Originally posted by divegeester
When Jesus says he will reward each according to what they have done, does this mean those to who he is saying come? Can more come to him than are already in the Bride?
"Behold I come quickly, and My reward is with Me to render to each one as his work is." (Revelation 22:12)
This "reward" or literally
"wages" is related to each SAVED believer.
Lit., wages. At the Lord's coming, this reward will be rendered to each one of the believers, after their rapture, at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10; 1 Cor. 4:5; Rom. 14:10; Matt 16:27).
Does this mean that the opposite of the "reward". is eternal torture in flames? [No!] Or is this further revelation that there is:
- the Bride of the groom (the church)
- the friends of the groom (john 3:29) other people who will be with the Bride and the Groom?
Bearing in mind that Christ died once and for ALL, (1 peter 3:18, Romans 6:10, Hebrews 9:28) and that many many times throughout the bible is states "mercy triumphs over judgement" -- does this add anything to your view of the atonement, salvation, judgement, hell etc?
Thoughts.
The phrase
"the friend of the bridegroom" was used by John the Baptist in
John 3. John the Baptist speaking here:
"You yourselves testify of me that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him.
He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom who stands and hears him, rejoices with joy because of the bridegrooms voice. This joy of mine therefore is made full.
He must encrease but I must decrease." (John 3:28-30)
The [singular] friend of the bridegroom was
John the Baptist.
The Bridegroom was and is Jesus.
At that time the disciples of
John the Baptist had to decrease and the followers of Jesus had to increase. So John was happy that Jesus was gaining MORE followers than himself.
"He [Jesus the Bridegroom]
must increase, but I [THE friend of the Bridegroom]
must decrease." (v.30)
Of course eventually, in the
New Jerusalem John the Baptist himself joins the increase of the Bridegroom by becoming himself a member of His Bride the enlarged church,
New Jerusalem.
There are three peoples in the millennium and on into eternity.
But I cannot embark on a real lenghty post to prove this exhaustively.
1.) The New Jerusalem as the sons of God. These are those who enter into the city and EAT the fruit of the symbolic tree of life.
2.) The nations around the New Jerusalem who are not sons of God but have the everlasting life that Adam had restored to them. These are the peoples HEALED by the leaves of the symbolic tree of life.
3.) Those outside the city in the lake of fire.
For immediately after Jesus speaks of those who wash their robes and enter into the city to have right to the tree of life in verse 14, He speaks of those outside the city in the lake of fire.
"Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the fornicators and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who loves and makes a lie." (v.15)
The nations that are walking in the light of the New Jerusalem are not born again people. They are peoples transfered from the great tribulation and from the millennium to be reigned over by the sons of God.
When the Bible says the sons of God shall reign forever and ever, it should not be that they reign over each other. But instead some saved nations are transferred into the new heaven and new earth who are "healed" and restored by the sons of God to become like Adam was before he fell.
Adam had an everlasting life as a creature created very good.
It is over these nations that the sons of God in the New Jerusalem reign over forever and ever, guiding them, healing them, being an example to them. But these healed nations are not people with the divine life of God within. They are healed by the LEAVES of the tree of life. They do not eat the fruit of the tree of life.
Edit: incidentally the "waters of life" are as symbolic as the tree of life.
There are two rivers. Both are symbolic. One is a river of the water of life bringing the sons of God into the city of living water.
The other is the sea of glass which becomes the river of fire and the sea of glass mingled with fire. This river also flows from the throne of God sweeping all of His enemies and all negative things into the final lake of fire.
For length's sake I will not refer to all the passages here. But see
Revelation 15:2; Ezek 1:22; Rev. 21:11;22:3 but especially Daniel 7:9 .