THE SAINTS' INHERITANCE.
By G. V. Kilgore
“Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth.” Matt. 5:5. In the beginning God made the earth and placed man upon it. Man was upright and had dominion over this earth and all that it contained. But by sin he lost that dominion and brought death into the world. Since his fall, our earth has been peopled with those who have not known God. The few of each generation that have known him have been persecuted and afflicted, and have found nothing of earth's pleasures in which to delight. But blessed are those who have endured such things for righteousness' sake; for there will be a time when they will enjoy the pleasures of the earth made new. Christ will save all that come to him. And such he commands to pray, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in Heaven.” When this prayer is answered the righteous will be the only inhabitants of the globe. The wicked do not do the will of God, but are against him. As long as they remain on the earth that prayer cannot be answered; for in Heaven God's will is done perfectly, and so it will be on the earth when the wicked are no more. Then “all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.” Num. 14:21. Then “the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” Ps. 37:10, 11. Christ has promised that the meek shall inherit the earth; but this is disputed at the present day by some of his professed followers. They teach that the earth will be burned up—put out of existence; and that the saints will inhabit a spiritual or immaterial Heaven above to all eternity. But the Bible contradicts this. It says, “Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation; ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end. 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. 45:17, 18. Should the earth be destroyed and no more be inhabited, then the creation of it was a vain work; for its inhabitants so far have not filled it with God's glory. Nor will they before the time that these professed followers of Christ say it is to be burned up. See Matt. 13:24–30, 36–42. Peter tells us the works that are in the world shall be burned up. But these works are the things that Christ died to destroy (1 John 3:8), which are the works of the devil. Had he said the earth should be burned up, he would then have contradicted the scripture which declares that “the earth abideth forever.” Now the word “forever” signifies eternity, when applied to things that God has established. Therefore, this earth will exist eternally;—but not in its present condition; for it is not now as it was when God formed it to be inhabited. Then the garden of Eden was here; sin was not known, death had not been heard of, man enjoyed the presence of God and of angels. Had he remained loyal to his Creator, this glorious state would have been his to enjoy forever. But he sinned; death followed; and had redemption never been devised he would have been eternally lost. But Christ gave himself to redeem fallen man, and to him the first dominion is promised: “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. After Christ comes with all his holy angels, and after he has separated the righteous from the wicked, he will bid the good inherit the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world. Matt. 25:31–34. Of course this inheritance will be given to the saints after “all things that offend and them which do iniquity” have been gathered out of his kingdom, which will not be done till after the thousand years of Revelation 20. For when the thousand years are expired Satan, the great offender, and all the wicked, will be on the earth. They will go up on the breadth of the earth, and compass the camp of the saints and the beloved city. Rev. 20:7–9. Then fire will come down from God and devour them. This is the same fire that Christ speaks of in Matt. 13:42, into which all that do iniquity shall be cast; and “then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” Then they will inherit the kingdom prepared from the foundation of the world, which is this earth. That glorious city that Abraham looked for will then be on the earth. Around it the wicked will have received their just reward. They will have seen the glorified saints in the kingdom. “There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.” Luke 13:28. When the wicked and all the heathen “shall be as though they had not been,” the will of the Lord will be done in the earth as it is in Heaven. Then will “every creature which is in Heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them,” sing, “Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever.” The new earth will be adorned with beautiful trees and lovely flowers. Even the most desolate places of this earth will then bloom like the choicest gardens. “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing; the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.” Isa. 35:1, 2. When people hear of a good country they sometimes sell their homes and go long distances and make great sacrifices to pass the few remaining years of their lives in a fairer clime. In view of this glorious new earth the prophet says, “Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not; behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense; he will come and save you.” Who does not feel strengthened when thinking of the riches that God has in store for those that love him? Who is not willing to make sacrifices for the kingdom, to live in such a country as the Bible says the new earth will be? Although the Bible gives us such glowing descriptions of the city of God and of the earth made new, yet “we see as through a glass darkly.” “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, . . . what He hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him.”