XVIII. The Kingdom Restored

Chapter 197 :

The Home of the Saved

1. FOR what purpose was the earth created?
"For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God
Himself that formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited." Isa. 45:18.

2. To whom has God given the earth?
"The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord's: but the earth hath He given to the children of men." Ps. 115:16.

3. For what purpose was man made?
"Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under his feet." Ps. 8:6. See Gen. 1:26; Heb. 2:8.

4. How did man lose his dominion?
Through sin. Rom. 5:12; 6:23.

5. When man lost his dominion, to whom did he yield it?
"For of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage." 2 Peter 2:19.

NOTE.-Man was overcome by Satan in the garden of Eden, and there yielded himself and his possessions into the hands of his captor.

6. In tempting Christ, what ownership did Satan claim?
"And the devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, showed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto Him, All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it." Luke 4:5,6.

7. Through whom is this first dominion to be restored?
"And Thou, O tower of the flock, the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, unto Thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem." Micah 4:8.

NOTE.-The "tower of the flock" is Christ.

8. Why did Christ say the meek are blessed?
"Blessed. are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." Matt. 5:5.

NOTE.-This inheritance cannot be realized in this life; for here the truly meek generally have little of earth's good things.

9. Who does David say have most now?
"For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. ...Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish." Ps. 73:3-7.

10. Where are the righteous to be recompensed?
"Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner." Prov. 11:31.

11. What will be the difference between the portion of the righteous and the wicked?
"Wait on the Lord, and keep His way, and He shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it." Ps. 37:34.

12. What promise was made to Abraham concerning the land?
"And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy SEED forever." Gen. 13:14,15.

13. How much did this promise comprehend?
"For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith." Rom. 4:13.

14. How much of the land of Canaan did Abraham own in his lifetime?
"And He gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet He promised that He would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child." Acts 7:5. See Heb. 11:13.

15. How much of the promised possession did Abraham expect during his lifetime?
"By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: for he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." Heb. 11:8-10.

16. Who is the seed to whom this promise was made?
"Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." Gal. 3:16.

17. Who are heirs of the promise?
"And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." Verse 29.

18. Why did not these ancient worthies receive the promise?
"And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect." Heb. 11:39,40.

19. What is to become of our earth in the day of the Lord?
"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up." 2 Peter 3:10.

20. What will follow this great conflagration? "Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new
heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." Verse 13.

NOTE.-As shown in the reading on "The Millennium," chapter 78, at the coming of Christ, the living wicked will die, and the saints will be taken to heaven to dwell with Christ a thousand years, or until the wicked of all ages are judged, and the time comes for their destruction and the purification of the earth by the fires of the last day. Following this, the earth will be formed anew, and man, redeemed from sin, will be restored to his original dominion.

21. To what Old Testament promise did Peter evidently refer?
"For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and
the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind." Isa. 65:17.

22. What was shown the apostle John in vision?
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea." Rev. 21:1.

23. What will the saints do in the new earth?
"And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of My people, and Mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them." Isa. 65:21-23.

24. How readily will their wants be supplied?
"And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear." Verse 24.

25. What peaceful condition will reign throughout the earth then?
"The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, saith the Lord." Verse 25.

26. What seasons of worship will be observed in the new earth?
"For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I shall make, shall remain before Me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, saith the Lord." Isa. 66:22,23.

27. What will the ransomed of the Lord then do?
"And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to
Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." Isa. 35:10.

28. How extensive will be the reign of Christ?
"He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth." Ps. 72:8.

29. What does Daniel say of this kingdom?
"And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him." Dan, 7:27.

NOTE.-Let imagination picture the home of the saved fair and beautiful as it may, yet remember that it will be more glorious than our brightest imagination can conceive. See 1 Cor. 2:9.

O, SWEETLY through the gloomy years
That roll their dimming veil between,
The promised goodly land appears,
Arrayed in never-fading green!
And from that peaceful, happy clime,
Transporting bursts of song arise,
And, rolling through the mists of time,
Tell us of joy that never dies.

As voyagers on the stormy deep
Look for some bright and sunny bay
Where winds and waves are hushed in sleep,
And joy lights up the happy day,
So o'er the tossing sea of years
We glance the eye and stretch the hand
Where, robed in fadeless light, appears
The border of the shining land.

There angel hosts of glorious ones,
With sinless hearts and stainless hands,
Call us in glad and loving tones
And bid us welcome to their bands.
Hark! how their harps and voices tell
The glories of that radiant strand,
And bid us breast the waves that swell
Between us and the shining land.

Ear hath not heard, eye hath not seen,
The glories of that home of song;
Though stormy billows roll between,
I go to join the angel throng.
But of the joys beyond the tide,
The welcomes on that golden strand,
The best shall be from Him who died
To bring us to the shining land.
                                           H. L. HASTINGS.