Last Great Day

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Meaning of the Last Great Day

The Last Great Day pictures ascension into the God family of all those from the great white throne judgement who prove they want to live God’s way of life. The great white throne judgement follows the Millennium and the second resurrection –  the ascension follows the great white throne judgement and this concludes the plan of salvation for mankind.

Updated: 21 Sep-07

Previous Article:   Meaning of the Feast of Tabernacles

 

 

 

Although this annual Sabbath is the last of the annual Holy Days picturing God’s plan of salvation, it actually has a very similar meaning to the Feast of Pentecost. It represents the instant in time, after the second day of judgement, when all those in the second resurrection who are written in the Book of Life will be ascended into the family of God as spirit beings. This day marks the completion of God’s plan of creation (salvation) for mankind.

 

 

Overview of the Second Harvest Season

 

God gives us a synopsis of events for the second harvest season in Rev 20:12:

“…And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books…” [NKJV]

 

[And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God]

This is the second resurrection – the resurrection to physical life in order that the second (late) wheat season may commence, culminating with the second harvest season. It is the time that judgement will be on the great mass of humanity who are alive after the second resurrection – it is the time of the Great White Throne judgement (100 year period pictured by the Feast of Tabernacles).

[and books were opened] These are the books of record of the deeds which are to form the basis of individual judgement (trial) during the second (late) wheat season. Every person, through their conscience, is their own book of record (Rom 2:15) – this was explained previously and in detail in the article clarifying the meaning of the Feast of Tabernacles.

[And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life]     

At the end of the Great White Throne judgement , the people involved will have shown whether or not they wish to live God’s way and those who choose unwisely will not have their names recorded in the Book of Life.

[And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books]    

The people who choose to live God’s way will have their names written in the Book of Life and will be rewarded according to their works during the day of judgement (the 100 year period pictured by the Feast of Tabernacles). God is consistent and will reward those in the second harvest season according to the same criteria as He rewarded those in the first harvest season.

 

Those whose names are not recorded in the Book of Life (those who have no wish to live God’s way) will experience the second (last) death and be removed from existence in an instant (Isa 65:20) – there will be no suffering for eternity (Rev 20:14-15 and Rev 21:8):

“…14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.   15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire…” [NKJV]

Rev 21:8

“… ‘But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.’…" [NKJV]

 

 

Christ’s Invitation to Salvation

 

In John 7:37-39, Jesus invites the people of the second harvest season into the kingdom of God similarly to how those of the first harvest season were invited to the wedding:

“…37 On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.’  39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive…” [NIV]

 

However, for this second harvest season the invite is more explicit in that it shows the way to the Kingdom. This is an invitation from Jesus to receive the earnest of God’s Holy Spirit (2Cor 1:21-22), without which one is not spiritually circumcised – is not a spiritual Israelite – and therefore cannot begin to grow in the way of God, which culminates in ascension to the God family. Accordingly, by giving this invitation, Jesus is inviting people to fulfil their destiny and become part of the family of God by ascension into that family as spirit beings, which fulfilment is pictured by the Last Great Day. The invite, therefore, is part of a process that begins with the start of the day of judgement – the beginning of the spiritual growing season. This process was covered in detail in the previous article on the “Meaning of the Feast of Tabernacles”.

 

The fact that the invitation is a process is supported by what God has recorded Jesus as saying in Rev 21:6-7:

“…6 And He said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. 7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.’…” [NKJV]

 

[And He said to me, ‘It is done!’]

This is a declaration by Christ the plan of creation (salvation) is now completed and precedes statements regarding what has been accomplished.

[I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End]

This is a declaration by Christ that through him the plan started (he was the creator of all – John 1:3) and all resurrections and ascensions are performed by him (John 5:25 and 1Thes 4:16).

[I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts]

This is Christ’s invitation for all those who rise in the second resurrection to be part of the second harvest season by baptism, receiving the Holy Spirit and striving to live God’s way of life.

[He who overcomes shall inherit all things]

Here Christ is making clear the result of successfully accepting his offer and that the offer is indeed a process of striving to live God's way.

[I will be his God and he shall be My son]

This is metaphorical statement providing a part description of the relative relationship between Christ and those in the second harvest season. In reality, both he and all humanity are the children of God the Father (Heb 2:10-14), but metaphorically those in the second harvest season will be the “children” Christ and his bride (those ascended from the first harvest season). However, as the “husband” and the captain of salvation of us all, we are left in no doubt as to who has the pre-eminence over everything – Christ. The main point to remember here is that Christ is speaking of those in the second harvest season only.

 

So, at the end of a successful day of judgement (symbolized by the Feast of Tabernacles) the people are ascended into the family of God (symbolized by the Last Great Day). Although an entire Holy Day is given to celebrate the ascension event, in reality it will last no longer than the blinking of an eye (1Cor 15:52) as did the ascension for those in the first harvest season.

 

 

Isaiah 65:20 in Greater Clarity

 

Having covered the transparent Scriptures in the Book of Revelation dealing with the Last Great Day, it is now possible to review Isaiah 65:20 in greater detail:

“…There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed…” [KJV]

 

[There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days]

This describes a couple of the aspects of the day of judgement, which are no more children are to be born after the second resurrection and those who are resurrected as children or babies will live out a full life at this time. Again, this has been covered in the previous article on the “Meaning of the Feast of Tabernacles”.

 

[for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed]

This provides us with the duration of the Great White Throne judgement day – 100 years. Also, at first reading, the outcomes described in this part of the verse do not appear to make sense because of their apparent ungodly nature – the death penalty for children of 100 years and simply a curse for the sinner of 100 years. However, by reading this verse in context with other relevant Scripture it may be seen that the “children” to which God refers are not regarded as sinners and therefore are His children, whose names have been written in the Book of Life. To commence the process of conversion (spiritual growth) a person must be baptized and receive the spirit of God. When this is done, God already regards the body as being dead – this we are told in Rom 8:9-10:

“…9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness…” [NKJV]

 

In addition to how God regards His children in the spirit, at the end of the second harvest season all those whose names have been recorded in the Book of Life must discard their physical bodies in exchange for spiritual bodies. The exchange of bodies does indeed result in the literal death of the physical body and this must be so for reasons given by God in 1Cor 15:50:

“…Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption…” [NKJV]

 

Accordingly, the death of the righteous, those regarded as the children of God, at the end of the symbolic second harvest season (the final harvesting of the great remainder of humanity) is a great blessing, because for them it means immediate ascension into the family of God – thereby fulfilling the meaning the Last Great Day. This blessing is also why the next part of the verse describes the fate of the sinner as a curse. The sinner's "reward", being a curse, is deliberately expressed in opposition to the blessing received by the righteous – the reward of the sinner is death (forever) as opposed to eternal life for those wanting to live God's way. This is the end of the matter as put by God in Deut 30:19:

“…This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live…” [NIV].

 

As for the sinner being a 100 years old and merely suffering a curse, this is simply an unfortunate translation of the original Hebrew word “qalal”. This word has been translated in various places to describe seemingly totally unrelated events, but when rendered correctly, it describes perfectly what the fate of the sinner is to be. Some of the different renderings relate to the following:

1.     Abatement of the flood waters (Gen 8:8) – these waters vanished into oblivion, as if they never existed; and

2.     A punishment from God (Gen 12:3) – the punishment (reward or wages) of sin is death, Rom 6:23:

“…For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord…” [TLB].

 

When Isa 65:20 is translated using the full understanding provided by the original Hebrew and read in context with all the preceding Scripture in this article, the verse would more accurately read as follows (amplified):

“…From that time forward there shall be no more babies, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the youngest child shall live to be a hundred years old, then cast off its physical form to take up the spirit form of a member of the family of God; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall instantly become nothing…”

 

The sinners (those who choose not to accept God’s offer of salvation) shall instantly become nothing, vanish into oblivion as did the flood waters and be as though they had never existed. Those whose names are written in the Book of Life will cast off their physical bodies and enter the family of God, while those opposed to God will simply become nothing. Death for eternity is the fate of sinners, not suffering for eternity with demented demons. God is truly merciful.

 

As Christ declared, “It is done!” Creation of the children of God, after the image and likeness of God, has now been completed – all who remain of mankind who are going to ascend, will ascend at this time.

 

God has fulfilled His promise of the restitution of all things.

 

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 God’s annual Holy Days, showing the plan of salvation.

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First (early) wheat season

 Feast of ACCLAMATION (Trumpets) Second (late) wheat season

Passover

Promise of reconciliation to God; waiting for us to accept and receive through repentance and baptism with the Holy Spirit.

A memorial of the foundation of God’s plan of creation - that foundation being His way of life (Psa 111:10).

 

Beginning with the Word (Jesus), God taught His way of life (John 8:28) and made him the chief cornerstone – the foundation block of the foundation (Isaiah 28:16).

 

Being a living foundation (a way of life to be embraced by all), it grew to include the prophets and apostles (Eph 2:20) and will continue to grow, as shown by the stone from heaven in Dan 2:34-35.

 

After the first resurrection, the foundation will include all of the firstfruits. At this time, expansion of the foundation shall be accomplished through the marriage of the church to the Lamb of God, Jesus (Rom 7:4 and Gen 2:24). This marriage brings with it the promise of enlarging the foundation by bringing more children into the family of God (Gen 1:28). These children are the remainder of humanity who take part in the second harvest season.

 

 

 

Day of Atonement

Promise of reconciliation to God; waiting for us to accept and receive through repentance and baptism with the Holy Spirit.

1.Jesus died so that we may,  upon repentance and baptism, be reconciled to the Father (Col 1:21-22) – symbolized by partaking of the Passover emblems (Matt 26:26-28). It Symbolizes the OFFER of redemption spelling out what Christ has done for us and how we are always to REMEMBER his sacrifice (1Cor 11:24-25).

2.Symbolic promise of Satan's banishment from our lives and thereby being freed from the death penalty (Rom 8:1-3).

3.Passover shows us, through the symbolism of the foot washing ceremony, the requirement for us to live God's way of life – the way of service to others. Those who not participate in foot washing will be cut-off from the Kingdom (John 13:8).

1. Jesus died so that humanity may, upon repentance and baptism, be reconciled to the Father – symbolized by the goat sacrifice (Lev 15:16). It Symbolizes the OFFER of redemption spelling out what Christ has done for humanity.

2. Literal spiritual rest from Satan and change to direct rule by God is symbolized in making the day a Sabbath.

3. Afflicting the soul (some accept as fasting, but really means to humble or become compliant) symbolizes the requirement to live God’s way of life. Those who do not afflict themselves will be cut-off from the kingdom (Lev 23:29).

Feast of Unleavened Bread

Growing Season for first harvest

Feast of Tabernacles

Growing season for second harvest

1.Symbolizes the period when judgement is on the house of God (1Pet 4:17) and lasts for the physical lives of the ones predestined for the first ascension. Receiving the Holy Spirit through repentance and baptism marks the beginning of this period.

2.Symbolizes the Saints striving to live God's way of life while still human.  It is depicted by eating unleavened bread on all seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (1Cor 5:7-8).

3.Symbolizes the Saints living under the rule of God through the help of God's Holy Spirit (Rom 8:9-16) while still being in, but not of, the world.

4.Symbolizes our lives as Christians, which can be likened to Abraham’s wanderings and dwelling in booths (Heb 11:9-10). Like him, we are to remember that this life is only a temporary existence prior to permanent rest in the Kingdom of God (Heb 11:13-16)

1. Symbolizes the time known as the great white throne judgement – a period of 100 years (Isa 65:20) after the second resurrection and applies to all those predestined for the second ascension.  Receiving the Holy Spirit  through repentance and baptism marks the beginning of this period.

2. Symbolizes the remainder of humanity striving to live God’s way of life while still human (Ex 24:7). This was depicted by Israel eating manna during Israel’s total time of 40 years of dwelling in booths (Ex 16:35).

3. Symbolizes the remainder of humanity living under the government of God, both through the Holy Spirit and under the direct rule of Christ.

4. Remembering that this life is a temporary existence prior to permanent rest in the Kingdom of God - symbolized by the time of Israel's wanderings in the wilderness (Duet 8:2).

Pentecost

Last Great Day

1.Pictures the first harvest season (the reaping period), which is ascension of the firstfruits into the God family as spirit beings in the first resurrection (Jam 1:18, 1Thes 4:16-17 and 1Cor 15:50-52).

1. Pictures the second harvest season (the reaping period), which is ascension into the God family as spirit beings for all those who choose wisely (John 7:37) during the 100 year long great white throne judgement day (Rev 20:11-12).

 

 

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Next Article: 

The Church of God at Laodicea – Who are you? The seven eras of the church of God are given by the “mail route” principle in Revelation Chapters 2 and 3. The current church era, started by Herbert Armstrong about 70 years ago, was last on the mail route and equates to Laodicea.