The Iglesia ni Cristo of Manalo is one of the religions that believe that when the Lord Jesus Christ returns, the earth will already be burned. In fact, in one of their television broadcasts, Michael Sandoval, a minister of the INC of Manalo, blabbered that the one thousand-year reign of Christ on earth — which became the topic of many of our congregational gatherings — is highly impossible to happen because according to him, when the Lord Jesus Christ returns, this earth will already be burned and destroyed. And since it will already be destroyed, there will be nowhere for Christ to reign over anymore.


Apparently, he was trying to contest what I was teaching to our brethren in the Church of God International, something which I based on the book of Revelation, which says that when Christ returns, He will resurrect those who died in Him and they, together with His faithful servants, shall reign with Him on earth for one thousand years (Revelation 20:5-6). I wonder why he is opposing something that is clearly written in the Bible.

It is evident that his opposition to what I said was prompted by his ignorance of biblical mysteries and prophetic pronouncements which we in the Church of God International, happen to know and understand despite our lowly status — not through our own efforts but through the divine guidance of the Holy Spirit.

It is not true that the earth will already be destroyed or burned, when the Lord Jesus Christ returns. Although we do not deny the fact that this thing is bound to happen, but it will not take place upon Christ’s return. According to the Bible, when the Lord Jesus Christ returns, He, together with His saints who will be made priests, shall reign over the earth for a millennium. So, the earth remains to be in existence. And given the span of one thousand years, we can expect that the Gospel of salvation can be preached all over the world unhampered because, throughout that period, Satan will be incarcerated. However, after the one thousand-year period, he will be loosed out of his prison.

REVELATION 20:7-8 (KJV) says,


At the completion of the one thousand years, when Satan has been freed from his prison, knowing that he has very limited time, he would work doubly hard in deceiving nations in the four corners of the world. Just think about it — how can Satan traverse the four corners of the earth if this earth is no more? Aside from that, there will still be an Armageddon that is going to take place. Again, how can this final battle happen if, upon the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, this earth will already be destroyed? Do you see the folly of Michael Sandoval and the absurdity of his statements?

Actually, it only requires simple logic and a little common sense to understand that when the Lord Jesus Christ returns, this earth will not be burned yet because He will still reign over it for one thousand years.

Apparently, the ministers of the INC of Manalo, especially Michael Sandoval, lack both logic and common sense. If they have them, their statements should not have contradicted what the Bible says, and they should not have displayed their ignorance and senselessness on national television. Their line of reasoning only proves that they do not have any idea about the forthcoming millennial reign of the Lord Jesus Christ and His saints here on earth.

But I couldn’t fully blame them because, surely, their mentors did not teach them anything about the book of Revelation — probably because they, too, did not understand this particular book of the Bible. That is very pathetic! The very least that the INCM ministers can do is to be humble enough to admit their ignorance, instead of bragging and pretending to be knowledgeable about biblical truths such as prophetic pronouncements. Actually, the more they brag and pretend, the more obvious it becomes that they are void of understanding. The very words that come out of their mouths are the ones that betray them. And we are truly sorry for them, most especially for their brethren in faith, whom they are leading to perdition. May God have mercy on these people.