I have decided to start studying the New Testament, as a former war veteran, I find the Old Testament to be to mentally stressful. In fact my Mental Health Councilor recommended that it would bring more joy, and peace to my old mind from the past . As I have already walked down those evil roads 54 years ago.
In Acts chapter 2 the day the New Testament Church began, on the day of Pentecost, they were baptized in the name of Jesus, then in act chapter 8 the Samaritans were baptized in the name of Jesus, then in Acts chapter 10 the Gentiles were baptized in the name of Jesus, then in act chapter 19 Paul said to the Ephesians that were the followers of John the Baptist ask them if they received the Holy Ghost since they believed and they end up receiving the Holy Ghost with speaking in tongues just like and Acts chapter 2 and Acts chapter 10 and they were re baptized in the name of Jesus, my question is why do most of the churches when they baptize you they use the titles Father Son and Holy Ghost and not the name Jesus, Father Son and Holy Ghost are not names, Hebrews 1 and 4 said that he inherited his name he inherits his name from his father which was Kept Secret in the Old Testament but revealed in the New Testament?
After this many of his disciples TURNED BACK and no longer walked with him
(Jesus).
HEBREWS 10
How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?
Hosea 14:4
I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them.
Revelation 3:16
So, because you are lukewarm, and NEITHER hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
2 Timothy 2:18
Who have SWERVED from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.
Book of Jude 1:
For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Matthew 10:33
But whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
Hebrews 9:28
So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, NOT TO DEAL WITH SIN, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
2 Thessalonians 2:3
Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction
Hebrews 3:12
Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.
Galatians 1:8-9
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I SAY AGAIN, If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you (first) received, let him be accursed.
Your attitude & heart's response to those without Christ on this side of the grave, was very special to read & worthy of praise to the Lord for His Work of Grace & Humility that He has done, & is doing, in your life. That in very truth ought to be the attitude of every Spirit-filled child of God, looking not in condemnation on the evil in others, but recognizing the great deception that they're under with their resulting follies, for which their only healing balm can be faith in the shed Blood of Jesus. And even to pray for those who hate or persecute us does indeed take a great measure of love & compassion for them, which only can come from the Spirit of Love & Grace. And with such a Spirit, how can one ever wish for the suffering of another whether in life or death. May we, as we study the operation of God, as One Holy, Merciful & Just, lead us into His Truth that we may both love & warn others accordingly. May the Spirit of Christ be your ever-present Help & Guide Richard, in your life which is in Christ, in God.
Lastly. The most important thing, I believe, people should know of is the reality of Jesus Christ and the love of God our Father. To have people like you, and others "born again", is quite the glorious gift from the Lord. That we, with the Holy Spirit, can continue His ministry that He came here to earth to teach us. As none of us chose Him, He chose us all. As He knows our hearts. "No servant is greater than his lord".
Really, thank you very much again Chris. For being so kind in your reply. God Bless you my brother in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. You are always in my prayers.
It is no secret - the rapture will happen as St Matthew has told us. The followers of Christ will be lifted off this planet to meet God in the air just before the Tribulation begins. Their reward for remaining loyal and true to their Maker is that they will escape the utter desolation that will happen before the Second Coming.
Thank you so very much for your warm reply my brother. I really appreciate it. As having anyone to converse about the Lord with is a Blessing to me. What I myself feel most important is, with scriptures in OT, how the lovingkindness, mercy, grace, and compassion of God is so great. And it endureth forever. How His thoughts, and ways, are so high above our ways. Then reading of the teachings of Jesus Christ of say "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you". In Luke "But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven."
Things like these are truly moving to me and make me feel so humble. His love is so great it is marvelous. As I have seen a person on death row who was an ex satan worshipper. Killed his mother and father along with another person. He was speaking out on how real satan worship was. At the end he stated that the only way out is Jesus Christ. Trying to help others pointing them toward the Lord. As clearly he had an experience with Christ. Seeing things like this and how many other wicked people the Lord will save, to now have them on His side, is amazing.
My love and forgiveness goes out to everyone. Even the most wicked people have my prayers. The only thing I look down upon is satan and evil itself. Not people. The Lord can save anyone. I do not wish harm or bad on anyone. Especially I would not want someone to be tortured forever. As we know the only one given the right to be the Judge is Jesus Christ. And if I am wrong, and my love is too great, the Lord will guide me where He wants me.
And please don't hold back on such 'sensitive/debatable' matters - others have shared some strange things in the past without adequate biblical support. It's all good for our discussion & learning & I particularly brought it up knowing your zeal for learning more from the Word & to be more like your Saviour. The Lord be with your spirit Richard.
Their faith which looked ahead & our faith also had to ultimately rest on a better Sacrifice bringing in a better Covenant ( Hebrews 7:19,22). Their faith had to find its hope in Jesus, God's Sacrifice, as ours also, post-Cross, does. Their justification & ours also rest in the Holy One from God. There has been no other way for anyone to be cleansed, forgiven & accepted. To the Gentile unreached with the Gospel, Romans 2:12-16 speaks of these who are also subject to the law written within them & by this law they are judged & will perish, as the law accuses them or they find excuse to sin. But why should they be condemned if Christ is not preached to them? Again, are there any readied by God to go to them so they might hear & believe? We have heard of accounts of tribes so grateful for the Gospel to come, as their hearts have been prepared to look for & receive it. Then there have been those who have been violent to the message, bringing death to the messenger. Those such as Jim Elliot & his four companions reaching out to the Huaorani tribe in Ecuador; or John Chau missionary to the Sentinelese people in the Andaman Islands (off the E. Indian coast) were all martyred for Jesus.
Or, to the good, decent people we know of, yet never moved to hear or respond to the Gospel. Will their decency & goodness be sufficient to save them in spite of sin? Romans 6:23 and Titus 3:5,6, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour". Even 'all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags' in God's Sight, so as much as we would long & hope for the ultimate saving of even those still without Christ even in death, I believe the Scripture is clear that a person's response to the Cross in this life determines his fate & sadly that fate is both horrible & eternal.
The Lord bless you Richard. Your words were very gracious & well thought through & I can see the dilemma that is before us when we consider that there are those who have lived carefully also showing love to others in their lives & not committing some dreadful sin. Or even others who have been engulfed in deception or waylaid by false teachers, never having the chance to receive knowledge of the Truth. These are indeed sad situations for which we aren't privy to the actions of God with them. We are tasked to share the Good News, the Spirit often directing us to the one who has been ordained to Life, even as Romans 10:13,14 clearly teaches us.
Each person through the ages has had to give an account of himself to God. For the Jew, his obedience to the Law was where his salvation lay, but the Law rather showed him that he failed in his obedience & that repentance & sacrifice was required. Even though the offering of the blood of bulls & goats could never secure God's forgiveness, his coming with a contrite heart, true sorrow for sin, & faith in a merciful God, secured him forgiveness & acceptance. Thus the Hebrews writer demonstrates this in chapter 11 that God looked for faith as the essence for acceptability. "And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided SOME BETTER THING FOR US, that they without us should not be made perfect." ( Heb 11:39,40).
"Who he for knew he also did predestinate". Through faith,these words convince me that when we have been called, there becomes a predisposition of who we are and who we will become in this world and the world to come . God has set his own parameters , as you have said " who are we to judge eternal matters!" Is it not enough to believe and live a life unto Him who has died for us? We should humble ourselves before the throne of God! How Satan weaves his discourse into a mans heart, those who deceive themselves who trust not His word. In the beginning was the word! This is the revelation of our creator found in Jesus Christ! In him is the light! God Bless you!
Knowing you and I have a couple views we look differently upon. You are very knowledgeable in the Word of God and I respect you very much. Please don't think I'm affiliated with any group, like JW. As no person, or church, has taught me of or lead me to the Lord. The Holy Bible and what I've experienced, along with receiving the Holy Spirit, is all I have. Now being in a relationship with our Eternal Father and Jesus Christ is all I'll ever need.
I'm really sorry if my post got to you a little but that is what I feel. I know I could be wrong. To shed a little on a thought of mine: so what if someone lives their life, never was taught the gospel or about Jesus Christ, was a ok person with a good heart, and lost their life in some way. Or with how much lies and deception by satan in this world. If a person was just engulfed in lies their whole life, just enslaved, and never got a chance to believe in the Lord because they were so weak and suffered their whole life. I can't believe our loving Father would ever condemn them to eternal punishment because of how wicked this world is.
Of coarse I'm not the judge and don't make those decisions. I'll try to keep these things to myself as I don't want to irritate anyone. Especially you Chris.
Richard, with all due respect to your understanding of Scripture, but I would direct you to Luke 16:19-31, and specifically, verse 23: "And in hell (Gk. Hades) he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom." And verse 28: "For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment."
And Mark 9:43,44: "And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell (Gk. geennan, or Gehenna), into the fire that never shall be quenched, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."
This is the sad state of all those who reject Christ & His Gospel - eternal torment awaits them & for this cause the Gospel has to be preached so that men may know the Truth & flee the torment to come. Let's not get trapped in the JW teaching of only death awaiting the sinner - if only ultimately death with little or no suffering, then why flee to the One Who gave His Life to save us from God's Wrath & Judgement. As I ask this to the JWs who visit me (or, used to visit), what then is your Gospel? Is it only to be able to be a part of God's Kingdom or perish into the dust if we reject the Gospel? There's nothing to flee from. If that was the choice given to me, I doubt if I would be moved to convert - yes, it would be lovely to experience eternal life with the Lord, but if it meant that the other option was just to disappear into the earth, then that's not much reason to change my lifestyle. Many believe that now: that there's no God & nothing after the grave. I came to the Lord because of the Spirit's Work of conviction in my heart, of Who God is & that His Judgements against the sinner are certain & that there is eternal suffering for those who reject His offer. It would be lovely to think that a sinner can eventually find freedom from torment but for Revelation 21:8.
As I saw your question I feel to just put some info I've found about this. I believe the first death means our physical death. The second death is pertaining to if we are thrown into the lake of fire after the final judgement.
The thing I feel to post is this. The KJV Bible has taken five different words, two Hebrew, three Greek, and just replaced them all with "Hell". This is one thing you find when comparing our Bible to the original Hebrew or Greek texts. The two Hebrew words(phonetic) "min" and "shehole". "Min" used only four times seems to be used like "hence" or away from. Sheole used 31 times for "grave" and made to say "hell" 27 times. Three times for "pit". Now the Greek(New Testament) uses the words "Gehenna" or "Valley of Hinnom", which is a literal place in Israel, then "Hades" changed 10 times into "hell" and once for "grave". Then "Tartarus" which is used only once which seems to be the deepest abyss where the fallen angels are being held.
I'll end with this. I believe the person who does not accept the free gift of eternal life, through Jesus Christ, will not suffer for eternity. As the devil, maybe fallen angels and whatnot, have been destined to. I believe they(people) will have to suffer a second death and perish. God is love. I do not believe He would ever see it fair to have a human who lived maybe only 70 years on earth, was lied to their whole lives, making mistakes, and to punish that person into eternal pain and suffering. The Lord does not want any to perish as He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He wants all to repent, turn from, their evil ways and live.
God Bless everyone in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
One of Jesus's followers asked Jesus, How many times should I forgive my brother, 7 times? And Jesus said to him, "I say not 7 times, but 70 times 7 times.
We all need to come together in the Lord and help one another. Learn from one another. Sharing our Testimonies that show what the Lord has done in our lives. Truth. To Love one another unconditionally. God is love, Jesus Christ is Lord.
Jesus is more beautiful than anyone or anything we thought was beautiful. He is ordinary in appearance. Power no one can comprehend with our finite comprehension.
He's not way far away from us. There's like a veil we can't see through. "See through a glass darkly..."
When we pray He is most certainly hearing us. Not big oratory prayers, but speaking heart to heart. We should be still and listen more.
Love that envelopes.
We gotta get over this endless dissecting and disagreeing over scripture and begin to use our skills to help others. Be disciples; not scribes. Peace.
I really and truly hope that my experiences will help others be freed from not knowing why they feel like the world is against them for some reason. It's everybody; not just one religion. The study of genealogies showed me that evil can work in the background, undetected, and innocent relatives are persecuted. When I was saved I was found interpreting reading on a horoscope I had calculated. My Methodist drinking buddy said it all seems to ring true, "but the Bible says it's NOT!" (Denies the Power of God)
The Lord appeared in a vision over her face. I saw His face looking right at me. I went into shock. My friend left suddenly. I might have creeped her out. I finally got up and fetched the one Bible I had, but had never read. I didn't know how to read it. It's like someone said to look up stars, then: astrologers, everything, till I saw the Death Sentence on them. I put my head on the Bible and said I deserve to die. That's when I saw a vision of hell. It was like snakes looking worms and roots. It was foul and nasty beyond comprehension. I stood on a chair. Minutes later I perceived a hand was held out above me. I didn't see it but I put my hand up and reached for it. I fell off the chair to the floor but hell was gone. I passed out but I know I was touched and delivered from demons. I heard me screaming.
I woke up next morning and I cannot describe the silence. No sound, just peace and calm. I had received the Holy Spirit but I had to learn who He is. It took half a day to rid my home of idols, occult books, drugs, alcohol. I dragged it out to the garage. Next day my friend returned and she was the first person I told I had been saved. I asked her to help me drag the can outside. I poured charcoal lighter over it and set it on fire. Acts 19:19. I dedicated it and me to the Lord. 36 yrs ago on Yom Kippur.
Jesus is alive and He is so powerful. Nothing can tear us out of his hands. The Bible is LIFE; living. No truth withheld. He is Truth!
my wife is catholic. she has told me that she never read the bible nor was encouraged to do so. I have read the bible most of my life and can honestly say that even though I didn't always understand it it had an impact on who I was and have become. The kingdom of god is ours now, because of Christ. When you experience the kingdom, you will have joy, joy unspeakable.
GenealogiesCursesSpiritual Warfare - In Reply on Matthew 1 - 3 years ago
The genealogy of Mary is recorded in the Bible. As is Jesus's from Genesis until birth.
You can Google for Charts or maps to see them displayed; which is an easier way to go back into the Bible and "fact check" all the people. Use the Search Box on this website and put the people's names in there and the search engine will find them.
God has very carefully kept track of all the names. Reading geneologies is more interesting than most people think. I have no doubt He keeps track of ours too.
So does Satan. He has Familiar Spirits that keep track of family sins of occult nature that he can and does use against us. Unexplained spiritual attacks sometimes are running through deceased ancestors. We have to repent of those ancestors and pray for the BLOOD of Jesus to turn those curses all the way back to the Origin. We will be set free from all harassment from Satan. He's a Legalist. We see him at Gods Throne accusing people, in the Bible.
I had ancestors that were full blown mediums and psychics. I had to learn these truths fast! I lived those attacks until I learned how to defeat them. The Blood that Jesus Shed for our sins covers us all the way back to origins. He is our Advocate. I John 1. This is all in the Bible.
I'm not being a racist by saying that some people that have hundreds of years of Catholic ancestors have spiritual problems because they were not taught on these matters: especially idolatry. Idolatry is the big Door that spirits use to gain entrance. Hopefully someone who knows more Catholic rituals than I do, will be able to expose idols and rituals. Also to reveal How Jesus's sacrifice broke all curses and gave us freedom from that. In no way am I saying all Catholics are going to hell. I'm saying that chronic spiritual problems happen to everybody: no matter what religion. We take a stand against it and the Blood of Jesus ENDS the curses and harassment.
The lineage used by the Jewish people are from the mother's side. Yet Matthew is using lineage from the Father's side. Why did he not use thelineage from the mother's side which would be Mary?
I would first say that within Theological circles, Matthew is believed to be the first evangelist to author the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I might add, what better way to begin the Doctor of Ministry Program than with the first of the Synoptic Gospels. At the outset of Matthew's Gospel, he incorporates 14 generations, from Abraham to David the King, to Jesus. This same lineage establishes Jesus as the King of the Jews. I contend that Matthew's Gospel was written specifically for a Jewish audience as gentiles are not mentioned. Prophesy had foretold the coming of a virgin, which would birth a child. Jews were subject to the Mosaic Law. According to Mosaic, having Sex out of wedlock was just cause to be stoned to death. Joseph wanted to avoid public notoriety regarding his wife Mary, as they had not consummated their matrimony; yet she was pregnant. Mary's dilemma caused Joseph to contemplate putting her away privately. The term to put away speaks to divorce and possibly death, as infidelity was cause for death, according to Mosaic Law. The Angel of the Lord intervenes by way of a dream and informs Joseph that the unborn child was the gift of God. I might add that within Scripture when there is a reference to the Angel of the Lord, they are speaking of God Almighty. The Angel of the Lord instructs Joseph to name the child, Emmanuel.
Take away things such as food, coffee, social media, things that are not necessarily sin but things that are pleasing to the flesh and replace with prayer and bible reading to become closer to God to be humbled. To learn God will sustain you for your obedience and sacrifice.
After this many of his disciples TURNED BACK and no longer walked with him
(Jesus).
HEBREWS 10
How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?
Hosea 14:4
I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them.
Revelation 3:16
So, because you are lukewarm, and NEITHER hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
2 Timothy 2:18
Who have SWERVED from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.
Book of Jude 1:
For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Matthew 10:33
But whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
Hebrews 9:28
So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, NOT TO DEAL WITH SIN, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
2 Thessalonians 2:3
Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction
Hebrews 3:12
Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.
Galatians 1:8-9
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I SAY AGAIN, If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you (first) received, let him be accursed.
Your attitude & heart's response to those without Christ on this side of the grave, was very special to read & worthy of praise to the Lord for His Work of Grace & Humility that He has done, & is doing, in your life. That in very truth ought to be the attitude of every Spirit-filled child of God, looking not in condemnation on the evil in others, but recognizing the great deception that they're under with their resulting follies, for which their only healing balm can be faith in the shed Blood of Jesus. And even to pray for those who hate or persecute us does indeed take a great measure of love & compassion for them, which only can come from the Spirit of Love & Grace. And with such a Spirit, how can one ever wish for the suffering of another whether in life or death. May we, as we study the operation of God, as One Holy, Merciful & Just, lead us into His Truth that we may both love & warn others accordingly. May the Spirit of Christ be your ever-present Help & Guide Richard, in your life which is in Christ, in God.
Really, thank you very much again Chris. For being so kind in your reply. God Bless you my brother in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. You are always in my prayers.
Thank you so very much for your warm reply my brother. I really appreciate it. As having anyone to converse about the Lord with is a Blessing to me. What I myself feel most important is, with scriptures in OT, how the lovingkindness, mercy, grace, and compassion of God is so great. And it endureth forever. How His thoughts, and ways, are so high above our ways. Then reading of the teachings of Jesus Christ of say "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you". In Luke "But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven."
Things like these are truly moving to me and make me feel so humble. His love is so great it is marvelous. As I have seen a person on death row who was an ex satan worshipper. Killed his mother and father along with another person. He was speaking out on how real satan worship was. At the end he stated that the only way out is Jesus Christ. Trying to help others pointing them toward the Lord. As clearly he had an experience with Christ. Seeing things like this and how many other wicked people the Lord will save, to now have them on His side, is amazing.
My love and forgiveness goes out to everyone. Even the most wicked people have my prayers. The only thing I look down upon is satan and evil itself. Not people. The Lord can save anyone. I do not wish harm or bad on anyone. Especially I would not want someone to be tortured forever. As we know the only one given the right to be the Judge is Jesus Christ. And if I am wrong, and my love is too great, the Lord will guide me where He wants me.
And please don't hold back on such 'sensitive/debatable' matters - others have shared some strange things in the past without adequate biblical support. It's all good for our discussion & learning & I particularly brought it up knowing your zeal for learning more from the Word & to be more like your Saviour. The Lord be with your spirit Richard.
Their faith which looked ahead & our faith also had to ultimately rest on a better Sacrifice bringing in a better Covenant ( Hebrews 7:19,22). Their faith had to find its hope in Jesus, God's Sacrifice, as ours also, post-Cross, does. Their justification & ours also rest in the Holy One from God. There has been no other way for anyone to be cleansed, forgiven & accepted. To the Gentile unreached with the Gospel, Romans 2:12-16 speaks of these who are also subject to the law written within them & by this law they are judged & will perish, as the law accuses them or they find excuse to sin. But why should they be condemned if Christ is not preached to them? Again, are there any readied by God to go to them so they might hear & believe? We have heard of accounts of tribes so grateful for the Gospel to come, as their hearts have been prepared to look for & receive it. Then there have been those who have been violent to the message, bringing death to the messenger. Those such as Jim Elliot & his four companions reaching out to the Huaorani tribe in Ecuador; or John Chau missionary to the Sentinelese people in the Andaman Islands (off the E. Indian coast) were all martyred for Jesus.
Or, to the good, decent people we know of, yet never moved to hear or respond to the Gospel. Will their decency & goodness be sufficient to save them in spite of sin? Romans 6:23 and Titus 3:5,6, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour". Even 'all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags' in God's Sight, so as much as we would long & hope for the ultimate saving of even those still without Christ even in death, I believe the Scripture is clear that a person's response to the Cross in this life determines his fate & sadly that fate is both horrible & eternal.
The Lord bless you Richard. Your words were very gracious & well thought through & I can see the dilemma that is before us when we consider that there are those who have lived carefully also showing love to others in their lives & not committing some dreadful sin. Or even others who have been engulfed in deception or waylaid by false teachers, never having the chance to receive knowledge of the Truth. These are indeed sad situations for which we aren't privy to the actions of God with them. We are tasked to share the Good News, the Spirit often directing us to the one who has been ordained to Life, even as Romans 10:13,14 clearly teaches us.
Each person through the ages has had to give an account of himself to God. For the Jew, his obedience to the Law was where his salvation lay, but the Law rather showed him that he failed in his obedience & that repentance & sacrifice was required. Even though the offering of the blood of bulls & goats could never secure God's forgiveness, his coming with a contrite heart, true sorrow for sin, & faith in a merciful God, secured him forgiveness & acceptance. Thus the Hebrews writer demonstrates this in chapter 11 that God looked for faith as the essence for acceptability. "And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided SOME BETTER THING FOR US, that they without us should not be made perfect." ( Heb 11:39,40).
Knowing you and I have a couple views we look differently upon. You are very knowledgeable in the Word of God and I respect you very much. Please don't think I'm affiliated with any group, like JW. As no person, or church, has taught me of or lead me to the Lord. The Holy Bible and what I've experienced, along with receiving the Holy Spirit, is all I have. Now being in a relationship with our Eternal Father and Jesus Christ is all I'll ever need.
I'm really sorry if my post got to you a little but that is what I feel. I know I could be wrong. To shed a little on a thought of mine: so what if someone lives their life, never was taught the gospel or about Jesus Christ, was a ok person with a good heart, and lost their life in some way. Or with how much lies and deception by satan in this world. If a person was just engulfed in lies their whole life, just enslaved, and never got a chance to believe in the Lord because they were so weak and suffered their whole life. I can't believe our loving Father would ever condemn them to eternal punishment because of how wicked this world is.
Of coarse I'm not the judge and don't make those decisions. I'll try to keep these things to myself as I don't want to irritate anyone. Especially you Chris.
God Bless.
And Mark 9:43,44: "And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell (Gk. geennan, or Gehenna), into the fire that never shall be quenched, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."
This is the sad state of all those who reject Christ & His Gospel - eternal torment awaits them & for this cause the Gospel has to be preached so that men may know the Truth & flee the torment to come. Let's not get trapped in the JW teaching of only death awaiting the sinner - if only ultimately death with little or no suffering, then why flee to the One Who gave His Life to save us from God's Wrath & Judgement. As I ask this to the JWs who visit me (or, used to visit), what then is your Gospel? Is it only to be able to be a part of God's Kingdom or perish into the dust if we reject the Gospel? There's nothing to flee from. If that was the choice given to me, I doubt if I would be moved to convert - yes, it would be lovely to experience eternal life with the Lord, but if it meant that the other option was just to disappear into the earth, then that's not much reason to change my lifestyle. Many believe that now: that there's no God & nothing after the grave. I came to the Lord because of the Spirit's Work of conviction in my heart, of Who God is & that His Judgements against the sinner are certain & that there is eternal suffering for those who reject His offer. It would be lovely to think that a sinner can eventually find freedom from torment but for Revelation 21:8.
As I saw your question I feel to just put some info I've found about this. I believe the first death means our physical death. The second death is pertaining to if we are thrown into the lake of fire after the final judgement.
The thing I feel to post is this. The KJV Bible has taken five different words, two Hebrew, three Greek, and just replaced them all with "Hell". This is one thing you find when comparing our Bible to the original Hebrew or Greek texts. The two Hebrew words(phonetic) "min" and "shehole". "Min" used only four times seems to be used like "hence" or away from. Sheole used 31 times for "grave" and made to say "hell" 27 times. Three times for "pit". Now the Greek(New Testament) uses the words "Gehenna" or "Valley of Hinnom", which is a literal place in Israel, then "Hades" changed 10 times into "hell" and once for "grave". Then "Tartarus" which is used only once which seems to be the deepest abyss where the fallen angels are being held.
I'll end with this. I believe the person who does not accept the free gift of eternal life, through Jesus Christ, will not suffer for eternity. As the devil, maybe fallen angels and whatnot, have been destined to. I believe they(people) will have to suffer a second death and perish. God is love. I do not believe He would ever see it fair to have a human who lived maybe only 70 years on earth, was lied to their whole lives, making mistakes, and to punish that person into eternal pain and suffering. The Lord does not want any to perish as He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He wants all to repent, turn from, their evil ways and live.
God Bless everyone in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Work and books act.bible.
If i can personal person to give an the bible.
And give to act.
Give to story bible.
Work book bible
We all need to come together in the Lord and help one another. Learn from one another. Sharing our Testimonies that show what the Lord has done in our lives. Truth. To Love one another unconditionally. God is love, Jesus Christ is Lord.
God Bless everyone. My prayers flow to all.
He's not way far away from us. There's like a veil we can't see through. "See through a glass darkly..."
When we pray He is most certainly hearing us. Not big oratory prayers, but speaking heart to heart. We should be still and listen more.
Love that envelopes.
We gotta get over this endless dissecting and disagreeing over scripture and begin to use our skills to help others. Be disciples; not scribes. Peace.
The Lord appeared in a vision over her face. I saw His face looking right at me. I went into shock. My friend left suddenly. I might have creeped her out. I finally got up and fetched the one Bible I had, but had never read. I didn't know how to read it. It's like someone said to look up stars, then: astrologers, everything, till I saw the Death Sentence on them. I put my head on the Bible and said I deserve to die. That's when I saw a vision of hell. It was like snakes looking worms and roots. It was foul and nasty beyond comprehension. I stood on a chair. Minutes later I perceived a hand was held out above me. I didn't see it but I put my hand up and reached for it. I fell off the chair to the floor but hell was gone. I passed out but I know I was touched and delivered from demons. I heard me screaming.
I woke up next morning and I cannot describe the silence. No sound, just peace and calm. I had received the Holy Spirit but I had to learn who He is. It took half a day to rid my home of idols, occult books, drugs, alcohol. I dragged it out to the garage. Next day my friend returned and she was the first person I told I had been saved. I asked her to help me drag the can outside. I poured charcoal lighter over it and set it on fire. Acts 19:19. I dedicated it and me to the Lord. 36 yrs ago on Yom Kippur.
Jesus is alive and He is so powerful. Nothing can tear us out of his hands. The Bible is LIFE; living. No truth withheld. He is Truth!
You can Google for Charts or maps to see them displayed; which is an easier way to go back into the Bible and "fact check" all the people. Use the Search Box on this website and put the people's names in there and the search engine will find them.
God has very carefully kept track of all the names. Reading geneologies is more interesting than most people think. I have no doubt He keeps track of ours too.
So does Satan. He has Familiar Spirits that keep track of family sins of occult nature that he can and does use against us. Unexplained spiritual attacks sometimes are running through deceased ancestors. We have to repent of those ancestors and pray for the BLOOD of Jesus to turn those curses all the way back to the Origin. We will be set free from all harassment from Satan. He's a Legalist. We see him at Gods Throne accusing people, in the Bible.
I had ancestors that were full blown mediums and psychics. I had to learn these truths fast! I lived those attacks until I learned how to defeat them. The Blood that Jesus Shed for our sins covers us all the way back to origins. He is our Advocate. I John 1. This is all in the Bible.
I'm not being a racist by saying that some people that have hundreds of years of Catholic ancestors have spiritual problems because they were not taught on these matters: especially idolatry. Idolatry is the big Door that spirits use to gain entrance. Hopefully someone who knows more Catholic rituals than I do, will be able to expose idols and rituals. Also to reveal How Jesus's sacrifice broke all curses and gave us freedom from that. In no way am I saying all Catholics are going to hell. I'm saying that chronic spiritual problems happen to everybody: no matter what religion. We take a stand against it and the Blood of Jesus ENDS the curses and harassment.
Keep this in mind when praying. Eph. 6
Mishael