The entire
Book of Revelation, supplemented by the Books of Daniel, Isaiah, and a few
others reveal judgment and punishment. Thousands of books have been written on
the eschatology of the world. The Great Tribulation will pale Job’s and ours!
Christians, both the living and the dead, will not see that great persecution.
However, it is not a sudden event. The conditions, both political and
spiritual, will continue to build until a crescendo is reached. Just as the
world has its “creeping socialism”, the end of days will have its “creeping one
world government and religion”.
Rather than consuming volumes describing Heaven and Hell – reward and
punishment, the reader need only examine Genesis Chapters 1 and 2 for Paradise,
and the destruction of Jerusalem in Isaiah for Hell. Of course, words are
inadequate to represent either but one will get the general idea! (I recommend
the book Jerusalem by Simon Seabag
Montifiore as a fine secular history of Jerusalem. That “City of God” whose
name means “foundation of peace” seems to be “the Harlot Babylon” from the Book
of Revelation. Soon after the sentencing of some and the reward of others,
“Babylon” will surely be replaced by New Jerusalem and the City of God will be
restored; the author’s commentary.)
In the end, God gets His
vengeance as He has said. Baq
Christians desire to punish those who are sinners, but everyone is among
them! Stoics deprive themselves in payment for grace, thus grace becomes
non-payment, and redemption is not forthcoming. No one can save himself and
neither can anyone save others. Similar to that is punishment! God is the Judge
and the Punisher! For those who say, A
good God would never send anyone to Hell, are partially right! God is just
and sinners deserve the punishment. Before the sentence is announced, God gives
endless chances for reprieve. Bar Killing God is about crime and punishment! No further attempt to
define the jail, the execution, nor the incinerator will be made. The author
assumes that everyone knows what Hell means – perishing forever – in not a
pleasant environment! For a glimpse of Heaven consider the Garden of Paradise in
Genesis and Paradise in the Book of Revelation.
Now is the time for a personal
testimony: I have believed in God
since I was a child. My knowledge was the same as the demons. Bas With a belief in God and somewhat of a
general knowledge of Hell, I knew I didn’t want to go to Hell. Neither do the
demons nor Satan but they will be sent there for destruction. Most Christians
have that type of belief! For years I did as well. Let’s examine that premise: bat
Whoever
believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be
condemned.
“Believes” is pisteuo in the Greek and means “to have
faith in or respect”. I believed but
did not trust! There is much
controversary about baptism, whether it is sacramental or ordinal. I believe it
is both obedience and testimony. Thus, baptism, in Herrin’s Lexicon is service.
The old person is replaced by the new and is transformed. It’s not the act of
baptism which transforms but baptism is symbolic of circumcision of the heart from
the blade of the Spirit. Bau I
had never had my heart right to even seek baptism! It’s not the water which cleanses
but the “Ghost of Jesus”, as I prefer to call the Holy Spirit.
To “get out of jail free” (bondage)
takes trust in Jesus’s death and
resurrection, and a pledge to serve
God, not because it is required, but as an act of love. Admittedly, Larry has trouble
loving but that’s God’s only expectation
for dying in our place! I am willing
to love and I do try hard. For that reason, I shall never perish! My own
sentence for being an accomplice in the attempted murder of God has been
dismissed! The Judge granted me a reprieve for trying to kill Him and paid the
price with His own blood! If I “keep the faith”, I retain my “get out of
eternal punishment” ticket! Bav Those who never accept the gift or neglect the
One from whom the gift came, suffer punishment. The place of eternal punishment
is Hell. Salvation is serious business! People must take it seriously.
I have attempted to kill God and
deserve death. I never have raised a weapon nor even cursed God, but by sinning
against God, I have belittled Him. With a transformation, I now belittle myself
and elevate God: I can’t save me for I have not the power. God does and will!
Therefore, I lift God up and diminish myself! Baw bax Because I trust God, he keeps me “safe” (Greek: sos).
When I overcome the world, I shall be
saved. bay Because I am certain that God is truthful and strongly
trust God, I have the “hope of salvation” so strongly that I am saved. baz Admittedly, this
is Arminian Doctrine; that which I don’t’ deny, and trust through scripture
that it is correct or orthodox doctrine.
Rather than denying Christian liberty, I recommend examining it more closely,
and if rejecting the faith of your father is necessary, so be it! Christians
are to test everything by scripture, and to never twist it for doctrinal sake.
Reward and Punishment
There was a crime and the plot to
kill God is still active. Conspiracies do not exist! All of a sudden everyone
doubts God and desires to conceal God’s Existence. (Not by conspiracy but as
part of human nature. God knows us, and prophecy is being fulfilled).
Not only do people detest God for creating the laws against sin but they
detest God because He promises punishment. When I was a child, I wanted to do
what I wanted to do. One thing really stood in my way; he was my Dad. I
remember saying aloud: “I wish Dad was dead so I can do what I want to do!” Yep;
I said that! I submit that most people did; maybe not aloud but in their
hearts. That is and has always been mankind’s thoughts about God: I wish God was dead so that I could do what
I want to do! That notion are the thoughts of “the old creature” – the one
whose father is the Devil. Those born-again, trade that thought for: God is alive and my will is to do His will. What
is God’s will? That He be loved with all
people’s hearts, minds, souls, and strength – our all! caa Those
four traits are how Adam was created in God’s image, and God desires to have
original love; that kind of love not contaminated by Satan. Godly love is agape-type (Greek). Eros, storge, and even philio-types of love won’t exist in Heaven.
All love will be God’s type of love. There will be no sexual, familial, or even
brotherly love in Heaven. We all will love each other as God so loved the world!
There are not types of hatred! Miseo (Greek) describes hatred without
further clarification. It means “detestation”. Parents always admonish: You don’t hate that person, you merely
dislike them! Hatred is despising another’s
existence. God recognizes hatred and commands that his creatures are to love
one another; even their enemies. Loving
others is a corollary to the Greatest Commandment which is loving God. It seems that the manner love
is demonstrated to God is loving others.
God knows, as Creator, how much mankind loves himself. Hence, love of self is the metric and baseline
for loving others. cab Yes, everyone has self-love, even the suicidal!
cac We are indeed the other
gods in God’s face (of the First Commandment).
Mankind seeks to destroy God
because they despise Him for admonished men to not have their way. Narcissism
is mankind’s identity. It is self-love and god-hatred. Challenge a Narcissistic
person by not giving into their whims. All Hell will break lose because they
fail to have it their way! That attitude transferred toward God is
mankind’s problem. Jesus is mankind’s solution! Christians are to trust God to
take away that demon who disguises himself as you. The second birth expels the
self-demon and provides the space for Jesus’s Holy Ghost to enter in!
People despise God because that
is Satan’s will. Because people are offered bribes (lust of the flesh, lust of
the eyes, and the pride of life) the hearts of men are harmonized with Satan’s
will. That attitude is spiritual
flesh and must be circumcised. cad Abraham’s willingness to circumcise his foreskin was an ordinance demonstrating
that his heart had been circumcised. Baptism is the New Testament way of
showing that the heart has been circumcised! cae As with Abraham,
Christians become peculiar people – spiritual Jews who are the
chosen people! caf Peculiar people didn’t kill God and neither did
the Jews as a people! Those who accept the grace of Christ, are resolved of their
crimes of passion, just as the Hebrew people will be in the Great Tribulation,
because as Jesus said, “they know not what they do!” cag God is merciful
because his creatures are spiritual fools; thinking we know everything about
everything without seeing the Light. That Light is truth and “the truth will set you free.” cah
Ironically, as criminals, life is a type of prison. Carnal humans believe
and accept the lie. The liar is Satan, and naïve people accept his deception. God
warned Adam about that, and Adam set the example. cai Ever since,
man has believed the lie: you won’t
really die! There is indeed a penalty (wages) for sin, and that is death
(as mentioned before). People just will not believe that because Satan is so
convincing. Those unconvinced are accomplices to attempted murder as they venerate
Satan and make God out to be the liar!
Think not? The first Words God inspired man to write were “God created
the heaven and the earth”. Caj Mankind says, no God did not, and another god was created in God’s face,
replacing Him. That God is the god of Chance and is “the unknown god”. Those
who deny God the Creator, deny God the Savior, for he certainly cannot save
from the world if He did not create the world. That attitude kills God!
God provided trees is the Garden of Eden for food. Most think only of things
to eat. However, the trees represent spiritual food. God commanded that His
creatures not eat of the spiritual food of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and
Evil. That “food” represents “the love of wisdom” (philosophy) which is the
love of studying the self. On the other hand, the Tree of Life represents the
Doctrine of Christ. Not only did Adam and Eve eat of the philosophical tree but
voluntarily entered into temptation by standing under the forbidden tree! The
Lord’s prayer asks God to “deliver us from temptation” cak but yet,
Christians still enter into temptation. We ask that we be made safe from evil,
then walk where evil reigns! Foolish Adam! Foolish Christians!
By standing under the doctrine of the World ruled by Satan, mankind
killed God emotionally. Imagine God, there in the midst of the Garden, watching
Adam and Eve in full view, standing under the Serpent’s tree! That first act of
rebellion wounded God badly! The punishment for even wounding God is death!
Because of God’s grace, He covered Adam’s and Eve’s sin because their hand-made
fig leaves could not. A lamb died (death introduced for the first time) to
cover their shame. Cal That “Lamb” represented Jesus. Adam and Eve
knew that because they recognized their sin and the only cure for sin is Jesus.
They were born-again when their eyes were opened, cam revealing that
they were ashamed. Guilt was introduced right there! Ever since, mankind has
been guilty of sin, and their eyes only need to be opened to it, and they be
ashamed!
Although God convicted Adam and Eve of their attempt in killing Him (by
refusing His authority), they did not die. God granted them a reprieve. Their
sentence was reduced to tribulation. can Ever since life itself has
become the trial! Just as with Job, Satan can do all he can to dissuade
Christians but he cannot kill them! Man’s wrong choices is spiritual suicide. Neither
God nor Satan kills man for denying God – mankind inflicts death on himself! Because
mankind is as cunning as the Serpent, the concept of death is transferred to
both Satan and God! Who “killed God”? Mankind tried and still does! Who is
responsible for mankind’s dying? Mankind! Since man cannot really kill God,
they kill themselves. Death are the fig leaves taken from the Tree of the Serpent,
and mankind still plays the “blame game”: the
Devil deceived me, and I did that because the world does it! People do things because it is their will! Sin is always a choice, and as such mankind
slowly but surely tries to erase God from existence!
Baq
ibid; Rom 12:19.
Bar
ibid; Mat 18:22.
Bas
ibid; Jam 2:19.
Bat
ibid; Mark 16:16.
Bau
ibid; Rom 10:29.
Bav
ibid; Rev 14:12.
Baw
ibid; Luke 9:23.
Bax
ibid; Gal 2:20.
Bay
ibid; John 16:33.
Baz
ibid; 1 Thes 5:8.
Caa
ibid; Mark 12:30.
Cab
ibid; John 13:34.
Cac
ibid; Ephes 5:29.
Cad
ibid; Deut 10:16.
Cae
ibid; Rom 2:29.
Caf
ibid; 1 Pet 2:9.
Cag
ibid; Luke 23:34.
Cah
ibid; John 8:32.
Cai
ibid; Gen 2:7.
Caj ibid;
Gen 1:1.
Cak
ibid; 2 Pet 2:9.
Cal ibid; Gen 3:21.
Cam
ibid; Gen 3:7.
Can
ibid; Gen 3:15-20.
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