A Fearful Experience

It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
(Hebrews 10 : 31  ESV)

What is the most fearful experience you've had?
Being sent to the Principal's office for the first time, not knowing what you'll face having heard horror stories/fantasies from others?
Being diagnosed with a serious illness, not knowing what can be done about it having heard bad stories from others with a similar diagnosis?

Have you thought about standing at the Great White Throne, not knowing what your fate might be and having heard "destroyer" stories from sermons in churches about eternal torment or annihilation using Hebrews 10:31 (among others)?

Of course it's fearful!
There is no place to hide when you have to honestly face yourself and your life being revealed by the all-knowing God.
And you don't know him ...
So you have no idea that He is loving, forgiving, merciful, and has planned for everyone to be saved.

You don't know Jesus has dealt with your sins, so you don't know God is no longer holding your sins against you.
All the fear you experience is internal because of these unknowns.

But what do you discover at the Great White Throne?
Yes, you deserve punishment as all guilty criminals do before a court judge.
But, you discover that your penalty has already been paid for you.
You are saved !! - saved from punishment and further embarrassment.
    

When you fall into the hands of the living God, you are a sinner who is really falling into the hands of a loving God (who will certainly want to clean you up a bit with a visit to the lake of fire before you move on).

This is the picture that Jesus paints for us about his and our father when he told the parable of the Prodigal Son. The returning son was fearful as he fell into his father's hands, yet there was no better place to be.

He fell fearfully into the hands of the forgiveness, healing and restoration of his loving father, who ordered a radical change in his dress and appearance in preparation for the celebrations about to take place.
   
Rembrandt captured this truth in a beautiful painting called "The Return of the Prodigal Son" - a picture of a sinner in the hands of a loving God.
This painting should be hung prominently in every Christian church in the world.

The anticipated fear of appearing before the living God will be swamped by love and forgiveness - the acceptance and celebration of the God who is love - because of what Jesus has already accomplished on our behalf.

Blessings, Barry

Other published Writings at https://www.ibtechservices.com.au

 

What MUST Be

While away on holiday and doing some fun-reading, I was intrigued by the number of times some of our little, yet powerful, English words occurred in the Scriptures. The words that got me thinking were "must" and "so".

Today's post discusses "must". (I might discuss "so" in a future one)
The word "must" is a frequent translation of the Greek word "dei" in most English versions of the New Testament, although sometimes it is translated as
is necessary,
is needful,
is required,
is binding,
depending on the context and flow of the English sentence that contains it

For example, in Matthew 16 : 21, it is used twice to show what was required of Jesus.

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. [NIV]

Another example:

He (Jesus) said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
[Luke 24 : 44  NIV]

A verse that many use to show that Jesus in the only means of salvation for mankind is Acts 4 : 12.

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. [NIV]

This verse clearly demonstrates God's exclusive means of salvation (Jesus), but what is the must part of the verse saying?

Is it not saying that the salvation of mankind is necessary, is a required outcome of the mission of Jesus, is binding on Jesus to achieve?

Wow! An exclusive process producing an inclusive result!
One person produces salvation for all people!
Reminds me of Paul's statement in 1 Corinthians 15.

For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.
[1 Cor 15 : 22  NIV]

Paul uses "must" quite often himself.

For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.
[1 Corinthians 15 : 53  NIV]

Seems like Paul is describing an eventual outcome which God has bound himself to achieve, which is a consistent follow-on from the previous verses 25 and 26.

For he (Jesus) must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. [NIV]

However, before we get that far we are bound to appear before the judgement seat of Christ.

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
[2 Corinthians 5 : 10  NIV]

All rewards must be given and anything inappropriate for the next stage of the journey must be removed. (read 1 Corinthians 3 : 11 - 15 for details)

The must verses are so plentiful and demonstrate how God has bound himself to his plan to redeem his whole creation. And, of course, because he is sovereign, all powerful, he must fully accomplish that plan.

Blessings, Barry

Punishment has a Purpose

In an email discussion with a dear friend who does not agree with me that God's plan is to reconcile the world to himself at the consummation of the ages, he points to the punishments handed out by God, mainly in the OT but also in the New, to demonstrate God's intention to exclude unbelievers from ever enjoying peace with God.

He suggests that because the wrath of God, which leads to vengeance, punishment and death, is an integral part of God's character, it will not change, but continue throughout time, and beyond.
He implies that this "fact" combined with the belief that all decisions effecting eternity are made during lifetimes on earth, shows clearly that most of creation will not make it into eternity.

In my response I suggest that God's wrath is directed towards sin, those things that cause us to miss the target of bearing the image of God, and needs to be seen in relation to his love, mercy, etc..
Interestingly, he has written a paragraph which describes this beautifully ...

There are a number of aspects to the judgment and ‘wrath of God’ that is worth mentioning and which have partially been alluded to. First is that the love of God and the wrath of God are perfectly compatible and can perhaps best be seen in the Cross which shows us the self-giving gracious act of God’s Son paying the price of the wrath of God against sin which Jesus bore. God’s anger and wrath is against sin or sinners that profane his holiness and righteousness, that hurts others, that reduces our love for God and one another. God has in view our good and anything that interferes with that is the object of his anger and wrath. Our lack of wisdom cannot often see what is good for us individually and collectively but God has total supreme wisdom and all the attributes of his character, his love, mercy, grace, holiness, justice, patience, compassion, faithfulness, wisdom, sovereign power and yes wrath…. work together seamlessly.

I have followed up with the following comments ...

If "God has in view our good" and we believe God when he says he is the Saviour of the world (1 Tim 4: 10), then however God interacts with us, even bringing death, has to be seen for our good in some way and a part of the process of fulfilling his role as Saviour of the world.

If we believe God when he says he will bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ (Eph 1:10), all aspects of his character and dealings issuing from them must be working towards this end (even if our lack of wisdom prevents us from seeing it).
In other words, God's wrath, punishment, vengeance, etc. are not ends in themselves, but stepping stones to God's predestined end.

This is why I consider our starting point to be vital in appreciating what God might be doing in his various interactions with mankind.

My starting point, illustrated by 1 Tim and Eph and other references, allows me to see that no matter what calamities have eventuated in someone's life on earth, even destruction by God himself, God's love and predetermined plan will always bring them into sweet fellowship with God in the future.

Those with a Calvinistic starting point, belief that God has divided humanity into two groups, the elect and the lost, do not allow millions of people to ever see the love, kindness, mercy or grace of God, or allow the work of Christ on the cross to be as successful as God designed it would be.

Those with an Arminian starting point, belief that mankind has free will and chooses his own eternal destiny during his lifetime on earth, not only confine those who make poor choices to be forever lost, but proclaim that God's will can be trumped by man's will - God is not sovereign.

Believing what God himself says in His Word about his intentions for his creation produces a Biblically more consistent theology for me.

Blessings, Barry

Chapter 5

Hi Everyone

After over 12 months of distractions and other challenges, I returned to my book this week. I am in Withcott where temperatures have been in the mid 40's for several days and my back has been at its worst.

So with tolerance levels at a minimum, I have taken to finishing chapter 5 with a savage aggressive streak. I have deleted over half the original content by removing repetitive thoughts, "unnecessary" explanations and theological arguments mounted to support my story-line.  After all, my target audience is the un-churched (and hopefully some ex-churched) so theological arguments would be of little value.

The draft for this chapter is hiding in the usual spot at http://users.ncable.net.au/~barrytatt/C5.pdf.  Please read it critically when you get the chance and feedback your thoughts, criticisms, suggestions for improvement, etc., no matter how large or small.  I'll leave it posted up there until the end of January, but your feedback will be most welcome any time before or after that date.

Blessings, Barry

The Judgement of the Nations

Matthew 25 : 31 - 46 describes the Judgement of the Nations, which most commentators or theologians believe to be a description of the final judgement of mankind at the end of time to decide who will be saved or enter the kingdom.

I suspect this is not a correct interpretation for the following reasons .....
1.   This is a judgement with consequences in the ages to come.  If it happens at the end of time, there are no ages left for the consequences to be played out.
2.   It is a judgement of nations or tribes, not individuals.  The salvation of individuals is not involved, and, in any case, the salvation of individuals is not a matter of works or the offering of charity, but is a gift to all.
3.   This story is the last piece of Jesus' answer to His disciples' questions that were asked at the beginning of chapter 24 involving the destruction of the temple, which occurred in AD 70 and before the generation to whom Jesus was speaking passed away (Matt 23 : 36 and 24 : 34).
4.   It is a parallel with Matthew 16 : 27 - 28 (compare with Matt 25 : 31 - 33) in which Jesus assured his listeners that at least some of whom would personally see.
5.   The nations referred to were probably the tribes of Israel, or the tribes of the land.  Matt 24 : 30 calls them so, and back then historians like Josephus regularly referred to the nation of the Galileans, the nation of the Samaritans, etc. within the land of Israel. 
Jesus told his disciples to "go and teach all nations" and I think He was understood to be referring to the ethnic groups within Israel or Judea because of their surprise when they eventually discovered Gentiles being saved in the mid and later chapters of Acts.  (Acts 10 : 14 and 11 : 18.  
It's also worth noting that Jesus told his disciples that they wouldn't have finished going through the cities of Israel before Jesus was to return (Matt10 : 23), thus expecting them to be spreading the gospel to Israel or Judea, and that Paul stated that the Gentiles being included in the gospel was a mystery prior to his revelation (Eph 3 : 6).

I therefore, as an uneducated bush theologian, prefer to view this judgement as one on the tribes or nations of Israel in AD70, and Jews being law-keepers, would be judged on how well they kept the law and offered charity to those who lived in the land with them.

That's where I'm up to, but I'm always learning.
Comments, as always, would be most welcome.
Blessings, Barry

The Great White Throne Judgement

As you know I am currently writing the chapter on the Good Judgement of God, although I have done very little in the past few months for several "good" reasons.
However I have squeezed in some good reading between events and have discovered an interesting snippet in these readings that I had not run across before.
In Revelation 20 : 11 - 15, we have the following:

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books  (scrollets  Gk: biblion) were opened. Another book (scrollet  Gk:biblion) was opened, which is the book (absent in Gk text) of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books (scrollets  Gk:biblion).
13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.
14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.
15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book (scroll  Gk:biblos) of life was thrown into the lake of fire. (NIV)

In verse 12 all the books mentioned were scrollets or small scrolls (Gk:biblion), but the one mentioned in verse 15 is the normal scroll (Gk:biblos).
The book of life gets bigger, becomes a normal sized scroll, during the Great White Throne judgement. 

What do you make of that?
Who do you think gets added to the book of life during the judgement?
Who remains to get thrown into the lake of fire?

Please share your thoughts on these questions.
Blessings, Barry

Jesus Visits Hell for Three Days

Hi Everyone
Have been distracted for the past twelve months with family health issues, but I am about to recommence work on the book and will post some ideas here for you to bounce around with me.
I am ready to commence work on Chapter 5, God's Judgement is Good, so the flavour of the posts for next few weeks will be on hell and judgement.
Are you ready to play with me?  Please do.

Many in mainstream christianity believe that the penalty for not becoming a follower of Jesus in their lifetime on this planet is eternal torment in a place they call hell.
Others, who don't wish to portray their 'God of love' as being so cruel, suggest that these folk will be annihilated, totally destroyed, rather than suffer the hell torture.
Even if the Bible is not known very well, let me suggest that any rational person would struggle to reach either of these two conclusions.

Let's begin by considering the time Jesus spent in hell (or in death).
Jesus paid the full penalty for the sin of the whole world.
How long was he dead?  Three days.
Three days' death paid the full penalty for the sin of the world.

I now have two questions to explore.
1.  If Jesus paid for all of the world's sin, how come anyone has anything more to pay?
2.  Even if you could find some reason to argue that some payment is still required, how could that payment be longer than three days?
Surely a person only has to pay for his own sin, not for the sin of others, and the maximum penalty for a person's own sin would have to be less than the 3 days Jesus paid for the world's sin.

In either scenario, no payment required or a payment of less than 3 days, where is the possibility of endless torture in hell for unbelievers?
If anyone had to go to hell forever, surely it would have been Jesus, who was paying for the sin for all of us.  But He didn't.

Now let's consider what happened to Jesus after he was in hell.
He rose from the dead after 3 days.
He came back to life, was resurrected.
Even better still, He went to heaven soon after His resurrection.

Wasn't annihilated?
Went to heaven after being in hell? 

However we look at it, endless torment or annihilation clearly cannot be the penalty for sin.

Blessings, Barry

(You can find previous posts on hell and judgement by looking through the blog archive in the side panel on the right. A starter on hell was posted on August 4th, 2010, for example.)

Keeping the Right Focus

Several conversations I have had in the last few days have centred around judgement, hell, the lake of fire, punishment, etc.
My conversation partners were so focussed on these topics that they completely missed God's ultimate purpose to reconcile all people to himself.

God made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
[Eph 1 : 9 - 10]

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Jesus, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
[Col 1 : 19 - 20]

When we focus on the judgement, punishment topics, isolated from God's purpose, and isolated from God's love and sovereignty, we quickly get back to the position that Jesus' sacrifice on the cross completely failed for the majority of God's creation, and man's will has usurped God's.

But when we focus first on God's love, will and sovereignty, we can easily see God's judgements and punishments as the correction of a loving Father, in control of his family, moulding his children to become the people he has designed them to be, in the likeness of his begotten Son, Jesus.

We know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
[1 John 3 : 2b]

If we saw a parent smacking a child and knew nothing of that parent's love for the child or desire to improve the behaviour of the child for its own well-being we might have a distorted view of that parent and his/her character.
Equally, of course, if we saw a parent belting and belting and belting a child, for whatever reason, we would be horrified and would question that parent's love for the child and the motivation for the punishment.
Unfortunately, many people view God like this, as an angry, incessant "belter" of his wayward children, because they don't know his heart and purpose.

Let's focus on God's character and purpose first and then we will see how easily the punishment verses, correctly translated, complete the picture.

Blessings, Barry

Starting Riots

Sometimes, all I have to do to start a riot is quote Scripture.
And I am most successful with church folk!  (You may have noticed)

Here's a couple of riot starters.
2 Corinthians 5 : 19 says .....

God was in Jesus Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not counting people's sins against them.

   What?
   God doesn't count people's sins against them?
   People don't have to pay for their sins?
   Everyone is going to be judged, you know.
   Barry, you're out of your mind.
..... just quoting Scripture mate.

Romans 5 : 20 says .....

Where sin increases, grace increases all the more.

Romans 3 : 5 and 7 express the same theme ....

our unrighteousness highlights God's righteousness
God's truth super-abounds my falsehood

   Really?
   That means we should sin more and more so there will be more and more grace?
   Our sinfulness helps people see God's qualities more clearly?
   God doesn't want that from us surely?
..... you've finally said something right, God doesn't want us to sin.

Why would anyone even want to behave badly towards someone who has treated them so kindly and generously.
Anyone who would do so, surely hasn't yet appreciated God's grace.

These scriptures are saying the obvious.
..... the greater the sin, the greater grace is and needs to be - and grace will always trump even the greatest sin.
..... the blacker is the canvas of one's life, the more brilliantly does the radiance or glory of God's grace stand out when painted on that canvas.

The world is quite interested in talking about such things, but church folk, especially church leaders, are quick to reach for their riot gear.
The Scriptures don't fit their beliefs or help them keep their congregations in line.
I should know - I used to be one of them in my younger years.

And the last bit of 2 Corinthians 5 : 19 says .....

And we have been appointed messengers of God's reconciliation.

Ah, that's the ministry I am enjoying, regardless of the riots I start.

Blessings, Barry

Another Abused Verse

There are so many verses in the Bible that are badly translated into English, poorly interpreted or used without any consideration being given to their context in order to bolster someone's previously-decided point of view.
Hebrews 9 : 27 is such a verse.

Just as the men are destined to die once, and after this a judgement,  [BSV]

Although this verse is usually quoted alone to make a point, notice that it is only the first part of a sentence crossing two verses that has the familiar "Just as ...... so ......" structure that we have run into several times before.
But apart from this small point, what is the verse usually claimed to be referring to?

The common interpretation of this verse goes something like this.....
    All people die once then immediately face judgement.
    The result of that judgement - saved or damned - is final and determines everyone's eternal destiny.
    End of story.
As you well know, there are many aspects of this standard interpretation that are not in harmony with other correctly translated Scriptures.

But, even worse, this common interpretation is totally inconsistent with its context.
Let's have a look at its context.
The book - is written to the Hebrews, to Hebrew Christians, explaining God's new covenant with Israel, and contrasting it with the Old.
The chapter - is discussing the work of Jesus as High Priest of the New Covenant, as compared to the work of the high priests of the Old Covenant.
The verse - is discussing what happens after the inevitable death of "the men."

Looking at this context, what "men" is the verse talking about?
    Clearly it is talking about the high priests of the Old Covenant.
And what judgement follows their death?
    Numbers 35 gives us Gentiles a clue to what these Hebrew Christians would have known instinctively.

Numbers 35 talks about the towns for the Levites (the priestly tribe) and the Cities of Refuge.
Cities of Refuge were for those who were guilty of manslaughter (killing someone by accident, rather than by deliberate intent) so they would not be put to death for their man-slaying.
Such people were to remain in these cities until the death of the high priest.
After his death, the man-slayer was judged to be free of any further detainment or payment for his man-slaying.
He was then restored to his original community.

Interesting - the judgement after the death of the high priest was a restoration or reconciliation!!!

To finish this post, look at the next bit of the sentence that stretches across to verse 28.

Just as the men (the high priests) are destined to die once, and after this a judgement (restoration or reconciliation),
so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; ......

Does this shed some fresh light on this "terrible" verse for you?
Don't let anyone throw you off course with the standard Gentile interpretation again.
And if God leads you to offer this "anyone" an alternative, maybe WITH HUMILITY AND GRACE, you could ask if they have considered the context of the verse.
(I'm still learning how to do this well.)

Blessings, Barry

Willy Wonka

Have you ever seen the movie "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory?"
Yes?  How long ago?
Do you remember the closing scenes in the 1971 version (with Gene Wilder playing Wonka)?

Grandpa Joe and Charlie Bucket are meeting with Willy Wonka in Wonka's office (where everything is cut in half).

During the previous tour of the factory, each of the children had been given an everlasting gobstopper as a gift from Wonka on condition that they not give it away.
Grandpa, in his anger, threatens to give Charlie's gobstopper to Slugworth, the character who had been so desperate and cunning in trying to get hold of one to duplicate.
Instead, Charlie places his gobstopper on Willy's desk.

Willy excitedly bursts out with ....
"So shines a good deed in a weary world. 
Charlie . . . my boy . . . You won!  You did it!  You did it! 
I knew you would; I just knew you would. 
Oh, Charlie, forgive me for putting you through this.  Please, forgive me. 
Come in, Mr Wilkinson. 
Charlie, meet Mr Wilkinson."

As Mr Wilkinson enters, Charlie immediately recognises him and exclaims, "Slugworth!".
"No, no, that's not Slugworth.  He works for me," replies Willy.
"For you?"
"I had to test you, Charlie.  And you passed the test. You won!" announces Willy.
"Won what?" asks Grandpa Joe.
"The jackpot, my dear sir, the grand and glorious jackpot."
"The chocolate?" asks Charlie.
"The chocolate, yes, the chocolate, but that's just the beginning."

Charlie's disobedience in drinking the fizzy lifting drink was not counted against him.  Because he had clung to his everlasting gobstopper and had not betrayed Wonka, he was given chocolate for life AND inherited the chocolate factory as well.

Willy had used one of his employees (Mr Wilkinson portrayed as Slugworth up until now) to help him sort out who would be worthy to win this prize and to run the factory the way he desired.

Isn't this just like God in the Job story - and so many of our stories?

In God's realm, Satan is no more than one of God's employees. 
God uses him to determine how we react to the thoughts and temptations that are whispered into our ears.
Those who pass the test, and hold on to their everlasting gobstopper, not only get the chocolate (life in the age) but inherit the factory (the kingdom) as well.
The Bible calls these the overcomers.

Clearly, both God and his employees (including Satan) play for the same team, with God as the captain.
God is truly sovereign over all.

It's amazing how many Biblical themes are lurking in unexpected places - even in Hollywood movies.
Blessings, Barry

God's Throne

A throne is a place from which a monarch rules.
God's throne is described in many ways in Scripture - glorious, majestic and heavenly are words commonly used.
But the writer of Hebrews has another most interesting description, which we will consider here.

"Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."  [ Heb 4 : 16 ]

Firstly, it is a throne of grace that can be approached with confidence.
Most people would approach a throne with apprehension, even fear, as the one sitting on it would have great authority and wield enormous power.
If they were at odds with the monarch in any way or approach him without due respect for the proper protocol, they would expect judgement from the throne to be swift and severe.

But from this throne comes grace.  This ruler radiates grace from his throne.
Confident that grace is his character, this throne can be approached boldly, with confidence, without hesitation.

Secondly, anyone coming to this throne will obtain mercy and find grace to help them in their time of need.
I approach God's throne frequently, seeking help in my many times of need. 
I never stop to think should I, can I, have I been too often lately?
I am always welcome, I am always loved, accepted, understood and answered.
It couldn't be any other way since the throne's nature is grace.

Is this the picture of the throne of Almighty God that you have been given to understand?
Most of us were raised to think of God's throne as a throne of wrath and anger, severe judgement and everlasting punishment, not a throne of grace from which the God of perfect love rules?

With this understanding in view, why would anyone be apprehensive about an audience before God's throne?  Any time - in this age or the next?

Blessings, Barry

Can You Recommend a Good Church?

Some of you will know I have struggled with the "institutional church" for much of my life.
Sure there have been some exceptions, but generally speaking mainstream christianity leaves me frustrated.

So it was a great surprise towards the end of my working life that God called me to pastor a small church and lead a state-wide restructure of the denomination of which that church was a part.

But apart from those rare times when I could make a contribution to the way the church worked and to what it believed, church involvement was (and still is) a huge struggle.

I often ask myself why this is so, since so many of my friends enjoy church and are heavily involved in its activities, and have finally been able to articulate my reasons in just one simple sentence.

For a church to be attractive to me
it needs to be

• believing and proclaiming the good news that God is the Creator and Saviour of the world

and

• preparing believers for their priestly function in the coming kingdom age.

The ways in which a church might do these things can be as varied as it likes, but if these goals are not being achieved, or at least being genuinely desired, then it will never attract me.

Many churches do good things of various sorts for their members and the communities in which they are located, and would therefore qualify as good social or community clubs.
But I am sure Jesus did not establish his church to be a social club, nor did Paul believe a social club would make God's wisdom known to the authorities in the heavens.

I hope you have found and are involved in a good church - I'm still looking for one.

Blessings, Barry

Burning Sons and Daughters

In my research, I am coming across dozens of authors of books and websites who hold similar positions about the eventual reconciliation of all as we do.

Here is a quote from one of them.

"For the people of Judah have done evil in my eyes," declares the LORD. "They have put their detestable idols in the house that is called by my name in order to defile it.

They have built high places at Topheth in the Valley of Ben-Hinnom to burn their sons and daughters in the fire. I didn't command this, and it never entered my mind!"

[Jeremiah 7:30-31]

God calls burning children an abomination, but He burns His children – forever?

It has never even entered God's mind to do such a thing! Yet, it is a common and very acceptable idea that that's what God is going to do to His children, and not only burn them as the Hebrew's did, but the common belief is that God is even going to change their bodies such that they cannot have the luxury of dying!

NO! He is going to do no such thing! By the sacrifice of His son, ALL are redeemed.

Grant Miller
Author of "Think, and Be Free"

Blessings, Barry

Irreligious Thoughts about the Consequences of Sin

I have been thinking a lot about Jesus' death lately and have had some interesting (maybe naughty) thoughts about it.
Let me share them with you and, as always, invite your feedback.

When Jesus carried the sins of the whole world to the cross, he took the sins of every individual who has ever lived, is currently living or ever will live.
He carried the sins of the worst sinners ever, plus everyone else's.

So, if the future of people who die in their sins is everlasting torment in a place called hell, then surely Jesus should still be there enduring that punishment.
Shouldn't he?

Now let's remember that Jesus went to his death without repenting of any of the sins that he was carrying, that were now his.
Just like the majority of mankind will.
YET he only remained in Hades (the unseeen) for three days and was neither singed nor tortured.
AND he was resurrected.
AND he was given eternal life.
AND he was perfectly acceptable to the Father.
AND he was placed at the Father's right hand, and in perfect fellowship with him.

Doesn't that sound a bit odd?

Here's another cute thought.

The Bible tells me that the wages of sin is death.  [ Romans 6 : 23 ]
Yet what I hear preached all the time is that the wages of sin is everlasting life.
Really?
Yep.
Most preach that those who die in their sins will be tormented alive forever in hell.
That sounds more like everlasting life than death to me.
Doesn't it?

That's the best I can do in the lead up to Christmas.  :-)

Have a great one - and rejoice in God's incredible plan to redeem us all through the one who started his earthly life as the baby Jesus.

Blessings one and all
Barry

The Lake of Fire

So what happens next?  What happens to these new 'pagan' believers as they are placed in the lake of fire? 

I'll be writing in more detail about the lake of fire in future posts, but for the purpose of following up the last post, I'll just share a story which has appeared on the internet over the years in various forms which gives some insight into this question.

I love this story as it helps me appreciate one of God's methods of making us Christ-like in our process of sanctification (sorry for the big word) and also helps me understand the references to  fire and brimstone and God's purpose in using these cleansing agents.

While reading Malachi 3, a group of women in a Bible Study were struck by the reference to God sitting as a refiner and purifier of silver.  To gain a better understanding of this verse, one of the women offered to visit a silversmith, watch him at work, and report back to the group on her observations the following week.

She called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him work, but didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up.  He explained that in refining silver, he needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest in order to burn away all the impurities.

She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.  The man answered that yes, not only must he sit there holding the silver, but he also had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire.  If the silver was left in the fire a moment too long, it would be injured in some way.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot sometimes, and began to see the purifying purpose in these experiences under the watchful eye of the Master Silversmith. 

The woman remained silent while she let these thoughts run their course, then asked the silversmith, “How do you know when the silver is fully refined?”  He smiled at her and answered, ‘Oh, that’s easy — it is fully refined when I can see my image in it.

We were made in His image originally, and we need to be remade in that image for fellowship with Him in eternity.  He does this through the work of His Holy Spirit now, and through his judgements at the Great White Throne.

I think this story perfectly describes the purpose of the lake of fire during the last age - the age of the new heavens and earth.  It is for purifying the new believers.

Most mainstream Christians think that the lake of fire is the hell of eternal torment that they have been taught about in their churches for many years and is the final place of unending punishment for all those who do not become believers by the time they are called to leave this planet at the end of their physical lives here.

I would rather see the fire and sulphur as pictures of the cleansing and purifying processes which God undertakes to make these new believers ready for life in eternity with him. 

Actually, the lake is also called the second death, the death of all that offends God and needs to be removed from those who have not had the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit involved in their lives as we've had.

Different pieces of silver will obviously take different amounts of time in the flame to be purified, depending on how 'unpurified' they were when they were placed there, but when the lake of fire (the second death) has finally finished its work it will no longer be needed and will be destroyed as Paul promises in 1 Cor 15 : 26.

Barry