Category: hell and lake of fire

Do Not Confuse Me With Facts!

Monday, February 25, 2013

“If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant” (1 Corinthians 14:37,38 KJV).

Some people will just never accept what the Bible actually says….

Every person is born spiritually “ignorant” and “dead in [his or her] trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1-3; Ephesians 4:17-19). However, only a minority will ever accept true wisdom (Matthew 7:13,14): just a few will ever acknowledge their pitiful Adamic state, and just a fraction of that minority will appropriate by faith Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for their sins. What about the majority? They will do their absolute best to pretend that they are not really lost, that they are not really going to hell, that their church tradition is the final authority. They have an agenda—never, ever submit to the Holy Bible (this is the attitude of those already in hell).

I have encountered many individuals in my ministry. Some eagerly believed the Bible verses I shared with them. They were thrilled to have God’s Word enlighten them. Unfortunately, other people I met laughed at the verses (including a “grace” preacher!), they blatantly ignored God’s Word, and some quickly ended the conversation and literally ran away! They also discouraged others from using dispensational Bible study. Their experiences, their preconceived notions, and their traditions were at stake, and they knew it. Essentially, there was only one thing to say, and their actions could be reduced to the following words: “Do NOT confuse me with facts!”

In the context of today’s Scripture, the Corinthians were abusing spiritual gifts (especially the gift of tongues). They wrongly believed that speaking in gibberish (“unknown tongues”) was a sign of spirituality, so Paul reminded them that the test for spirituality today is what Jesus Christ says in his epistles, Romans through Philemon (today’s Scripture). Today’s Scripture makes it very clear—if anyone refuses to believe what the Lord has to say through Paul, let the person remain in ignorance. Give them their wish—confuse them not with facts. Free will!

Saved from Hell, But Lost in Tradition #7

Thursday, February 21, 2013

“…God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Can someone go to heaven without ever learning dispensational Bible study?

Yes, provided that they had faith in the right Gospel message, the Gospel of the Grace of God (1 Corinthians 15:3,4): “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day.” Acts 2:38, Matthew 3:2, and Mark 1:15 are not valid Gospels for us today—they are Israel’s salvation message, and they belong in Israel’s program.

While God wants all people to be saved from hell—that every person trust in the shed blood, the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ as sufficient payment for his or her sins—God also wants every Christian to understand why He saved him or her (today’s Scripture). Although dispensational Bible study does not provide eternal life and salvation from hell—the Gospel of the Grace of God does that!—it does provide salvation from false teaching by explaining the practical implications of our salvation from hell. God has two programs in His Word, Israel’s prophetic program for earth and our mystery program for the heavenly places, and in the end, “in the dispensation of the fulness of times,” these two programs will bring glory and honor to Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:9,10; Colossians 1:16-20).

Today, there are millions of Christians who are heaven-bound. However, it is unfortunate that the majority have little to no understanding of “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). Due to church tradition, they often confuse God’s Word to Israel (Genesis through Malachi, Matthew through John, early Acts, Hebrews through Revelation) with God’s Word to us (Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon); they apply Israel’s doctrine to their lives and then wonder why Bible study becomes burdensome confusion! They, ignorant of God’s will for them, are “taken captive by [the devil] at his will” (2 Timothy 2:26).

Beloved, in Christ, we are saved from hell forever. Now, let us remain steadfast in the rightly divided Scriptures, and let us not be lost in tradition.

We are thrilled to have recently launched our ministry YouTube channel. We only have one home Bible study video uploaded at the moment, but we will upload more as time goes by. By next week, we should have three additional home Bible study videos on YouTube next week! 😉 Praise the Lord! You can “meet” me teaching God’s Word rightly divided at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PncTlYsZ9eA.

Saved from Hell, But Lost in Tradition #6

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

“…God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Can someone go to heaven without ever learning dispensational Bible study?

Salvation from hell—“God who will have all men to be saved” (today’s Scripture).

What has God done for man that man could never do for himself? How has the Lord Jesus Christ dealt with our sin problem, fully and completely? What must we do to be saved, to appropriate to our account, what Jesus Christ did for us, so we can avoid eternal hellfire?

The Gospel of the Grace of God answers these questions. “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5). “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).

Salvation from false teaching—“God who will have all men to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (today’s Scripture).

Why is Almighty, holy God willing to save us weak, sinful humans from the hellfire we deserve? What will He do with us who have trusted Jesus Christ alone as our personal Saviour? How does Christ’s finished crosswork impact our lives on a daily basis?

Dispensational Bible study answers these questions. We study all of the Bible, but we emphasize Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, God’s Word written to and about us members of the Church the Body of Christ. God will use us in the heavenly places for all eternity to glorify Jesus Christ there (2 Corinthians 5:1; Ephesians 1:3; Ephesians 2:6,7; 2 Timothy 4:18). “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him” (Colossians 2:6). We received Christ by faith without our works; our Christian life will operate likewise—by faith in what Christ will do in and through us. “Ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14). We are “dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:11).

Saved from Hell, But Lost in Tradition #5

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

“…God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Can someone go to heaven without ever learning dispensational Bible study?

The Gospel of the Grace of God is the solution to man’s sin problem, and salvation from hell can be found therein: “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). Simple faith in this Gospel alone guarantees a person that he or she has been given the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), is forgiven of all sins (Colossians 2:13), and will be “present with the Lord” in heaven upon physical death (2 Corinthians 5:8). “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5).

Dispensational Bible study is the key to Bible understanding, and salvation from false teaching can be found therein: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). Verses 16-18 discuss false teachers who failed to “rightly divide the word of truth.” They subsequently misled some Christians to doubt their own salvation from hell!

Paul warned Timothy of apostasy, a departure from God’s truth in order to embrace “doctrines of devils” (1 Timothy 4:1). He instructed Timothy regarding salvation from deception: “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (verse 16). Years later, he cautioned Timothy regarding impending “perilous times”—especially false teaching (2 Timothy 3:1-13). “But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (verses 14,15).

Salvation from hell is the most important Bible doctrine, but let us not forget that God wants to save us Christians from false teaching….

Saved from Hell, But Lost in Tradition #4

Monday, February 18, 2013

“…God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Can someone go to heaven without ever learning dispensational Bible study?

What prevents a person from going to heaven is sin, the lack of righteousness. However, God offers His righteousness to us as a free gift: “The righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference” (Romans 3:22). We can be justified—declared righteous before God—by simple faith in Jesus Christ’s perfect sacrifice of Himself for us on Calvary’s cross.

The Gospel of the Grace of God is the solution to man’s sin problem and salvation from hell can be found therein: “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He was raised again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). Once someone places his or her faith in this gospel alone, God imputes (applies) His righteousness to his or her account, and this person is now a permanent member of the Church the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:30; 2 Timothy 1:12). He or she is now heaven-bound, and will avoid the eternal penalty of sin (hell and the lake of fire)!

Although soul salvation from hell is good in and of itself, God has more to say in His Word than simply the Gospel of His Grace. Soul salvation is only part of God’s will for everyone (the first half of today’s Scripture). God now wants the Christian to progress in spiritual maturity, to gain a greater understanding of why he saved him or her (the second half of today’s Scripture). Just as Satan’s policy of evil is designed to blind lost people from understanding the Gospel, and keep them on their way to hell, it also prevents Christians from understanding God’s will for them with respect to spiritual maturity, so they remain spiritually ignorant. Christians are already saved from hell. Now they need to be saved from false (that is, denominational) teaching—this is the goal is dispensational Bible study….

Saved from Hell, But Lost in Tradition #3

Sunday, February 17, 2013

“…God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Can someone go to heaven without ever learning dispensational Bible study?

People commonly believe that if they just quit doing bad things, God will accept them into heaven: “I need to stop [name the sinful act], and I need to start going to church, donating money, praying, fasting, et cetera….” Frankly, this does absolutely nothing for them. They are focusing on their symptoms (individual sins), and ignoring their underlying sickness (sin nature). Man’s main problem is not that he commits sinful acts; his primary dilemma is that his nature is wicked (the origin of his sinful actions).

Even after “going through the motions” of religious obligation at church, the sinner is no closer to heaven than if he had stayed at home and done nothing. He may have “quit” certain sinful acts and replaced them with pious works. Nonetheless, his nature is still sinful, still anti-God, and still worthy of hell. Despite his “dealing with the symptoms,” he is still spiritually sick!

Thus, it behooved Jesus Christ, the Great Physician, to completely treat us sinners. He made a “house call,” but not to prescribe more rules to clean up our lives. We needed more than reformation (symptom reduction); we needed regeneration (complete spiritual healing). We lacked spiritual life, so God Himself came to give us His!

Although we do not have righteousness before God in and of ourselves, we can be “made the righteousness of God in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus Christ died, not simply to pay for our sins, but to also crucify our sin nature with Himself! “Our old man is crucified with him” (Romans 6:6). When we trust the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as sufficient payment for our sins, God takes our sin and sins and applies them to Calvary’s cross, and appropriates the merits of Christ’s perfect crosswork to us (imputation and justification). We also receive a new nature in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17) (regeneration).

But, salvation from hell is not just a fire escape….

Saved from Hell, But Lost in Tradition #2

Saturday, February 16, 2013

“…God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Can someone go to heaven without ever learning dispensational Bible study?

Soul salvation and spiritual growth, although related, are not to be confused. SIN, not a failure to correctly use and/or comprehend the Bible, is what prevents people from going to heaven.

Lost people are going to hell, not because of their sins (plural), but because they are spiritually dead (the “Adamic nature” that causes their sins). People are not sinners because they sin; they sin because they are sinners. Their main problem is not that they do bad things; their primary issue is the sin nature that causes them to do those bad things. This nature is completely opposed to God, and people gratify it by disobeying Him.

Paul describes the predicament of lost mankind: “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his [God’s] sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:19,20). Our sinful actions simply confirm that we have a nature that is thoroughly anti-God.

The Mosaic Law (specifically the Ten Commandments) condemns us. Because of our wicked nature, we cannot even keep 10 rules to make God happy with us. As the Apostle John wrote, “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4). In our identity in Adam, we have no righteousness (that is, we have a bad standing before God). A lost soul needs to be made right in God’s sight, before he or she physically dies and goes to hell. In order to go to heaven, his or her sin and sins must be dealt with, and Christ’s finished crosswork provides salvation from those sin and sins. Additionally, God has for this person a teaching curriculum to explain why He will save him or her….

Something Not Worth Losing

Sunday, February 3, 2013

“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26 KJV).

Super Bowl Sunday comes annually in the United States. Teams fuel the intense passions in the athletic world by vying for a corruptible trophy. Howbeit, the competition in today’s Scripture is spiritual, is worldwide, never has a halftime, and involves the eternal souls of men!

The human soul is most zealous about religion, politics, and sports. These areas are most personal, so they generate many heated debates and conflicts. However, believe it or not, there are worse outcomes than losing a church member, losing an election, and losing a game. Losing your eternal soul is the greatest of all losses!

In the context of today’s Scripture, Jesus Christ told His Jewish disciples to “take up [their] cross, and follow [him]” (verse 24). “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it” (verse 25). They should not fear losing their earthly lives for His sake. What is most important is that they not lose their souls!

Jesus Christ declared there is more to life than this physical world and its temporal possessions. There is a spiritual world—an afterlife—to consider. In today’s Scripture, He asks them, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Does it make sense to emphasize this temporary world and its corruptible goods, to the point of ignoring your eternal soul, and wind up losing it in hellfire forever and ever?

Dear reader, there is more to you than just your physical body. Your inner man—your soul, your spiritual body—is everlasting. To ignore Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for your sins, is to remain dead in those sins, resulting in you spending eternity suffering God’s wrath in the lake of fire literally as a nameless, hopeless, disfigured creature.

Your soul is not worth losing! Trust Christ as your personal Saviour today!

Saint, Why Sayest Thou Nothing? #7

Saturday, February 2, 2013

“Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the Jews” (John 7:13 KJV).

You are not alone in being shy about witnessing for Jesus Christ….

Until we leave these physical bodies of sin, we will continue to deal with our weak, sinful flesh. Hence, we are not always bold in witnessing. The world still appeals to our flesh: we keep quiet about the Bible in order to keep our social standing—our “friends” and their “respect.” We want to avoid conflict and persecution. As our Lord Jesus Christ declared, “It is the spirit that quickeneth [makes alive]; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).

Though our flesh is weak, and “good for nothing,” we who have trusted exclusively the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, have life in Christ! Rather than pining away in the old thinking patterns (the ‘say nothing’ attitude), we can have faith in God’s Word. We can believe Christ’s words and let them transform us. “…The word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13).

The Holy Spirit lives within us members of the Church the Body of Christ. “Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you?” (1 Corinthians 6:19). The Holy Spirit strengthens us through His Word, and gives us the boldness to preach and share Jesus Christ with this lost and dying world. As the Lord told Paul, “Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: for I am with thee…” (Acts 18:9,10). God says the same thing to us!

Remember, if the people suffering in hell could come back, they would urge you to tell their surviving family and friends about Jesus Christ, lest they too wind up suffering God’s righteous wrath forever. The rich man in hell told Abraham: “…Send [Lazarus] to my father’s house: for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment” (Luke 16:27,28).

“Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: for I am with thee….”

I Know Who You Are

Thursday, January 24, 2013

“Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands, saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, Who is he that smote thee?” (Matthew 26:67,68 KJV).

Little did these “anonymous” individuals know—one day Jesus Christ would indeed name them….

It is late night, and our Lord has just been arrested. His disciples have abandoned Him. The chief priests and elders have taken Him back to Jerusalem. He is now in the high priest’s palace, surrounded by scores of onlookers. The Apostle Peter even sneaks in to witness the proceedings (verses 56-58).

Israel’s religious leaders are seeking false witnesses, people who will lie about Jesus Christ in order to condemn Him to death. Many false witnesses come, but their inventions are not “convincing” enough—these religious leaders need something more in order to have grounds to execute Christ. Eventually, two false witnesses come, who merely twist Jesus’ earlier statements (verses 59-62). Upon being asked for a response to those accusations, “Jesus held his peace” (verse 63). He remains quiet, fulfilling Isaiah 53:7.

Again, the high priest demands of Jesus: “I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God” (Matthew 26:63). “Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy. What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death” (verses 64-66). They proceed to spit on Christ’s face, and punch Him, and strike Him with their palms (today’s Scripture). They mock Him (probably blindfolded): “Tell us who hit You!”

Interestingly, they were ignorant of who He was, but being the God of heaven, He could have named them all. One day, they will be resurrected. He will call their names in judgment, to rightly condemn them to the lake of fire, just as they had wrongly condemned Him to Calvary.