Reflections, from a man obsessed with
the truth...
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 The Great White Throne Judgment 11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God,[c] and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.[d] 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. Let me begin by saying up front, if you don't believe in a literal hell; this message will probably not mean much to you. Nor will it motivate you to go out and tell people of the Judgment to come, that Day when all of mankind will stand before Almighty God and give an account of ourselves before a Holy and Righteous God. If you do believe that there is a real, literal hell - and that one day those who reject Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will be doomed forever to eternal damnation - eternal separation from God for all eternity; then this message should motivate you to want to tell others how they can avoid this awful fate! I do believe what the Bible says about heaven and hell. And, while I believe it's good to talk about the glories of Heaven - and how wonderful and glorious it will be for those who give their lives to Jesus Christ. It is equally imperative that we warn people of the horrors that await all who reject God's generous offer of forgiveness that is available to everyone who puts their faith in Jesus Christ, and what He has done for all mankind through His death on the cross - and resurrection from the dead! THE BOOK OF LIFE How your name gets into the Book of Life is a subject of great debate and endless controversy among Christians and theologians, and to be honest the scriptures aren't crystal clear on that point. What we do know is this: IF YOU'RE NAME ISN'T IN IT - YOU ARE GOING TO HELL. Many people believe a person's name is entered into the Book of Life when one becomes a Christian, that is to say when they repent and place their faith and trust in Jesus Christ and what He has done for us in taking our sins to the cross and being raised from the dead. That seems to be the strongest argument. Then, there is the teaching that every human being is borne with their name already in the Book of Life, and that they are removed later when they fail to place their faith in the gospel, when they reject God and His holy commandments. That agrees with the spiritual truth: God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to a knowledge of the truth. 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. A good friend of mine, who is a Bible scholar in his own right, believes that to be so... I'm inclined to believe, a person's name is entered before they are born(God knowing that they would be brought forth in time), but regardless of when a name is entered; we know that to not be found in the Book of Life is surely the most dreadful of all things that one can imagine prior to being judged by God Himself. To put it another way, once a person is told that he or she cannot be found in the Book of Life, the rest of the proceedings in Heaven are a mere formality... I for one do not want to be found wanting.  WHO WILL BE DAMNED TO HELL?
John 3:36 He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.” John 3:18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. Usually, when the question of who will end up in Hell is asked, the response is to mention the various categories of sinners that the scriptures make clear will not be heaven, namely those who engage in the "works of the flesh" as outlined in Galatians 5: 19-21., and in Revelation 21:8. Galatians 5:19-21 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God Revelation 21:8 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” THE GREATEST SIN... If we examine the above verses in totality, we find that anyone who rejects Jesus offer of forgiveness and salvation by refusing to trust and put their faith in Him is under the "wrath of God". They by that simple act of defiance and rebellion; have set the compass for their soul towards Hell. The greatest sin that any of us can ever commit, is to reject Jesus as one's Savior and Lord. To reject Christ is to doom oneself to the tyranny of being ruled by "sin" and the powers of darkness that govern all who live upon the earth that are "dead in their sins". A Christian can still manifest the works of the flesh, that Paul lists in Gal.5:19-21, but doesn't have to because Jesus has freed them from the power of sin, and from it's deadly consequences... the unbeliever however, who has not yet been set free from their sins, or delivered out of the kingdom of darkness - will exhibit quite naturally I might add - some, though not necessarily all of the "works of the flesh" that God clearly hates. He hates the works of the flesh so much in fact, that He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus; to save us from their deadly effects! While the Christian, through faith in Jesus Christ, and the gospel of the Cross and Resurrection is saved, and released from the power of sin, and the spiritual death it brings - the unbelievers and persons who reject Jesus Christ are not. This is why the "greatest sin" for all mankind will not be the "individual sins" a person dies with, or in; but rather his or her rejection of Jesus Christ. HAVING YOUR NAME "BLOTTED OUT" Perhaps you've heard the expression: "IN LIKE FLYNN" - which many use to describe the idea of being safely locked into a place of complete security, free from any possibility of being removed or from any threat of losing one's position or standing ... There are many Christians who mistakenly assume, that because their names "are in the Lamb's Book of Life" - that there is no possibility of having their names removed or "blotted out" as it is called in the scriptures. They are wrong! The Bible, - Jesus Himself; makes it crystal clear that not only is it possible to have your name removed from the Book of Life, but that fact is used by the Lord and God to place a sense of holy reverence and Godly fear in everyone of us who will one day stand before God and give and account for our lives here on earth. Secure in Christ - YES! Secure in His unfailing love and mercy - YES! Ah, but not so secure that I can trample upon the blood of Christ, and go back to practicing the works of the flesh, and open rebellion against God... The man or woman who thinks their name cannot be removed by a holy and righteous God, who put it their in the first place is beguiled by "doctrines of demons". To those who are deluded by such misguided thinking, please examine the scriptures below and know that God will not be mocked... Better to work out our salvation with "fear and trembling" than tobe presum-ptuous and openly disobedient, thinking a "past commitment or experience" with God, no matter how sincere and real; somehow guarantees one's entrance into heaven... that is the worst kind of delusion, and not in line with God's holy commandments that are not to practice sin, or continue in it any longer as sons and daughters of the Risen King!! (Phil.2:20) Exod. 32:33: "And the LORD said to Moses, "Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book." If one dies without forgiveness of their sins their name vanishes out of the record book of life. Rev.3:5: "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels." We overcome by our faith which is exhibited by faithfulness. Heb.6:4-6 4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away,[b] to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame. Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. Final Thoughts... The Bible tells us that it is possible to "depart from the faith", to become "shipwrecked"... the New Testament is replete with examples of those who have turned back and returned to lives of sin and rebellion. While there are many reasonable persons who are of the opinion that these individuals were "never saved in the first place"; the scriptural evidence to suggest otherwise is there for anyone who will take the time to search it out for themselves. The bottom line for all of us who name Jesus as our Lord and Savior, is not that we have a "get into Heaven Pass" - no matter how we may live or conduct our affairs down here. But, rather let us live lives of holy fear and reverence knowing that at the end of our journey we will give an account of our lives before Almighty God. The greatest sin, is not our individual "sins" that each of us may be guilty of at any given moment, on any given day, that all of us have to bring before God as they may happen in our lives. No, the greatest sin is the rejection of God's great gift of His son Jesus for us all on the cross of Calvary, and His resurrection from the dead. Once that gift has been received by anyone through faith - we are to "continue in faith to the end". A great and noble beginning, and a courageous and glorious in-between is what God desires of all of us; but keeping the faith to the end, and walking in obedience to the very end of our journey is necessary to truly be considered faithful and loyal to our King. We must "continue in the faith", and that dear friends is where we "live out our faith" here on earth moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day, and right up to the end of our journey... COL.1:21-23 21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, Blessings to all/michael/fool4CHRIST
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