The Disappearance of a Pied Piper

The Coronation

The trumpets called the assemblage to order as the former residents of Fairly Same became dumbfounded at the resplendent Glory of The Lord Jesus Christ. During His first stay on Planet Earth, His essential Person was cloaked as behind the Veil of the Temple. Clothed in flesh, that can die, Jesus was known as the carpenter of Nazareth. He pulled back the veil on The Mount of Transfiguration once for His disciples to see. However, that parenthesis had become the constant reality for the regenerated Elect, who were purchased by Jesus on the cross of Calvary.

Most of the assemblage was silent for the duration from the trumpet of the Call to the trumpet of the Presentation of His Majesty, King Jesus, Yeshua ha Moshiach. They were more than respectfully silent. They were transfixed at His Insurmountable Glory.

The throne room was more than spacious. It was cavernous. Bud and the former citizens of Fairly Same stood at His right Hand. The angels formed ranks at His left, though right and left were not as the important statements, that they had formerly been. This assemblage was reserved for His chosen ones, The Elect and the faithful among the angels. All were respected. His right and left did not distinguish the good from the bad in this grouping.

This coronation could be considered a conundrum from the human perspective for today the High Priest, who usually conveyed the title, and the Monarch, who would receive the title, the position, and the power, were One and The Same Person. Jesus was The Only One, Who could anoint the altar of sacrifice for He was the sacrifice, once and for all. Jesus was, indeed, The Only One, Who had the right to reign. Jesus of Nazareth is the most unique Person in all of Time and Eternity for He is both 100% God, and 100% Man, concurrently. His Divinity has never been diminished by His Humanity.

Jesus, the Babe of Bethlehem, is also Jesus, Dread Sovereign, Lord God Almighty, and King of Highest Majesty. Those, who had already seen the Majesty of Jesus in His human life on Earth before His death, burial, and resurrection, had already bowed the knee. (Philippians 2:5-11, KJV) Those, who did not were already in the lake of burning brimstone and would be forced to bow the knee at the time of the choosing of Jesus, The Dread Sovereign Lord.

Wearing the Robe of Righteousness, His Mantle of Rulership, Jesus raised His Hands to bring the assemblage to wrapt attention. The Coronation had begun at His Presence. He took His time ascending the steps to the Throne. As High Priest and Monarch, Jesus performed both parts of the ceremony. With His left hand He picked up the scepter, looked at it a moment, and then placed it in his Right Hand, raising it for all to see. The Monarch had received His Right to Rule.

Jesus reached for the golden sphere with His left Hand, lifting it to the sky with both Hands, signifying, that He was now Lord over the entire Earth.

He reached for the crown with His left Hand and placed it on His Head with both Hands. The Monarch was now in residence and sat to signify, that His Kingdom was now in force.

The Trumpet of the Presentation completed the Coronation of The Great King. The final words of the Ceremony were heard from Heaven, "This is my beloved Son in Whom I am well-pleased."

The Coronation March rang out in the trumpet chorus of a dozen excellent musicians as the assemblage started to disperse.

Bud and Cynthia stood watching the One they now knew as their Lord, His Glory shined brighter than the noonday sun. The Bests started to feel a little uneasy as though there must be something they should be doing next, but for the life of them, they couldn't figure out what that thing might be. In time they became aware, again, that they were standing in the presence of their three grown children, who in many of their recent recollections were still small children in their hearts and minds.

Jeff, Rolly, and Jewel stayed quiet to give their parents time to acclimate to this new world scenario. Jeff handed Bud a sheet of paper, that showed in bold letters, "Come to the Assignment Phase of the Millennial Reign of Christ. At 4:00 PM, today His Majesty Jesus Christ will be holding court in His Throne Room to deal with the matter of assignments for His Elect. First come. First served. You will receive the first important word of your life in the Millenium from The Lord Jesus Himself. The line can form at any time. Make your way to see The King, and you will be honored, according to His Will."

Bud said, "I get it. Let's go. Maybe we'll be one of the first ones in line, since it's about four hours, until the start time."

"We'll have so much time to catch up on the past seven years, while we wait," Rolly said. "We've seen so much in The Presence of The Lord, Dad. I've just got to tell you some of these things. I'm still so excited."

"I look forward to hearing them, Rolly," Bud said.

Rolly was beside himself to the degree, that he started talking as fast as his redeemed lips could speak, while the family was on the way to the Throne Room of His Majesty's Court, especially since the Coronation had been held in the Main Throne Room of the Palace. They didn't have far to go.

"Dad, when we arrived in Heaven The Lord led us to a large banquet hall where a massive table was laden with food of every kind, including turkey, chicken, fish, mutton, deer, and beef. All the food was kosher, blessed by The Lord Himself. To drink we enjoyed water, tea, wine, fruit juices, and every other kind of drink, that was both an honor and a blessing. I had never before tasted wine. I tasted wine at this wedding supper, and I didn't get drunk. We couldn't get drunk. Jesus had done something to the wine like he did at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. He saved the best for the last, and this wine had the richest flavor, that I could barely imagine." Rolly smiled.

"Dad, the wedding feast lasted for all seven years," Jeff said, "but it only felt like a week. Maybe that's because the Great Tribulation Period was known as Daniel's 70th week. We feasted for a week of seven years, while The Lord poured out His Wrath on the Earth for one week of seven years."

"Daddy, I loved the floral arrangements, that were draped all over the table," Jewel said. "I've never seen redder roses, lilies so white, and tulips so yellow, orange, red, blue, and purple."

"Children, let me tell you, that in between attacks by hybrid creatures, meteors, sunburns, and sea crocodiles, I have thought of nothing but you and your mother. I was glad to have her by my side, but I missed every one of you with my whole heart. My memories of you kept me alive, even before I knew that I was a member of The Elect."

"The Elect?" Jeff asked. "How did you learn about The Elect? How did you become one?"

"Son, God is Sovereign," Bud said, "and apparently His timing for me was during The Great Tribulation, that I might be one of the tribulation saints. It has been a hard life, but in many ways, it has been a rewarding life, too. The Preacher left us notes and supplies. He was so prepared, that we were able to stay alive until three big waves finished destroying our island. Nevermore Island is nevermore."

"How did you find all the provisions, that the Preacher left for you," Rolly asked. "We helped him to stockpile and prepare so many things in the months before the Rapture. What happened?"

"A huge meteor hit a ship, sinking it about 50 miles off our shores," Bud said, "and the resulting rogue wave caused us to have to drive our cars like maniacs from Fairly Same out to the plateau of land, that was the church's property. That was all that was left of the island after the huge wave. A few days later, and two major earthquakes later the island sunk into the Atlantic Ocean, while 20 of us were crammed into one motorboat until The Lord sent a ship from Mercy Island to rescue us."

"You said, 'The Lord sent a ship,' that must mean you were no longer the atheist we remember, but you had been regenerated by The Lord. How'd that happen?" Jeff asked.

"Your mother realized she was part of The Elect before I did," Bud said. "She started to teach me about the TULIP of Calvinism, and The Lord opened my mind and heart regenerating me to understand what she was saying. I started to understand the things I had scoffed at previously. Total Depravity meant, that I was dead spiritually, unable to understand anything of The Lord. Unconditional Election meant, that The Lord chose me, long before He made me able to choose Him. Limited Atonement meant, that Jesus didn't waste even one drop of his Precious Blood. He died only for those He had chosen to save. Irresistible Grace meant, that in the regeneration He was tuning my heartstrings like a piano tuner tunes piano strings. (Philippians 2:13, KJV) When I realized what he had done for me, I couldn't not receive His amazing Grace. Perseverance of the Saints meant, that once The Father had given me to The Son, I could never be lost again. Once saved, always saved, not because of my amazing ability to keep myself saved (because I couldn't do that,) but because of Jesus' focused determination and ability to keep me in His Hands forever, never to be lost, again. Once The Father gives a Christian as a gift to The Son, there is a no-return policy, that is never lifted."

"You learned that really well, even without the preacher to teach it to you," Jewel said.

"Sweetheart, God's Word is an amazing teacher," Bud said.

"It's nearly time for His Majesty to hold court, regarding out millennial assignment, Children," Bud said. "Let's listen for instructions, regarding how to proceed."

"Sure, Dad," they said in unison. "This'll be great!"

There were about ten people at the head of the line. So, Bud and his family had to wait a little while, nearly 30 minutes. Finally, Bud stood in front of Jesus, his Lord and Savior.

"Bud Best," Jesus said, "Thou hast been faithful over a little. Be, thou, ruler over ten cities." (Luke 19:17, KJV)

"Where will my ten cities be, Lord?" Bud asked.

"You will be mayor of New Amsterdam," Jesus said. "More recently, it was known by the name of New York. All of its boroughs, and outlying towns will total ten. You may choose those, who will be your advisors and helpers in these towns. Formerly, NYC was known for lawlessness and licentiousness. Now, under your leadership, it will be a place of peace and honor to your Lord. Rebuild and renovate the church buildings, that hymns may be heard every day, and sermons of Truth may be preached to the edification of the Body of Christ."

"Thank You, Lord," Bud said. "I will do my best to serve You with my whole heart."

"Of this I am sure, Bud, for Best is your last name." Jesus smiled.

Bud backed away with his entourage because one must never turn the back to a monarch, especially not to The Monarch.

Once out the door, Bud could turn around to face his family and friends. "WOW! I've never had an assignment this big before," he said. "I'm feeling a little intimidated by the job I must perform. I'll need helpers, plenty of them. Any volunteers?"

Ten hands shot up, instantly. He looked to see the hands of Jeff, Rolly, and Jewel, his children; Cynthia, his wife; Jerome, Rich, George, and Stan, his former support officers; and Grady, who had stood in for Stan, after he died in the flesh, and su hermano, Altimus.

"Please, join me, today, and every day at a coffee shop of our choosing, until we get settled into our flow of governance," Bud said, "And Cynthia, I want you to draw up plans for the building of a coffee shop on the top floor of our government office building, that way we can have private meetings in the environment, that we all love."

Cynthia smiled. "You know I will. Shall we have a Christmas nook, too? I know that's your favorite time of year. However, instead of Santa Claus being the prominent figure, I'll design it to look like a creche, since Jesus' Birth is the Reason for the Season."

"You read my mind, Cyni," Bud said. "That would be great! Thank you so much!"

"May I help Mom?" Jewel asked. "You know how much I love Christmas, too."

"I can think of no one more qualified than you are, my Sweet Precious Daughter," Bud said. "My Darling Daughter, I love you so mech." He winked.

"What do we do, now?" Rolly asked.

"I think we should start by heading in the direction of New York City," Bud said. "We'll need plane tickets, a rental car, a map of New York, and the name of the best realtor available. We need homes to furnish, to set up as lived-in, and a major trip to a grocery store to stock our refrigerators. I imagine, that the world will be less populated right now, and we need to conquer and subdue anything, that has been left undone, while the world was fighting the Battle of Armageddon. The Earth has yet to pass through the fire of The Lord's cleansing, therefore we must do our best to redeem, that which the enemy once used for evil. The Lord Jesus is now the King of the whole Earth, and he has assigned us to serve Him in the running of the Earth's governments as a more peaceful place. There are still many on the Earth at this time, who are not in their eternal bodies. They've been regenerated or they would not be here. I am one of these folks. People such as me can still have children. (Although at our age, I'm sure your mom will have something to say about that.) The point is that many of the younger Tribulation saints will be having children, and all of these will be unredeemed at the beginning of their lives. Evangelism will still be needed. The world will, no doubt, be a very different place at the end of the Millennial Reign than is it right now. Beware of the Final Cleansing before the Eternal Reign of Christ. We've been given a world, that is similar to the world of Adam's Day after he and Eve fell to sin in The Garden of Eden, and the world of Noah's Day after the Great Global Flood. All seems new, pure, and good, right now, but there is still Sin in this world. The redeemed Elect will not and cannot sin, but people born during the coming millennium will. Be on guard. Serve His Majesty, The Lord Jesus Christ. Keep the rule of Law, and be peacemakers. (Matthew 5) I have the utmost faith in all of you. Be truly blessed, my family and friends."