The escalation of global
terrorism, crime, immorality
00:00:09.58\00:00:12.68
and natural disasters,
seems to indicate our world
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is spiraling towards it's
ultimate hour with destiny.
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Who, if anyone, will
survive Earth's final events?
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Discover what Bible prophecy
reveals about the rapture,
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the mark of the
beast, and Armageddon.
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Though shrouded in
mystery for centuries,
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the book of Revelation
can be understood today.
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Peer into the future,
and see what wonderful things
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God has planned for His people.
00:00:35.56\00:00:38.43
And now, Pastor Brian
McMahon presents the powerful
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Bible seminar
"Revelation Speaks Hope".
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Our subject for
tonight we've entitled:
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"God's Love
Revealed in Hell-Fire".
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Before we go to our first
text, I'd like to make a little
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preliminary statement about
our method of studying truth
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here at the
Amazing Facts Seminar.
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I'm sure many of you
have noticed we go through
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a lot of verses of the Bible,
and there's a reason we do this:
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I don't believe you can get
the truth on any one subject
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out of just 1 text of
scripture. However, many times,
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whole arguments, or doctrines,
theories, are built upon
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just 1 or 2 texts.
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The Bible says, in essence,
that the way to find truth
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is to try to gather as much
information from the various
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parts of the Bible as
possible, and put it together.
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For example, we put verse
with verse, line with line,
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chapter with
chapter, and we find out what
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the Old Testament said,
what does the New Testament say,
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what did Jesus say,
Matthew, Mark, Luke, Paul,
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all of the various writers, pull
these assembled texts together,
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and then we can get a
very clear idea of Bible truth.
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Now, occasionally, it will seem,
perhaps, that one or 2 texts
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might contradict the
others, but by careful study
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and comparison we'll
see that any contradiction
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is simply in our own minds,
and not really in the Bible.
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There's a lot of
basic questions people have
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about it, and not
only people are confused,
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but even ministers are
confused, so we're going to try
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to get unconfused tonight,
and really find out what does
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the word "hell" actually mean?
What does the Bible really say?
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Well, there are several
words in the original languages
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that are translated "hell"
or "hell fire" in the English.
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We're going to
ask some questions:
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When is hell fire?
Where is hell fire?
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How long does hell fire last?
That's an important question.
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Now, let's look at
the word "hell" itself.
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It's used 54 times in
the Bible, of those 54 times
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there's an Old Testament
word in the Hebrew, "sheol",
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and a New Testament
word in the Greek, "Hades",
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they mean the grave;
that's used 41 times.
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There's another New Testament
word in the Greek, "Geheanna",
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which means "a place of
burning", or "a burning place"
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"of fire"; that's used 12 times.
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There's 1 other reference
in the Greek in 2 Peter 2:4,
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the Greek word is "tartaros"
it means "a place of darkness",
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it's referring to the
place where the angels that fell
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from grace were cast,
when they were cast out
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of the glorious light of
heaven, they went into darkness.
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So, those are the references
that the Bible speaks about.
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We're going to look tonight at
this idea of a place of burning,
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the idea of
"Gehenna". In the New Testament
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these 2 basic words,
"Gehenna" and "Hades",
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"Hades" meaning "the grave",
unfortunately they're both often
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translated as "hell", so some
people get a little confused.
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We're going to look
at that one - "Gehenna",
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"a place of burning" or
where the body of a lost person
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is going to burn.
Where exactly does that idea
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come from? Well, long ago,
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outside of the south and
west walls of ancient Jerusalem
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they had a very
very deep garbage dump,
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it's called the Valley of
Hinnom, and that's where refuse
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was constantly burning there,
the fires were always burning,
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and what the fires didn't
destroy the worms would eat,
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and the ancient Jews would
look upon this garbage dump
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called the Valley of Hinnom
and they saw it as a metaphor,
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or an analogy to the
final destruction of the wicked.
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So that's where we get
the word "Gehenna" today.
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The rest of the word
we're going to study tonight,
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this idea of a place of fire.
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So we're going to answer
some questions about hell,
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let's go through them
rather quickly on the screen
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if we could; what are
some of the questions people
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want to know?
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Let's look at the first
one: when does hell fire occur?
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Go to Matthew 5 with
me. Many people teach
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that there is an
immortal soul dwelling within us
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that flies off at death
- if you've been righteous
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to a place of reward,
or unrighteous, to a place
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of punishment.
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Well, Jesus said of Himself:
"I am the way, the truth,"
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"and the life. " If
we take what Jesus said
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about a subject, we can be
sure we're going to be correct.
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Do you believe that? So
what did Jesus have to say?
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Well, we can't blame Jesus for
this idea of an immortal soul,
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if you want an understanding of
what Jesus taught on hell fire,
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here's what it is, Matthew
5:30, this is Jesus speaking:
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"members" - which means one
of thy body parts should perish,
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So Jesus taught that it is
the whole body that is cast
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into the fires of hell,
and not some kind of invisible,
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disembodied soul.
There's no vague, mystical soul
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that's going to fly
off from the body at death
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and go to the
place of punishment.
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So the question that arises:
well if it doesn't happen
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at death, when
exactly does it happen?
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Go with me to Matthew 13:36.
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It says: "Then Jesus
sent the multitude away"
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"and went into the house, and
His disciples came unto Him,"
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"saying: Declare unto us
the parable of the tares"
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"of the field. He
answered and said unto them,"
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"He that soweth the
good seed is the Son of Man;"
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"The field is the world;
the good seed are the children"
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"of the kingdom; but
the tares are the children"
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"of the wicked one; The enemy
that sowed them is the devil;"
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"the harvest is the end of
the world; and the reapers"
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"are the angels. " Verse 40:
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"There shall be wailing
and gnashing of teeth. "
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Folks, this is so plain here,
there's no room for argument,
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there's no room for
quibbling about the subject.
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Jesus said very plainly it will
be so in the end of the world.
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Let's go on to verse
49, Jesus is basically
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repeating it
here, verse 49, He says:
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"The angels shall come
forth, and sever the wicked"
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"from among the
just, And shall cast them"
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"into a furnace of
fire: there shall be wailing"
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"and gnashing of teeth. "
So that is, again, so clear.
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No one goes into the
lake of fire until the end
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of the world. How
unjust would it be
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for an earthly judge to
sentence someone to punishment
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before their
trial had even occurred,
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before their trial had
finished? It wouldn't be just
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in this world, neither
would it be just in God's court.
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The Bible is clear that
God is going to have a judgment
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and the punishment will
going to come at the end
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of that judgment.
Let's go to Matthew 16.
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We're not very far away
from that, so let's pick up
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that text, notice how clearly
this is stated, verse 27.
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The Lord said:
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That's what I call one
of these "when/then" texts.
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In other words, "when this
happens, then something else"
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"is going to
happen". So what's the when?
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When Jesus comes in
the glory of His Father
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with His angels, then
people are going to be rewarded,
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every man
according to his works.
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Has Jesus come with
the glory of His Father
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with His angels
yet? No He hasn't.
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Well then, how could
people be receiving the rewards
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for their life yet? Well,
it would be an impossibility,
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wouldn't it? It would be a
contradiction of the Bible.
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So we want to go on and
study a little bit more.
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Let's go to 2 Peter 2:9,
this is what the Scriptures say:
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Now there's a lot
of good news in there,
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it says the Lord knows how
to deliver us out of temptation,
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that's good news, isn't
it? And we'll talk about that
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on another night, but it
also says He's reserving,
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what does reserve
mean? It means holding back,
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so He's holding back
the unjust, or the wicked,
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unto a certain time,
called the day of judgment,
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and that's when
they're going to be punished.
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So this idea that a person
goes to a place of hell fire
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immediately upon death
is simply not Biblical,
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it's not what the Bible
says. We'll go and catch up
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on a verse we
looked at the other night,
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in 2 Thessalonians
2:8 we're told this:
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So we're told that those
wicked who are still alive
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at the second coming will
be destroyed by the brightness
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of His coming, so that's
the first death for them.
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Then Revelation 20:5 says that
those dead did not live again
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until the 1000
years were finished,
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that means the millennium,
that's what we studied
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on our last night together.
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So they're destroyed at the
second coming if they weren't
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already dead, they
remain dead for the 1000 years,
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if you weren't here
our last night together,
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please get the material,
and then they will come up
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in what the Bible calls
the second resurrection.
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So let's go on to Acts
24:15, and Paul talked a lot
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about the resurrection
in the book of Acts.
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He said:
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So not only will the righteous
rise up at a resurrection,
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but the unrighteous will
rise up in a resurrection.
00:10:03.13\00:10:06.20
Well, exactly when do
those resurrections occur?
00:10:06.23\00:10:09.23
Well, our last night together
we looked at the subject
00:10:09.27\00:10:12.03
of the Millennium, the
1000 years of Revelation 20.
00:10:12.07\00:10:14.76
We found out that God made it
very easy to see the 1000 years
00:10:14.80\00:10:18.63
by putting 2 book ends,
as I like to refer to them,
00:10:18.66\00:10:21.22
one at the beginning and
one at the end, to mark off
00:10:21.25\00:10:23.78
the 1000 years. Those book ends
00:10:23.81\00:10:25.41
are what you might
call resurrections.
00:10:25.45\00:10:27.36
There's the first
resurrection at the beginning of
00:10:27.40\00:10:29.55
the 1000 years, the
second resurrection at the end
00:10:29.58\00:10:31.57
of the 1000 years. Now
I know this is a review,
00:10:31.60\00:10:33.94
but it's important.
The second coming is what
00:10:33.98\00:10:36.50
brings on the first
resurrection, the Holy City
00:10:36.54\00:10:39.03
descending out of
heaven is what brings on
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the second resurrection, so
it's at the second resurrection
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when the wicked will
rise, that's when their judgment
00:10:44.57\00:10:47.34
will finally be completed,
and that's when hell fire
00:10:47.37\00:10:50.11
will take place.
00:10:50.14\00:10:51.97
If the wicked who have died
00:10:52.01\00:10:55.87
are not yet in hell
fire then where are they?
00:10:55.91\00:10:58.62
We want to be clear on
this, where exactly are they?
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The Bible is clear once
more folks, John 5:28,29.
00:11:03.07\00:11:07.37
This is reviewing, but it's
good to go over these texts,
00:11:07.41\00:11:10.62
memorize them, know
where they are, so you can
00:11:10.65\00:11:13.42
look them up for
yourselves. John 5:28,29,
00:11:13.46\00:11:16.16
this is what the Bible
says, Jesus is speaking:
00:11:16.20\00:11:19.10
"coming" - notice
that's future tense,
00:11:21.43\00:11:24.48
So Jesus says they shall come
forth, but He says all that are
00:11:34.50\00:11:38.88
in the graves.
They're in the graves
00:11:38.91\00:11:42.76
and they're going to come
forth, and the Jesus names them,
00:11:42.80\00:11:45.53
He says one's the resurrection
of life, that's the first
00:11:45.56\00:11:48.47
resurrection, and one's
the resurrection of damnation,
00:11:48.51\00:11:51.77
that's the second resurrection.
So now we know that
00:11:51.81\00:11:55.04
the reserved, or those
that He's holding back,
00:11:55.07\00:11:57.88
are in the graves, they
will come forth in their
00:11:57.92\00:12:00.70
respective
resurrections at that time.
00:12:00.73\00:12:03.74
This agrees perfectly, by the
way, with what Job had to say
00:12:03.78\00:12:07.71
in the Old Testament.
Remember from our opening
00:12:07.74\00:12:09.88
night that Paul said
that all scriptures given by
00:12:09.91\00:12:11.98
the inspiration of God, and
it is profitable for doctrine
00:12:12.02\00:12:16.19
reproof, correction and
instruction in righteousness
00:12:16.22\00:12:18.45
so the Old Testament, as
well as the New Testament,
00:12:18.49\00:12:20.69
we can go back and
forth in perfect freedom,
00:12:20.72\00:12:22.64
they both give us the
information we're looking for.
00:12:22.68\00:12:25.77
In Job 21:29,
here's what we read:
00:12:25.81\00:12:28.87
So Job agrees with it, he
says the wicked are reserved
00:12:41.34\00:12:43.77
to a certain time, it's
called the day of destruction,
00:12:43.80\00:12:46.20
you'll see that word
"destruction" a lot tonight,
00:12:46.23\00:12:48.01
and he says they're
going to be brought forth,
00:12:48.04\00:12:49.75
that's the resurrection, but
not at the first resurrection,
00:12:49.79\00:12:52.73
it's going to be a
day of wrath for them.
00:12:52.76\00:12:54.44
Let's go to another one
in Job, this time Job 21:32.
00:12:54.48\00:12:58.25
It says:
00:12:58.28\00:13:00.95
So this is what
happens in the mean time.
00:13:03.05\00:13:05.24
Job says that person is going
to be brought to the grave,
00:13:05.28\00:13:07.61
we studied that out
night #4 in many places,
00:13:07.64\00:13:09.94
and he remains in the tomb
until the resurrection day.
00:13:09.98\00:13:14.14
This agrees, again, with the New
Testament, we go to 2 Peter 3:7
00:13:14.18\00:13:22.83
he says:
00:13:22.86\00:13:25.19
"kept in store" - it
means they're holding back,
00:13:28.66\00:13:31.75
So Peter says the heavens,
the atmosphere, and the earth,
00:13:38.10\00:13:41.53
surface of the earth, are being
held back, and God will use them
00:13:41.57\00:13:45.46
to destroy ungodly people; let's
go and see how that is true.
00:13:45.49\00:13:49.35
That's the prophecy, now
let's see the fulfillment
00:13:50.99\00:13:54.84
of the prophecy;
Revelation 20, we were here
00:13:54.87\00:13:58.09
just our last night together.
By the time we come down
00:13:58.13\00:14:01.11
to verse 9, the Millennium
is over, it talks about it
00:14:01.14\00:14:03.89
being over in verse 7,
verse 8 it says Satan goes out
00:14:03.92\00:14:06.64
to deceive the wicked,
he gathers them together
00:14:06.67\00:14:09.93
around the Holy City,
and here's what verse 9 says,
00:14:09.97\00:14:13.20
this is the last
moments of time, it says:
00:14:13.23\00:14:15.97
"And they" -
they being the wicked,
00:14:16.01\00:14:19.45
So where did
hell fire originate?
00:14:32.07\00:14:34.08
A lot of people say hell fire
is down yonder in the center
00:14:34.12\00:14:35.94
of the earth, friends,
hell fire begins up yonder,
00:14:35.97\00:14:38.79
it begins in the atmosphere,
he says the heavens and earth
00:14:38.83\00:14:41.36
are reserved for the
destruction of ungodly men.
00:14:41.39\00:14:43.79
So there's the heavens,
it's starting to come down
00:14:43.82\00:14:46.21
from the very
atmosphere, God begins it there,
00:14:46.24\00:14:48.60
but then how does
the earth get involved?
00:14:48.63\00:14:50.78
Let's go down to verse 14.
It says: "And death and hell",
00:14:50.82\00:14:54.54
and the word hell there
means "the grave", "were cast"
00:14:54.57\00:14:59.49
"into the lake of fire,
this is the second death. "
00:14:59.52\00:15:04.41
So where's hell
fire going to be located?
00:15:04.44\00:15:06.88
Right here on the
surface of the earth.
00:15:06.91\00:15:09.28
So what have we got now?
We've got the 1st resurrection
00:15:09.32\00:15:11.69
occurring at the beginning,
that's the one for the righteous
00:15:11.73\00:15:13.85
the 2nd resurrection at
the end of the 1000 years,
00:15:13.88\00:15:15.92
that's the one for the lost.
00:15:15.95\00:15:17.69
Revelation says the
dead will live at that time
00:15:17.73\00:15:20.43
and that's when they'll
have their final punishment.
00:15:20.47\00:15:23.83
That's Revelation
20:5, verse 6 says:
00:15:23.86\00:15:27.19
We find that at the end
of the 1000 years the wicked
00:15:29.08\00:15:31.21
are brought out of Hades,
that is, out of the grave,
00:15:31.24\00:15:33.30
then final judgment takes
place in Revelation 20:11-14,
00:15:33.34\00:15:36.93
and then they're
punished in the lake of fire.
00:15:36.96\00:15:38.91
That's a logical order, remember
what we looked at list night?
00:15:38.95\00:15:41.42
I said truth is
logical, truth makes sense.
00:15:41.45\00:15:43.96
God says: "Come now,
let us reason together. "
00:15:44.00\00:15:46.44
I find that it helps a lot
of people understand this topic
00:15:46.48\00:15:50.84
if they think of hell
fire not so much as place,
00:15:50.87\00:15:55.08
but as an event that occurs.
Most of the thinking today
00:15:55.12\00:15:58.70
is that hell fire is
down somewhere in the earth,
00:15:58.73\00:16:01.68
and that's where people go.
In other words, they think of it
00:16:01.72\00:16:03.86
as a place. But when
you think of hell fire
00:16:03.89\00:16:06.28
more as an event that
occurs in the stream of time
00:16:06.32\00:16:10.04
then it really does help put
it in its proper perspective.
00:16:10.08\00:16:13.70
In other words, there's
going to be the 2nd coming,
00:16:13.73\00:16:15.67
there will be the Millennium
take place, there'll be
00:16:15.70\00:16:17.57
the resurrection of the unjust,
the final judgment takes place,
00:16:17.61\00:16:20.15
and then hell fire burns.
It's much more understandable
00:16:20.18\00:16:23.84
when you think of it as an
event in the stream of time.
00:16:23.87\00:16:27.50
That's the true
picture of hell fire.
00:16:28.81\00:16:31.04
Just as God put Noah and
his family in an ark of safety
00:16:31.08\00:16:36.56
and there they were positioned,
with God's care around them,
00:16:36.60\00:16:41.26
as the first world
was destroyed with water,
00:16:41.29\00:16:43.78
so God has the righteous
with Jesus, in the Holy City,
00:16:43.82\00:16:47.55
and there they are enveloped
in God's safety as the world
00:16:47.58\00:16:51.28
is destroyed the
second time by fire.
00:16:51.31\00:16:53.73
In Revelation, and in
the Old Testament He says:
00:16:53.77\00:16:56.38
So now we know
the size of hell fire.
00:16:59.93\00:17:02.61
Have you ever wondered how
big hell fire is going to be?
00:17:02.65\00:17:05.08
Hell fire is going to be
just as broad and just as long
00:17:05.12\00:17:07.70
as this world itself because
He's going to purge this world
00:17:07.73\00:17:10.28
with fire, sin and sinners
are going to be burned up,
00:17:10.31\00:17:13.18
and then out of it is going
to come something brand new.
00:17:13.21\00:17:17.43
So we go to 1
John 3:15, and it says:
00:17:17.46\00:17:21.65
So here's my question: how
can a murderer live for eternity
00:17:32.65\00:17:35.50
in hell fire when he
doesn't have eternal life?
00:17:35.53\00:17:37.90
It would be an
impossibility, wouldn't it?
00:17:37.93\00:17:39.46
The Bible says very
clearly that it won't be so.
00:17:39.50\00:17:43.30
You see, God never
intended that these 2 teachings
00:17:43.33\00:17:47.10
ever become part of
the Christian faith;
00:17:47.13\00:17:49.46
what are those 2 teachings?
Teaching #1-the immortality
00:17:49.50\00:17:52.15
of the soul, the idea
that the soul never dies.
00:17:52.18\00:17:55.55
Teaching #2- that hell fire
is going to burn for eternity.
00:17:55.59\00:17:59.60
But it's a classic example
of how one false teaching
00:17:59.63\00:18:02.53
gets built upon another
false teaching, because people
00:18:02.57\00:18:05.44
will reason it out
this way, they'll say:
00:18:05.47\00:18:07.42
"if the soul is immortal and
can't die, then even hell fire"
00:18:07.46\00:18:10.87
"can't kill it, and if hell fire
can't kill it, then hell fire"
00:18:10.91\00:18:14.29
"must burn for eternity. "
00:18:14.32\00:18:16.30
I want you to see this in
your own Bible, Romans 6:23,
00:18:16.34\00:18:19.88
Paul says: "The wages
of sin is everlasting life"
00:18:19.91\00:18:24.34
"in the fires of hell" -
did I not say that right?
00:18:24.37\00:18:28.73
Okay, let's go back here, let's
make sure I read it correctly.
00:18:28.77\00:18:32.26
"The wages of sin is death" -
and that's why Revelation says
00:18:32.29\00:18:35.75
hell fire is the second
death, but then Paul goes on
00:18:35.78\00:18:38.82
and he says: "but the
gift of God is eternal life"
00:18:38.86\00:18:41.83
"through Jesus
Christ our Lord. "
00:18:41.87\00:18:43.44
Can you see the 2 sides
00:18:43.48\00:18:44.51
in this great controversy
between good and evil?
00:18:44.55\00:18:47.40
There's eternal life with
Jesus, there's eternal death
00:18:47.44\00:18:50.48
with the Devil, or
Satan's side, and those are
00:18:50.51\00:18:53.40
the only 2 sides that
there are. God does not bestow
00:18:53.44\00:18:56.39
His priceless gift of
eternal life on the wicked,
00:18:56.42\00:18:59.05
not even that they
would be burned for eternity.
00:18:59.08\00:19:01.68
No, life is only
given to the righteous.
00:19:01.71\00:19:05.72
"He that the Son has life,
He that has not the Son of God"
00:19:05.76\00:19:08.97
"has not life"
we're told in 1 John 5:12.
00:19:09.00\00:19:12.89
So how can the wicked live for
eternity if they have no longer
00:19:12.93\00:19:16.75
a connection with God? It
is simply an impossibility.
00:19:16.78\00:19:20.32
Turn with me to Psalm 37:9:
00:19:20.35\00:19:25.01
That little word "be"
means to exist, they won't exist
00:19:31.12\00:19:34.59
any more. It goes on:
"but the meek shall inherit"
00:19:34.63\00:19:38.03
"the earth and shall delight
themselves in the abundance"
00:19:38.07\00:19:40.29
"of peace". So
you've got the 2 sides,
00:19:40.32\00:19:41.59
1 inheriting the earth,
the other won't be any more,
00:19:41.63\00:19:44.53
what happens to
them? Verse 20 says:
00:19:44.57\00:19:47.44
Dear friends, listen, that
means to pass out of existence.
00:20:00.65\00:20:05.49
In Revelation 20:9,
which we looked at earlier,
00:20:05.52\00:20:08.79
it said fire came down
from God out of heaven,
00:20:08.83\00:20:12.03
and can you remember what
it said next? Devoured them.
00:20:12.07\00:20:15.22
In Isaiah 1:28 it says:
00:20:16.65\00:20:20.11
It says they shall be together.
00:20:29.15\00:20:32.46
It's not going to
happen a little bit here,
00:20:38.49\00:20:39.70
a little bit there,
some thousands of years ago,
00:20:39.74\00:20:42.26
some yesterday, no friends.
Just as the righteous get
00:20:42.30\00:20:45.27
caught up to meet the
Lord in the air, and they go
00:20:45.30\00:20:48.43
to heaven together, to
receive their wonderful reward,
00:20:48.47\00:20:51.33
so the wicked at the end of
the 1000 years, and at the end
00:20:51.37\00:20:54.20
of the judgment, they
receive their reward together
00:20:54.23\00:20:57.42
in the lake of fire.
This next verse is one
00:20:57.45\00:20:59.56
of the clearest ones in all of
the Bible; these ones are pretty
00:20:59.60\00:21:02.11
clear I think, but let's
get to another passage that is
00:21:02.14\00:21:06.69
most strikingly clear.
Malachi 4 is one of the best.
00:21:06.73\00:21:11.25
Malachi 4:1:
00:21:11.28\00:21:14.51
"that it shall leave them
neither root nor branch. "
00:21:25.62\00:21:27.70
Verse 2: "But unto
you that fear My name"
00:21:27.73\00:21:30.08
"shall the Sun of righteousness
arise with healing"
00:21:30.12\00:21:32.32
"in His wings; and ye
shall go forth, and grow up"
00:21:32.36\00:21:35.06
"as calves of
the stall. " Verse 3:
00:21:35.10\00:21:37.77
That's crystal clear,
"they" - speaking of the wicked,
00:21:44.45\00:21:46.76
it says: "they shall be ashes. "
00:21:46.79\00:21:50.58
When the fires are done all
that's going to be left is ashes
00:21:50.62\00:21:53.94
and as the righteous go
out and walk over the wonderful
00:21:53.97\00:21:56.44
grounds of the New Jerusalem,
the Bible says it's as if
00:21:56.47\00:21:58.91
you're walking over
the ashes of the wicked.
00:21:58.94\00:22:01.30
Listen, we can clearly
see that the wicked are going
00:22:01.34\00:22:04.65
to pass out of existence.
Got lots of different texts,
00:22:04.68\00:22:07.96
Obadiah 1:15, it says:
"For the day of the Lord"
00:22:07.99\00:22:11.76
"is near upon all the heathen"
- talking about the heathen now,
00:22:11.80\00:22:15.18
"as thou hast done, it
shall be done unto thee:"
00:22:15.21\00:22:18.22
"thy reward shall
return upon thine own head. "
00:22:18.26\00:22:20.76
"For as ye have drunk
upon My holy mountain,"
00:22:20.80\00:22:22.97
"so shall all the
heathen drink continually. "
00:22:23.00\00:22:25.10
So it's important to understand
there is going to be punishment.
00:22:25.14\00:22:27.55
Do I believe there's going
to be punishment for the wicked?
00:22:27.58\00:22:29.16
Absolutely, it's
important to understand that.
00:22:29.19\00:22:32.78
But it goes on, it
says: "Yea, they shall drink,"
00:22:32.81\00:22:36.37
"and they shall swallow",
00:22:36.40\00:22:39.12
Is that clear
friends? Can you say amen?
00:22:44.56\00:22:47.38
"... they shall be as
though they had not been. "
00:22:47.42\00:22:50.80
That's about as
clear as you can make it.
00:22:50.83\00:22:52.08
In other words,
there'll be a time in the future
00:22:52.12\00:22:54.88
when the wicked will be
just as much out of existence
00:22:54.92\00:22:57.16
as before the
day they were born.
00:22:57.19\00:23:00.28
Now at this point there arises
some questions in some people's
00:23:00.32\00:23:04.70
minds because they'll
say: "doesn't the Bible speak"
00:23:04.73\00:23:07.68
"about everlasting punishment?
Doesn't that mean that that's"
00:23:07.72\00:23:11.17
"going to go on
for all eternity?"
00:23:11.20\00:23:12.46
Let's take a text up on the
screen, and let's take a look
00:23:12.50\00:23:15.14
at that: Matthew 25:46 is
usually one they'll bring up,
00:23:15.18\00:23:17.79
so let's look at it. It says:
00:23:17.82\00:23:21.01
Now again, we must compare
scripture with scripture,
00:23:26.87\00:23:30.16
we can't just take 1 passage
and take a whole doctrine
00:23:30.19\00:23:33.09
out of it, we've got to compare
what the Bible has to say.
00:23:33.13\00:23:36.54
I want you to note something
very carefully about this text,
00:23:36.58\00:23:39.96
the verse reads: "punishment",
and not "punishing".
00:23:39.99\00:23:44.89
And there's a big difference
here: the punishment for sinners
00:23:44.93\00:23:49.09
is everlasting, and I've got
no problem with that friends,
00:23:49.13\00:23:53.26
it's everlasting
punishment, so what exactly is
00:23:53.29\00:23:56.93
the everlasting
punishment for sinners?
00:23:56.96\00:24:00.75
Let's look at it: 2
Thessalonians 1:8,9.
00:24:00.78\00:24:04.54
So there's that word again,
we've been seeing it all over
00:24:20.98\00:24:22.94
tonight, haven't we?
Destruction, the punishment
00:24:22.97\00:24:25.95
for the wicked is
everlasting destruction.
00:24:25.98\00:24:30.15
The prophets believed that
hell was total destruction,
00:24:30.19\00:24:33.96
that's why Paul says:
"the wages of sin is death",
00:24:34.00\00:24:37.74
that's why Revelation
calls it the 2nd death.
00:24:37.77\00:24:41.55
When the Bible
uses the expression
00:24:41.58\00:24:43.93
"everlasting destruction"
or "eternal fire", it's talking
00:24:43.97\00:24:47.97
about an idiom. Let me
demonstrate that to you.
00:24:48.00\00:24:51.01
You remember the story of Lot,
he lived in the time of Abraham.
00:24:51.05\00:24:54.29
There were these wicked
cities, we're in Jude 1:7.
00:24:54.32\00:24:57.76
It says: "Even as Sodom
and Gomorrah, and the cities"
00:24:57.79\00:25:00.31
"about them in like
manner, giving themselves over"
00:25:00.35\00:25:02.80
"to fornication, and going after
strange flesh," - it's talking
00:25:02.84\00:25:05.28
about homosexuality there,
"are set forth for an example,"
00:25:05.31\00:25:09.11
"suffering the
vengeance of eternal fire. "
00:25:09.14\00:25:12.59
So here we're told that
the fire that burned Sodom
00:25:12.63\00:25:15.06
and Gomorrah was eternal
fire. Now, I've got a basic,
00:25:15.09\00:25:17.45
obvious question: is Sodom and
Gomorrah still burning tonight?
00:25:17.49\00:25:20.34
What about it? No.
00:25:20.37\00:25:23.39
Think about, maybe they are,
and the new men just haven't
00:25:23.43\00:25:25.21
got it yet, maybe ABC
hasn't caught up to it.
00:25:25.24\00:25:30.61
Well, just to be sure
about it go to 2 Peter 2:6.
00:25:30.64\00:25:35.98
It says: "And turning the
cities of Sodom and Gomorrah"
00:25:37.06\00:25:40.35
"into ashes condemned
them with an overthrow,"
00:25:40.38\00:25:43.41
"making them an ensample" -which
is just the King James' way
00:25:43.45\00:25:46.15
of saying "example",
00:25:46.18\00:25:48.93
So the cities that were
burned with eternal fire
00:25:50.06\00:25:53.15
were turned into ashes
friends. The historians believe
00:25:53.19\00:25:58.22
that the dead sea
covers the area where Sodom
00:25:58.25\00:26:01.21
and Gomorrah were.
So, obviously we can see
00:26:01.25\00:26:03.56
that they're not
still burning tonight.
00:26:03.59\00:26:06.32
Let's take a look
at this next slide.
00:26:06.36\00:26:09.02
The Bible speaks about eternal
judgment, eternal salvation,
00:26:09.06\00:26:13.00
eternal redemption.
In all 3 of those verses
00:26:13.03\00:26:18.41
there's not a Christian church
that I'm aware of that believes
00:26:18.45\00:26:21.40
that Jesus is going to
judge for all eternity, or save
00:26:21.43\00:26:24.44
for all eternity, or redeem for
all eternity, in all 3 cases,
00:26:24.48\00:26:29.33
and there are Bible idioms, it's
talking about that the judgment
00:26:29.37\00:26:34.19
will take place,
salvation will take place,
00:26:34.22\00:26:36.44
redemption will take
place, and the finished act
00:26:36.48\00:26:39.56
will be for eternity; in other
words, it's the consequences,
00:26:39.60\00:26:42.26
or the results,
that are for eternity.
00:26:42.29\00:26:45.78
Here's the conclusion: in the
same exact way that the Bible
00:26:45.82\00:26:49.00
uses eternal judgment, in the
same exact way that the Bible
00:26:49.03\00:26:52.18
uses eternal salvation
and eternal redemption,
00:26:52.21\00:26:54.69
in the same way it uses
the expression "eternal fire".
00:26:54.73\00:26:57.96
It's not a fire that's
going to burn for eternity,
00:26:58.00\00:27:01.16
but the consequence, or the
results, will last for eternity.
00:27:01.20\00:27:05.84
When the wicked go to
ashes, what is done is done,
00:27:05.87\00:27:08.76
and they're not coming
back. So this is what we can see
00:27:08.80\00:27:12.25
when we put
verse with verse that:
00:27:12.29\00:27:15.71
So let's take a little bit
of a review here, what's going
00:27:21.13\00:27:23.39
to happen to the wicked to the
wicked, we've got a lot of text.
00:27:23.43\00:27:26.25
We know:
00:27:26.28\00:27:28.45
What about this idea
of "forever and ever"?
00:27:48.54\00:27:51.33
That's one that
puzzles a lot of people.
00:27:51.37\00:27:54.05
Go with me to the
book of Revelation please.
00:27:54.09\00:27:56.70
In Revelation
20:10 it says this:
00:27:56.74\00:28:00.54
They'll say: "Doesn't that
mean that it'll never end?"
00:28:07.25\00:28:11.05
Another one that is
very similar to that if found
00:28:11.08\00:28:12.66
in Revelation 14:10, speaking
about those that worship
00:28:12.70\00:28:15.73
the beast, or take the
mark of the beast, it says:
00:28:15.77\00:28:18.77
So what exactly are
those expressions meaning?
00:28:24.43\00:28:27.58
Forever and ever?
Let's understand that this is
00:28:27.61\00:28:31.34
a phrase that's being
taken over from 1 language,
00:28:31.38\00:28:35.08
the Greek, into
the English language,
00:28:35.11\00:28:37.91
and in the English language,
in our western mindset,
00:28:37.95\00:28:40.15
we think of forever
and ever as eternity,
00:28:40.18\00:28:43.45
but even then there are time
that we don't use it that way.
00:28:43.49\00:28:48.77
If something happens for
a long time that we don't
00:28:48.80\00:28:51.32
necessarily appreciate, we
say: "It went on for ever!"
00:28:51.36\00:28:53.85
Do we mean it
went on for eternity?
00:28:53.88\00:28:55.91
No, it just means that
it went on for a long time.
00:28:55.95\00:28:58.62
We often use the
word: "forever" that way.
00:28:58.65\00:29:01.75
But forever and ever
is a Bible expression
00:29:01.79\00:29:04.86
and it means:
00:29:04.89\00:29:06.98
Psalm 48:14:
00:29:10.00\00:29:12.34
Okay, there's
one way of saying it,
00:29:15.51\00:29:16.96
then he repeats himself,
but he uses different words,
00:29:17.00\00:29:19.58
"Our God is our God
forever: He'll be our God"
00:29:23.13\00:29:25.48
"even unto death. "
Do you know that forever
00:29:25.52\00:29:27.91
can mean even a
shorter period of time?
00:29:27.95\00:29:31.33
Let me take you
back to the story Jonah.
00:29:31.36\00:29:34.67
In Jonah we find a
most interesting experience.
00:29:34.71\00:29:39.23
Here is a man that is swallowed
up by a great big fish,
00:29:39.27\00:29:44.33
and he goes down into
the belly of this fish.
00:29:44.36\00:29:47.00
Speaking of the experiences
using metaphorical language
00:29:47.04\00:29:50.06
he says:
00:29:50.09\00:29:52.64
So he says: "these bars,
these big ribs of the fish"
00:29:57.25\00:29:59.58
"were about me for ever. "
00:29:59.61\00:30:02.10
How long was he
actually in there?
00:30:02.14\00:30:03.83
Well, you back up a bit
and it says in Jonah 1:17,
00:30:03.87\00:30:09.46
I'm sure to Jonah it
seemed like for ever, right?
00:30:16.12\00:30:18.12
It is one of those for
ever experiences that we often
00:30:18.15\00:30:20.24
talk about, so he was in
there 3 days and 3 nights,
00:30:20.27\00:30:22.82
but he says it was for
ever. So what we can see then
00:30:22.86\00:30:25.64
is using the Bible itself,
for ever doesn't have to mean
00:30:25.67\00:30:28.42
for eternity. But I
think we aught to get
00:30:28.45\00:30:30.59
to a more important
message behind all of this,
00:30:30.63\00:30:37.33
and that is: why would a loving
God, an infinitely merciful
00:30:37.37\00:30:42.62
Creator, why would He
take people and burn them
00:30:42.65\00:30:46.61
for eternity
anyway? Do you know eternity
00:30:46.64\00:30:49.95
is a long time?
Have you ever even tried
00:30:49.98\00:30:52.71
to think about
it, even a little bit?
00:30:52.74\00:30:55.40
I mean, when you talk
about eternity, you're talking
00:30:55.44\00:30:58.06
about trillions times trillions
times trillions, and trillions,
00:30:58.10\00:31:03.95
and trillions of years, and
that's just the first second
00:31:03.98\00:31:08.33
of eternity,
relatively speaking.
00:31:08.36\00:31:11.68
I think most people who
believe that God is going
00:31:11.72\00:31:14.66
to take sinners and burn
them for eternity really hasn't
00:31:14.70\00:31:17.46
thought about it that
much. Do you know that it was
00:31:17.49\00:31:22.82
a young man name
Robert who once had a preacher
00:31:23.02\00:31:26.91
for a father, and
every time this father wanted
00:31:26.95\00:31:29.92
to get his son to fall
into line he would say:
00:31:29.96\00:31:32.86
"Robert, you get in line or God
is going to burn for eternity!"
00:31:32.90\00:31:37.51
Of course, Robert in his
youthful state would shake
00:31:37.54\00:31:40.01
and tremble and say: "Oh
boy, I don't want that. "
00:31:40.04\00:31:42.77
But he was a bright
lad, a terribly bright lad,
00:31:42.81\00:31:45.57
and still being young
he would get into all kinds
00:31:45.61\00:31:47.93
of difficulties, and his
father would again come back
00:31:47.97\00:31:50.33
and say: "Robert, if you
don't get in line God is going"
00:31:50.37\00:31:52.70
"to burn you for eternity.
" It worked for a while,
00:31:52.73\00:31:55.91
but one day Robert heard
his father talking about how
00:31:55.94\00:31:58.46
God was going to take little
children even, and burn them
00:31:58.49\00:32:00.98
for eternity, and in
this bright young mind
00:32:01.01\00:32:03.71
something clicked, you
might even say snapped,
00:32:03.75\00:32:06.38
and Robert said: "If
that is the way God truly is,"
00:32:06.42\00:32:10.07
"I will never serve Him. "
And he grew up to be called
00:32:10.10\00:32:13.72
the world's greatest
atheist, Robert Ingersoll.
00:32:13.75\00:32:17.02
Do you know it
never had to happen?
00:32:17.05\00:32:18.90
It was simply because
this man could not understand
00:32:18.94\00:32:22.43
properly the love of
God, and this subject
00:32:22.46\00:32:25.10
in the Scriptures.
00:32:25.13\00:32:27.09
You see, I don't care what
arguments you come up with,
00:32:27.13\00:32:29.63
I don't care how you slice and
dice it, I don't care how you
00:32:29.67\00:32:33.24
want to reason it, but anyone
that would take his own creation
00:32:33.28\00:32:36.82
and put them in a
furnace of fire with no hope,
00:32:36.85\00:32:39.82
no end, for
eternity, would be a tyrant,
00:32:39.85\00:32:42.94
and our God is
not a tyrant, amen?
00:32:42.97\00:32:45.64
The Bible says that
God notices when a sparrow
00:32:45.68\00:32:48.86
falls to the ground, and
if God notices when a sparrow
00:32:48.90\00:32:52.57
falls to the ground,
how much joy would God have
00:32:52.60\00:32:56.71
in seeing His own
creation burn for eternity?
00:32:56.75\00:33:00.79
Go to Ezekiel 33 please.
Can you think of any human judge
00:33:00.83\00:33:04.62
who would be that evil
that they would sentence someone
00:33:04.66\00:33:08.42
to burn for all
eternity? Of course not.
00:33:08.45\00:33:11.24
Is God worse than
the worst human judge?
00:33:11.28\00:33:14.40
Of course not, but
many people think so,
00:33:14.44\00:33:17.53
many people teach so.
00:33:17.56\00:33:19.56
The Bible says the
wages of sin is death,
00:33:19.60\00:33:21.69
Scripture says "the soul
that sinneth, it shall die",
00:33:21.73\00:33:24.65
John 3:16- whosoever does not
believe in Jesus will perish,
00:33:24.69\00:33:28.60
it's just over and over
friends, there's no need
00:33:28.63\00:33:32.41
for eternal torment,
there's no purpose for it.
00:33:32.45\00:33:36.20
In fact, before we even
read this one in Ezekiel,
00:33:37.90\00:33:41.55
the Bible teaches
"vengeance is mine", God says,
00:33:43.11\00:33:48.50
"I will repay".
00:33:48.53\00:33:50.93
Do you know, a lot of people
will swing to the other extreme.
00:33:51.40\00:33:55.11
In other words, they'll say:
"God is too good to punish. "
00:33:55.14\00:33:58.82
I wonder what
Bible they're reading?
00:33:58.85\00:34:00.78
It isn't the Holy Scriptures.
00:34:00.81\00:34:03.23
But somewhere between
these 2 extremes - 1 that God
00:34:03.61\00:34:06.58
is too good to
punish, and the other extreme
00:34:06.61\00:34:08.72
that God will
punish for all eternity,
00:34:08.75\00:34:10.89
there is the
beautiful Bible picture of a God
00:34:10.93\00:34:13.85
that is just and merciful, and
that's the balance right there.
00:34:13.89\00:34:19.61
God is just, He will
punish, but He's also merciful.
00:34:19.64\00:34:23.20
God says: "Vengeance
is mine, I will repay. "
00:34:23.23\00:34:26.48
So God is saying: "if
someone has done you wrong,"
00:34:26.52\00:34:29.70
"if someone has
done you a dirty deed,"
00:34:29.73\00:34:31.47
"don't you repay
evil for evil. " God says:
00:34:31.51\00:34:33.18
"you go on make sure you
get to heaven, leave it to Me,"
00:34:33.22\00:34:35.27
"I'll take care of it. "
00:34:35.30\00:34:36.54
Friends, I'd much
rather God take care of it
00:34:36.58\00:34:38.93
then me have to
try to handle it.
00:34:38.96\00:34:41.16
Jesus tells us in Luke 12,
He says some will be beaten
00:34:41.20\00:34:44.90
with some stripes, some will
be beaten with many stripes.
00:34:44.93\00:34:47.53
Well, how could that be
true if everyone got the same
00:34:47.56\00:34:49.84
punishment: burning for
all eternity in hell fire.
00:34:49.87\00:34:52.15
How could that be true?
Well, it wouldn't be true,
00:34:52.19\00:34:55.06
Jesus says God is just,
God is merciful, some will get
00:34:55.10\00:34:57.89
a lighter punishment, and
others... they'll be rewarded
00:34:57.92\00:35:00.64
according to their works, so
that just makes sense as well.
00:35:00.68\00:35:03.74
We go now to
Ezekiel 33:11, it says:
00:35:03.77\00:35:12.19
"turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways, for why will you die,"
00:35:20.49\00:35:23.95
"O house of Israel?"
Now, if God has no pleasure
00:35:23.98\00:35:26.75
in the death of the
wicked, how much less pleasure
00:35:26.78\00:35:30.01
would God have in
torturing them for all eternity?
00:35:30.05\00:35:33.25
You see, someone might
ask the question: why does God
00:35:34.15\00:35:36.69
destroy sinners at all?
Why does He put them out
00:35:36.72\00:35:40.11
of existence?
Well, I'll tell you this:
00:35:40.14\00:35:41.68
it's a whole lot better
to be put out of existence
00:35:41.72\00:35:43.96
than it is to burn for all
eternity, wouldn't you agree?
00:35:44.00\00:35:47.73
Why is God's love so
fully revealed in hell fire?
00:35:47.76\00:35:51.77
Because of this, dear friends,
God knows that the wicked,
00:35:51.81\00:35:55.74
the unconverted, would
not like heaven anyway.
00:35:55.77\00:35:59.93
They wouldn't be happy there.
In heaven there's not going
00:35:59.97\00:36:02.40
to be any casinos
for the gambling addict.
00:36:02.43\00:36:05.89
There's not going to be any
banks for the greedy to rob.
00:36:05.93\00:36:09.10
There's not going to be
any places of lustful pleasure
00:36:09.13\00:36:12.27
for the
habitual pleasure seeker.
00:36:12.30\00:36:16.19
There's not going
to be any of that.
00:36:16.37\00:36:19.12
There's not going
to be any street drugs
00:36:19.16\00:36:21.84
for the drug addicts,
and all of those things.
00:36:21.88\00:36:24.35
I told you the story the 3rd
night about how I used to love
00:36:24.39\00:36:27.14
a worldly rock music, and
then after I was converted,
00:36:27.17\00:36:30.20
now I love the
wonderful spiritual music.
00:36:30.23\00:36:32.94
In heaven, there's going
to be countless angels singing
00:36:32.98\00:36:35.41
the praises of God continually.
00:36:35.44\00:36:37.93
Are the wicked
going to like that?
00:36:37.96\00:36:39.57
Are they going
to appreciate that?
00:36:39.60\00:36:41.45
Is that going to
be heaven for them?
00:36:41.48\00:36:43.30
Of course not.
00:36:43.33\00:36:44.75
So what can God do then?
They wouldn't be happy there,
00:36:44.79\00:36:49.05
so God is going to do the
best thing a loving God can do,
00:36:49.09\00:36:53.28
He's going to be allow them to
be as though they had not been.
00:36:53.32\00:36:58.26
They will have their
punishment according to that
00:36:58.29\00:37:01.47
which they have
done, because God is just,
00:37:01.50\00:37:03.66
but then is merciful so He
says "this far and no further",
00:37:03.70\00:37:07.46
and after that
hell fire will go out.
00:37:07.49\00:37:10.10
So, God is wonderfully
just. Let's go to Ezekiel 28.
00:37:10.14\00:37:13.66
Do you know that there's coming
a time when the Devil himself
00:37:14.52\00:37:16.52
is going to be destroyed?
00:37:16.55\00:37:18.14
The Devil himself is
going to be destroyed,
00:37:18.18\00:37:20.53
if there ever was a
being that was wicked enough
00:37:20.57\00:37:24.96
that he could burn for all
eternity, I guess it's Satan,
00:37:25.00\00:37:27.72
but God, being just,
it says even Satan himself
00:37:27.75\00:37:31.56
is not going to burn for all
eternity, but what does it say
00:37:31.60\00:37:35.11
about Satan? We're
looking at Ezekiel 28:18,
00:37:35.14\00:37:43.43
it says: "Thou hast defiled thy
sanctuaries by the multitude"
00:37:43.47\00:37:46.56
"of thine iniquities, by
the iniquity of thy traffic;"
00:37:46.59\00:37:49.12
speaking of the Devil
now, here's God's sentence
00:37:49.15\00:37:52.33
of judgment upon the
Devil which will happen
00:37:52.37\00:37:55.48
at the end of time, He says:
"therefore will I bring forth"
00:37:55.52\00:37:58.11
"a fire from the midst of
thee, it shall devour thee,"
00:37:58.14\00:38:03.23
"and I will bring thee
to ashes upon the earth"
00:38:03.26\00:38:06.40
"in the sight of all
them that behold thee. "
00:38:06.44\00:38:09.37
Now look at verse 19:
"All they that know thee"
00:38:09.41\00:38:12.04
"among the people
shall be astonished at thee:"
00:38:12.08\00:38:14.64
"thou shalt be a terror, and
never shalt thou be any more. "
00:38:14.68\00:38:18.87
Can we all say hallelujah? Amen!
00:38:18.90\00:38:21.85
In other words, Satan is
going to be brought to ashes,
00:38:21.89\00:38:24.46
he's never going to be anymore,
there will not be a tempter
00:38:24.50\00:38:27.37
in the universe; friends,
that's a beautiful thing.
00:38:27.40\00:38:31.25
So, the Bible teaches that
the Devil who deceived them,
00:38:31.28\00:38:35.10
in Revelation it says:
00:38:35.13\00:38:37.33
So even the Devil is
eventually going to go
00:38:37.69\00:38:39.56
into the lake of
fire. Do you know there are
00:38:39.59\00:38:41.39
many people that teach the
Devil is the superintendent
00:38:41.43\00:38:44.75
of hell fire? That
the Devil is down there,
00:38:44.78\00:38:46.76
some kind of horned being
with a tail and pitch fork,
00:38:46.80\00:38:49.82
and he's saying: "Hey,
bring some more down here",
00:38:49.86\00:38:52.69
and somehow he's controlling
it and looking after it.
00:38:52.73\00:38:55.12
That's a lot of people's
concept about hell, isn't it?
00:38:55.16\00:38:57.52
Friends, the Bible
doesn't teach that Satan
00:38:57.55\00:38:59.38
is the superintendent of hell,
God is the one that oversees
00:38:59.42\00:39:03.06
the lake of fire,
and He's saying the Devil
00:39:03.09\00:39:05.57
is going to go into the
lake of fire, he's not taking
00:39:05.61\00:39:08.84
care of the lake of fire.
00:39:08.87\00:39:10.71
Let's do a little bit of
a review for those of you
00:39:10.75\00:39:12.79
who might have missed
the last couple nights,
00:39:12.82\00:39:14.21
we want to put
this up on the screen.
00:39:14.24\00:39:15.86
Here's the overview
now: at the second coming
00:39:15.90\00:39:18.36
the church is caught up
to meet the Lord in the air,
00:39:18.40\00:39:20.57
we might call it rapture,
and some will say translated,
00:39:20.60\00:39:23.09
depending on what you mean,
that's the first resurrection.
00:39:23.12\00:39:25.58
The wicked are then slain
at that time, that would be
00:39:25.61\00:39:27.71
the first death for
them, and Revelation 19 says
00:39:27.74\00:39:30.20
"the fouls will
feast on their flesh. "
00:39:30.23\00:39:32.19
Then the 1000 years take
place, during the 1000 years
00:39:32.23\00:39:35.04
the church, or the
saints, are living, reigning,
00:39:35.07\00:39:36.41
with Christ in heaven, and down
here on the broken down earth
00:39:36.45\00:39:39.50
are Satan and his evil angels,
they're bound for 1000 years
00:39:39.54\00:39:42.56
in this desolate earth,
that's when the earth mourns
00:39:42.59\00:39:45.06
for a 1000 year period.
Then there's a short season
00:39:45.10\00:39:47.84
that the Bible speaks
about. What happens to start
00:39:47.88\00:39:50.55
that short season is the New
Jerusalem descending from God
00:39:50.59\00:39:52.96
out of heaven,
Revelation 21:2,10,
00:39:52.99\00:39:55.84
the second
resurrection then takes place,
00:39:55.88\00:39:58.05
the wicked surround the city,
the great white throne judgment
00:39:58.09\00:40:01.47
takes place in
Revelation 20:11-14,
00:40:01.50\00:40:05.00
fire comes down from God
out of heaven, Revelation 20:9,
00:40:05.04\00:40:07.79
that's the second death for
the wicked, and then finally,
00:40:07.82\00:40:10.54
out of that God makes a
new heavens and a new earth.
00:40:10.57\00:40:13.93
So it's a very
orderly process that God takes
00:40:13.96\00:40:18.28
the final events through.
Having said all of that,
00:40:18.32\00:40:20.81
there still is a
passage that we want to cover
00:40:20.85\00:40:23.39
before we go home
tonight. And that is the passage
00:40:23.43\00:40:25.90
of the rich man and Lazarus,
I told you we would cover it,
00:40:25.94\00:40:29.00
so let's look at it
before we go home tonight.
00:40:29.03\00:40:31.34
Turn with me to Luke 16 please.
00:40:31.37\00:40:36.21
I'm going to have
you look up another verse
00:40:37.10\00:40:38.40
along with this, but I
just want you to turn and put
00:40:38.44\00:40:41.76
your finger in Luke 16,
this is called the parable
00:40:41.80\00:40:45.09
of the rich man and Lazarus.
00:40:45.12\00:40:47.85
The situation right
there, if most people understood
00:40:48.61\00:40:50.86
it was parable, it would take
the confusion out of the story
00:40:50.90\00:40:54.08
because even your
scholars will admit to you
00:40:54.11\00:40:57.24
that you can't base
doctrines solely on a parable.
00:40:57.28\00:41:00.64
Parables are meant to
teach truth figuratively,
00:41:00.68\00:41:03.70
rather than directly.
What do we mean by that?
00:41:03.74\00:41:06.57
We mean that when
Jesus taught in parables,
00:41:06.60\00:41:09.36
He used illustrations that
were not always to be meant
00:41:09.40\00:41:12.16
in a strictly literal way.
When He said that "I am the way"
00:41:12.20\00:41:16.57
it didn't mean that
He's a street, you know?
00:41:16.60\00:41:19.85
When He said "I am the
door", Jesus didn't mean
00:41:19.88\00:41:23.02
He was an actual door.
He uses parabolic teaching,
00:41:23.05\00:41:26.16
or metaphorical
teaching. So look at Luke 16,
00:41:26.19\00:41:30.05
and the first thing I want to
show you is that it is a parable
00:41:30.09\00:41:33.80
because it even falls
in a list of parables.
00:41:33.83\00:41:37.94
Jesus started the parable,
Luke 16:19, with the expression:
00:41:47.11\00:41:51.05
"a certain rich man", and
people will say because He
00:41:51.08\00:41:55.68
started with the expression
"a certain rich man", He must
00:41:55.72\00:41:59.06
be talking about a literal
man in a very literal story,
00:41:59.10\00:42:02.41
a real story. But
you know, Jesus began
00:42:02.44\00:42:05.05
His parables with
that kind of expression.
00:42:05.09\00:42:07.63
In Luke 12:16 it said: He spoke
a parable, "a certain rich man",
00:42:07.67\00:42:12.50
He used the
exact same expression.
00:42:12.53\00:42:14.84
Luke 13:6:
00:42:15.69\00:42:19.15
Same expression
basically. Luke 16:1:
00:42:20.40\00:42:23.43
In other words, Jesus began
his parables with the expression
00:42:34.05\00:42:37.14
"a certain man". Jesus
didn't use that expression
00:42:37.17\00:42:40.25
anywhere but parables.
So if this story starts
00:42:40.28\00:42:43.29
with the expression "a
certain rich man", the evidence
00:42:43.33\00:42:46.37
would have to admit that
He's talking about a parable.
00:42:46.41\00:42:49.42
And talking about a
parable, we need to treat it
00:42:49.45\00:42:51.02
very carefully because parables
are spoken in such a way
00:42:51.06\00:42:55.10
that not everything in
the story is to be taken
00:42:55.13\00:42:57.30
in a strictly literal
sense; let me show that to you:
00:42:57.34\00:43:00.41
hold your place
here, and turn to Judges 9,
00:43:00.44\00:43:04.05
and I'm going to read
it all the way through,
00:43:04.09\00:43:07.63
and then we'll comment
on it, starting in verse 19.
00:43:07.67\00:43:11.82
"There was a certain rich man,
which was clothed in purple"
00:43:11.86\00:43:14.79
"and fine linen, and
fared sumptuously every day:"
00:43:14.82\00:43:17.34
"and there was a
certain beggar named Lazarus,"
00:43:17.37\00:43:19.82
"which was laid at his gate,
full of sores, and desiring"
00:43:19.86\00:43:22.59
"to be fed with
the crumbs which fell"
00:43:22.62\00:43:24.08
"from the rich man's
table: moreover the dogs came"
00:43:24.12\00:43:26.52
"and licked his
sores. And it came to pass,"
00:43:26.55\00:43:29.19
"that the beggar died,
and was carried by the angels"
00:43:29.23\00:43:30.93
"into Abraham's bosom: the rich
man also died, and was buried;"
00:43:30.97\00:43:34.67
"and in hell he lift up
his eyes," - let pause and just
00:43:34.70\00:43:37.25
tell you that word
"hell" is the word "Hades",
00:43:37.28\00:43:40.04
it means the grave,
it's not the word the means
00:43:40.07\00:43:42.76
the lake of fire, I just
want to point that out to you,
00:43:42.80\00:43:45.20
"... in hell he lift up
his eyes, being in torments,"
00:43:45.23\00:43:47.59
"and seeth Abraham afar
off and Lazarus in his bosom. "
00:43:47.63\00:43:49.96
"And he cried and said,"
00:43:49.99\00:43:51.21
"Father Abraham, have
mercy on me, and send Lazarus,"
00:43:51.25\00:43:53.78
"that he may dip the
tip of his finger in water,"
00:43:53.81\00:43:56.27
"and cool my tongue; for I
am tormented in this flame. "
00:43:56.31\00:43:59.50
"But Abraham said,
Son, remember that thou"
00:43:59.53\00:44:01.42
"in thy lifetime
receivedst thy good things,"
00:44:01.45\00:44:03.31
"and likewise
Lazarus evil things:"
00:44:03.34\00:44:05.68
"but now he is comforted,
and thou art tormented. "
00:44:05.72\00:44:08.42
"And beside all this,
between us and you there is"
00:44:08.45\00:44:11.33
"a great gulf fixed: so
that they which would pass"
00:44:11.37\00:44:14.18
"from hence to you cannot;
neither can they pass to us,"
00:44:14.22\00:44:17.05
"that would come from thence.
Then he said, I pray thee"
00:44:17.09\00:44:19.89
"therefore, father,
that thou wouldest send him"
00:44:19.92\00:44:21.80
"to my father's house:
For I have five brethren;"
00:44:21.84\00:44:24.01
"that he may testify unto
them, lest they also come"
00:44:24.05\00:44:26.19
"into this place of torment. "
00:44:26.22\00:44:27.86
Verse 29: "Abraham saith
unto him, they have Moses"
00:44:27.90\00:44:30.84
"and the prophets;
let them hear them. "
00:44:30.87\00:44:33.45
"And he said, Nay,
father Abraham: but if one went"
00:44:33.49\00:44:35.29
"unto them from the
dead, they will repent. "
00:44:35.32\00:44:37.26
"And he said unto him,
if they hear not Moses"
00:44:37.29\00:44:39.16
"and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded,"
00:44:39.20\00:44:41.90
"though one
rose from the dead. "
00:44:41.93\00:44:44.49
Once again, that's the story,
let's discuss some of the many
00:44:45.49\00:44:49.28
reasons why we know, and
these are obvious reasons,
00:44:49.31\00:44:53.17
why we know that this
story is not actually literal.
00:44:53.20\00:44:57.03
#1- how big is
Abraham's bosom anyway?
00:44:57.50\00:45:01.74
If all of the
righteous go to Abraham's bosom,
00:45:02.97\00:45:05.57
Abraham's bosom
must be very very large.
00:45:05.60\00:45:09.13
You see, "Abraham's bosom"
is referring to being accepted
00:45:09.17\00:45:14.40
by God; have you ever used
the expression "a bosom buddy"?
00:45:14.43\00:45:19.63
"He's my bosom buddy",
or "She's my bosom buddy. "
00:45:19.66\00:45:22.08
In other words, one
that's accepted and loved by you
00:45:22.11\00:45:24.80
very much, it's not taking
about everyone actually going
00:45:24.83\00:45:27.49
to Abraham's
bosom. So we know that.
00:45:27.52\00:45:30.98
The next one is: can
people in heaven and hell
00:45:31.02\00:45:33.53
really talk to one
another? Would that be desirous?
00:45:33.57\00:45:38.57
Would it be desirous
if someone was saved,
00:45:38.60\00:45:41.60
and standing on the
edge of some great precipice,
00:45:41.64\00:45:44.44
looking down into a
burning chasm of fire,
00:45:44.47\00:45:47.48
seeing people that they
knew in the previous life,
00:45:47.52\00:45:50.29
recognize, maybe even love
dearly, maybe a family member,
00:45:50.33\00:45:53.01
and there they are,
being tormented in flames?
00:45:53.04\00:45:55.44
Would that person in heaven
actually be having a good time
00:45:55.48\00:45:58.81
knowing that, and seeing that?
00:45:58.84\00:46:01.09
Can you imagine looking
over a friend, and that friend
00:46:01.13\00:46:04.70
looks up and sees you,
and starts calling out to you?
00:46:04.73\00:46:08.27
"Bob!"
00:46:08.61\00:46:11.17
"Sorry Jim, nothing
I can to help you. "
00:46:11.67\00:46:14.76
"What's done is done. "
00:46:14.79\00:46:17.09
What if it was a family
member, what if it was a son?
00:46:17.58\00:46:21.01
A daughter? Husband? Wife?
00:46:21.04\00:46:24.07
Mother? Father?
00:46:24.10\00:46:25.75
Could that person, even
for a moment, enjoy their stay?
00:46:25.79\00:46:30.32
If a mother was to
see, God forbid, but a child
00:46:31.42\00:46:34.54
in actuality, it would
be just as bad, or worse
00:46:34.57\00:46:37.62
for the mother than it
would be for the person there
00:46:37.66\00:46:40.99
because of the
suffering they would have
00:46:41.02\00:46:43.18
knowing that that was going
on, and being able to see it...
00:46:43.22\00:46:45.75
Of course not!
That's not Biblical,
00:46:45.78\00:46:48.68
it's not desirous,
it's not realistic.
00:46:48.72\00:46:51.55
Now, the next point it: in
this story the rich man is seen
00:46:51.59\00:46:55.45
as having a body with
body parts, he's got eyes,
00:46:55.48\00:46:58.35
he's got a tongue,
he's got fingers, and these
00:46:58.38\00:47:01.18
kind of things are mentioned,
and yet, the actual theology,
00:47:01.22\00:47:04.46
and it's important the
theology be consistent,
00:47:04.49\00:47:06.59
the theology that teaches that
people go directly to heaven,
00:47:06.63\00:47:09.58
or directly to hell, upon death,
doesn't teach that there's
00:47:09.62\00:47:12.60
a body that goes there at all,
they teach it's a vapor entity,
00:47:12.63\00:47:15.58
an invisible vapor
entity called the soul,
00:47:15.61\00:47:17.95
that doesn't have
actually body parts at all.
00:47:17.99\00:47:20.41
So it's not consistent
with their own teaching,
00:47:20.45\00:47:22.84
and therefore we
have to dismiss it.
00:47:22.87\00:47:25.08
The 4th point is: the rich
man asks for a drop of water,
00:47:25.12\00:47:29.45
is that realistic
under the circumstances?
00:47:29.48\00:47:32.77
I mean, forgetting the
fact that would it ever survive
00:47:32.81\00:47:35.45
through the flames to
touch him on the tongue anyway,
00:47:35.49\00:47:38.10
but if you were in that
situation, would you ask
00:47:38.13\00:47:39.93
for a drop, or would
you ask for the Sacramento
00:47:39.97\00:47:41.74
Fire Department?
00:47:41.77\00:47:44.11
Or maybe even California's,
join them all together.
00:47:44.15\00:47:48.41
But obviously it's not
realistic, it's not sensible.
00:47:48.45\00:47:52.68
Fifth: can a person who
is being tormented in flames,
00:47:54.28\00:47:59.33
suffering what is commonly
thought of as hell fire,
00:47:59.36\00:48:04.34
think rationally enough to
carry on a normal conversation?
00:48:04.38\00:48:08.87
You know, talking back
and forth, and this person's
00:48:08.90\00:48:11.26
supposedly burning, and
all these sorts of things?
00:48:11.29\00:48:13.62
Of course not.
00:48:13.65\00:48:14.86
So, if that's not
realistic, and it's not,
00:48:14.90\00:48:17.91
then we have to say
"what's going on here?"
00:48:17.95\00:48:20.89
There's a historian that
actually writes that this was
00:48:20.93\00:48:24.14
a story that was popular in
Jesus' time, and Jesus actually
00:48:24.18\00:48:29.32
took this story, or
one very similar to it,
00:48:29.35\00:48:32.47
and used it as a way
of trying to express truth
00:48:32.51\00:48:35.60
to the people of His day.
00:48:35.63\00:48:38.57
Not truth in the literal sense
of every aspect of the story,
00:48:38.61\00:48:41.73
but spiritual lessons
that He wanted to teach them.
00:48:41.76\00:48:44.40
So what are some of
the spiritual lessons
00:48:44.43\00:48:46.29
that we're to learn from
this very interesting story?
00:48:46.33\00:48:49.58
The parable has nothing to
do with death, or very little,
00:48:53.30\00:48:57.41
and it's got nothing to
do with the state of man
00:48:57.44\00:48:59.89
in hell fire, that's not
the purpose of the story.
00:48:59.93\00:49:02.61
The purpose of the story
is to teach faithfulness,
00:49:02.64\00:49:06.08
it's in the line of
parables about faithfulness.
00:49:06.11\00:49:09.48
So, we're responsible to
share what God has shown us.
00:49:09.52\00:49:13.00
The rich man undoubtedly
represented the Jewish nation
00:49:13.03\00:49:16.48
because they would
pray to father Abraham.
00:49:16.51\00:49:18.42
The poor man, Lazarus,
the beggar, he represented
00:49:18.46\00:49:21.30
the gentile.
Remember in Matthew 15
00:49:21.33\00:49:23.06
the Canaanite woman, a gentile,
said her people were beggars
00:49:23.10\00:49:26.02
at the tables of the
Jews, wanting to be fed
00:49:26.05\00:49:28.83
from the crumbs
that fell from them.
00:49:28.86\00:49:31.00
So here you have these 2 groups,
00:49:31.04\00:49:33.11
and the rich man
represented the Jewish nation,
00:49:33.15\00:49:35.88
the Jews thought that if
you were rich that was a sign
00:49:35.92\00:49:38.46
of blessing from God
because of your righteousness,
00:49:38.49\00:49:40.96
you probably had a pretty
good chance of being in heaven,
00:49:41.00\00:49:43.31
and if you were poor,
then a curse was on you,
00:49:43.34\00:49:45.41
probably because of your
sinfulness, and that's why
00:49:45.45\00:49:47.57
you're poor, and you
probably had a very poor chance
00:49:47.60\00:49:49.81
of ever getting to
heaven. So they had this great
00:49:49.84\00:49:51.98
misconception, they thought
that if you were the literal
00:49:52.02\00:49:54.39
bloodline of Abraham,
pretty much got it made,
00:49:54.42\00:49:57.41
and especially if you were
rich; and if you were a gentile,
00:49:57.45\00:50:00.30
well, you just
didn't have a chance.
00:50:00.33\00:50:01.85
Jesus totally turns the
tables on their thinking,
00:50:01.88\00:50:04.42
He's got the rich man
being rejected of God,
00:50:04.45\00:50:06.47
that's what it means
when he's in torment,
00:50:06.51\00:50:08.95
he's been rejected,
the poor man is accepted,
00:50:08.99\00:50:11.40
he's the one
leaning on Abraham's bosom,
00:50:11.43\00:50:13.43
he's got the
tables totally turned.
00:50:13.46\00:50:16.02
So riches aren't necessarily
a sign of divine favor.
00:50:16.60\00:50:18.84
The next on is we know
there is no second chance
00:50:18.87\00:50:20.91
about death, that's
not one of the main things
00:50:20.94\00:50:23.32
about the parable, but
it sure does teach us that.
00:50:23.35\00:50:25.70
That he can't come back and
have another opportunity at it.
00:50:25.80\00:50:28.22
Death is death,
that's all there is to it.
00:50:28.25\00:50:30.42
So there's a lot of
lessons here for us.
00:50:30.46\00:50:32.56
And we're also told
that no one has an automatic
00:50:32.60\00:50:35.18
right to heaven
because of their birth.
00:50:35.21\00:50:38.59
The lesson for us today is
no one has an automatic right
00:50:38.63\00:50:41.65
to heaven no matter what
church you belong to, amen?
00:50:41.68\00:50:44.63
No matter what church we belong
to today, no matter what race
00:50:44.67\00:50:47.78
we are today, we have to know
Jesus or we're going to miss it.
00:50:47.81\00:50:50.89
What do you say folks?
00:50:50.92\00:50:52.56
Both, the Old Testament
and the New Testament teach us
00:50:52.60\00:50:57.00
that Jesus died in
the sinner's place.
00:50:57.03\00:51:01.70
Jesus took upon Him the
punishment that the sinner
00:51:01.74\00:51:06.10
would have
normally had to suffer.
00:51:06.13\00:51:08.12
For example, in 1 Peter
2:24, speaking of Jesus,
00:51:08.16\00:51:15.98
My point in
bringing this up is this:
00:51:28.00\00:51:31.68
If Jesus took our
punishment, which He did,
00:51:33.11\00:51:36.88
and if the punishment for
sin was eternal hell fire,
00:51:37.59\00:51:41.42
if that's really what it
was, then Jesus would have had
00:51:41.46\00:51:44.78
to have accepted that upon
Himself, and Jesus would have
00:51:44.81\00:51:48.10
to suffer that Himself
because the Bible teaches
00:51:48.13\00:51:51.16
that He took our
punishment upon Himself.
00:51:51.19\00:51:54.70
And so, if that was the case,
He would have to be suffering
00:51:54.74\00:51:57.32
in hell fire tonight, of
course we know that isn't true,
00:51:57.36\00:52:00.09
Jesus is raised from the grave
and He sits at the right hand
00:52:00.13\00:52:02.83
of the Father, and
the Bible teaches that He
00:52:02.86\00:52:04.88
is our heavenly High Priest,
ministering for us in heaven.
00:52:04.92\00:52:09.06
We'll talk more about
that on another night.
00:52:09.09\00:52:11.20
So what did Jesus go
through on the cross?
00:52:11.24\00:52:13.32
Jesus not only
suffered, but He went through
00:52:13.87\00:52:18.34
the second death
experience in this sense:
00:52:18.38\00:52:22.53
that the Father
withdrew His presence from Him
00:52:22.56\00:52:26.68
in the same way that the Father
will withdraw His presence
00:52:27.20\00:52:30.80
from the wicked as
they are being punished
00:52:30.83\00:52:33.26
in the lake of fire, in other
words, that eternal separation
00:52:33.30\00:52:37.12
from God, that total
removal, that total rejection,
00:52:37.15\00:52:40.98
Jesus felt that on the cross.
Friends, because He had lived
00:52:41.02\00:52:45.40
so close to the Father,
because He had lived as one
00:52:45.43\00:52:47.82
with His heavenly
Father through His whole life,
00:52:47.85\00:52:50.21
and of course,
previous to that in heaven,
00:52:50.24\00:52:53.68
it was that act of
separation that wrenched
00:52:53.72\00:52:56.65
that expression from
Him: "My God, my God,"
00:52:56.68\00:52:59.54
"why hast Thou forsaken
Me?" Jesus passed through
00:52:59.58\00:53:03.06
that incredible
second death experience.
00:53:03.09\00:53:06.16
Oh friends, what a
love for us Jesus had, amen?
00:53:06.20\00:53:10.10
What a love for us!
00:53:10.13\00:53:12.84
In Matthew 25:41
we're told that hell fire,
00:53:13.46\00:53:21.44
or ever lasting fire was
not prepared for human beings,
00:53:21.48\00:53:25.28
it wasn't prepared for humanity,
who was it prepared for?
00:53:25.31\00:53:29.08
It was prepared for
the Devil and his angels.
00:53:29.11\00:53:31.43
God never intended that 1
person should ever have to go
00:53:31.47\00:53:35.44
to hell fire, it was
prepared for the Devil
00:53:35.47\00:53:38.94
and his angels.
00:53:38.97\00:53:41.51
Many years ago, and there
are more modern illustrations
00:53:42.68\00:53:45.72
we could use, farmers in
Michigan started to watch
00:53:45.75\00:53:51.88
their livestock dying:
cows are being still born,
00:53:51.92\00:53:58.02
and other kinds of
livestock were dying,
00:53:58.05\00:54:01.77
and it was spreading to
such a degree that they decided
00:54:02.52\00:54:05.60
to do an investigation,
but they couldn't get answers
00:54:05.63\00:54:08.71
until finally more and
more farmers started to see
00:54:08.75\00:54:12.38
their livestock perishing.
And finally, one person
00:54:12.41\00:54:15.71
who searched for months
got to the root of the problem
00:54:15.74\00:54:19.73
and he found out that feed
which had come from the factory
00:54:19.76\00:54:23.72
had gotten poisoned by a
chemical, and it had spread
00:54:23.75\00:54:26.43
to the livestock, and
they'd gotten sick, and so on,
00:54:26.47\00:54:29.08
and finally, 10s of thousands
of livestock were affected.
00:54:29.12\00:54:34.31
The farmers realized
that unless they stepped in
00:54:34.34\00:54:36.72
and did something
drastic very soon,
00:54:36.75\00:54:39.80
not only would more
animals suffer and die,
00:54:39.84\00:54:42.44
but human beings
would be affected.
00:54:42.47\00:54:44.49
So they made an
awesome decision, they decided
00:54:44.53\00:54:48.26
that those that had
been infected by this poison
00:54:48.30\00:54:52.00
they had to put to
death, and by doing so
00:54:52.03\00:54:55.50
you can imagine how
it would crush them.
00:54:55.54\00:54:58.94
Their life was in this,
their hearts were in this,
00:54:58.98\00:55:02.39
but they realized that
they had to put it away
00:55:02.42\00:55:05.63
in order to be merciful
to those that had not yet
00:55:05.66\00:55:08.84
been affected.
And so they did that.
00:55:08.87\00:55:12.18
Thousands of cattle, poultry,
other kinds of livestock
00:55:12.22\00:55:16.74
were all annihilated, but
they did it because they knew
00:55:16.78\00:55:21.27
that it would only spread.
00:55:21.30\00:55:23.73
Sin is like a disease
that has come into this world,
00:55:23.77\00:55:27.15
it came into the
universe through Satan,
00:55:27.51\00:55:30.87
it spread down to
this world, and God knows
00:55:30.91\00:55:34.20
that after a time, unless
He steps in and finally puts it
00:55:34.24\00:55:38.63
out of existence, it
would only continue to spread.
00:55:38.66\00:55:41.47
More and more
people would be affected,
00:55:41.50\00:55:42.74
maybe other worlds eventually.
But God knows that there
00:55:42.78\00:55:46.95
is a time when He has
to put it out of existence.
00:55:46.98\00:55:51.10
Dear friends, tonight I feel
like asking that great question
00:55:51.14\00:55:56.55
that Paul asked in
the book of Hebrews:
00:55:56.58\00:55:58.92
how shall we escape if we
neglect so great a salvation?
00:55:59.66\00:56:03.21
No on will go to hell
fire because of adultery;
00:56:03.72\00:56:07.19
no on will go
there because of murder;
00:56:07.22\00:56:09.69
no one will go there because
of lying, or one of these
00:56:09.73\00:56:12.01
other things we can mention,
because all of those things
00:56:12.04\00:56:14.29
can be forgiven.
The only reason someone
00:56:14.32\00:56:18.19
will be there is
because they refused to turn
00:56:18.23\00:56:21.19
from those things, and
come to the One who could
00:56:21.23\00:56:24.12
freely forgive them, and cleanse
them of all unrighteousness,
00:56:24.16\00:56:27.77
and that's Jesus.
00:56:27.80\00:56:29.67
So tonight as we close, would
you like to say along with me
00:56:29.71\00:56:32.36
"Lord, cleanse me of
all unrighteousness. "
00:56:32.39\00:56:35.90
"Help me to put sin out of my
life by the Holy Spirit's work"
00:56:35.94\00:56:38.62
"in my heart. Help me, O Lord,"
00:56:38.65\00:56:41.36
"by Your grace, to
walk in Your ways,"
00:56:41.40\00:56:44.10
"so I can be ready
for Your great coming. "
00:56:44.13\00:56:46.76
Would you like to make
that decision again tonight?
00:56:46.80\00:56:48.51
Please stand with me if
you would, and we're going
00:56:48.54\00:56:50.22
to have our
closing prayer tonight.
00:56:50.25\00:56:52.92
Thank you for coming
out on this Friday night,
00:56:52.96\00:56:55.56
thank you for taking the
time to study this with us.
00:56:55.60\00:56:58.43
By God's grace we expect
to see you back here again
00:56:58.47\00:57:01.27
tomorrow night.
Remember, we're going to have
00:57:01.30\00:57:03.32
a concert starting at 5
o'clock, it'll go till 6.30,
00:57:03.36\00:57:05.81
we'll have a break,
we'll have some refreshments,
00:57:05.85\00:57:08.06
and then we'll start at
our regular time - 7.15,
00:57:08.10\00:57:10.24
so we sure hope to see
you here. Let's pray together.
00:57:10.28\00:57:13.16
Loving Father, we
pause and we thank You
00:57:13.19\00:57:16.66
for this topic. We
realize that you are a God
00:57:16.70\00:57:19.65
of love in everything
You do, even in how You deal
00:57:19.69\00:57:23.70
with the wicked.
00:57:23.73\00:57:25.64
But Lord, You draw us
through love, and we see
00:57:25.68\00:57:29.71
that as Jesus was willing
to go through the second death
00:57:29.75\00:57:32.64
experience, as Jesus was
willing to suffer in our place,
00:57:32.67\00:57:35.53
how can we not
give our life for Him?
00:57:35.90\00:57:38.31
How can we not lay aside
the many petty things we do
00:57:38.35\00:57:40.60
that keep us separated?
00:57:40.63\00:57:42.61
Bless us please Lord, and
cleanse our hearts and minds
00:57:42.65\00:57:46.19
and draw us close to Thee.
Prepare us for Your soon coming,
00:57:46.23\00:57:49.84
for we ask it in
Jesus' precious name, amen.
00:57:49.87\00:57:53.35