Revelation 14:6-7

And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who sit upon the earth, even to every nation and tribe and tongue and people,

Saying with a loud voice,
Fear God and give Him glory!
For the hour of His judgment has come;
And worship Him who made
The heavens
And the earth
And the sea
And the springs of waters.

As we considered in the previous Note, the focus of the eternal gospel is very different from that of the gospel of the grace of God: unlike that gospel, it makes no mention of Christ, nor of faith in Him. (See “The Eternal Gospel (3): Its Focus.”) Thus, it also has a very different result from the gospel of grace: while it provides a way for sinners to be forgiven through the death of Christ, it does not impart the divine life into them, and so it does not bring them into relation with Christ.

We see this in both of the examples we have cited of those who are forgiven in the New Testament based upon the terms of the eternal gospel. The Lord speaks of the forgiven tax collector in the temple as being “justified” (Luke 18:13-14), but that is all; He makes no mention of him becoming a child of God.

Even more clear is the example in Matthew 25 of the “sheep” during the “sheep and goats” judgment at the Lord’s return. The Lord speaks of these sheep and goats together as “the nations” who will be gathered before Him, whom He will then separate into their two respective groups.

In the New Testament, there are three basic, distinct groups of people in the Lord’s eyes: the Jews, the nations, and the church of God (1 Cor. 10:32; “Greeks” in this verse speaks of the Nations, among whom the Corinthian believers lived.) So, the fact that the “sheep” in Matthew 25 are of the nations fully proves they are not the Lord’s own people, the church; rather, they are the people of the world who appear before Him for His judgment at the end of this age.

Accordingly, as those who have cared for His people, the Lord says they are “blessed” (v. 34) and “righteous” (v. 46). However, He never indicates they have received the divine life; while they enter into the realm of life (v. 46), which is to enter into the Lord’s earthy kingdom (v. 34), there is no indication the divine life has entered into them.

To the contrary, they are rewarded here because, as the Lord tells them, they cared for “the least of My brothers” during the Great Tribulation (v. 40). This again shows they are not His brothers; rather, they only cared for those who are the Lord’s brothers, namely, the genuine Christians as His spiritual brothers or the Jews who are His brothers according to the flesh.

So, if those who are forgiven for their sins through the eternal gospel do not receive the divine life, and so are not brought into relation with God, what will be their fate, both in the coming age of the kingdom and for eternity?

That is what we will consider in the next Note in this series.

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—  1 March 2025 —