God tells us in His Word “Be Ye Holy for I am Holy” (1 Peter 1:16, Lev. 11:45)
So, let’s rightly divide this verse so that we are interpreting it
correctly, Because often times we get told that this verse is about our
behavior or not sinning. So, we fight and struggle to try to please God.
We fail and fail, then finally give up. Because let’s be real. What
human can be as holy as God is?
What human, born with a corrupted nature, surrounded by sin and full
of sinfulness can even understand what holiness is, let alone do it?
We can’t. And that’s why God commands us to be Holy. To get us to
turn to Him. To get us to see that we need more of Him. We need more of
Jesus. We need the Holy Spirit to do it.
Holiness means to be set apart. In the Temple there were tools made
of gold. They were set apart for the Temple use. That’s all they were
for. But, they were just tools. Their holiness came from God and the
dedication for their use.
So, how does that apply to us?
To be holy we must first be saved, by turning to God (repent) and
asking Him to save us and Confessing Jesus as our Lord. (Romans 10:9-10,
Acts 2:38, Mark 16:16)
Holiness means to maintain the relationship with the Lord and abide
in Him. It means that when the devil attacks us or life gets hard, we
don’t just throw God away and go our own way. This implies that we never
knew Him. Build that relationship with God.
People sin. But when we sin we run back to God. Not run away from Him.
We wash our feet by confessing our sins to Him. ( 1 John 1:8-10) This is part of Walking in the Spirit. (Gal. 5:22-25)
We grow in Him. We listen to Him as He grows us.
We are totally devoted to His work. This doesn’t mean all of us are
in the ministry professionally. But, in our lives we respond when God
leads us to do something. In our jobs, in our families we always seek to
do what God wants and acknowledge Him in all our ways.
Holiness does not mean being a perfect goody two shoes. We are
perfect in Him, not ourselves. We are holy in Him. We are set apart for
Him. We are golden, because He is refining us. Holiness like God is
peace. It’s not worry about whether you are obeying the rules.
Be ye Holy as I am Holy means that we turn to Him. Because he is the only one who can clean us and teach us. And make us holy.
It is only through His Holy Spirit that we can be Holy.
It is only through the Blood of Jesus and being set apart that we are holy.
“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with
such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor
forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I
will not fear what man shall do unto me.”— Heb. 13:5-6
When you turn to the Lord, He saves you and is with you always. His Holy Spirit is in you.
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because
greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”— 1 John 4:4
We do not need to be concerned with living to gather riches, or
desiring to what others have or to be as they are. That is our flesh
talking. That is demons whispering.
We can be happy with the things the Lord has provided us, because He
is with us and will take care of us. There is nothing anyone can do to
us. God will find a way. He will make a way where none exists.
God’s way is perfect, and He has perfect timing. Trust Him.
It’s not about looking good for mankind, with the silly notions of what is valuable.
The streets of Paradise are paved with gold. The true wealth are
those things of the spirit. The people you lead to the Lord. The love
you show. The people you help. The Kingdom you build, and the time spent
with the Lord, learning of His ways.
The rest is chaff, useless waste, burned up in the fire.
God is with us. we have a relationship with Him and have no need to
fear. Just “ask, and it shall be given unto you. Seek, and ye shall
find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you.”— Matt. 7:7-11
James said “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.”
God is with us and will never forsake us. He will not help us destroy
ourselves. But, we can trust that He hears and will help us with
whatever we need.
I have seen God answer so many prayers. He has taken care of me. When
I remember the great things He has done in the past it reminds me that
He is with me and will take care of me again. It builds faith.
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your
hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”— Phil.4:6-7
We thank God in our prayers because our faith leads us to believe He is with us and hears us and is moving. We trust His Word.
He is with me. We have a relationship.
And I am with Him.
I died with Him, and was buried to self, and the flesh, and this
world. To be raised into new life with Him. Born again. (Rom. 6:4, John
3)
And I walk with Him in the Spirit, which is the relationship.
To hear on that last day, “Well done thy good and faithful servant.”— Matt. 25
Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois.
The answer is No. You either have it or you don’t. And You can always turn to God and ask to be saved. That is His grace.
But, there are folks who think you can lose it. This is written for them.
Hebrews 6:4 KJV
“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have
tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to
come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance;
seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to
an open shame.”
A lot of people use this verse to claim that a person can lose their salvation.
That is not true. I will explain why.
First, if you read the entire chapter context of the verse starting
in verse 6:1 and going to verse 6:10 you will see the writer says that
as we mature as believers we move away from doctrines regarding
salvation, baptisms, etc. Because we rest in the fact that we are saved
and can grow in Christ. We know that God’s grace and Christ’s Blood
washes us of all sin, so we do not need to keep going around and around
bickering on these subjects.
It doesn’t help us to grow and serve in Christ. As mentioned in
previous Chapter 5, It’s milk not meat. We should be past these things,
and be teachers who understand.
Next in verses, 4-6 he explains what happens to a person who “falls away”.
The first thing to notice is the word “impossible”. That should send
up a red flag. Because Jesus said “with God ALL things are possible.”
(Matt. 19:26)
This is a direct contradiction. Or is it? If you know your stuff,
then you know God’s Word doesn’t contradict itself. Any apparent
contradiction is an invitation to pray, listen to the Holy Spirit and
dive deeper.
Remember this because it’s important. We will come back to it.
Next, the writer tells us a list of things that God gives us freely or allows us to experience.
“…who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly
gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the
good word of God, and the powers of the world to come“
If you think you experienced these things and then fell away unto a
loss of salvation. Then, you probably never really experienced the full
measure of these things from God. You experienced something else. You
were just going to church.
Once you really know Christ, you cannot speak ill of Him or turn from Him. (1 Cor. 12:3)
I am not talking about committing sin. We are dead to sin. It does not impact our salvation. God holds our salvation.
Like Jesus said, “All that the father gives me shall come to me; and
him that comes to me I will in no wise cast out.” —John 6:37
The person described in this verse in Hebrews is someone who has been
exposed to Christ and still rejects or tries to climb up some other
way. This person was never saved. They never really turned to Him. They
had every chance but rejected. They even saw the truth. But rejected.
That’s what the verse is saying. (These people will most likely join the
Apostate Church of the last days, persecuting the Saints. They tasted
spirituality but never really accepted Christ.)
Next the verse says to “restore them to repentance”.
Understand that “Repent” means to turn. It means to turn to God for
salvation. It does not mean “to turn from sin”. That belief is false.
They can’t be restored to repentance because they never had it. They
never knew Him. They were never in a relationship with Christ, or they
are heading to chastisement. God chastens His children. He does not cast
them aside. (Heb. 12:6)
I want you to consider what Jesus said in Matthew 12:43-45
That when a man is clean. The demon goes to desert places, then
returns with 7 others and the last State of this man was worse than the
first.
This verse says the same thing as the Hebrews verse. If Jesus sets
you free, and you turn back to the world, you will be worse off than
before. The enemy will have more access to you and will work on you.
But neither verse says Jesus casts you aside and rejects you. Neither
verse says you are condemned. If you think you walk a perfect life
after salvation, then you really need to talk with God. If you think you
have no sin, you deceive yourself and the truth (Jesus) is not in you.
(1 John 1:8)
If you are saved and “Fall Away”, you basically open the doors for
demonic activity to harass you. Consider a drug addict who is set free
from drugs. But starts using again. The addiction is worse and the
person believes they are a failure and everyone else tells them they are
a failure. It becomes “impossible” to get back to that state of feeling
free in Christ. It’s harder to quit the drugs or sinful behavior next
time. It’s talking about a battle with Satan, not a loss of salvation.
BUT…keep reading and remember, we are not saved by works.
Notice it speaks of putting Christ to shame. This person the verse is
speaking of never knew Jesus. They were never saved. When God shows you
the heavenly gifts, and the truth of the Word, and the Holy Spirit
convicts you and draws you. If you then reject Him. You are not saved
and you put Christ to an open shame. That’s what the verse is saying, in
context. You or this person was never saved. They did not lose it. The thorns and thistles choked out the Word.
Next
the writer speaks of God pouring out blessings as rain. Jesus said “He
let’s the rain fall on the just and unjust. ” That means that God
let’s the unsaved see and feel His blessings because He hopes they will
turn to Him. But if not, then they reject Christ and put Him to open
shame. When God calls us, He let’s us see the Truth. We can choose to
reject. And that’s what Hebrews is saying. God revealed truth, and a
person rejected. (Matt 5:45)
The verse in Hebrews seems to be referring to a great Saint in
Christ, but it’s not. It’s referring to someone who is not saved or has
let the enemy back into their life. It’s not a loss of salvation.
Next the writer speaks of the water and says this rain from God
waters the ground and brings forth good fruits or thorns and thistles.
Is the Holy Spirit working in their life? Are they developing the fruits
of the Spirit? If not, then they were never saved. They don’t lose it.
This matches what Jesus said in the parable of the sower. (Matthew Chapter 13)
God sows His truth into the world, and some lands on good soil, While
others do not. Some soil receives the word but thorns and thistles grow
up choking it out. Again, it never says they lost salvation. We are not
saved by works, nor do we maintain our salvation. A person who hears
the Word, and let’s thorns and thistles choke out the Word. Never
actually got saved. They might have obeyed some rules and went to church
for a while but they never knew Him. They turn from Christ, because
they never knew Him. A saved person, will cling to Jesus, even in the
midst of terrible sin and failure. They will stay with Jesus, because He
is their only hope. They become broken and grow in Him.
This again refers to a struggle with this world, the flesh and the demons who fight us.
The bottom line is real simple. A person is either saved or not. They
either saw the blessings of God and rejected. Or they saw the blessings
of God, received Christ and are saved, but have fallen away, and are
having a tough time. They are walking in the flesh, not the Spirit.
Either way the answer is to turn to God. With God all things are possible.Turn to Him. If
a person “loses salvation” they were never really saved. They
experienced the Word, and saw the kingdom but rejected Christ anyway.
Whether unsaved, or a fallen saint or faithful saint, the answer is
always to turn to God. (Repent) We confess him as Lord. We confess our
sins and He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. Confessing our
sins is Walking in the Spirit.
At the end of our earthly life, Jesus will say either “well done thy
good and faithful servant” or “depart from me I NEVER knew you.”
Because you were NEVER saved. You never had a relationship with Him,
because if you had you would not reject Him. I’m not talking about sin.
We all sin. We are dead to sin. Our sins are cast from us. We confess
our sins and are cleansed.
I’m saying you NEVER confessed Him as Lord and trusted Him to save
you. You try to save yourself and try to obey rules, that is not
salvation.
As the writer of Hebrews says in verse 10. “God knows what you’ve
done.” But your salvation has nothing to do with that. Jesus said I
NEVER knew you. A person cannot lose salvation. They NEVER had it.
It’s all about Christ. Turn to Him. Nothing is impossible with God. We are not saved by works. If we are fallen away or trapped by Satan, God will break us and correct us. He does not cast us out. If we walk away, we never really knew Him.
Just always turn to God. Confess to Him. Pray to Him. Know Him. That
is Walking in the Spirit. Letting the Holy Spirit work on you and
through you.
As we move further into these last days we need to make sure we are
not following after false doctrines. We want our faith to be grounded in
Jesus Christ and Him alone for salvation. We want to have a
relationship with the Lord through the Holy Spirit. We want to be taught
by the Spirit and Walk in the Spirit. Not led into deception.
Peter tells us.
“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there
shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable
heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon
themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious
ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And
through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of
you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their
damnation slumbereth not” —2 Peter 2
Paul also tells us that there will be false teachers in these last days. (1 Tim. 1: 1-15, 2 Tim 4:2-4, 2 Timothy 3:1-9)
Jesus says the deception will be so bad that even the elect (Saved) would be deceived if it was possible. (Matt. 24:24)
So, it’s important for us to have tools in our pocket to help us.
1. The Holy Spirit will teach us and lead us into all truth.
If you are saved and listen to the Holy Spirit. He will impress upon you
that something isn’t right. (John 16:13)
This doesn’t mean the teacher who speaks false things is not saved. A
person can be saved and be in error on a subject. Just because we are
saved doesn’t mean we have it all straight in our minds.
Pray and ask the Lord to show us what’s up. (1 John 2:27, James 1:5)
We want to judge rightly and respond rightly. We want to be Spirit led,
but we need to learn what that means. It takes time and a relationship
with God to hear His voice. “My sheep know my voice” Do you know Him?
(John 10:1-19)
Make sure your belief is right. Sometimes we get bent out of shape
because of a teaching, but it’s our flesh not the Holy Spirit. If you
cannot prove your point from the Word, using two or three verses of
clear scripture, then you might be wrong.
Remember that not everything is a salvation issue. Some disagreements are not that important.
But, there are many things that do matter. You must learn to listen
to the Holy Spirit, and know the Word. We do not know what we will face.
But, when we know the truth, we can see the lie.
2. What does the teacher do with Jesus? We are talking about spiritual teachers here. Not the guy teaching you math.
The scriptures give us an easy way to determine false teachers.
They will not say that Jesus is THE Lord. They might admit he is God, but not confess Him as Lord.
It says that “No one can say Jesus is the Lord without the Holy
Spirit and no believer will say anything bad about Jesus. (1 Cor 12:3)
If they do not have the Holy Spirit, then they are not saved.
It also says to test the spirits to see if they are of God. The test
is whether they claim that Jesus came in the flesh. Basically, do they
teach that Jesus is God, became human and died to save us, and rose from
the dead. (1 John 4:1-6)
If they can’t say that Jesus is the Lord, they probably aren’t saved.
If they do not know or accept that Jesus is God in the Flesh they are
false.
So, you should pray to the Lord to lead you to a teacher He wants you to hear from.
Realize that the demons of hell know who Jesus is. But, they will not confess Him as Lord. They are in rebellion.
Realize that there are false teachers who aren’t saved, and false teachings or doctrines that can come from saved people.
They might teach 90% truth. But in this one area. They are a little off. Is it a salvation issue?
Rejecting Jesus as Lord is major. Believing in infant baptism, or a
pre-trib rapture or some other doctrines is not. Understand the
difference between salvation issues, and doctrinal differences.
Rejecting Christ, is a salvation issue. Going trick or treating is not.
3. A works based doctrine.
Every religion on earth teaches some kind of works based doctrine.
That humans need to do this or that in order to reach God and be saved.
But, in Christianity God Himself came down and did it all for us. It
is finished. All we have to do is accept Him, then have a relationship
with the Him; which He also does through sanctification and His Spirit.
Paul fought the works based doctrine his whole ministry. People want
to add some work to salvation. To either obtain it or maintain it. This
is false. Either Christ does it all or He has done none of it. It’s
either totally grace or it’s not grace at all.
The demons of hell will gladly keep us struggling with worrying about
our sin. Trying to do better while attacking others who disobey. They
love nothing more than a bunch of pharisees who burn people at the stake
of judgment.
You are saved by grace through faith. Let the Holy Spirit guide and work on you. Give others love, grace and mercy as well.
We are not saved by Works. (Eph. 2:8-10)
Our sin is forgiven, if we are saved. The works we do are for Kingdom building.
4. No tough times.
This one is difficult. Jesus said that in this world we will have tribulation. We will have times of trouble.
He promises to be with us through it. And there are things we can do
to make those times better like prayer, faith, spiritual warfare,
praise, thanks, abiding, dying to self, giving and serving.
There are things we can do to make it worse, like running from God,
turning to fleshly remedies like booze, drugs and sex, turning to false
beliefs, bitterness and anger, among other things.
In Jeremiah, God told Jeremiah that He was going to judge Israel His people.
Now let’s not focus on what they did. Let’s focus on the fact that
God let tribulation fall on His people, and that it worked to cleanse
the body and drive out those who did not know God.
Jeremiah taught that God was going to let the King of Babylon take
over Israel. And if the people trusted Him, God would be with them.
The false teachers taught that God would not let them suffer
tribulation. They taught that they were not going to face wrath. That
God would deliver them, OUT OF TROUBLE. They stood in the pulpit and
taught that God would deliver them from Great Tribulation.
Now, understand that this is a picture of the Last days. The king of
Babylon is the Anti-Christ and Satan who will make war with the saints
and overcome them. (Rev. 13:7, Daniel 7:25)
This is done to weed out the saved and unsaved. To cleanse the temple
or body. He allows tribulation to come on His people. Even if it’s
great tribulation, to weed out the tares. Remember Lot’s Wife.
Realize, that yes God delivers us from trouble. But, sometimes He allows trouble for a higher purpose.
Our response to both, is the same. Realize He is with us, trust Him, and draw closer to Him.
Realize that tribulation, even great tribulation is not God’s Wrath.
God’s wrath is Hell and the Lake of Fire. God’s wrath is poured out in
one day.
Understand that I am not saying that God kills babies or gives us
cancer to teach us a lesson. Those things exist because of death, the
fall, a corrupted world, and Satan. The enemy wants us to blame God for
these things. That gets us to be angry at God and turn away from Him. It
keeps us from praying and drawing close to God if we think he did it to
us. That is Satan’s plan. To keep us away from God.
The solution is always the same, turn to God and draw closer to Him.
We will learn from the trouble, and we can use it to help others.
5. Not building the kingdom.
Satan won’t build God’s Kingdom. A teacher of the Lord, should be
teaching, preparing and sending the saints out to preach the Gospel,
serve others and God, building the Kingdom. That’s our purpose as
believers. To build the kingdom.
False teachers, will keep you in your pew singing pretty songs and
scratching your itching ears with some new teaching. For what?
A true teacher teaches what the Holy Spirit leads them to teach. He
readies the saints for the battle and growing the kingdom. We all have
our part, in different ways, but we will be led to go and build the
kingdom.
A church sitting in pews doing nothing is not a threat to the enemy.
In Matthew chapter 25, the Lord gives three parables on what it will
look like when He returns. He doesn’t ask about their sins. He asks if
they helped others. He asks if they used the talents He gave them.
Christians are saved and forgiven, and are supposed to be kingdom
building. If they are really saved.
Pray the Lord will help you to escape this deadness in your church. And show you what to do and where to go.
A teacher should confess Jesus is the Lord. They should teach the
Gospel; that Jesus came in the Flesh. They should teach that salvation
is through Christ alone, not works. They should also teach and lead the
saints to build the Kingdom.
Always, turn to the Lord and He will direct you. When you notice a
problem ask Him and be willing to step out in faith, to make changes or
do things He calls us to do.
With technology we are surrounded by false teachings and teachers. It
can travel the world. Fake pictures and videos edited. Media services
telling us propaganda. Governments lying, corporations lying, preachers
lying, and its everywhere.
Turn to God, and listen to Him. He is Truth. He is the way. Trust Him
no matter what our flesh says. The enemy is everywhere, going about
seeking whom he may devour.
It uses the word charity, which can be described as love in action. (1 Cor. chapter 13)
But there is a charity, that is condescending. A charity that places
one party in a position of superiority over another. This is not real
charity or love.
Love does not think evil of someone. We take those thoughts captive
and bring them under control and force ourselves to love.(1 Cor. 13:5, 2
Cor. 10:5)
This is not easy. It’s part of our battle between flesh and spirit.
We fail, and we confess, and we move on. Praying for help and trying to
do better next time.
But, what if we do not even realize we are doing wrong?
We give and we love, but we don’t see that we act like we are better than other people.
Do we think, “I’m able to help you because I obey the rules and you
don’t. That’s why you’re in a sorry state.” when we help someone? Do we
think they are poor or needy because God is punishing them? But, we are
wealthy because we are good?
I can tell you from experience, that when I joined a church, I was
given charity. People helped me and I felt that they loved me. I
appreciate the help.
But, it quickly dissolved into the charity I described above. I was not a well churched person. I had a lot of faults.
“Well churched” is a term used for people who have gone to church
enough to know all the little rules that the Bible says nothing about.”
Things like manners, and etiquette and all of that.
I wasn’t knowledgeable of the little intricacies of church decorum. I
was rough. I laughed at inappropriate things. I talked about
inappropriate things. And the word spread that I was not a good enough
Christian because of some sin I knew nothing about.
I had a background that was not Christian. I was not forgiven for it, by many.
So, people who had shone me charity and love started to back off. The
people who always ran to shake my hand and pretend to be my friend
quit.
You can tell when you no longer get invited to anything. When you
become a second class citizen. When you’re not part of the “in” crowd
and you’re never asked or nominated to serve or be a part of anything.
You’re not really one of them. And you have to wonder if you ever really was.
I’m not talking about Salvation. God calls us and accepts us and loves us and works on us and with us. He calls us friend.
But, sometimes his servants do not. They shake your hand, then betray
you. They ask you about your views, then twist them and use them to
destroy you later. Because being superior to you is more important to
them, than actually loving you.
James speaks of this when he says ” My brethren, have not the faith
of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly
apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have
respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou
here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit
here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are
become judges of evil thoughts?”—(Jas. 2:1-4)
How many people have been driven away from God, because of this fake
charity in church? How many people have been treated like they don’t
belong when they got saved and joined a church?
I know it has impacted my life.
To hear sermons on love, and then be treated like an outsider.
And there’s always excuses as to why it happens, or blame is laid on
all kinds of things. But when this treatment happens over and over
again, and not only to you, but to lots of other people. It becomes
obvious that they do not really love you. You are not imagining it. They
have placed you under their footstool to serve them. They have made you
to be another number on Sunday morning, so they can think they are
growing.
As believers, we are called to “judge ourselves lest we be judged
with the world.” Not make excuses for feeling superior to other sinners.
We are just saved. Not better.
So, what’s our answer to this?
Our answer is to overcome evil with good. Sometimes things happen to
us so we can do better and change things. We see fake Christians so we
can understand what it looks like and avoid becoming one.
That sort of condescending charity is not from Jesus. It’s not from
the Spirit. It’s fleshly. It’s man-made works. Anyone can do it.
If you decide to be a friend, then be a friend, or don’t even start.
We are not required to be friends with everyone. But we ARE called to
love them. If you choose to be friends, then don’t be backstabbing once
you see the ugly in a person. Because YOU, have ugly too, and Jesus died
for you anyway. God calls you friend despite your sin, if you really
know Him.
These last days are moving along, and judgement is coming. Turn to
God. Ask Him to show you your sin so you can confess it, and work on it.
Do not find yourself as a virgin, without oil in their lamp because
they never really knew Christ, and did not grow in faith with Him.
When we study the scriptures on a subject, we go by what the entire
Word says, based upon the guiding of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit
will lead us into ALL truth. That’s how it works. (John 16:13, Jas 1:5)
We are surrounded by lots of false teachings, and it is going to get
worse as the last days move forward. This is why being taught by the
Holy Spirit is most important. (1 John 2:27)
Hell and/or the Lake of Fire according to scripture seems to be two
different places. There is a current holding place called Hell, and a
final destination which is the Lake of Fire.
Why two? Because after all is said and done there will be a final
judgement, and at some point God will create a new Heaven and new Earth.
Hell seems to be the containment for this current creation, and the
Lake of Fire is the containment for eternity, after the last judgement
and new creation.
The current containment of Hell along with death will be cast into the Lake of Fire, so nothing escapes. (Rev. 20:14)
This containment system seems to have been created for Satan and his angels.
At some point in the distant past, when Satan fell and led a
rebellion against God, which included angels and all sort of spiritual
beings, God created or “prepared” it for them. (Matt. 25:41)
According to scripture, Satan and his angels are not currently bound
in Hell. We have verses showing Satan visiting God’s throne room in
Heaven and the angels battling each other. We also have verses speaking
of the demonic forces ruling and influencing things on Earth. (The book
of Job, The book of Zechariah, 2 Cor. 4:4, Eph. 2:2, Rev. 20:1-3, Dan.
10 )
There are also scriptures that show that some fallen angels or beings
are bound in other places. We see that there is a place called the
Bottomless Pit. So, it seems that the true spiritual cosmology, involves
more than Heaven, Hell and Earth. The Bible doesn’t give us a lot of
info on these places and on the cosmology. I have my beliefs on them,
but let’s stick to Hell. (Rev. 20:1-3, Rev. 9:14)
Hell is eternal death. Death is separation, not an end as we suppose.
Hell/Lake of Fire is a place that is separated from God for all
eternity. It is a holding place for all that is filthy, corrupt and
wicked. It is a place for those who refuse to be washed clean of Sin and
Evil in the Blood of Jesus. Hell exists as a containment for Sin. It is
like a plague that corrupts us. God cannot let Sin into Heaven or
Paradise, or else death and pain and suffering would contaminate all of
eternity. (Rev. 1:5, Rev. 7:14, 1 John 1:7, Eph 2:13, Heb. 10:19)
Hell is best viewed as the garbage dump outside of an ancient walled city. This image gives the best picture.
Hell/The Lake of Fire is the garbage dump outside the City of God. Outside of Paradise.
When you read in the Old Testament about lepers. This is a picture of
the unsaved in Hell. They were living corpses rotting away and
stinking. They were contagious, and had to stay away from others. They
were forced to cover their face and yell “Unclean!” any time an
uninfected person approached. (Lev. 13:45) Separation.
They were poor, and no one helped them much. They dwelt in the
garbage dump because they could get scraps, and scavenge things thrown
away, and people would leave stuff for them.
The dump stinks. It is where the dogs dwelt eating scraps and
fighting lepers. It’s the same in Hell/Lake of Fire (Revelation 22:15)
(Dogs in the ancient world were vermin and tormentors. They were
scavengers and thieves, who roamed in packs and might even attack a
child, or solitary person. It is not the view we have of family pets.
Course those family pets can turn feral.)
Jesus described Hell as a place where “the fire is not quenched and
the worm dieth not.” He was quoting Isaiah. (Isa 66:22-24, Mark 9)
The fires of trash burning with filthy smoke, choking the lungs and
blocking the light. A place of darkness and misery, without the love and
joy and peace of God. A place where the worms live forever eating the
flesh, filth and corruption. (Matt. 25:30)
This is the basic picture of Hell. A garbage dump separated from God and all that is clean.
Jesus gives us a parable of the torment of Hell. He speaks of the
poor man Lazarus who basically was a homeless man who lived outside a
nameless rich man’s gate. The rich man ignored Lazarus. He could have
loved Him and helped Him. If the rich man really knew God, he would have
done what He could do to help the homeless man. But, He did not. (Luke
16)
Both of them die.
The rich man is in Hell. Again, not because he could earn His way
into heaven by doing good deeds, but because He never knew God. He never
had a relationship with God. If He had, then He would have had
compassion. He would have felt conviction to help Lazarus.
The rich man is thirsty in Hell and and says “Father Abraham, have
mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in
water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.”
There is no water in Hell, it’s hot. He sees Lazarus in
Heaven/Paradise leaning against Abraham’s chest, and makes this request.
(There are teachings about Abraham’s Bosom and all of that, which the
Bible doesn’t really teach. In this parable it is clear that Lazarus is
leaning against Abraham the person, because Abraham speaks. It is not a
place. Locations do not speak. Any doctrines on a place called Abraham’s
Bosom are actually referring to Paradise or Heaven. The place of the
the righteous dead, where the saints go to be with the Lord, and the
other members of their family and saints who were saved as well. Abraham
and all the saints are there. The phrase “Abraham’s Bosom” is actually
poetic language for Heaven/Paradise.)
Abraham tells the rich man that Lazarus cannot give him a drink
because there is a gulf between Hell and Paradise. They can see each
other, but cannot go there. Again separation and containment. Many
ancient cultures had a similar cosmology, because it is true. God told
Adam, and the truth went to Noah, and was taught to the people. Then it
was confused at the Tower of Babel, when people scattered globally with
different languages and different names for past events. But, the basic
idea remains. Because it’s true.
The rich man begs Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his family, so they
won’t go to Hell. But, Abraham says “They have Moses and the prophets;
let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went
unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they
hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though
one rose from the dead.”
Abraham basically says, “They have God’s Word.” But, the rich man
knows his family won’t read it or learn of it. He assumes his family
would be shocked into turning to God if Lazarus rose from the dead.
But, Abraham says, “If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”
Basically, if they won’t believe the Word, they won’t believe anything, even if someone rose from the dead.
In case you missed it, this is a reference to Jesus rising from the
dead; and people still refuse to believe. Just to be clear, a man named
Lazarus also rose from the dead, and people still refused to believe.
(John 11, John 20)
So, that is Hell. But, what about the Lake of Fire?
In my best understanding, Hell is a current spiritual place in the
cosmology. It rests separated by a gulf from Heaven/Paradise. (Luke
23:43, 2 Cor. 12:4, Rev. 2:7)
It is Spiritual. It is out there beyond the veil that separates us from spiritual things.
But, the Lake of Fire is material. It exists in the material world forever.
It seems that at some point, God creates a new heaven and new earth.
The city of God, and Paradise itself seems to come to Earth and joins
with Earth. There is no more Separation. Sin has been contained. Death
has been defeated. Everything is created new and seems to go back to how
it was before the fall of man and the rebellion of Satan. (Heb. 11;16,
Isa 65:17, Isa 66, Rev. 21, Rev. 22 )
The Lake of Fire is a place on Earth at this future time. A material
location, not a spiritual one. It rests outside the City of God. It is
the garbage dump, and containment place for everything and everyone who
refused to washed in the Blood and be cleansed and healed of the Plague
of Sin. Understand that sometime before the final judgement everyone who
is dead will be raised into bodies that can never die. The dead
currently have spiritual bodies. These future bodies will allow us to
either live forever in Paradise, or live forever in Hell/Lake of Fire.
(Rev. 20:12)
Why do I say this? Because it’s what God says, “For as
the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain
before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And
it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one
sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the
Lord. And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men
that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither
shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all
flesh.” (Isa 66:22-24)
After God creates a new heaven and new earth. When His city comes to
Earth and Paradise is here. The saints who the Lord has saved, will
gather together on a regular basis to worship God. And part of that
celebration, or after the worship service; people will be able to go out
and look at the Lake of Fire and see Satan, His angels, and those who
followed them in the Lake of Fire.
Now, a Lake of Fire implies liquid fire. So, I personally believe
that it is like a volcano or magma. The City of God and Paradise Earth
is near enough to see it, but there is a separation or gulf. People will
come from all over the new Earth to worship, and see it.
So, let me tell you that our words and current understanding cannot
really explain this. There are gaps in what the scriptures say and our
ability to explain it. We have tried to give a time line. But, from what
I can tell, no timeline or explanation of the events to come is totally
perfect.
We are not supposed to “Intrude into things we have not seen.” (Col. 2:18)
That means that as humans who have never traveled to spiritual
realms, or seen glimpses of the future new creation, we can only give
limited knowledge and understanding.
I’ve tried to connect some dots. and clear things up in order to get
people to understand and get saved or have a hope of the future. I am
not going to say I have it all figured out in such a way that I can
teach it or prove it. I don’t.
This is a simple explanation of what I have learned so far. I hope it helps you in your studies.
We can trust God’s goodness in this fallen world which seeks to
destroy us. Everything around us might scream that God has abandoned us
or that He doesn’t care. But He is there. He will never leave us nor
forsake us.
Even in the Garden. In the midst of Paradise, Satan was able to get
the first couple to stop trusting God. He got them to doubt His promises
and His goodness. The same thing happens to us.
They were in a perfect place with all of their needs met and no
troubles at all, and the enemy was still able to drop a little nugget of
doubt into their mind. Just enough to get them to do the one thing God
told them not to do.
God’s rules are not to keep us down or to hide things from us. They
are designed to protect us, from things we do not understand and the
dangers of this world.
We can trust His promises. We can trust His Word. We can trust His goodness.
We no longer live in a Paradise. We live in a fallen world and bad
things happen to us. Trouble comes into our lives, whether it’s by our
own making or not; we face difficulties. We see the evil around us, and
we are again tempted by the devil to say “Where is God?” “Where is His
Goodness?”
Like Job. Satan attacked him in order to get Him to doubt and curse
God. But, Job said, “Though He slay me, still will I trust in Him.” (Job
13:15a)
He trusted God and refused to be pulled away from the Lord, or caused
to doubt Him. Job questioned. But, he never doubted God’s goodness or
curse Him.
When we face trouble in life, we are also tempted to reject God. We
are tempted to go do things that set us up for failure and more trouble.
Remember, the enemy seeks to steal, kill and destroy. He will use
everything to rob us of finances and joy and life and health, he will
work to kill us and ruin us.
That’s His plan. It starts with getting us to doubt God’s Word, His promises and His goodness.
If He can get us to ignore God, or doubt Him, He can lead us down dark paths and slay us.
When we look at the terrible things in this world it’s hard to
imagine that God is good. We even hear things like “A good God would not
allow such and such.” That is the devil. He cause the terrible things,
then he points at it and says “Look! God did that!”
If we do not know God, or trust Him we can be deceived by it.
In these last days it is going to get harder and harder, as deception grows.
But, we can trust Him. He is good. Learn of Him. Study the Word. Confess Jesus as your Lord, and believe that He is THE Lord.
Confessing ‘Jesus is The Lord” is the only thing that separates the
Christian from every other belief system on Earth. Remember that.
God is good, He came to Earth to die for us and set us free. He saves us. Do not be pulled away by the deceptions of the enemy.
For me, I just talk to the Lord. Jesus says that God is our father.
The Apostles tell us that God is our father as well, if we know Him.
When we believe Him, He calls us friend.
Abraham believed what God told him, and it was counted to him for
righteousness, and he was called the friend of God. (Romans 4:3)
So I just talk to God. And when I pour my true self into prayer with God, I know He hears.
I go for a walk and talk with him alone. I rant and rave around my
home or where ever, when things are crazy. I give Him my real self. Just
like a friend or father.
When you give your real self to God, you are showing belief. You
believe the Word, which says he is our friend. He is our father. He is
our physician. You trust Him.
Pray the Word to God.
Such as,
“Dearest heavenly father, You are not willing that any should perish
so I pray for my child who is far from you. They are addicted to drugs
and living a life that is harmful to them. By your stripes we are healed
and I pray you will heal them of this addiction and trauma. We have
power over demons and I pray in Jesus name that the you’ll drive the
demons out of them. They are bound and cast out in Jesus name. Thank
you, Lord. For it’s in Jesus name I pray, Amen.”
Praying the Word to God, is not a commanding of God, Although I don’t
think God is offended by it. He is love. He does not respond with
prideful rage. Praying the Word is more like an attorney quoting laws in
court, to make a case. Does the human judge get offended by a
passionate attorney who brings up cases and laws of the past?
But you have to know the Word, and believe the Word to pray the Word.
Why do we pray in Jesus name?
Because the Lord told us to. When we do it we are exercising belief
in His Word, and faith that He is able. We show that it is not by our
authority but by His. We are weak, but He is strong. (John 14:13)
The disciples asked Jesus how to pray, and He gave them the Lord’s prayer. (Luke 11, Matt. 6)
“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom
come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day
our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is
the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
You can pray this prayer, word for word. There is power in it. You
are praying the Word. You are believing and following the directions of
Jesus, and the prayer covers everything.
It praises God. It acknowledges Him as Lord. It places trust in Him
and His decisions. It covers our daily needs. It covers forgiveness for
our sins, as we forgive others. It covers protection and guidance.
When you read Matthew 6, Jesus speaks a lot about prayer before He
gets to the Lord’s Prayer. All of it matters. Our repetitions do not
move God. Praying in front of people to be seen by them or ‘As a good
witness” to them, is wrong.
We should seek alone time with God. Not that corporate prayer is
wrong. We should pray with others who also believe. But we need alone
time with God.
Now, look at how simple the Lord’s prayer is.
Why?
Because God is omnipresent. He is omniscient and eternal. He can read your heart and mind. Past, present and future.
When you consider this, it brings some of our notions about prayer into question.
He already knows what you are going to pray. He already knows what
you need. He has probably already put the wheels into motion to bring
about what you need.
That’s why our prayer time is really more about spending time in His
presence. Our words and desires are about coming into alignment with His
character and will.
We are finite. We are not omnipresent. Which means, present everywhere at all times in all times.
But, we can be present with Him right now.
And when we are present with Him we can pray the things He brings to
our heart. We can be aligned with His will, asking for good things for
people. Praying for protections. Praying against the enemy. Praying for
peace, love, joy and salvation. Forgiving others. Praying for healing.
Often our faith in prayer and speaking the Word, will move mountains
and drive out the enemy who opposes us. The one who seeks to deceive and
to steal, kill and destroy everything in our lives.
God uses our faith. He recognizes it because it is based in Him. All
humans have natural faith. But, not all humans have faith in God and His
Word.
The most powerful prayer you can pray, is simply praising and thanking the Lord.
Every morning, when I wake up, I try to let my first words and
thoughts be, “Praise Jesus, thank you Lord for all you’ve done, and are
doing.”
I trust Him. He’s got me. He knows what I need, and want. Like Job said, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him.” (Job 13)
We agonize over our lives. We feel that we should get more. I do it too.
But, this life is but a breath. It is a moment in eternity. Our
desire should be to know Him and spend time with Him. The relationship
is all important.
Our prayer is time with God.
“Dearest heavenly Father, please forgive me for my sins and help me
to overcome. I thank you for everything you have done and are doing in
my life. I praise you and ask you to help me with the things I need.
Please help me to serve in the manner you desire. I ask that you will
drive out the enemy, from my life. I trust in you, for it’s in Jesus
name I pray, thank you Lord, amen”
The words, do not have power. The power rests in Faith, the relationship and the Lord who is over all.
Paul says that the Holy Spirit can take even our groaning and
translate it into a faith filled message that God receives. He knows our
heart. He hears us. Our weaknesses is not a hindrance to His ability to
know us. (Rom.8:26-28)
Again, after all is said and done. Just talk to God. Let Him teach
you and guide you. Be real with Him. Not putting on airs. Not trying to
be more than you are.
“I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.”—Rom. 7:21
Romans chapter 7 explains to us the purpose of God’s Law.
It’s purpose is to reveal sin in us, so that it can be dealt with.
Paul describes the struggle between law and flesh. He says that when
he saw the law “Though shalt not covet” it was revealed that he had
covetousness in his life.
He sinfully wanted what others had. The law revealed this and since
he realized he had broken the law, he was slain by it. The law killed
him, because the punishment for sin is death. He died in God’s eyes the
moment he knew He had sinned. That’s the law.
But, he did not want to commit the sin. You can plug any sin into
this box. Paul used covetousness, but it could apply to any sin. It was
revealed to him that he sinned, and he was slain by it. He agreed with
the law, because it is good. So, he did not want this sin in his life
any more.
But, he discovered that he could not quit. The evil thoughts
continued. The lusting or fear or doubt or whatever sins continued in
his mind and heart; even though he did not want it anymore because he
saw it was wrong in the Word of God.
Now, God revealed to Him a massive truth that opened his eyes. A truth that many people miss.
If he did not want to do it any more, then it was not really him
doing it. He hated the sin, but yet still did it. He still thought the
thoughts and did the deeds. He could not escape.
This showed him that there was something wrong with him. That he had a
corrupted nature, beyond his control. Something in himself that he did
not want or desire. He hated the sin, but still did it anyway. Therefore
it was not him, but SIN in him.
This is important because when we think about obeying God’s law and
put burdens on ourselves and others; we ignore the truth that we cannot
obey it ourselves because of our corrupted nature. We are fallen. We are
plagued with sin from Adam.
Our sins we commit are like symptoms of a deeper plague in us.
We don’t see how wicked we are until the light of God’s Word reveals
it to us. Our flesh is totally corrupt and we are incapable of stopping
it, in such a way that is true. If we stop one thing, we sin somewhere
else. Trying to quit sinning is a torturous never ending hell, full of
fear that God is watching and wants to destroy you.
When we have a works based doctrine, that’s where we are. We believe
we must quit sinning, but we cannot. We want to please God, but fail
constantly.
But, the law actually is supposed to reveal that you cannot quit and
that it is not even really you committing the sins, it is something in
you. The corrupted nature.
God’s law is far more than just the ten commandments. We can’t even
obey the ten, let alone the rest. And don’t even start on the sins of
thoughts. The sins of omission. or sins of Pride, Doubt, Fear, and other
things we do, that we do not even realize we are doing.
The law reveals it. This is why the law is good, as Paul says.
It is like a mirror.
But, our response is to change. We cannot. It won’t work. A sinful being cannot change his sinful nature, he needs God to do it.
Now, ask yourself, why would God provide a means to have your sins covered through the sacrificial system?
Because He knows we cannot obey. He wants it. He demands it. But we
cannot, because of the corrupted nature in us from Adam. He knows this.
God is not ignorant of our sins and failures. We try to hide these
things and try to quit or deal with it ourselves but it doesn’t work. It
gets worse.
Have you ever seen a child who plays with magic markers? They color
themselves, they color the walls, they color everything. But, there
often comes a point where they realize they messed up. Sometimes they
realize it on their own (Spirit or Conscience), or sometimes it’s when
the parent reveals it to them (law).
The child tries to fix it and might get a wet rag to wash it with.
But it just smears it on themselves and the wall. They cannot fix it,
and it’s there before them all the time. They need an adult to help
them.
That is what happens with us. Even if a person doesn’t believe in God
or has some other belief system, it doesn’t matter. God created us and
this is what happens. This is what ALL religions deal with. This is why
people go to therapy or drink to escape.
This thing in us torments us, because we know we are wrong and cannot
get right. We try to fix it by fleshly means because that is all we
know. But, it won’t work for eternity. It is a fleshly band aid at best,
or makes things worse.
Look at Adam and Eve. When they fell from God, they saw they were
naked and tried to cover themselves with fig leaves. That is religion,
and every other thing we do to fix our problem in us. It’s nothing but
fig leaves.
But, God showed up and revealed the sin in them and fixed it Himself. That’s Jesus.
We cannot fix it ourselves.
Paul says “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”—Rom. 7:24.
In the very next verse He thanks God.
“I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I
myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”
He thanks God that the law has revealed to him that there is
something wrong, and it is not him doing it. He serves God, but there is
also the corrupted nature and he realizes that it is not him that does
it but sin in him.
The very next verse is Romans 8:1, a new chapter and he reveals why he is thankful.
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”
He reveals the solution. God came in the flesh to die for us, because
of our sins and corrupted nature. He washes us clean in the Blood of
Jesus when we turn to Him.
Our eyes are opened to the truth and we believe it. We turn to God,
and ask Him to save us, confessing Jesus is the Lord, and we make Him
our Lord.
God washes us clean of all sin. Past, present and future. He fills us
with His Holy Spirit, and we grow in relationship with Him. We are no
longer condemned. We are friends of God. We are righteous. Not because
of what we do or don’t do. But, because of what Jesus did for us.
Our growth in Christ works to reveal and purge the things that we do
in the flesh, as we confess our sins to Him. But, it is Him that does
the work in us, not us. Even in our saved state, if we get in the habit
of living a life trying to not sin, we are not really living in faith
that Jesus has washed us. We think we must obey and do it ourselves. We
forget that we cannot. This is why Paul says there is power in weakness.
We admit our failure and give it to God and let Him do it.
If we go a few verses more in Romans chapter 8 we see this struggle
continues in us even though we are saved. The flesh battles with the
Spirit. We walk in the Spirit, by abiding in Christ, growing the
relationship, turning to Him and confessing our sins, being in prayer,
loving God and others. We realize that the sinful nature is not us
anymore. We are dead to it. We died with Christ and rose with Him to new
life. Those fleshly things no longer impact our spirit or salvation.
They can cause trouble in this world, by opening the doors for demonic
forces to attack us, but not our souls. Not our eternal spirits.
Here’s the verses
“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free
from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it
was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the
righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after
the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do
mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the
things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace.”
It’s about knowing Him, and He works to heal us and change us.
Walking in the Spirit is walking with Him. It is letting Him take
care of it. because if we try to do it ourselves, or ignore it, we are
walking in the flesh, and that leads to death.
What is death? Death is separation. It is not an end, as we suppose.
When someone dies, they do not end, they are separated from us and from
this fleshly world, and that body of flesh stays behind.
Eternal death is also separation. Nothing really dies or ends. it
just changes form and continues on. We will all get a spiritual body
that can never die. A vessel for our souls and spirits to dwell forever.
But, if we are not washed, that spiritual body will become corrupted
by the corrupted soul, and dead spirit. It must then be separated to
another place where nothing good dwells, because all good things are
wrapped up in God. God is love. There is no love in separation. There is
not love in that quarantine place of separation called Hell and the
Lake of Fire. It is darkness and no light. It is separation from God.
If God allowed the corrupted nature into Paradise or Heaven, then all
of eternity would be full of pain and evil just like this world.
Separation occurs to protect God’s eternal kingdom and creation.
If we know Him we shall be with Him forever in Paradise. That’s the promise. Just like He told the thief on the cross.
All we have to do is turn to Him and ask, and believe. He will take
care of the rest. We cannot change ourselves, He will do it, if we trust
Him. And that is the difficulty of walking in the Spirit. Trusting and
believing He’s got you. It builds patience. It builds meekness. We
submit to Him and grow. Not by works, lest any should boast.
The Bible speaks of reaping and sowing. (Gal. 6: 7-9, 2 Cor. Chapter 9, )
When God created the world He spoke forth certain principles. Seeds
fall to the ground and make plants. If you plant a seed it will grow.
There is a time to plant and a time to harvest. ( Gen. 1: 11-12, Gen.
8:22, Ecc. 3: 1-13)
Now God does not play around. When He does something it is done
right. So, His laws are not just physical. They are also spiritual. All
creation sees and understands this principle.
When God set reaping and sowing into motion in our world, the
creation kept doing it. The process of reaping what we sow is a fact and
goes on all the time, because that’s how it was designed. Of course
there are lots of aspects that goes with this concept, but it is a
biblical truth.
We reap what we sow. Whether good for good or bad for bad.
So, let’s look at three biblical truths that should encourage us or warn us.
1. Give and It Shall be Given Unto You:
Jesus said, “Give and it shall be given unto you, pressed down shaken together shall men give unto your bosom.” (Luke 6:38)
This is a spiritual truth. If you give, things will come back. And
it’s not just spiritual blessings. The verse says “Men shall give”. Men
cannot give you a spiritual blessing. This verse is an example of the
reaping and sowing law at work in the creation.
But, it’s not just for good. Because if you do not sow, neither shall
you reap. (2 Cor. 9: 6-7) If you are not willing to help others or be a
cheerful giver. It’s quite possible you will not get blessings or help
when you need it as well.
Which takes us into the next concept.
2. Do Unto Other As You Would Have Done Unto You:
We often look at this saying from Jesus and think it’s a wise moral
law. (Luke 6:31) But, what if it’s more than that. Maybe it’s a truth in
regards to reaping and sowing. Maybe it’s more than just cause and
effect. You are mean to some one, so they are mean back to you. This is
true. It happens.
But, what if its more? What if it’s saying that if you are mean to people, you will run into people who are mean to you someday.
If you are unkind, it will come back into your life later on.
It’s the way the creation was designed.
3. If They Will Not Work Neither Shall They Eat:
A lot of Christians use this verse as a reason to not help the poor.
Basically claiming that since they won’t or don’t work a job or a
satisfactory job, they should starve to death with their children. (2
Thess. 3:10)
That was not God’s intent. He wants us to love and help and give.
But, if we find after loving and helping that a person is just taking
advantage and not trying to do anything to help themselves, we can
withdraw help. But, that is not our first act. That is a last resort.
Our first act is to love.
But, keeping in line with the context of reaping and sowing, perhaps
the verse is more than physical flesh. Maybe it’s reaping and sowing. We
know that if we will not work, we cannot get a harvest. This is cause
and effect.
But, consider that if you refuse to do the Lord’s work, you will not
be fed spiritually. We learn a lot in our spiritual walk when we step
outside ourselves and follow the Spirit. If we refuse or don’t listen we
miss the blessing and spiritual food we can gain from God, by working
with Him.
So, when some Christians use this verse as an excuse to not help
others. They are actually cursing themselves. They will reap what they
sow…nothing. And on that day when He comes they will find that they have
no oil in their lamps and that they buried their talents in the sand.
(Matt. 25.)
***
People will say, “it’s not supposed to be about what you get back or get out of it”
It doesn’t matter what you think or believe on the subject. Reaping
and sowing is a law. It occurs whether you like it or want it or not.
It’s like gravity. You can say what you want, but when you step off that building you will fall. Period.
Every thought and action within the creation will bring a return. If
you do bad. You will get bad. if you do good. You get good. If you do
nothing. You get nothing.
This is why God has told us about it, and warned us about it. His
warnings on our behavior is a warning of what will come back on us.
When God created the world, He created it good. But, we fell and
death and sin entered the world. Then, God laid down the curse, to get
us to turn back to Him.
The creation was not originally designed for evil. The reaping and
sowing was designed to bring good. Because everything in the creation
would be doing good. So, more good comes in abundance. That’s God.
Blessing us.
But, evil came. Now the reaping and sowing also brings back evil.
Perhaps that’s one of the reasons for God’s Law. To help us live in the world.
We
know that after the fall humans became totally depraved. We are so evil
we do not even understand how evil we are. So, God gave us the Law to
show us. The law helps us to see our sinfulness and our need for a
savior, Jesus Christ.
But, after we are saved the law works to help us grow, and know what
to confess to the Lord. Perhaps it also helps us in living a life where
we reap good things and not bad?
My suggestion is to Love God. Love others. Serve God. Help People. Give Joyously, and Do Good.
Because like Paul said “We reap what we sow.” Whether we like it or not.
