From the Garden of Eden to the Tower of Babel, from the destruction of Sodom to the Exodus from Egypt, God has always analyzed before acting. Today, on the eve of His return, Jesus examines the life of every person who has ever lived, revealing the choices that have led either to salvation or to destruction. God wants to give clear and transparent visibility to the universe so that no one suffers a fate they did not choose.

The ancient rituals of the Hebrew sanctuary were a mere reflection of Jesus’ action in heaven, and each offering was a foreshadowing of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice. Now, Jesus, our true high priest, offers the merits of His sacrifice to all who accept His grace. Since He endured all the temptations we face, we can trust in Jesus who, when we need help, understands our struggles and makes us stronger. Jesus is our mediator, forgiving our sins and restoring our relationship with God, broken by sin. The first covenant condemned us to death, but Jesus is the mediator of a new covenant whose sacrifice sets us free.

The unconscious nothingness of death separates us from God and from those we have lost. God alone is inherently immortal, but the free gift of salvation is eternal life. We hope in the second coming of Jesus, when He will resurrect the saved dead so they may live eternally.

The first millennium after Jesus’ return will be a time of reconciliation and renewal in heaven. We will be able to inquire into the lives of each individual, exploring how their choices led them to salvation or destruction. Earth will be empty, only Satan and his angels will remain, exiled, with no one to deceive or destroy.

After a thousand years, God and those who are saved will return from heaven to Earth with the heavenly city, the new Jerusalem. God will resurrect the unsaved dead so they can witness the final phase of His judgment. Each person will face the scroll of their life, and all will see God’s true justice and equity. It is then that God will destroy sin and sinners eternally.

As God recreates the Earth, love, joy, and harmony will finally be restored in the universe. Fear, suffering, and death will be nothing but a memory. We will know God face to face, and we will be free to create and explore infinitely.

24. THE MINISTRY OF CHRIST IN THE HEAVENLY SANCTUARY

In heaven, there is a sanctuary, the true tabernacle, erected by the Lord and not by man. In this sanctuary, Christ ministers on our behalf, thus making available to believers the benefits derived from His redeeming sacrifice offered once for all on the cross. At His ascension, He was enthroned as high priest and began His ministry of intercession after His ascension. In 1844, at the end of the prophetic period of 2300 days, He entered the second and final phase of His ministry of reconciliation. This consists of an instruction of judgment, which prepares for the final elimination of sin; this work was symbolized by the purification of the ancient Hebrew sanctuary on the Day of Atonement. During this symbolic ceremony, the sanctuary was purified with the blood of sacrificed animals, while heavenly realities are purified by the perfect sacrifice of Jesus’ blood. The instruction of judgment reveals to heavenly intelligences which among the dead are sleeping in Christ, and who therefore are judged worthy in Him to participate in the first resurrection. This instruction of judgment also reveals those who, among the living, remain in Christ, keeping the commandments of God and the faith in Jesus, ready thereby and in Him to be transmuted and introduced into His eternal kingdom. This judgment rehabilitates God’s justice by saving those who believe in Jesus. It proclaims that those who remained faithful will receive the kingdom. The completion of this ministry of Christ will mark the expiration of the time of grace for humanity, before His second coming.

Hebrews 1:3; 2:16,17; 4:14-16; 8:1-5; 9:11-28 and 10:19-22; Daniel 7:9-27; 8:13,14 and 9:24-27; Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6; Leviticus 16; Revelation 14:6,7,12; 20:12 and 22:12

25. THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST

The second coming of Christ is the blessed hope of the Church, the culmination of the Gospel. The advent of the Savior will be literal, personal, visible, and worldwide in scope. At His return, the righteous dead will be resurrected; with the righteous living, they will be glorified and taken up to heaven, while the wicked will die. The almost complete fulfillment of most prophecies and the current conditions prevailing in the world indicate that the coming of Christ is imminent. The day and hour of this event have not been revealed, which is why we are exhorted to be ready at all times.

Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:28; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:9-11; Revelation 1:7; 14:14-20 and 19:11-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 5:1-6; 1 Corinthians 15:51-54; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10 and 2:8; Matthew 24 and 26:43,44; Mark 13; Luke 21:5-38; 2 Timothy 3:1-5

26. DEATH AND RESURRECTION

The wages of sin is death. But God, who alone is immortal, will grant eternal life to His redeemed. In the meantime, death is a state of unconsciousness for all. When Christ – who is our life – appears, the righteous dead and the righteous still living at His coming will be glorified and taken up to meet their Lord. The second resurrection, that of the wicked, will occur a thousand years later.

Romans 6:23; 1 Timothy 6:15,16; Ecclesiastes 9:5,6; Psalms 146:3,4; John 5:28,29 and 11:11-14; Colossians 3:4; 1 Corinthians 15:51-54; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; Revelation 20:1-10

27. THE MILLENNIUM AND THE END OF SIN

The millennium is the reign of Christ with His chosen ones in heaven, a reign that will last a thousand years. It occurs between the first and second resurrection. During this period, the wicked dead will be judged. The earth will be completely deserted; it will not count a single living human being, but will be occupied by Satan and his angels. When the thousand years are over, Christ, accompanied by His chosen ones, will descend from heaven to earth with the holy city. The wicked dead