 'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!' 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' 9 But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.' 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!' 12 But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.' 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
When the bridegroom came, this is Jesus; those that had the oil, Christians filled with the Holy Spirit; went with Jesus into the marriage feast. They were prepared and expecting Him, but those that did not have the oil, left to buy some, but it was too late. These first five virgins evidently had lamps that were burning, but they were going out. The fire of the Holy Spirit was making their lamps burn at one time, but they quenched His fire by their unbelief and un-readiness, 1Thes 5:19. Jesus had come and the door was shut. They were not prepared and were not expecting the Lord to come. Do not be slothful and lazy with your Christianity. Take it seriously, be alert, on guard and ready. Now is the acceptable time, 2Cor 6:2. Once the door to the wedding was shut, they were never allowed in. This does not mean they were shut out of heaven, although we will see some other parables where this is the case, but here we see the five virgins not shut out of heaven but out of the wedding feast. This one parable now distinguishes 4 types of saints in heaven.
1)Old testament saints
2)Christians represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones with authority.
3)Christians represented by the seven lampstands standing in front of the throne of God.
4)Christians who did not make the rapture and were not allowed into the marriage feast.
a.All Christians who participate in the rapture will also be allowed into the marriage feast
b.but this is not a guarantee with Christians after the rapture. Those that come to heaven during the tribulation are not guaranteed to have a seat in the marriage supper. Entrance into the marriage feast is based on your heart. There will absolutely be those who were beheaded for Christ during the tribulation that will be exalted to a seat in the Marriage feast, and there will also be those just like in the parable of the ten virgins that will make it heaven eventually, but will not be allowed in to the marriage feast.
Be in Readiness- Be ready and alert for Jesus when He comes. Don’t be distracted by the world. Keep your focus on Him.
-Those that are looking for Jesus will be rewarded for their faithfulness
Luke 12:35–48
35 “Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit.
36 “Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks.
37 “Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.
38 “Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.
39 “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
40 “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
41 Peter said, “Lord, are You addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?”
42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time?
43 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.
44 “Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
45 “But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will be a long time in coming,’ and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk;
46 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47 “And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes,
48 but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.
Be alert and expectant of the Lord- Be on guard and awake for Jesus when He comes. Don’t be distracted by the world. Keep your focus on Him.
The Lord will choose who he takes based on the readiness and expectancy of the heart
Matt 24:36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. Mk 13:33 Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” Mt 24:37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Lk 17:28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. Mt 24:40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Lk 17:37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there the eagles will gather.”
The parable of the talents- the talents are given to each according to his own ability. It is up to the servant to do something with what the Lord has given us.
- faithfulness is rewarded with authority
-the slothful servant was stripped of what he had and cast into the outer darkness.
Matt 25:14-30
14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Parable of the minas- reward is given for faithfulness
-Authority and rule is given those who were faithful with what Jesus has given us
- those not faithful are stripped of what they have. They are not thrown into outer darkness, but they probably aren’t allowed into the wedding feast.
Luke 19:11–27
11 While they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because He was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately.
12 So He said, “A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return.
13 “And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten minas and said to them, ‘Do business with this until I come back.’
They each received one mina. They all were given an equal amount, but it was what they did with that gift that was important. The mina represents God’s grace and righteousness that was a free gift to all. Everyone who believes in Jesus was given the same amount of righteousness, but it is what we have done with this free gift that is most important. Did you hide it away under a bushel and not do anything with it, or did you set it on top of a hill and let your light shine for everyone to see?, Matt 5:14-16. Did you bury it in the ground to keep it safe for the Master’s return because you thought the Master was a hard, cruel man, or did you invest it and multiply what was given to you?, Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27, Is 55:10.
14 “But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’
15 “When he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him so that he might know what business they had done.
16 “The first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your mina has made ten minas more.’
17 “And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.’
18 “The second came, saying, ‘Your mina, master, has made five minas.’
19 “And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’
20 “Another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief;
21 for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down and reap what you did not sow.’
22 “He *said to him, ‘By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow?
23 ‘Then why did you not put my money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’
24 “Then he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’
25 “And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’
26 “I tell you that to everyone who has, more shall be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.
27 “But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”
Here is another parable describing the wedding
The Parable of the Wedding
Mt 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 For many are called, but few are chosen."
- Those first invited to the Marriage Supper, the Jews, did not accept His invitation and made excuses to not attend
- the Gentiles are now invited and Jesus has made the way for them to sit at the Marriage feast. It didn’t matter if they were bad or good as long as they accepted His invitation they could participate in the wedding. The admission into the wedding is based on one thing, the condition of the heart. Your past doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is what you did with your free gift of righteousness. Did you hide it away under a bushel and not do anything with it, or did you set it on top of a hill and let your light shine for everyone to see?, Matt 5:14-16. Did you bury it in the ground to keep it safe for the Master’s return because you thought the Master was a hard, cruel man, or did you invest it and multiply what was given to you?, Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27, Is 55:10.
- those that attended the wedding were given a wedding garment to wear, a robe of righteousness, Is 61:10; a robe of righteousness that represents the blood of Jesus. We are clothed in the free gift of righteousness that Jesus bought and paid for on the cross. Jesus has this garment hanging and waiting for us, but it is our choice, our responsibility to make ourselves ready, the garment was given to us, but we must take the step of actually putting the garment on, Rev 19:7-9. Just before the Marriage Supper in heaven, we will participate in the Bema seat judgement. This is a judgement for the righteous. Righteous works are rewarded, worthless works are burned up, 2Cor 5:10, 1Cor 3:11-15, Rom 14:10-12, Dan 7:10. The treasure that we store up in heaven, Matt 6:19-21, 1Tim 6:19, the prize of the upward calling, Phil 3:14, an imperishable wreath, 1Cor 9:24-25, a crown of righteousness for those who loved His appearing, 2Tim 4:8; the Bema seat judgement is the period in time for this to happen. The Father will give us a robe of righteousness. I think this is the same robe of righteousness that Jesus has freely given us and made available to anyone who believes in Him, and it also contains an account of our righteous acts embroidered on the hem of the garment, Rev 19:8. All thru scripture the hem of the garment has played a significant role. This border at the bottom of the robe represents an outward reminder of the covenant relationship between God and His people, Num 15:37-40, Deut 22:12. Kings, royal priesthood, Jews of a higher status would have a significant outward appearance representing that person. They used their garment to show off who they were. This is why Jesus said “they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments”, Matt 23:5. The difference between the Pharisees robe of selfish acts and our robe of righteousness is our robe will be made by our heavenly Father. He is the one exalting us by making a righteous robe for us to wear. If you show off and proclaim your righteous acts now in the world, you also will have your reward now in the world; but if you wait and let God exalt you, then your Father will grant your reward openly, which will be great in heaven, Matt 23:5-12, Matt 6:1-6, 16-21.
When David cut off the hem of King Saul’s garment in the cave, the reason David felt ashamed of this act was because the hem of the garment contained the significance of the anointed king of Israel, 1Sam 24:4-6.
When the woman with the issue of blood touched the hem of Jesus garment, she was touching what signified Him as the Anointed One, the Messiah, Matt 9:20-22.
This robe of righteousness is a requirement to enter the wedding. There are two types of people who do not receive a wedding garment.
1)Those that when invited to the wedding, chose the world, deceitfulness of riches, the lust of other things and are too busy to attend. This choice is made on the earth. This is the parable we were just reading, Matt 22:1-14. These people have a dim future. They are not only rejected from the wedding, but cast into outer darkness. I don’t believe that the outer darkness is the lake of fire, but it is not in the kingdom of God either. Jesus said that the sons of the kingdom (those that had a right to the kingdom but did not believe) will be cast out into outer darkness, Matt 8:10-12. I believe these are the Jews who never accepted Jesus as Savior.
2)The other type is the person who accepted the invitation, but didn’t prepare for the event. They weren’t expectant or ready when the time came, they didn’t get themselves ready for the party, and they quenched the fire of the Holy Spirit, so they missed it, the parable of the ten virgins, Matt 25:1-13.
Anyone not wearing this wedding garment will be cast out of the wedding and based on the state of their heart possibly cast into outer darkness.
So how do we avoid being kicked out of the wedding? The short answer is-
Live for Jesus, know Him, fight the good fight of faith, persevere, let everything you do be to the glory of God and let your light shine before men.
The Parable of the Dinner- this is another parable
- the invitation to the supper is the rapture
- Those first invited to the Marriage Supper, the Jews, did not accept His invitation and made excuses to not attend
- the Gentiles are now invited and Jesus has made the way for them to sit at the Marriage feast
Luke 14:16–24
16 But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many;
17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’
18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’
19 “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’
20 “Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’
21 “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’
22 “And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’
23 “And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.
24 ‘For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’ ”
Parable of the Guests at the wedding feast- Humble yourself and let God exalt you
- Do good things and bless those that can’t repay you because the Father will reward you at the resurrection of the righteous- the Bema seat judgment
Luke 14:7–15
7 And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them,
8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him,
9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place.
10 “But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you.
11 “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment.
13 “But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
14 and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
15 When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb closes the events in heaven before Jesus’ second coming to the earth. The time period from the rapture through the Marriage Supper has distinguished and determined several levels and positions of authority for the Christian as Jesus begins to set up His kingdom. He is setting up a hierarchy of authority as He begins His eternal reign on the earth which starts with the Millennium. As we have discovered with this study, there are many different groups and levels of authority established up till this point. Below is re-cap of these groups:
At the Marriage:
At the Marriage Supper:
Every one of these six groups above will be with Jesus when He comes back to the earth at His second coming.
There is also another place, not a part of His kingdom and not a part of hell. It is named the outer darkness. These people are spared the eternal suffering of the lake of fire, but are not allowed into His kingdom, Matt 8:12, 22:13-14. Rev 22:15 gives me the idea that there is a place outside the kingdom of God, but not thrown into the lake of fire. This, I believe, is the outer darkness. So who would be a part of this place? The man that was thrown in the outer darkness was in the kingdom, but didn’t accept the gift of righteousness. God is not finished with Israel. Rom 11:2. Is there a special place for the Jew who does not accept Jesus? The following is a list of scripture that gives me an idea that God has something planned for them. It is true that no one comes to the Father except thru Jesus. And the only way into the Marriage Supper is thru Him. The only way to Life is thru Him. So the person who is cast into outer darkness will never see the Father or participate in any of these events, but they are not thrown into the lake of fire either. Is this the place for the Jews in particular, who don’t accept Jesus? Because they are God’s chosen people, will they be saved from the lake of fire but not be a part of His kingdom? Rom 11:25, Jn 10:16, Is 56:8, 29:10, 18-24, 6:8-12, Matt 24:29-31, Dan 12:1-2, Hosea 13:14, Jn 5:24-30, Ezek 37:10-14, Amos 9:14-15, Zech 8:8, Zeph 3:20, Micah 7:18-20.
All this is conjecture and there are many good Christians that have many different views of these things, but I think the one thing we can all agree on is God wants us to love Him. He gave everything He had so we could be with Him and in Him. God rewards the faithful and those that seek Him so no matter what, don’t be a lukewarm Christian. Give your life and everything that you are to Him and I guarantee you will not be disappointed.
The bride of Christ are those that are one with Jesus just as the Father and Jesus are one; those that have been faithful and had a heart toward the things of God. All Christians that believe in Him will have eternal life, but those that are faithful and overcome will reign with Jesus as His bride, Rev 20:4, 2:26, 3:21, Rom 5:17, 8:17, 2 Timothy 2:11–12.
This is the prize of the high calling, Phil 3:14.
He has invited me to be a part of his family and to participate in all that He has to offer me.
He has invited me to spend eternity with Him and made it extremely easy to do so. He offered the free gift of grace to me. That, if I believe in Jesus, my sins are forgiven and I am washed by the blood of the Lamb and I can live forever with the King of the universe, but wait there is more. It doesn’t stop there; this is just the starting point. This is actually where it all starts, but unfortunately, some Christians don’t even get off the starting blocks. Paul is constantly referring to Christianity as a race. Besides the gift of grace, there is another commonality to Paul’s writings; an urgency and a desire he is always striving for. Is this his salvation? No, of course not; we are saved by grace, that not of ourselves it is a gift of God. Our justification does not have anything to do with our works. It is all based on Jesus and the works He performed on the cross. So what is this that Paul is so concerned and motivated for? It is the pleasure of knowing the Father and Jesus; becoming one with them and walking faithful and worthily of Him, 1Tim 4:8-10, 15-16. This is the Christian walk. It is not bogged down with rules and law that forces us to do these things. This is a matter of the heart. Faithfulness comes from the heart and if we choose to be faithful to Him and commit our life to live for Him only; desire Him, know Him, seek Him, then great is the reward in heaven. This is what Jesus has in store for us beyond eternal life with Him. To rule and reign with Him as One, as His bride seated next to Him, Eph 2:4-10, 1Tim 5:17.
How do I become one with Jesus?We are living in a special dispensation of time that God has chosen to build the body of Christ, His Church. This opportunity, this chosen period of time to form His church, began when Jesus was raised from the dead and it will last until the Marriage Supper of the Lamb which will happen sometime just before Jesus returns to set up His kingdom at His second coming, (not the rapture, but His true second coming to the earth).
The Father sent His Son Jesus to reconcile man to Himself thru Jesus. Jesus paid for all our sins on the cross and made the righteousness of God available to all men who believe in Him. If you believe in Jesus, you have been made new, all your sins, past and future, have been removed from your account and you have been reconciled to the Father and made righteous thru the precious blood of Jesus, 2Cor 5:17-21, Eph 1:7.
Only the first fruits of Jesus’ death and resurrection are allowed to be in the body of Christ, Eph 1:10. We are those that first believed in Him, Eph 1:11-12, and we are those that believed without seeing, Jn 20:29.
If you are in Him and He is in you, then you are part of the body of Christ. A group of elect that is only available to those that believe in Jesus in this dispensation.
Ro 12:5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
1Co 12:12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.
Eph 1:22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Col 1:18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
Col 2:9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; 10 and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
There is no question that those who believe in Jesus are in the body of Christ, but what does it mean to be one with Him and to be the bride of Christ? Is there a difference? Does everyone in the body of Christ become the bride of Christ? I used to be one of those people who thought these were the same, until I discovered all thru the Word, an elect group of the body with special privileges and rights. The bride of Christ is an elite group of the body of Christ; those who were most faithful to Him and for Him. There are several parables from Jesus and many scriptures that help define what it means to be the bride of Christ.
The first and foremost concept to being His bride is the idea of being made one with Him. This is something God put forth between man and woman from the very beginning. Of course this has physical implications that lead to procreation and sustaining life, but life would and could continue without the concept of being made one with your partner. Use the animals for instance. They unite physically, but that is the extent of it, yet they still produce offspring. God could have made this the same for man, but instead he wanted to show us and offer us so much more. This concept of being made one is a foreshadow, an allusion, to what He wants us to have with Jesus on a spiritual level. Of course, the physical rules don’t apply here, that is only something we needed on this earth to procreate with other humans. The idea of being one with Jesus is so much more than physicality; it is oneness, being unified, together in all things, never being separated or divided, always in agreement. Once you understand what unity means from God, then you can apply this back to your personal relationship with your spouse and see things grow to the next level beyond just the physical implications, Eph 5:29-32.
We have the opportunity to get a first-hand discourse of Jesus’ prayer to the Father on the night before He was crucified. This insight helps us gain understanding of what it means to be One with Him.
John 17:20–26
20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;
21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22 “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;
23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.
24 “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
25 “O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me;
26 and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
It is the Father’s earnest desire that we be made one with Him. This is why He paid the ultimate price and sent His Son to die for us. So He could reconcile us to Him.
But do you notice there is not a guarantee to be made one with Him. Any time Jesus mentions us being one with the Father it is always preceded by “may”. Compare this to any salvation scripture. When it comes to salvation, there is nothing else for us to do except believe in Him to be saved. All the work and responsibility is on Him and any works that we try to contribute to salvation is actually blaspheming the name of Jesus and counting the work on the cross as no effect, like it wasn’t good enough.
But when you see any scripture that has to do with being one with Him or reigning or ruling with Him, there is a contingency, something we need to do. God has made it available to all who believe in Him to be one with Him and rule and reign with Him, but not all will achieve this ultimate prize. This is what Paul was striving for all his life and what he wanted for the body of Christ as well.
Eph 1:10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory
Eph 5:23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body, , Eph 4:11-16, Jn 17:21.
Ro 7:4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another--to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God
2Co 11:2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
Being made the bride of Christ is the ultimate prize and should be what every Christian is striving for while he is alive on the earth, Phil 3:14. Not for personal gain or selfish motivation, but because in this process and in the future with Jesus, if we are His bride, this means we will know Him and have such a close intimate relationship with Him we will be as One with Him. This is what every Christian should be longing for and desiring.
Ephesians 5:29–32
29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church,
30 because we are members of His body.
31 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.
32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.
Let us take a look at more scripture surrounding the bride of Christ and the marriage feast.
Now if you are in the body of Christ you have the opportunity to become the bride of Christ.
The rapture
The rapture is the event when Jesus rescues or catches away His church from the coming wrath of the Great Tribulation. This event is commonly known as “the rapture”; although this word is not used in the English bible, it is found in the Latin bible. We get this term from the Greek word ἁρπάζω, harpazo, to catch, take away, seize, or snatch, 1Thes 4:17. The Greek word harpazo is translated as rapturo in the Latin bible.
The word harpazo is used several places in scripture. Paul used this word in describing his experience being caught up to the third heaven, 2Cor 12:2. Luke uses this word when Phillip was snatched by the Spirit after he baptized the eunuch, Acts 8:39.
The rapture is different than Jesus’ second coming. In the rapture, we meet Jesus in the air, 1Thes 4:14-17. At the second coming, Jesus comes to the earth with His saints, 1Thes 3:13, Jude 14-15.
The rapture is a special event for the body of Christ that will rescue or snatch Christians out of this world before the Great Tribulation begins,
2 Thessalonians 2:3
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
This falling away could actually be the rapture. Not a falling away from God, but a separation from the world. The Greek word is ἀποστασία, apostasia- fall away, rebellion. The root word is apostation- separation, divorce. This is a separation or divorce from this world. This coincides with the next few verses in which Paul says the hinderer or restrainer of lawlessness, this is us, Christians, must be taken out of the way before the anti-christ can be revealed.
2 Thessalonians 2:7
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.
We, Christians, those that are filled with the Holy Spirit, are restraining evil. Jesus has all authority over sin and death. As long as the Holy Spirit in us is on the earth, death cannot rule, Heb 2:14-17. Once we are taken out of the way by the rapture, the Holy Spirit also leaves and the anti-christ will have full reign on the earth and there will be no restraint for evil, Rev 13:5.
Sometime after the rapture, probably within months after the catching away, the anti-christ makes a covenant with Israel. This starts the 70th week prophesied by Daniel and the Day of the Lord begins. This is the start of the next dispensation. The Day of the Lord is the Day of Christ, Phil 1:6-10, 2:16. The Day of the Lord cannot start until the son of perdition, the anti-christ is revealed, 2Thes 2:3. The son of perdition is revealed by making a covenant with Israel. He must be revealed before the Day of the Lord can start. This covenant triggers the 70th week of Daniel, Dan 9:27, 2Thes 2:3.
The purpose of the 70th week of Daniel is to bring the Jews back to Glory, Ezek 20:34-38, Zech 12:9-10, 13:8-9, Jer 30:7, Matt 24:15-22.
At the harpazo, not all Christians are caught up and not all Christians who have already died are raised out of the ground; only those who were expectant of the Lord’s coming, those who lived for Christ will be caught up with Him, Lk 21:34-36, Lk 12:35-48, Matt 24:22, 36-44, Matt 25:10, Mk 13:33. Those that are alive at the rapture and also those resurrected out of the ground at this time go back to heaven with Jesus; escaping the wrath of the Great Tribulation, 1Thes 4:13-18.
1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
The elect are saved by the Rapture
Mt 24:22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, Mk 13:20 whom he chose, Mt 24:22 those days will be cut short.
Mt 26:28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
At this time in heaven there are two groups of the elect:
1)Old testament saints rescued out of Abraham’s bosom. Those that were expectant of the Messiah before His first coming. This happened when Jesus died and went to hell for three days; after three days, Jesus was raised out of hell and He rescued all those that believed in Him, , Eph 4:8, Ps 68:18.
2)New testament saints that believe Jesus did come and is the Messiah. These are they that had an expectancy of the rapture and either physically died and were then raised again at the rapture or were still alive at the time of the rapture. These Christians are part of the body of Christ, Rom 10:9-10, Rom 12:5, 1Cor 12:12, Eph 1:22, Col 1:18, 2:9.
In the book of Revelation, we see two groups of Christians in heaven that participate in the rapture.
1)The seven lampstands
2)The 24 elders
The seven lampstands represent raptured Christians, as a whole, filled with the Spirit of God, standing in front of the throne of God, Rev 1:4-5, 3:1, 4:5, 5:6, 11.
The 24 elders represent an elect group of new testament Christians; those that were most faithful and are given authority to reign with Jesus.
Who do the 24 elders represent?
- they are seated on thrones of power and authority- Rev 4:4,10, 11:16
- they are clothed in white raiment and have crowns of gold on their head Rev 4:4,10
- they know who Jesus is and His authority- Rev 5:5, Eph 1:17-23
- they have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Rev 5:9, Gal 3:13, 1Peter 1:18-23, Rev 1:5
- they have been made kings and priests and they will reign upon the earth- Rev 5:10-14, 2:26-27, 20:4-6, 22:3-5, Dan 7:18,22 Matt 25:21, Luke 19:11-27
- only 3 people have been made a king and a priest- Melchizedek- Gen 14:18, Jesus- Heb 4:14, 6:20, 1Tim 6:14-15, Rev 17:14, and those that believe in Jesus- Rev 1:5-6, 1Peter 2:9
- they are not the tribulation martyrs- Rev 7:13-15 or the 144,000 Jews- Rev 14:3.
- The 24 elders are always seated on their thrones and the others are standing in front of the throne, not on a seat of authority, Rev 5:11, 15:2-3.
The Day of the Lord begins sometime after the rapture; when the anti-christ makes a covenant with Israel, Dan 9:27, 2Thes 2:3-10. Some Christians have been left behind because they did not have an expectancy for the rapture. These Christians still on the earth have a choice, die for Christ or be a part of the world.
Those Christians that die for Christ are called tribulation martyrs. They are beheaded and exalted by Jesus. These Christians, however, are not a part of the 24 elders seated on thrones. They are at the feet of Jesus in front of the throne, Rev 5:11,6:9-11, 13:10, 14:12-13, 15:2-4.
Now in heaven we have three groups of elect:
1)Old testament saints
2)New testament saints represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones
3)New testament saints standing in front of the throne of God. These consist of:
a.Saints represented by seven lampstands. These were part of the rapture but are not seated on thrones.
b.Tribulation martyrs- these are Christians who did not participate in the rapture because either were not expectant of the Lord’s coming or they were Jews who didn’t believe in Jesus. I believe that it will be very hard, if not impossible, to become a Christian after the rapture if you had a chance to accept Jesus as Lord before He came. The Lord will send a strong delusion and those that had a chance to believe in Jesus but rejected Him, will believe the lie of the devil and never come to Jesus, 2Thes 2:8-12.
Towards the end of the 70th week, after many tribulation martyrs are killed during the Great Tribulation; up in heaven, there is the Bema seat judgement. This is where all new testament Christians in heaven, the body of Christ, are judged by their faithfulness to Jesus on the earth. From this judgement, rewards are given based on faithfulness and condition of the heart toward God, 2Cor 5:10, Rev 22:12,3:11, Dan 7:10,1Cor 9:25,Matt 5:12, 20:8, 16:27, Jn 4:36,2Jn 1:8,Lk 14:4.
Authority and responsibility to rule and judge are
given to those that proved themselves faithful,
Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27.
The faithful are promised to reign and rule with Christ. This is not all Christians, only those who have proven faithful and overcame, Rev 20:4, 2:26, 3:21, Rom 5:17, 8:17, Phil 3:14, 1Tim 4:10, 16, 5:17, 6:6, 11-12, 19, 2 Tim 2:11–12.
Eternal life with Jesus is promised to all Christians that believe in Him, but there is so much more than just getting into heaven. The Bema seat judgement distinguishes and starts to separate these different categories.
Out of this judgment, three groups are defined:
1)Those Christians who will be exalted to the highest status, the prize of the upward calling, to be named the bride of Christ; those who are most faithful, see notes below on the Bride of Christ.
2)Those who are a part of the wedding ceremony, but not the bride, just guests. See notes below on the parable of the wedding, the parable of the dinner, and the parable of the guests at the wedding feast.
3)Those who were not faithful, but still Christians. What little they have will be taken away from them, Lk 19:13 parable of the ten minas. They are allowed into the kingdom of God, but not into the wedding ceremony or the wedding feast.
The Return of Christ
- Be on guard and ready for the rapture so we can have strength to escape the Great Tribulation
Luke 21:25–38
25 “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,
26 men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
27 “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 “But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
29 Then He told them a parable: “Behold the fig tree and all the trees;
30 as soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is now near.
31 “So you also, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near.
32 “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place.
33 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
34 “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap;
35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth.
36 “But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
37 Now during the day He was teaching in the temple, but at evening He would go out and spend the night on the mount that is called Olivet.
38 And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.
The parable of the ten virgins gives us an insight to this event.
The ten virgins are those who say they are Christians, but 5 of them do not have the oil for their lamps. Oil represents the Holy Spirit. All ten virgins had oil at one time. You cannot be a Christian without the Holy Spirit dwelling in your heart. Jn 3:3-6, 14:17, Rom 8:14, Eph 4:30. These ten virgins were all Christians but five of them let their oil run out and quenched His fire by their unbelief and un-readiness, 1Thes 5:19. This doesn’t mean they lost their salvation. They just forfeited their rewards and inheritance in heaven.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins- be prepared and keep the fire of the Spirit burning in your life
- those that quenched the fire of the Spirit did not make the rapture
Mt 25:1 "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. 6 And at midnight a cry was heard: 'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!' 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' 9 But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.' 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!' 12 But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.' 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
When the bridegroom came, this is Jesus; those that had the oil, Christians filled with the Holy Spirit; went with Jesus into the marriage feast. They were prepared and expecting Him, but those that did not have the oil, left to buy some, but it was too late. These first five virgins evidently had lamps that were burning, but they were going out. The fire of the Holy Spirit was making their lamps burn at one time, but they quenched His fire by their unbelief and un-readiness, 1Thes 5:19. Jesus had come and the door was shut. They were not prepared and were not expecting the Lord to come. Do not be slothful and lazy with your Christianity. Take it seriously, be alert, on guard and ready. Now is the acceptable time, 2Cor 6:2. Once the door to the wedding was shut, they were never allowed in. This does not mean they were shut out of heaven, although we will see some other parables where this is the case, but here we see the five virgins not shut out of heaven but out of the wedding feast. This one parable now distinguishes 4 types of saints in heaven.
1)Old testament saints
2)Christians represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones with authority.
3)Christians represented by the seven lampstands standing in front of the throne of God.
4)Christians who did not make the rapture and were not allowed into the marriage feast.
a.All Christians who participate in the rapture will also be allowed into the marriage feast
b.but this is not a guarantee with Christians after the rapture. Those that come to heaven during the tribulation are not guaranteed to have a seat in the marriage supper. Entrance into the marriage feast is based on your heart. There will absolutely be those who were beheaded for Christ during the tribulation that will be exalted to a seat in the Marriage feast, and there will also be those just like in the parable of the ten virgins that will make it heaven eventually, but will not be allowed in to the marriage feast.
Be in Readiness- Be ready and alert for Jesus when He comes. Don’t be distracted by the world. Keep your focus on Him.
-Those that are looking for Jesus will be rewarded for their faithfulness
Luke 12:35–48
35 “Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit.
36 “Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks.
37 “Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.
38 “Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.
39 “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
40 “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
41 Peter said, “Lord, are You addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?”
42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time?
43 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.
44 “Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
45 “But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will be a long time in coming,’ and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk;
46 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47 “And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes,
48 but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.
Be alert and expectant of the Lord- Be on guard and awake for Jesus when He comes. Don’t be distracted by the world. Keep your focus on Him.
The Lord will choose who he takes based on the readiness and expectancy of the heart
Matt 24:36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. Mk 13:33 Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” Mt 24:37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Lk 17:28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. Mt 24:40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Lk 17:37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there the eagles will gather.”
The parable of the talents- the talents are given to each according to his own ability. It is up to the servant to do something with what the Lord has given us.
- faithfulness is rewarded with authority
-the slothful servant was stripped of what he had and cast into the outer darkness.
Matt 25:14-30
14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Parable of the minas- reward is given for faithfulness
-Authority and rule is given those who were faithful with what Jesus has given us
- those not faithful are stripped of what they have. They are not thrown into outer darkness, but they probably aren’t allowed into the wedding feast.
Luke 19:11–27
11 While they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because He was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately.
12 So He said, “A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return.
13 “And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten minas and said to them, ‘Do business with this until I come back.’
They each received one mina. They all were given an equal amount, but it was what they did with that gift that was important. The mina represents God’s grace and righteousness that was a free gift to all. Everyone who believes in Jesus was given the same amount of righteousness, but it is what we have done with this free gift that is most important. Did you hide it away under a bushel and not do anything with it, or did you set it on top of a hill and let your light shine for everyone to see?, Matt 5:14-16. Did you bury it in the ground to keep it safe for the Master’s return because you thought the Master was a hard, cruel man, or did you invest it and multiply what was given to you?, Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27, Is 55:10.
14 “But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’
15 “When he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him so that he might know what business they had done.
16 “The first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your mina has made ten minas more.’
17 “And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.’
18 “The second came, saying, ‘Your mina, master, has made five minas.’
19 “And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’
20 “Another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief;
21 for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down and reap what you did not sow.’
22 “He *said to him, ‘By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow?
23 ‘Then why did you not put my money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’
24 “Then he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’
25 “And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’
26 “I tell you that to everyone who has, more shall be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.
27 “But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”
Here is another parable describing the wedding
The Parable of the Wedding
Mt 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 For many are called, but few are chosen."
- Those first invited to the Marriage Supper, the Jews, did not accept His invitation and made excuses to not attend
- the Gentiles are now invited and Jesus has made the way for them to sit at the Marriage feast. It didn’t matter if they were bad or good as long as they accepted His invitation they could participate in the wedding. The admission into the wedding is based on one thing, the condition of the heart. Your past doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is what you did with your free gift of righteousness. Did you hide it away under a bushel and not do anything with it, or did you set it on top of a hill and let your light shine for everyone to see?, Matt 5:14-16. Did you bury it in the ground to keep it safe for the Master’s return because you thought the Master was a hard, cruel man, or did you invest it and multiply what was given to you?, Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27, Is 55:10.
- those that attended the wedding were given a wedding garment to wear, a robe of righteousness, Is 61:10; a robe of righteousness that represents the blood of Jesus. We are clothed in the free gift of righteousness that Jesus bought and paid for on the cross. Jesus has this garment hanging and waiting for us, but it is our choice, our responsibility to make ourselves ready, the garment was given to us, but we must take the step of actually putting the garment on, Rev 19:7-9. Just before the Marriage Supper in heaven, we will participate in the Bema seat judgement. This is a judgement for the righteous. Righteous works are rewarded, worthless works are burned up, 2Cor 5:10, 1Cor 3:11-15, Rom 14:10-12, Dan 7:10. The treasure that we store up in heaven, Matt 6:19-21, 1Tim 6:19, the prize of the upward calling, Phil 3:14, an imperishable wreath, 1Cor 9:24-25, a crown of righteousness for those who loved His appearing, 2Tim 4:8; the Bema seat judgement is the period in time for this to happen. The Father will give us a robe of righteousness. I think this is the same robe of righteousness that Jesus has freely given us and made available to anyone who believes in Him, and it also contains an account of our righteous acts embroidered on the hem of the garment, Rev 19:8. All thru scripture the hem of the garment has played a significant role. This border at the bottom of the robe represents an outward reminder of the covenant relationship between God and His people, Num 15:37-40, Deut 22:12. Kings, royal priesthood, Jews of a higher status would have a significant outward appearance representing that person. They used their garment to show off who they were. This is why Jesus said “they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments”, Matt 23:5. The difference between the Pharisees robe of selfish acts and our robe of righteousness is our robe will be made by our heavenly Father. He is the one exalting us by making a righteous robe for us to wear. If you show off and proclaim your righteous acts now in the world, you also will have your reward now in the world; but if you wait and let God exalt you, then your Father will grant your reward openly, which will be great in heaven, Matt 23:5-12, Matt 6:1-6, 16-21.
When David cut off the hem of King Saul’s garment in the cave, the reason David felt ashamed of this act was because the hem of the garment contained the significance of the anointed king of Israel, 1Sam 24:4-6.
When the woman with the issue of blood touched the hem of Jesus garment, she was touching what signified Him as the Anointed One, the Messiah, Matt 9:20-22.
This robe of righteousness is a requirement to enter the wedding. There are two types of people who do not receive a wedding garment.
1)Those that when invited to the wedding, chose the world, deceitfulness of riches, the lust of other things and are too busy to attend. This choice is made on the earth. This is the parable we were just reading, Matt 22:1-14. These people have a dim future. They are not only rejected from the wedding, but cast into outer darkness. I don’t believe that the outer darkness is the lake of fire, but it is not in the kingdom of God either. Jesus said that the sons of the kingdom (those that had a right to the kingdom but did not believe) will be cast out into outer darkness, Matt 8:10-12. I believe these are the Jews who never accepted Jesus as Savior.
2)The other type is the person who accepted the invitation, but didn’t prepare for the event. They weren’t expectant or ready when the time came, they didn’t get themselves ready for the party, and they quenched the fire of the Holy Spirit, so they missed it, the parable of the ten virgins, Matt 25:1-13.
Anyone not wearing this wedding garment will be cast out of the wedding and based on the state of their heart possibly cast into outer darkness.
So how do we avoid being kicked out of the wedding? The short answer is-
Live for Jesus, know Him, fight the good fight of faith, persevere, let everything you do be to the glory of God and let your light shine before men.
The Parable of the Dinner- this is another parable
- the invitation to the supper is the rapture
- Those first invited to the Marriage Supper, the Jews, did not accept His invitation and made excuses to not attend
- the Gentiles are now invited and Jesus has made the way for them to sit at the Marriage feast
Luke 14:16–24
16 But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many;
17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’
18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’
19 “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’
20 “Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’
21 “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’
22 “And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’
23 “And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.
24 ‘For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’ ”
Parable of the Guests at the wedding feast- Humble yourself and let God exalt you
- Do good things and bless those that can’t repay you because the Father will reward you at the resurrection of the righteous- the Bema seat judgment
Luke 14:7–15
7 And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them,
8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him,
9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place.
10 “But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you.
11 “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment.
13 “But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
14 and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
15 When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb closes the events in heaven before Jesus’ second coming to the earth. The time period from the rapture through the Marriage Supper has distinguished and determined several levels and positions of authority for the Christian as Jesus begins to set up His kingdom. He is setting up a hierarchy of authority as He begins His eternal reign on the earth which starts with the Millennium. As we have discovered with this study, there are many different groups and levels of authority established up till this point. Below is re-cap of these groups:
- Old testament saints rescued out of Sheol at Jesus’ death
- New testament saints that participate in the rapture
- Those represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones
- Those represented by the seven lampstands standing in front of the throne
- Tribulation martyrs
- Christians who believed in Jesus, but did not participate in the rapture because they were not expectant of His return
- Jews who became Christians during the Great Tribulation
At the Marriage:
- Those that are named as His bride standing with Him at the Marriage
- Those seated as guests
- Those not even allowed into the Marriage ceremony but still in heaven
At the Marriage Supper:
- Those represented as the bride with Jesus at the head of the table
- Those as guests seated at the table
- Those not even allowed into the Marriage Supper ceremony but still in heaven
Every one of these six groups above will be with Jesus when He comes back to the earth at His second coming.
There is also another place, not a part of His kingdom and not a part of hell. It is named the outer darkness. These people are spared the eternal suffering of the lake of fire, but are not allowed into His kingdom, Matt 8:12, 22:13-14. Rev 22:15 gives me the idea that there is a place outside the kingdom of God, but not thrown into the lake of fire. This, I believe, is the outer darkness. So who would be a part of this place? The man that was thrown in the outer darkness was in the kingdom, but didn’t accept the gift of righteousness. God is not finished with Israel. Rom 11:2. Is there a special place for the Jew who does not accept Jesus? The following is a list of scripture that gives me an idea that God has something planned for them. It is true that no one comes to the Father except thru Jesus. And the only way into the Marriage Supper is thru Him. The only way to Life is thru Him. So the person who is cast into outer darkness will never see the Father or participate in any of these events, but they are not thrown into the lake of fire either. Is this the place for the Jews in particular, who don’t accept Jesus? Because they are God’s chosen people, will they be saved from the lake of fire but not be a part of His kingdom? Rom 11:25, Jn 10:16, Is 56:8, 29:10, 18-24, 6:8-12, Matt 24:29-31, Dan 12:1-2, Hosea 13:14, Jn 5:24-30, Ezek 37:10-14, Amos 9:14-15, Zech 8:8, Zeph 3:20, Micah 7:18-20.
All this is conjecture and there are many good Christians that have many different views of these things, but I think the one thing we can all agree on is God wants us to love Him. He gave everything He had so we could be with Him and in Him. God rewards the faithful and those that seek Him so no matter what, don’t be a lukewarm Christian. Give your life and everything that you are to Him and I guarantee you will not be disappointed.