Three Earths

The First Earth: Genesis 1:1, In beginning God created...the earth. There is no record that God ever created anything that was not perfect. And so in Isaiah 45:18, For thus saith the Lord...God Himself That formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain (empty), He formed it to be inhabited.

In Job 38:4-7 God asks a question that Job could not answer, nor can the smartest scientists today find any answer. The question: Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid the cornerstone thereof When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

That earth was so perfect that God is looking for another like it someday. Ecclesiastes 3:15. It is gone. It perished 2 Peter 3:6. Also consider Genesis 1:2.

The Second Earth: Genesis 1:3-31 tells us of the restoration of the ruined earth for new inhabitants. And these were man and the animal kingdom. With all that restoration, it still bore the marks of the great destruction. There were mountains, seas, and ground (ground-up rock and organic matter). 

There have been changes over the years and ages of this earth. That includes, in round numbers, the past 6,000 years. Man has not improved this earth by any means. He was created upright but sought out many inventions so he would not have to rely on God. The earth is polluted with sin, and its atmosphere is polluted with the output of man's inventions. But all is the result of spiritual pollution.

Five great faults or cracks are known in this old earth. Parts of the crust are on the move, and bodies of water are slowly changing. The plates are sliding about and making many of these changes. And there are great convulsions to come before the dissolution of this earth.

It was peopled by nations which were given up (Romans 1:18-32) cf. Genesis 11:8-9.

Then Israel came on the scene, and they were divorced and set aside at the time of Acts 28:27-28.

The Dispensation of The Church of The One Body of Christ, The Mystery, began at the time of Acts 28:28.

Then Israel and the Great Millennium will come, and after that, an unknown period.

Then the great fire. 2 Peter 3:12.

The Third Earth: Israel and the nations look for a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. 2 Peter 3:13. Remember that The Church, which is His Body, has no part in any of the three earths. Their Hope is Far Above all heavens.

This 3rd earth will be perfect, as the first one was. It will be the home of Israel in the New Jerusalem. Read Revelation 21:1-27 and Rev. 22:1-10.

The First Heaven: In (the) beginning, God created the heaven ... (Genesis 1:1). And if the first earth was a paradise and perfect, then the heaven must have been wonderful. But we have no clues or descriptions of its glories. The capital of this original creation was the first earth. And Lucifer (Satan) was the supreme caretaker over this creation, the heaven, and the earth.

But in Satan's fall, the whole creation was ruined. Heaven and earth, the world that then was, perished by water (2 Peter 3:6). But man's wisdom has not figured out how all this happened. That is a great secret.

But even with all the responsibility and trust God placed in him to care for God's perfect Garden, Satan was not satisfied, and he determined to go even higher, even into The Heaven of heavens, and establish his throne. Read Isaiah 14:12-15. We are told that Satan will die and be no more Ezekiel 28:11-19. That is a comfort. Satan is spoken of under the cloak of a king, but the meaning is clear. But here we do find some information as to his past and connection with The First Heaven.

The Second Heaven: How much was done to restore heaven when the earth was restored? All we can know from Genesis is the record in Gen. 1:6-8. But at least Satan has maintained his dwelling there and is still ruler over those beings that rebelled with him and caused the great overthrow, as tersely said in Genesis 1:2.

So he is still a ruler in heaven above the fallen angels. This then shows us that he is now only in control of the lowest heaven in the universe, and even that heaven is to be taken away shortly Rev. 12:7-13. We are told that there are good angels in heaven and that the heavenly realms above our atmosphere are many and filled with immortal sentient beings. Many are ministering immortals to the heirs of salvation, that is, Israel. And some are heavenly counterparts to The Church of The Body who, with them, will enjoy The Heaven of heavens.  It is always fascinating to read through the Bible and see the various times and places that angels ministered to Israel. They must have brought food and water to the Lord, both in the wilderness after the temptation and also in Gethsemane after that awful trial there. Many times, angels appeared in the OT.

The Third Heaven: In 2 Peter 3:13, there is a promise of a new heaven and earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. John was given The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which contains the events of The Lord's Second Coming and speaks of The Third Heaven in Rev. 21:1-27 and Rev. 22:1-10.

It is from Heaven that the New Jerusalem will come down to The Third Earth, Revelation 21:2-4. This city, which was built in Heaven, then rests on The Earth where the current city of Jerusalem is now and is occupied with the faithful overcomers. The rest of Israel and other believers and unbelievers will be raised up in order after the 1000 years.

The Church of The One Body of Christ will have been with The Lord and the rest of The Heavenly Host since before the Millennium started. They are citizens of The Heaven of heavens as God determined and called each one by His Grace (not because any of us deserve or earned the calling) but to the Praise of His Glory. He made sure that each member seated in Christ Jesus received the Heavenly Holy inheritance by adoption before the overthrow of the world.

Praise God for His boundless Love and Perfect Gift of immeasurable cost, Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

Would you be shocked to learn that the Scriptures do not speak of an Immortal Soul. No other teaching has caused as much confusion and error as this great lie. Genesis 3:4 states "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:"  Find out the truth about death that the Devil does not want you to know! Click Death & The Great Lie

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