The entire Bible has as its foundation the covenants of God made to Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, and Christ. What you will notice about these covenants is that they refer to several situations where Israel will have activities that last "forever" or will endure or be practiced "forever." Take, for instance, Genesis 13:15 promises Abraham that "all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever." What does a promise like this mean if God knows the day that Abraham is going to die? Take another promise God gives to David: "I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever.” But if you read verse 11 in that chapter, God refers to the day David will die. How can God keep these promises? The answer is simple: resurrection. Before God can begin to keep his 'forever' promises to anyone, God first needs to set up the person to live forever so that they can be kept. That means these promises are given to those whom God will save by resurrection. As you read Scripture, keep this in mind: God's forever promises and language refer to far more than mere rhetoric; they refer to a real situation where people need to live forever for them to be accomplished. Only resurrection answers this aspect of eschatology. Jesus himself was challenged on this very issue by his religious contemporaries. "But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him" (Luke 20:37–38). God has vowed to keep his promises, and the only way to do that beyond the grave is resurrection. This is the future context of situation God's 'FOREVER' language points.

The OT prophets understood the Coming King of kings as the embodiment of God's name on the earth, he will live and rule forever as God's name is forever. Psalm 72:17 May his name endure forever, his fame continue as long as the sun! May people be blessed in him, all nations call him blessed! Now look at the NT's vision of Jesus Christ's Coming rule: Luke 1:31-33 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” When Jesus bursts through the clouds, he will kill his enemies and rule forever. The last part of the Book of Revelation 20-22 outlines many situations, but one overrall message: Jesus Christ rules forever. First he rules the earth for 1,000 years, then he rules in eternity forever. When we study God's Word we realize it all points to Jesus Christ.

Replacement theology has taken many forms through the centuries. The latest form is today's Anti-Zionism. Thomas Fretwell tears it all apart. They have tricky ways of flipping the Scripture upside down. Thomas Fretwell and the Ezra Foundation Get informed, be a servant ready to stand firm in God's promises.

The Bible is one book. Penned by many through the centuries, but all inspired by the same mind, Almighty God. Our family Bible studies, i.e., the Crown of Righteousness, led us to the commentary of David's covenant, Psalm 89. Several excellent insights make this the Gospel of the OT! 1. Forever promises that apply to the "seed" of David, Jesus Christ, also apply to David himself and the Kingdom that will come. All of these are forever promises. Question: How do forever promises for people doomed to die come to fulfillment? Answer: resurrection alone. 2. What do these forever promises imply? The same issue the prophets foretold would happen, confirmed by Paul in Romans 11, and declared by Jesus himself: the forgiveness of sins! 3. This Kingdom will last forever, led by the seed of David, Jesus Christ, and the people of that Kingdom will last forever as well. What does that point to? World peace. The Devil will have no say in this time period. The defeat of the Devil and the victory of Christ's perfect work will be lived out on earth. There you have it. The Gospel in the OT. David's covenant declared forever promises, fulfilled personally and corporately. The victory of God will see the Church rule with Christ, Israel the centerpiece of the worldwide Kingdom, and Christ serves as King of kings in His Kingdom that has no end. Psalm 89:27-29 I will indeed appoint him as My firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. I will forever preserve My loving devotion for him, and My covenant with him will stand fast. I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure. Luke 1:32-33 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end!”

See this important Link on the issue: Lordship Salvation This debate is about a critical issue, but it is not a debate about Jesus being Lord. Both sides of this issue agree that Jesus is Lord, and we are called to obey Christ because if we love Him, we will keep His commandments, the 5 Crowns of Reward. The problem is when pastors tell people that their disobedience is a sign that they were never saved in the first place. This teaching is false, and it is never found on the lips of any author in the Bible. When our ministry teaches a "Cross-'n-Crowns" ministry, we mean exactly that, the cross is our salvation that is never questioned. The moment faith is placed in that Cross, the resurrection belongs to you, and you are saved with an eternal love that never fades nor forsakes. The Crowns, however, are our planned rewards that may be abandoned by the believer. Therein lies the confusion of those "Lordship salvation" advocates: you don't lose salvation, but you may lose rewards. Why else would Jesus command us to never let anyone steal our crown (Rev 3:11)? But some will retort with Matthew's warning: "not everyone who says to me "Lord, Lord" will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. So what does that mean? Firstly, what is the circumstance of this passage? Its the entrance of the Kingdom, the era of the millennium. Secondly, this is not entrance into the Church, is it? The word "Church" is not anywhere near this passage because it is spoken to Israel, the Jewish people, entering the millennial reign of Christ when He sits on His "glorious throne" in the Jerusalem Temple. While the Church began in Acts 2 and will end its dispensation in Revelation 4, when we are rewarded the Crowns, the entrance of the Millennium is the Second Coming of Christ in Rev 19. The millennium occurs only after the stages of the first resurrection are completed (compare 1 Cor 15:23–24; Rev 4:1-10; 11:11-12; 20:4-7). The lesson of this post is this: never question the salvation established by the work of Christ, the cross. But always examine ourselves to see whether we are working toward our rewards because the 5 Crowns of Reward determine our Christian maturity.