If Rev 20:4-6 is supposed to be taken as the "lived" symbolically to represent them recieving the salvation of Christ, how can they have already been "beheaded for their witness to Christ and for the word of God?"
They are already saints who spiritually already recieved life in Christ and were beheaded for it, then live again.
How can one who recieves the salvation of Christ then be viewed beheaded? Did they somehow lose their salvation?
Yet Christ gives it back by telling us "they lived and reigned with Christ 1000 years"
You dont realize it but your actually taking away the power of the cross, Christ Jesus.
Nothing can take His from Him, you cannot be dead if you have already recieved His life, you can be physically killed, death has no power over His however, glory to the Lord!
"And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years
Souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Christ and the word of God.
(Saints who were beheaded for being saints and are shown as souls, not bodies, just as those under the altar in the 5th seal who are also spoken as have been physically killed)
Then we are told they lived and reigned with Christ 1000 years, Spiritually they already had life as they were beheaded for thier witness and the word of God, how can spirtual life then be given spiritual life? They cant, once you are given life in Christ the next life you are given is a new body, which is a resurrection physically just as it was of Christ, Christ literally rose, so shall all of His.
Your spiritual 1000 years is rebuked.
Still even further, how can I say beheaded means physically dead and that the souls also represent that?
Look at the next words in the prophecy.
"But the rest of the dead" How can souls who are witnesses of Christ and the word of God be called dead? It's impossible spiritually, yet here God just said "the REST OF THE DEAD" so that means the first mentioned in the prophecy must also be spoken of as dead as the second group is said to be "the rest of the dead, we have 2 groups, souls that live 1000 years and dead who dont live until 1000 years are finished. The second is implied as the rest of the dead, meaning the first group is also referred as dead.
Contradiction if this prophecy is spiritually symbolic, spiritual life is never veiwed as dead, noone in Christ is spiritually dead, only physically.
So to understand it symbolically spiritually this is what those words would mean:
Christ's are beheaded for already having Christ and are given Christ's sacrifice again after having been beheaded. Thats spiritually recieving Christ twice.
If your going to say the thousand years are now, then what your saying is the dead in this case already had Christ but die to the world and recieve the life of salvation through Christ again.....do you realize what your saying???
Now if thats not what your saying then what are you saying?
Its clear beheading for a witness to Christ and the word of God must first occur in order for them to live again for 1000 years, that event must first happen for the 1000 years to even start, spiritually living, then somehow having it taken away that you must then live again does not make any sence at all with scripture.
Dying in Christ (spiritually, becoming a saint) and then physically dieing for that spiritual life you recieved when you became a witness to Christ and for the word of God and then recieving life, immortality and incorruption through Christ in a "first resurrection" follows the very words of that prophecy, it cannot be veiwed in any way as having spiritual representation.
If they hadent been displayed as being beheaded for their witness and then given life to live a thousand years it could be symbolic for spiritualization, it isnt written that way, we are told they had life, it was taken and they recieve life again to reign 1000 years and its shown that this is as Christ returned because they did not recieve the beast mark or worship him, Rev 19 clearly shows Christ returning and defeating that very beast they did not worsip or take of his mark.
It's literal, those with life are killed for it. When Christ returns He then raises them into life, they live again just as our Lord lived again, not spiritually, physically and then they reign with Christ 1000 years. In which in spiritual being witnesses of Christ and for the word of God they would have already spiritually been reigning with Christ as we are now with the Holy Spirit in His, and then they are given life to reign again, now for a thousand years, Spiritual + Physical life being given, reign for 1000 years and then the reign ends...WHAT HOW CAN THE REIGN EVER END?!?!?
Eat meat:
1 Corinthians 15:24-26
"Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when HE PUTS AN END TO ALL AUTHORITY AND POWER. For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death."
Rev 20:11-15
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire
Last enemy destroyed.
Now look at 2 Peter 3:7 and 10-13 with what i just bolded at the top.
"But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men"
"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. 11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells"
And the topper, Rev 21 in which we are shown 2 things, 1.the His promise we look for, new heaven and earth and 2. God the Father dwelling among us as 1 Corinthians 15:24-26 speak also of when reign is finished.
1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
