Can't you just picture your Christian friends returning with Christ to crush the wicked under their feet after having lived the good life for seven years!

The stuff that is preached today is enough to make a horse laugh and grow feathers.

I am going to stick with the Bible and the rest may do as they like.

The Bible says the Lord is coming with a shout, the voice of Michael, and the trumpet of God, and those who died in Christ are going to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. It says nothing about going to Heaven. All the saints who return with Christ have already been in Heaven, some of them for thousands of years, and their desire is to return to the earth, not to make a U-turn so those who are alive at the time can get to sit in their mansion for seven years.

Since the Bible teaches we are going to return with Christ and release the creation from the bondages of sin and corruption, what does this tell us about how we should prepare ourselves?

We have to learn to live in iron righteousness, fiery holiness, and stern obedience to the Father.

First of all, we are going to govern the nations with a rod of iron. The rod of iron is the scepter of iron righteousness held by Christ and every true saint. That iron is being created in us now as through the grace of Christ we overcome every enemy.

We are going to have to live with the consuming Fire, our holy God. Everything in us that is flammable must be fireproofed. Each day of our life we must press further into the holiness of God. Through the Spirit of God we must cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

We must be sternly obedient to the Father. If there were one disobedient person in the army of Christ the invasion of the earth would be jeopardized. Remember Achan!

Every trace of worldliness must be destroyed out of us.

Every trace of the lusts and appetites of the flesh must be destroyed out of us.

Every trace of self-will must be destroyed out of us.

Christ must be brought to maturity in us.

The original sin was disobedience to God. We cannot possibly return to earth and restore Paradise if we ourselves are disobedient.

Many believers are disobedient to Christ. They do not have a prayer of being in the army of the Lord that will return with Christ.

"Ah, but I am saved by grace!" Saved by grace my foot!

You mean even though you are disobedient to God He sees you through Christ, so in God's eyes you are not really disobedient and will return to rule the nations with a rod of iron? Is this what you believe? Doesn't your common sense tell you better than this?

To be continued.