In this sermon, the preacher discusses the concept of judgment and reward in the afterlife. He emphasizes that everything we do, say, and think in our lives is recorded and will be judged according to the books. The preacher highlights that while there will be judgment for the nations and the dead, there will also be rewards for God's prophets, saints, and those who fear His name. He urges believers to deny themselves and embrace the order of the King in order to enter God's kingdom. The sermon also references the book of Revelation, specifically Chapter 10, where a strong angel with a little opened book is described. The preacher encourages believers to lift up their heads and look up because their redemption is drawing near.

I was thinking of telling you, dear brothers and sisters, that this morning I will try to be short. But I don't know if I can keep my promise, so I hesitate very much. But anyway, I know you are anxious to return, so I will try my best. Will you please turn to the book of Revelation? Revelation chapter ten, we'll read from the first verse. Revelation chapter ten, verse one. And I saw another strong angel coming down out of the heaven, clothed with a cloud and a rainbow upon his head, and his countenance as the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire, and having in his hand a little opened book. And he set his right foot on the sea and the left on the earth, and cried with a loud voice as a lion roars. And when he cried, the seven thunders uttered their own voices. And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write, and I heard a voice out of the heaven saying, Seal the things which the seven thunders have spoken, and write them not. And the angel whom I saw stand on the sea and on the earth, lifted up his right hand to the heaven, and swore by him that lives to the ages of ages, who created the heaven and the things that are in it, and the earth and the things that are in it, and the sea and the things that are in it, that there should be no longer delay, or in other translation, time there is no longer. The time is up. But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound the trumpet, the mystery of God also shall be completed, as he has made known the glad tidings to his own bondman, the prophets. And then chapter eleven of the book of Revelation. Chapter eleven, we begin with verse fifteen. And the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were great voices in the heaven saying, The kingdom of the world of our Lord and of his Christ is come, and he shall reign to the ages of ages. And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God, fell upon their faces and worshiped God, saying, We give thee thanks, Lord God Almighty, he who is and who was, that thou hast taken thy great power and has reigned. And the nations have been full of wrath, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead to be judged, and to give the recompense to thy servants, the prophets, and to the saints, and to those who fear thy name, small and great. And to destroy those that destroy the earth. Let us pray. Dear Heavenly Father, our hearts just go out to thee in worship and in praise. We do praise and thank thee that thou hast brought us to this point. Thou hast been so good, so gracious, so merciful to us. And for this we are most grateful and thankful. Our Father, as we come to the close of this conference, we just pray that thou who art the Alpha will be the Omega to us. We do praise and thank thee that it is true. All things are from thee, through thee, and unto thee. To thee be the praise to the ages of ages. Amen. King Solomon tells us that to everything there is a season. And there is a time for every purpose. Because this is true. Therefore, we need to be wise. To know the time and the manner. We need to receive revelation from above. To know what the time is. What the purpose is. And to know what we ought to do. Because if we know the time and the purpose and the manner, then we will fulfill God's purpose in our lives. And we will be used by God to bring in His will. But if we should miss the time, we should miss the purpose, and we should misbehave, not only we ourselves will suffer, but even the kingdom of God will suffer because of us. So dear brothers and sisters, it is of tremendous importance that we know the time, the purpose, and the manner. How we praise God that in the days of old, these men and women of God, they knew their time, they knew God's purpose, and they knew what they ought to do. And the result was, they pleased God. And God's will was fulfilled in their lives. Just like King David, he served the will of God in his generation. And then of course we know that our Lord Jesus, during His life upon this earth, you find that His whole life is governed by one phrase, Mine hour. Our Lord Jesus knows His hour. He is always walking in the light of that hour. He is never ahead of it, He is never behind it, but you find that He is always right on the hour. Sometimes He says, My hour has not yet come. And other times He would say, The hour is come. Now it is. I come for that hour. And we know that hour is the hour when He shall give Himself to the Church. He will sanctify it, purifying it, by the washing of the water with the Word, that one day He may present it to Himself, a glorious Church without spot or wrinkle or any of such sort, holy and without blemish. And dear brothers and sisters, we find also that God is asking His watchmen, What of the night? Watchmen, what of the night? Brothers and sisters, are we watchmen? Are we watching? If we are watching, the Lord would ask us this question, What of the night? We live in a night. But what hour of the night are we living in? We are living at the very end of the last days. In other words, we are almost towards midnight. And dear brothers and sisters, even though it is the darkest of the night, and yet we know when the midnight comes, there will be a cry saying, The bridegroom cometh. And therefore you'll find, when the prophet was asked by the Lord, Watchmen, what of the night? His answer was, The morning comes, and also the night. So dear brothers and sisters, when all these things shall happen, lift up your heads. Look up. Lift up your head. Because your redemption draweth now. How are we to praise God for that? Now brothers and sisters, we who live at the end of the last days, we know this is the time. Now what is it that God is looking for in us? We mentioned yesterday morning that God is calling for overcomers. The calling to overcome begins even with the first century. Because we find that in the first two, three chapters of the book of Revelation, you'll find that at the end of the apostolic time, that is towards the end of the first century, the church has already failed in her mission. She began to lose her strength, her spiritual strength. She was not able to maintain the light, the testimony of Jesus in the dark world. And because of that you'll find our risen Lord is calling overcomers in these various churches. Those in the church in Ephesus, God is calling them to overcome that lack of first love, to return to the first love. And to those in the church in Laodicea, the Lord is calling them to overcome lukewarmness, that they may really be hot for the Lord. Now dear brothers and sisters, this call to overcome has continued throughout the twenty centuries. And we who are at the end of the last days, surely that call is much more urgent. Because the time is closing in. So He is calling today for overcomers. Those who overcome by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony, and they love not their lives, even unto death. And because they overcome, therefore you'll find when a male child was born, he was taken up to the throne. Now I heard that in the discussion group, the question has been asked, why the male child and not a girl? Well, if you read the Bible you will find, often times, well actually it is always true, you will find that God used female to express that side of subjective experience. So whenever subjective experience is to be presented, you'll find always women are being used as representation. And male, man, is always used in the scripture to present to us the objective truth. So whenever objective truth is presented, you'll find male or man is always used. Women is used whenever affection, love, is going to be expressed. And man or male child is used because there it is spiritual strength that is in view. Through the spiritual strength of the overcomers, the kingdom of darkness is brought to an end. And the kingdom of God and His Christ is to be brought in. So that's the reason why a male child is represented. And that doesn't mean that there are only brothers. There are brothers and sisters. Because in the scripture, when the brothers are being used, it always includes sisters. Whether you are a male brother or you are a female brother. But we are all brothers in the Lord. Now anyway, we come to the end of this series of message. And I think it is evident that time is up. Time is not infinite. Eternity is infinite. Time is always limited. There will come a day when the time will be over. And eternity will again be brought in. God has set the time, all the times, in order to fulfill the purpose, or the particular purpose in each time. So when God's purpose is being accomplished through the time or times, then time shall be no longer. Because the purpose is fulfilled. And once the time is gone, it is gone forever. It cannot return. You know in the scripture, you find there are only two exceptions. The first exception is found in Joshua chapter 10. You remember when Joshua fought against the Amorites? And because it was such an important battle, and the sun is going down. Therefore you find Joshua, he prayed to God, and he spoke. And said, son, stand still. Moon, remain where you are. And you find God answered that prayer, and the sun stood still, and the moon remained there for about a day, until God avenged all his enemies. Now that is one occasion in the Bible you find time stand still. About a day. And then again, in 2 Kings chapter 20, you find King Hezekiah, he was dying. And God sent his servant to him and said, put your house in order, because you are to die, not to live. And yet Hezekiah, he turned his face towards the wall, and he wept, and he prayed and said, God, remember all that I have done. I served thee with a perfect heart. And God's heart was moved, and God sent the prophet Isaiah back to him, and said, I will give you another 15 years to live. And then Hezekiah said, what is the sign that God will give me 15 more years, that I may live and go to the temple to worship God. So Isaiah told him and said, here is the sign. You want the dial of Ahaz? Go forward, the shadow, go forward ten degrees. Or go back ten degrees. And King Hezekiah said, it is easier to go forward ten degrees, than to go back ten degrees. Actually, they are both difficult. But he said, well, let the shadow go back ten degrees. In other words, let time be regained. Time that is already gone, be regained ten degrees. And the shadow on the dial of Ahaz went back ten degrees. Now these are the only two instances, that you find in the Bible and in the whole world, that time has remained and even gone back. And we are told by scientists, that they discovered that 24 hours was missing in the universe. And these 24 hours, you will find in Joshua chapter 10 and 2 Kings chapter 20. Because Joshua chapter 10 is about a day, not quite a day. So it has to be added with the ten degrees, and you have a full 24 hours. So we do praise and thank the Lord, that He is always on time. But you know, dear brothers and sisters, there is a wonderful thing. And that is, even though there is a time, even though time is going on, and time cannot be regained, once it is gone, it is gone. And it is for this reason, you'll find, we are exhorted in the New Testament to redeem the time. To redeem the time simply means to seize upon the opportunity, that is now here, and don't lose it. Because once you lose it, you lose it forever. But dear brothers and sisters, the wonderful thing is, even though God has set the time, and yet you know, God is so wonderful, that He can either shorten or lengthen the efficiency of the time. If you read 2 Peter chapter 3 verse 8, you will find the Apostle said, Now let not this thing be hidden from you, beloved, that one day with the Lord is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. In other words, it may be just one day, but God is able to stretch it, to make it as if it is a thousand years. In other words, He can accomplish in a day, that will usually take a thousand years. And that actually happened in the life of our Lord Jesus. Because you'll find when the Apostle John, coming to the end of the Gospel of John, he said, I'm just mentioning a few of the things that the Lord Jesus has done. But if I should tell you everything that the Lord Jesus has done in His lifetime, even the world cannot contain the records. Now think of that. Our Lord Jesus lived on earth only thirty-three years. And thirty years He was hidden. And He was in public ministry only a little over three years. But what He did in those three years, even the whole world, not to say the Library of Congress in this country, all the libraries in the world, and even the whole world as a library, cannot contain the books. One day as a thousand years. He can do the work of a thousand years in one day. And thank God, a thousand years as one day. Even though it may be a thousand years, but He will consider it as just one day. And that is the long-suffering of God. Judgment should come upon this earth long ago. But thousands and thousands of years have passed. And to God, God said, well, it is only a day. This is the long-suffering of God. And you know, in a limited way, we can also hasten the day or postpone, delay the time. If we cooperate with God, and God is able to accomplish His purpose within that day, then in a sense, you know, you hasten the day. Brothers and sisters, there is one phrase in the Bible that really touches my heart, and that is, we, human beings redeemed of the Lord, we can hasten the return of our Lord Jesus. Actually, we are able to shorten the time, if we are faithful, if we cooperate. But on the other hand, if we are unfaithful, and if we do not cooperate, then God has to find somebody else to do what He wants us to do. And that will delay the hour. It is not because our Lord Jesus does not want to come back. It is because His bride is not yet ready. We have postponed His return. But if we are faithful, we can hasten the day of His return. But anyway, whether we are faithful or unfaithful, you find that God has set His time. And the time will come when His purpose shall be fulfilled. God never fails. His purpose shall be fulfilled in His time. And when that time comes, time is no more. And eternity will be brought in. Now this brings us to Revelation chapter ten. Revelation chapter ten, that vision is inserted between the sixth and the seventh trumpet. The sixth trumpet has already been sounded. And if our interpretation is correct, then you will find after the sounding of the sixth trumpet, and things happening during the time of the sixth trumpet, at the end of the sixth trumpet, we will say the Great Tribulation is over. We often talk about the Great Tribulation. The Great Tribulation of three years and a half. A time and times and half a time. Forty-two months, one thousand two hundred sixty days. So you find that the Great Tribulation is actually, that will come upon this earth, is actually three years and a half. With the sounding of the sixth trumpet. After the things happen in the sixth trumpet, the Great Tribulation is over. And then, of course, will be the sounding of the seventh trumpet. Now in between these two trumpets, you'll find Revelation chapter ten. It is an insertion. And there you'll find the Apostle John saw another strong angel. Another strong angel, coming down out of heaven, closed with a cloud, and a rainbow upon his head, and his countenance as the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire, and having in his hand a little open book. And he set his right foot on the sea, and the left upon the earth, and he cried with a loud cried voice as a lion roars. We believe that this another strong angel is none other but our Lord Jesus. Why? Because we find he comes down out of heaven, closed with a cloud. Now, of course, in Matthew chapter twenty-four, you remember our Lord Jesus said, that the Son of Man will come on a cloud. He will come with millions of angels. He will come with his army, and he will come on a cloud. And here you'll find he is closed with a cloud. Now whenever you see a cloud, it really tells you something is still being hidden. You know, when the Lord ascended up on high, his disciples saw him going up from Mount Olive, and they saw him going up until a cloud took him. They couldn't see him anymore. He is in the cloud, but he is going up, and in the same way he will return. In other words, one day he will come back on the cloud. And when he comes back on the cloud, it cannot be seen. It is still hidden. It is still a mystery, as it were. And then he will break the cloud, and appear himself upon Mount Olive. And Mount Olive will be broken into two, and he will come down to rescue his people. So dear brothers and sisters here, you'll find this strong angel is closed with a cloud. He is still in the cloud. But it's a mystery yet to be opened. And a rainbow upon his head. We remember in Revelation chapter four, when you see the throne of God with the one seated on the throne. You'll find a rainbow around the throne. Even in judgment there is mercy. And here you'll find this strong angel has a rainbow upon his head. He is coming to judge the world. But even in judgment he remembers mercy. And then his countenance as the sun. And of course, if you go back to the first chapter of Revelation, you'll find that his countenance shines as the sun. He is the sun of righteousness. And his feet as pillars of fire. Pillars in the Bible always stand for stability. And fire stands for holiness and righteousness. So here you'll find our Lord Jesus in all his walk. It is stable, it is full of holiness and righteousness. And having in his hand a little opened book. Now of course, in chapter five, you'll find when the lamb, newly slain, stepped forward to receive the book from the hand of the one who sits upon the throne. That book was sealed. In other words, because it is sealed, you do not know whether it is a big book or a small book. It is being sealed. But here you'll find the seven seals have already been opened. Therefore it is an open book. And surprisingly, it is a little book. Now we were saying it should be a big book. But it is a little book. Why? Because this book is the title deed of the earth. It is not the title deed of the universe. So in other words, it is just a little book. But though it is a little book, it is an important book. Because God's heart is centered upon this planet. And not this planet, but the man on this planet. And there you'll find he set his right foot on the sea, and the left on the earth. You know, when you set your foot down, it means that you take possession of it. The Bible says in Joshua, wherever the sole of the feet of the children of Israel step on, that becomes their possession. So here you'll find the strong angel, he put his right hand on the sea. In other words, he possessed the sea. And his left foot on the earth, he possessed the earth. Here you'll find the seal has been opened, he has executed the right of God, and he is taking possession of the sea and of the earth. Then he cried with a loud voice as a lion roars. Of course, you know, in chapter five, the tribe of the lion, the lion of the tribe of Judah. So we believe that this, another strong angel in the vision, actually is our Lord Jesus. He is coming to declare the end. And then in verse five it says, And the angel whom I saw stand on the sea and on the earth lifted up his right hand to the heaven and swore by him that lives to the ages of ages who created the heaven and the things that are in it and the earth and the things that are in it and the sea and the things that are in it that time there is no longer. The time is up. In the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound the trumpet, the mystery of God also shall be completed as he has made known the glad tidings to his born men, the prophets. Dear brothers and sisters, at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the mystery of God is completed. What is a mystery? A mystery is something hidden. It needs to be revealed. Now God has a mystery. It is called the mystery of God. But at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the mystery of God shall be completed. In other words, the mystery of God shall be fully manifested and everybody will see it. It is no longer a mystery. It has become an open secret. And you know what is the mystery of God? Thank God, by the revelation of the Holy Spirit, the Church is made known by God what that mystery is. The mystery of God is none other but Christ. Christ is the mystery of God. Not only all the works and the plans of God are centered upon Christ, but you find that the very purpose of everything is Christ. Christ is the mystery of God. It is by Christ that God is made known to us. Nobody has ever seen God. But the one who is at the bosom of the Father, He declares Him. Dear brothers and sisters, how do we know God? God is a mystery. And no wonder you find when Paul was touring the city of Ephesus, he saw there was an altar to offer to the unknown God. God is a mystery. But dear brothers and sisters, we do thank God that today God to us is not a mystery, because He has been declared, manifested, revealed, unveiled through His Son. In Christ Jesus, we see God. So the Lord Jesus said, If you see Me, you see My Father. All the purposes of God are centered upon Christ. All the works of God are done through Christ. And everything will end up in Christ. Because the day shall come when all things shall be summed up in Christ. That He may have the preeminence over all things. That Christ shall be all and in all. O brothers and sisters, this is the purpose of the time. Even though God does divide time into times, and there are specific purposes to be fulfilled in each particular time, but when you look at time as a unit, you will find God has only one purpose to be accomplished through all time, and that is Christ shall be all and in all. This is the mystery of God. And at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, that mystery shall be accomplished. Now if you turn to chapter eleven, and then you'll find this mystery of God is being broken up into different parts. There you'll find the seventh trumpet sounded His trumpet, and there were great voices in the heavens saying, The kingdom of the world of our Lord and of His Christ is come, and He has reigned to the ages of ages. Now of course there is another version which says, The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ. You know, brothers and sisters, God always has His kingdom in view. The kingdom of God is a tremendous thing. Even in the Garden of Eden, God has His kingdom in mind. He put man in the Garden of Eden, but man in the Garden of Eden was not a person who was independent, free to do whatever he wanted to do. But you'll find even man in the Garden of Eden was put under God's authority. God gave man a command, Of all the trees in the garden you may freely eat. God gave man so much liberty, even to eat the tree of life. But God said, you cannot eat the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and it is for your own good, because the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die. You know the words, brothers and sisters, God put man in the Garden of Eden. He is to be king over all the creatures that God has created, have dominion over the fowls of the air, the beasts of the field, the sea, the fish in the sea. But He is over all creation, but under one, the Creator. In other words, there you'll find the concept of the kingdom of God was already there. God was setting up His kingdom in man. Man was supposed to obey God, and if man should obey God then man will find his fulfillment, man will find his destiny. But if man should rebel against God, will not want God to be his king, then the result will be death. And unfortunately you'll find man wanted to be his own king. Instead of obeying the command of God, man wanted to make a king of himself, and the result was man was driven out of the Garden of Eden. And after man was driven out of the Garden of Eden, you know, there is something more important happened. It is just not a matter of man's health. It is not just a matter of man being driven out of the Garden. Dear brothers and sisters, when man listened to the tempter and ate the forbidden fruit, in other words, he delivered not only himself to Satan, but even the earth that God has given to him to rule to the hands of the deceiver. Something much more happened at that time. You know, God put man in control of the earth, under his kingship. But when man tried to lift his own head to be his own king, unknowingly he actually entered into slavery to sin and to Satan. But more than that, he delivered the world that God had put in his hand to the arch-enemy. And you know what Satan did? He began to organize the earth. He began to organize everything upon this earth to be his kingdom. The world as a system. He is the ruler of this world. He took over from man. He organized it. He formulated it. He made it a cosmos, a system, a world system. And he has been the prince, the ruler of this world. God was to set up his kingdom. But Satan came in, took over man, and set up the kingdom of darkness in opposition to God's kingdom. But thank God, even though man failed, God never fails. Even though man was defeated, God did not give up his purpose. So here you'll find God began to work to build his kingdom upon this earth. And in the beginning you'll find he found his kingdom in Abel, in Enoch, in Noah. Here and there among the multitudes of mankind, there will be some men and women who will willingly submit themselves to the rulership of God. They acknowledge that they had no king but God. They submitted their lives to the rule of God, and God manifests his kingdom in these individuals. I'll call Abraham. It was a great departure, because when God called Abraham, you'll find he began not only to have one man, but even through Abraham, a family. Not only a family, but a nation. In other words, you'll find through Abraham, God was able to set up his kingdom among a group of people, the children of the Israelites. Therefore, when you read the Bible, you'll find when God delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt, there was a song. In Exodus, chapter 15, you'll find in the song of Moses, when they celebrated their deliverance, that song ended up with this word. Exodus, chapter 15, verse 18. The song of Moses ended with this note, Jehovah shall reign forever and ever. This will be a nation redeemed out of slavery, to be a free people, in order that God might be their king. And if you go on to Exodus, chapter 19, you'll find when they came to Mount Sinai, again God said, if you will hearken to my voice and keep my covenant, then you shall be my own possession out of all the peoples, for all the earth is mine, and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. God was to set up his kingdom on the earth, in a nation of Israel. And when they traveled through the wilderness forty years, and they arrived almost at the border again after forty years, you know what happened? If you read Numbers, chapter 23, there you'll find they came to the border of the promised land, and Balak engaged Balaam, the prophet, to come and curse the people. And every time he tried to curse the people, God turned it into blessing. And if you read these chapters, it is most amazing. You know, Balaam was a Gentile prophet, and he was an unworthy prophet. As a matter of fact, he was worse than the ass he rode on. But still God used him, and God used him mightily, because the prophecies of Balaam are considered as among those of the greatest prophecies in the Bible. And there you'll find in the prophecy four times. Each time he tried to curse, God turned it into blessing. And every time you listen to this, I cannot go into it, it would take too long. Lo, it is the people that shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen wrong in Israel. Jehovah his God is with him, and the shout of the king is in the midst. And his king shall be higher than Aged, and his kingdom shall be exalted. There cometh a star out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel, and he shall cut in pieces the corners of Moab, and destroy all the sons of Thumut. And one out of Jacob shall have dominion, and will destroy out of the city what remaineth. In other words, you'll find in the prophecies of Balaam, again and again, through revelation, God is telling that he is to be king among in this nation of Israel. Brothers and sisters, when they enter into the promised land, actually the promised land they occupied at that time was a tiny little bit of territory. Before I went to Palestine, I thought Palestine must be a very big place, that our Lord Jesus travelled far and wide in the land of Palestine. But after you arrive there, you'll find it is just a tiny little bit of territory. So here you'll find the children of Israel, they occupy a very tiny bit of earth upon this planet. And they were a small people, small in number. And yet, dear brothers and sisters, the wonder of wonders is, God has set up his kingdom in this people. He had his kingdom upon the earth in a nation of Israel. As long as Israel as a nation obey God, nobody can conquer them. They were at the top of all things. No matter how big a nation or nations, no one can defeat them, because God was their king. God has given them the dominion over the earth. God set up his kingdom in a nation of Israel. But if they disobey God, then you'll find they will be defeated by the enemies around them. Unfortunately, they rebelled against God, they were not faithful to God, and finally that nation was completely destroyed. They were taken into Babylonian captivity. And do you know, during the time of the Babylonian captivity, if you read Old Testament, you will find that God was never addressed as the God of the heavens and of the earth. God was only addressed as the God of the heavens. Why? Because he had no testimony upon the earth. He put his name in Jerusalem. He committed himself to the nation of Israel. He made the nation of Israel his own kingdom upon this earth. And yet here you'll find Jerusalem was destroyed, the temple was destroyed, the people of Israel were taken into captivity. There was no testimony of God upon the earth. Therefore, God during that short period was never addressed as the God of the heavens and of the earth. Only addressed as the God of the heavens. But that doesn't mean God did not leave any testimony for himself. You'll find he still did. Even though the times of the Gentiles had ushered in. And yet you'll find with the first Gentile power, God has left behind a Daniel. A Daniel. And through Daniel, the golden head, Nebuchadnezzar, was given the knowledge that even though God had given him the power over the whole earth, but God is still above all. Do not think that God had given up. God hadn't given up. But you'll find again and again he was warned by Daniel. Now, you can read Daniel chapter 2, and you'll find Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar, Thou, O king, art the king of kings, into whom the God of the heavens hath given thee the kingdom, the power, the strength, and the glory. But remember, the day will come, in the days of these kings, shall the God of the heavens set up a kingdom which shall not be destroyed. It will break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, but itself shall stand forever. In other words, God has given Nebuchadnezzar the kingdom. But it is God who gave him the kingdom. And the days will come, during the days of the kings, all the kingdoms of the world will be destroyed, and God will set up his own kingdom, and his kingdom shall stand forever. And then in chapter 4, he again told Nebuchadnezzar that the heavens do rule over the affairs of man. And then in chapter 7, you'll find Daniel sorting a vision, vision of the night, and a throne was there. And then he found one like the son of man being led to the throne, and he received from the one who sits upon the throne, dominion, kingdom. And his dominion shall know no end, and his kingdom shall last forever. So brothers and sisters, even though during the time of captivity, Babylonian captivity, God seemingly did not have his kingdom upon this earth, and yet he still had his witness upon this earth that God still had his own kingdom. And his kingdom will come, and it will be forever. Before the coming of our Lord Jesus, or at the coming of our Lord Jesus, you'll find John the Baptist, the forerunner. He came forward, and what was his message? He said, repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn nigh. God hasn't forgotten his kingdom. Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn nigh. Why? Because the king has come. But the king has come, but the king alone does not make up a kingdom. In other words, for the king to have a kingdom, he needs a people. And that's the reason why in the beginning of the ministry of our Lord Jesus, he repeated the message of John the Baptist. Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn nigh. But when you come to Matthew chapter 11, you'll find he changed his words. He said from the day of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of the heavens is to be seized by violence, and the violence seized upon it. Why is it? Because at that time he had already his disciples. His disciples were the subject of his kingdom. He was king over his disciples. His disciples put themselves under his dominion, and because of that, he has his kingdom upon this earth. So he tells us that anyone who wants to enter into his kingdom, you have to do violence. Now, we don't like the word violence. It has a bad connotation. But actually the word itself is neutral. It simply means you have to do something, something drastic. Not that the Lord wants us to do violence to other people. That is the problem today. But the violence there is, do violence to yourself. Deny yourself. Now, that is very violent. Oh, we love ourselves. How we take care of ourselves. How we try to gratify its every lusts and passions and desires. Oh, we are so soft towards ourselves. We may do violence to other people. Very critical, very judgmental. But when it comes to ourselves, oh, how we love ourselves. Oh, how we take good care of ourselves. We embrace ourselves, pet ourselves. But brothers and sisters, the Lord said, if you want to enter into my kingdom, you have to do violence to yourself. You have to deny yourself. You have to tell yourself, who are you? I don't know you. I have no reason to yield to your demand. Because I am under the order of the king. Dear brothers and sisters, here you find our Lord Jesus is setting up His kingdom upon this earth. And you know, after our Lord Jesus died, and raised from the dead, He was upon this earth for forty days before He ascended to heaven. You know what He did, what He said during these forty days? Of course, He appeared to His disciples and disappeared. But, if you read Acts chapter one, you find during those forty days, He spoke to His disciples about the things of the kingdom of God. Our Lord Jesus had the kingdom in His mind. He talked to His disciples of the things of the kingdom, that they might know what the kingdom is. His kingdom is not of the world, He said. But what is His kingdom? He is telling His people the principles of His kingdom, the things about the kingdom of God. And you know, if you read the book of Acts, it not only begins with our Lord Jesus speaking of the kingdom of God. But when you come to the end of the book of Acts, in chapter twenty-eight, you find Paul washing room in his tired apartment. And what was he doing there? He was teaching the kingdom of God. Dear brothers and sisters, what is the message of the Church? The message of the Church is the kingdom of God. The Church is to proclaim that Jesus is King. He is Lord. He is to set up His kingdom upon this earth. Here you find the conflict, the battle between the two kingdoms. On the one hand, you find the kingdom of God. On the other hand, you find the kingdom of darkness. And these two kingdoms are in constant, continuous, unceasing conflicts with each other. Again, to borrow an instance from the Old Testament, you find in 2 Samuel, there you find the house of David and the house of Saul. David was king in Hebron, but the seed of Saul was king in Jerusalem. And these two houses fought against each other. David was king in Hebron for seven years and six months. And during that period, you find there was constant conflict between these two houses. Eventually, you find gradually, the kingdom of Saul became weaker and weaker, and the house of David became stronger and stronger, until the day when the house of Saul came to an end, and David was crowned in Jerusalem. Now, this is the picture here. You find there is the conflict between two kingdoms. The kingdom of God that Christ has set up on earth, and the kingdom of darkness that Satan has set up on earth. And these two kingdoms have been in conflict through the ages, through the centuries. But dear brothers and sisters, we know one thing. The kingdom of darkness is getting weaker and weaker, and the kingdom of God is getting stronger and stronger, until it prevails. Now, you may think it doesn't look like it. But let me tell you. You notice that image that Nebuchadnezzar saw? God revealed to Nebuchadnezzar the kingdom of this world? Here you'll find the Babylonian kingdom, the Middle Persia kingdom, the Greek Macedonian kingdom, and you'll find the Roman kingdom. In other words, kingdom comes and kingdom goes. But behind all the kingdoms of the world, there is the kingdom of darkness. In other words, Satan is at the back pulling the strings. Do you think the kingdom of this world is getting stronger and stronger? No. Why? Because in that image you saw, the value of the kingdom of this world is becoming less and less. It began with gold, then it went down to silver, it went down to brass, it went down to iron, it went down to clay. Brothers and sisters, in the eyes of man, it is as if the kingdom of darkness has become stronger and stronger. It looks like it. But in the eyes of God, God saw, God sees that the kingdom of the world is getting weaker and weaker and weaker. And the day is coming when that stone not cut with hand, that is the kingdom of God, will smite the feet of the kingdom of the world, break it to pieces, and the stone will grow into a great mountain and fill the earth. In other words, the kingdom of God shall come upon this earth. It is the time that the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ. Thank God it is coming. Brothers and sisters, you need spiritual eyes to see. Don't see with your physical eyes. See with the spiritual eyes. And you know it is coming. Now let me just use an illustration. I didn't keep my promise. I'm in the middle. Use an illustration. You know in the first century, the kingdom of this world was represented by the Roman Empire. It was such a powerful kingdom. And the power of this empire put every force upon the kingdom of God, the Church of God at that time. How the Roman Caesars, one after another, tried to destroy Christianity. They tried to destroy Christians. They tried to wipe out the name of the Lord Jesus. And you find the whole forces, all the power of the Roman Empire, the greatest empire upon this earth, were mobilized against the Church of God. Seemingly, many were killed. Seemingly, many were put in jail. Seemingly, they were able to wipe out. And the Christians had to meet in the catacombs and be buried in the catacombs. But dear brothers and sisters, do you know what history tells us? The Roman Empire was out to destroy the Church, but the Church prevailed. The Roman Empire was destroyed. Now that is in the beginning of history. And brothers and sisters, this is true throughout the centuries. No matter how the kingdom of the world may appear to be, we know that the kingdom of God is gathering strength. We know that the kingdom of this world is getting weaker and weaker. And the day is coming when the kingdom of this world shall become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ. When that day comes, the time is ours. And you'll find a number of things there, I won't describe them, I will just read them, because I will keep you here. And here you'll find in chapter 11, there are several things that happened when, after the sounding of the seventh trumpet, and in verse 17, they worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, Lord God Almighty, He who is and who was, that thou hast taken thy great power and hast reigned. God has always reigned. God has never given up His reigning. But here you'll find He has taken great power and has reigned publicly. Today God reigns. He reigns secretly, privately. You need to have spiritual eyes to see, understanding to understand. The world does not know. They think that they reign. No, God reigns. God set up the king, and God cast down the king. God reigns, but He reigns in secret. Thank God, when the time is up, you'll find He shall reign publicly. The kingdom of God shall be established upon this earth, and righteousness shall rule over the earth. This is the utopia that man dreams about. This is the time when there will be peace all around. This is the time where lions will eat grass with land. This is the time that a child can play at the hole of a poisonous serpent. Nothing in the holy heel of God will hurt anybody. Why? Because Christ reigned over this earth. And dear brothers and sisters, those overcomers shall reign with Christ for a thousand years. At the same time you'll find the nations have been full of wrath, and thy wrath is come. Oh, the nations, instead of repent, the nations were full of wrath. But what is the wrath of the nations to compare with the wrath of God? Here you'll find the wrath of God is also come. In other words, He will judge the nations. There will be the last war, and this last war is a just war. It is a war that ends all war, because Christ and His army will come and defeat Satan and his followers. Then further you'll find the time of the dead to be judged. You know, it really covers a great many things. Here it goes even to after millennium. After millennium, all the dead will be raised, and will all stand before the great white throne to be judged. And whoever's name is not in the book of life, he will be judged according to the books. And what are the books? The books are your records. God has a file on everyone. Not in a computer thing, but as someone said, now where does God keep that file? Probably He keeps that file here, in you. He can just bring it out to the screen, and everything will be there. And you know how true it is? We are told, I think it's Moody who say that, when a person is drowning, or he, in his lifetime, I forgot the detail, but anyway he said, when a person is drowning, suddenly his whole life comes before him on the screen. God just touch a button, and you'll find history is going backwards, and everything will come, and nothing is lost. All that you do, did, all that you said, all that you thought, everything in your life were in the books, and you will be judged according to the books. Who can stand it? And then you'll find to give the recompense, to thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to those who fear thy name, small and great. Thank God. On the one hand, there will be judgment of the nations, there will be the judgment of the dead, but on the other hand, dear brothers and sisters, there will be reward. God is going to reward His prophets, that is, those who are His in the Old Testament time, who are faithful to Him. And He will reward the saints, those who are faithful to Him in the New Testament times. And He will reward those who fear His name. Now, I don't know what this group is, I think probably these are the people that came to fear the name of the Lord during the time of the Great Tribulation. But anyway, you'll find, whether it is back in the Old Testament time, or in the New Testament time, or even in the time of the Great Tribulation, those who respond to God's grace, they will be rewarded. Overcomers will be rewarded, small and great. Now, oftentimes we have a kind of mental image of an overcomer. We think that to be an overcomer, he must be seven feet tall. Or 250 pounds. Or so forth. He must be of such a stature. Then he is an overcomer. You know, they will be small and great. So even though you are small, you can be an overcomer. If that stature is the stature of Christ. So dear brothers and sisters, and then it continues on, to destroy them that destroy the earth. Not only you will find the beasts will be destroyed, antichrists, false prophets, will be thrown into the lake of fire, but even Satan will be destroyed and thrown into the lake of fire. All that destroy the earth will be destroyed. And brothers and sisters, when all these things happen, time will be no more. Because everything God wants to accomplish within time has been accomplished. So you'll find the time is over. Eternity comes here. And if you want to know something about eternity, read Revelation chapter 21 and 22. There you'll find the holy city, the New Jerusalem, descending out of heaven. And come upon the new earth. The tabernacle of God is among men. Dear brothers and sisters, there you'll find all who are in the cities, all who are redeemed of the Old Testament, of the New Testament. They shall all be kings. And they worship God. That's eternity. Shall we pray? Dear Heavenly Father, how we do praise and thank Thee that Thou art the God from eternity to eternity. That Thou hast set up time in Thy dealing with mankind in order to accomplish the purpose that Thou hast for Thy own son. And how we do praise and thank Thee no matter what has happened or what is happening. We know that the day is coming when time shall be no more. Thou will have what Thou hast purposed even before the foundation of the world. Thou will get Thy church. Thou will get Thy bride. And Thou shall have Thy kingdom upon this earth. And Thy kingdom shall know no end. Thy dominion shall be everlasting. Oh, how we praise and thank Thee knowing that that day is coming when we shall, by Thy grace, be ushered into eternity. And there we shall worship Thee forever. In the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.