Leaves of Gold

A Call To Return To The Teaching Of The Bible

A ministry of Evangelist James A. Nelson   jan23@cox.net

Year III,   No. 6   JUNE    2008

 

Master Outline Number Twenty-Nine

 

Taken from  "The Christian Life Bible", Porter L. Barrington

 

God's Will

            Although this world system is presently an organized kingdom of evil, ruled and motivated by the will of Satan, who is "the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of dis­obedience" (Eph. 2:1-3), it must be remembered that Satan is not all-powerful. Only God has all authority over all power. God spoke to Isaiah saying, "I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning ... 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure' " (Is. 46:9, 10). It is God's pleasure to reveal His will (plan for your life) to all believers. Jesus told His disciples to get into a boat and go to the other side of Galilee. Being omniscient (all-knowing), He knew they would encounter a storm; being omnipotent (all ­powerful), He knew that He would save them from the storm. This was His specific will for His disci­ples (Matt. 14:22-33). In the will of God they were

(1) sent into a storm. The will of God is filled with storms. Every believer who walks in God's will encounters contrary winds. Paul faced opposing winds throughout his ministry (2 Cor. 11 :24-33).

(2) in no danger, because Jesus was in prayer (Heb. 7:25).

(3) in darkness. No believer, who is in the will of God, will remain in darkness (John 12:46).

(4) rowing with all their might against contrary winds. Nevertheless, they were making no progress (Mark 6:48).  When God puts it in your heart to do His will and you face contrary winds, remember that He will direct your path (Prov. 3:5, 6).

 

29-A. God's Will Is Sovereign (Isaiah 46:9~11)

           "I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning....My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure", vs. 9, 10.  These verses declare the fact that God's sovereign will is in control of all things in heaven and on earth and throughout His universe.  No one can alter His purposes.  He said: "I will do all My pleasure", v. 10.

            His sovereign will is established in the fulfilling of prophecy. He has declared the end, even from the beginning. He continued, "Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it" (v. 11). In context, God is saying that He has prophesied Israel's future, and will bring the prophecy to pass. What He has proposed, He will do. God's sovereign will determines the end of everything; His purpose cannot be circumvented (Dan. 4:35).

            The part of God's sovereign will that is not revealed is often called His secret will. Though we cannot know all of God's sovereign will, by faith we can know that part revealed through the Scriptures (Deut. 29:29). Most of God's sovereign will is secret, and we cannot know His secret will until He is ready to reveal it (Acts 1:6, 7; Amos 9:11-15).

            We can, however, know God's sovereign purpose in history for the Jew and the Gentile, for He has made it known to us in His Word. He said to Abraham, "I will make you a great nation .... and in you all the families [nations] of the earth shall be blessed" (Gen. 12:2, 3). His sovereign will for Israel is well established in the Old and New Testaments, beginning with His promise to make          Abraham's seed (Israel) a great nation, and to bless all the nations of the earth through his seed, which is Christ (Gal. 3:6-9). Ultimately, true Israel will be saved and enter the kingdom where Christ is King of kings (Rom. 11 :26-29; Matt. 25:31-46). We also know God's sovereign will for all who, by faith, will accept the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Savior (John 3:16, 17). They are predestined for eternal life with God (John 14:1-6); but those who reject Christ as personal Savior are predestined to the lake of fire (Rev. 20:15).

            Calvary is a proof of God's sovereign will. About a thousand years before Christ died on the cross, David prophesied that the Messiah would be crucified (Ps. 22:14-18). About seven hundred years before Calvary, Isaiah prophesied the ignominious death of Jesus Christ, who suffered for our sins (Is. 52:13-53:12). God's will is sovereign.

 

Point 29-8: God's Will Is Immutable, Malachi 3:6.  "For I am the LORD, I do not change".  He does not change:  "God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent (change).  Has He said, and will He not do?  Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?", Numbers 23:19.  God will keep His Word and perform His unchangeable will.           

            Note that according to God's unchangeable will, "all Israel will be saved ... 'The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; tor this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins' " (Rom. 11 :26, 27). This no more means that every Hebrew who ever lived will be saved than that every Gentile will be saved. But it does mean that all elect Jews (the remnant believers) will be saved. "The Redeemer will come to Zion" (Is. 59:20, 21), which refers to the second coming of Christ. Every good and perfect gift is a part of God's unchangeable will. "Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth" (James 1:17, 18). It is God's purpose that this "word of truth" (the gospel)-the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ-be preached to Israel, so that "all Israel will be saved." God's will was immutable (or unchangeable) yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). God reveals His immutable will in His eternal Word.

            God's will is immutable

(1) in salvation. We are saved by grace through faith, not through works (Eph. 2:8, 9; cf. Acts 4:12; Rom. 10:8-10).

(2) in judgment. "For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son" (John 5:22).

(a) Christ will judge the believer's works at "the judgment seat of Christ" (2 Cor. 5:10), to take place at the rapture of the church (Rev. 22:12). Believers will be rewarded for their good works, but for their bad works they will suffer the loss of rewards, not the loss of salvation (1 Cor. 3:11-15). This is evidence that works alone cannot merit the salvation of God.

(b) Christ will judge all nations of the world at the beginning of His millennial reign (Matt. 25:31-46).

(c) Christ will judge the wicked at the end of His millennial reign (Rev. 20:11-15).

(3) in morals.

(a) "You shall have no other gods before Me."

(b) "You shall not make for yourself a carved image."

(c) "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain."

(d) "Honor your father and your mother."

(e) "You shall not murder."

(f) "You shall not commit adultery."

(g) "You shall not steal."

(h) "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor."

(i) "You shall not covet" (Ex. 20:1-17).

To know God's immutable will, you must know His Word.

 

29-C. God's Will is Good, Acceptable, and Perfect (Romans 12:1, 2)-Paul urges every believer to "prove [to yourself and others] what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God" (v. 2). If you are a born again believer and you do not know God's revealed will for your life, you are cheating yourself (living beneath your privilege) and grieving the Holy Spirit. God's revealed will is:

(1) Good. It is good in itself because it is God's will. It is good for you, and good to you. In the will of God, the believer can claim His promises, i.e., "For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly" (Ps. 84:11). The key word in this promise is "give."

(a) "The LORD God" is the giver of every good and perfect gift (James 1:17).

(b) This Giver is a "sun and shield." He is the light of the world to guide you each step of the way as you walk in His will (John 8:12), and He is a shield to protect you (Ps. 3:2, 3).

(c) He gives "grace and glory." In the revealed will of God you know the grace of God that brings eternal riches. "For you know the grace of our lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become [eternally] rich" (2 Cor. 8:9). His glory is also a gift; can you think of a greater reward? He will share His grace and glory with those who do His good will (Rom. 8:17). Paul said, "hold fast what is good" (1 Thess. 5:21).

(2) Acceptable. God's revealed will is the only will that is acceptable to Him. Man's natural will is rebellious, or carnal (Rom. 8:6-8). Satan's will is totally evil (Is. 14:13,14). Five times Satan said, "I will;" not once did he regard the will of God. The question is, to what degree does your will conform to God's will? You are either doing the will of Satan (which is evil), or the will of self (which is carnal), or the will of God (which is good, acceptable, and perfect). It is impossible to please God and walk

in man´s carnal way, or Satan's corrupt way (Eph. 2:1-3).                  -

(3) Perfect. Because God is perfect, His will is perfect. His will is pleasing to His perfect nature, in the most infinitesimal detail. The will of God can be discovered and obeyed by every believer. Because He has revealed to us the mystery of His will in His Word (Eph. 1:9), God wants us to know and understand His revealed will, which is good, acceptable, and perfect (Eph. 5:17).

.

29-D. God's Will Can Be Known (Hebrews 13:20, 21)-ln the old Adamic nature, we are not capable of knowing and doing the perfect will of God. To the unsaved, spiritual things are foolishness (1 Cor. 1:18). The unsaved may be religious, but they do not possess the spiritual capacity to discern spiritual things (1 Cor. 2:14). If you are a born-again, Spirit-filled believer who desires to know and do the perfect will of God, God will take control of your life and "make you complete in every good work to do His

will" (v. 21).                                                                                              ,

            God does have a plan for your life. He did not save you to let you go your way and make your own decisions, according to your carnal nature. God gives the believer a new nature to combat the ways of his old nature (2 Pet. 1:4). We have already seen that man's natural way is carnal, and that Satan's way is totally evil, But, God's way is perfect, and is the only way that pleases Him. It is impossible for a carnal, or rebellious, Christian to please God (Rom. 8:5-9). Therefore, it is imperative that you know the will of God f6r your life and do it.             '" .        .

            The question is, how can I know the perfect will of God for my life?

(1) You must sincerely desire to do His will, This is an act of faith. "The just shall live by faith" (Heb. 10:38).

(2) You must search the Scriptures if you are going to know the will of God for your life. The apostle Paul tells us that the Bereans "were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:11). The Berean believers did two things-they heard and accepted the Word of Cod as it was preached, and they "searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so." The best way for believers to know the will of God for their lives is to search the Scriptures, which continually point to Christ (John 5:39; 8:31, 32)  If you choose to "grow in the grace and knowledge of ... Christ" (2 Pet 3:18) through the study of His Word, God will equip you to know and live out His perfect plan for your life.

(3) If you sincerely desire to know God's will, you must recognize the ministry of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

(a) He communicates with our spirit, always in harmony with the Scriptures, assuring us that we are the children of God (Rom. 8:16). When we are not of God's will In our daily decisions, we can trust the indwelling Holy Spirit to reveal His perfect will, because He always intercedes for the believer "according to the will of God" (Rom. 8:27).

(b) Jesus promised the apostles that the Holy Spirit would guide them into all truth (John 16:13). Through the Scriptures the Holy Spirit also leads us into all the truth we need to know about God's will for our lives. The Holy Spirit will guide us day after day, as we walk according to the will of God revealed in the Scriptures (Eph. 1:9).

(4) You must read outward signs of God's providence. Jesus said to the Philadelphia church, "I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it" (Rev. 3:7, 8). When a church or an individual is living in God's perfect plan, God will open doors of service that no one can close (2 Cor. 2:12), or He will close doors that no one can open. You must be fully committed to Christ and His will before the Lord can show you His open doors. When you are seeking the will of God and there is before you an open door, wait upon the Lord (Is. 40:31). Pray as you wait-pray that the Lord will close the door to you if you should not enter. Yes, God does use outward circumstances to reveal His will to us. If you have a desire to serve the Lord in a special ministry and the door is closed, don't try to force it open. Learn to wait on the Lord, and He will direct your path (Prov. 3:5,6).

(5) Seek the counsel of godly leaders such as pastors, teachers, elders, deacons, and also parents and spiritually mature Christians (Prov. 11:14; 13:10).

            God has a purpose-a perfect plan for every born-again child of God who desires to know and do His pleasure. If you sincerely desire God's will, He will cause everything to work together for your spiritual good (Rom. 8:28, 29).

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29 E. God's Will for Individuals (Colossians 1:9, 10)  -Are you filled with the knowledge of God's will for your life? Paul said he desired "that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding" (v. 9). This verse tells us God has a perfect plan for each believer, so that he or she can please Him and be fruitful in good works. Everyone can know God's will for his or her life in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. This spiritual wisdom does not come from within the natural (carnal) man (1 Cor. 2:14); it comes from the throne of God by the prayer of faith.

            James tells us that there are two kinds of wisdom. The first is earthly wisdom, born of carnal man. It is a superficial sort of wisdom, a part of this world system that says, "If there is a God, we do not need Him." "This wisdom does not descend from above [from God], but is earthly [beastly], sensual [lust of the flesh], demonic [demon-controlled]. For where envy [jealousy] and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there" (James 3:13-16). This earthly wisdom will never lead you into the perfect will of God.

            The second kind is heavenly wisdom, and is a gift of God to all who meet the requirements in James 1:5-8. "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy" (James 3:17). This heavenly wisdom will reveal God's perfect will for your life when you seek it with your whole heart through prayer and His Word.

            Wisdom to know the perfect will of God for your life is a gift of God; spiritual understanding comes from a knowledge of God's revealed will in the Scriptures (2 Tim. 2:15). "Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the lord is" (Eph. 5:17). Yes, God wants you to know His specific plan for your life and understand that in it "all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28).

            We pray for spiritual wisdom to know the will of God. We pray for wisdom to read outward expressions of God's providence, to recognize open or closed doors, and always to be spiritually conscious of the indwelling Holy Spirit, who has promised to guide us into all truth. Remember that these outward and inward leadings never contradict the revealed will of God in His Word.

God has made known His perfect will to individuals in every biblical age, and the evidence is overwhelming.

(1) In the age before the Flood, God revealed His plan to the following persons:

(a) To Adam, when He placed him in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:15-17). When Adam and Eve sinned, God sent them out of the Garden and made known His will for them and their descendants, under the curse of sin (Gen. 3:1-24).

(b) To Enoch, who walked with God for three hundred years (Gen. 5:18-24).

(c) To Noah, who built the ark according to God's revealed instructions (Gen. 6:9-22).

(2) In the age of the patriarchs, from Abraham to Joshua, God revealed His plan to Abraham, whom He called and commissioned to walk in His will (Gen. 12:1-9). He failed in his first test and went down into Egypt (Gen. 12:10-20). He returned to Bethel, where he had built an altar, "And there Abram called on the name of the LORD" (Gen. 13:1-4). In Egypt he did not build an altar, nor did he call on the name of the Lord. He disobeyed the will of God when he chose his own course of action. No believer is capable of making the right decision merely on the basis of natural wisdom; Abraham was a wise man, but not that wise. When a believer has a decision to make, and he does not know the will of God, he can ask God for wisdom, "and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting" (James 1 :5-8).

(3) God raised up the judges, from Othniel to Samuel, to do His will. Some failed the Lord, others walked in His will.

(4) In the kingdom period (from King Saul to King Zedekiah) God, through the prophets, revealed His plan to the kings of Israel and Judah. Some kings rebelled and did evil, but others walked in His will and were blessed by God.

(5) In the church age Jesus said, "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me" (John 6:38). Jesus (the God-Man), whose will is as perfect as the Father's, united His will with the will of the Father. In this He is our great example. Therefore, we must seek to know and to do the will of God in everything (Col. 3:16, 17). It would be difficult to mention all of the New Testament saints who walked in the will of God. Think of the millions of believers, since Jesus' day, who have walked in His will; add to that all the saints of the future who will know His plan for their lives and walk in it. Yes, God does have a perfect plan for your life; may you not rest until you know it, and learn how to walk in it.  (These studies will continue next month)

Rightly Dividing The Word, Clarence Larkins

XXVI Heaven and Hell , part I of II

 

            The Scriptures speak of two places, "Heaven" and "Hell," where the "righteous" and ,"wicked" respectively are to spend eternity. The one demands the other. There can be no Heaven without its counterpart Hell. If there is no Hell there is no Heaven, for the same Book speaks of both.

I. HEAVEN

            Heaven is a "PLACE," it is not a state or condition.

            The New Jerusalem is not Heaven, though it is a city of Heaven. The Apostle John tells us that he saw it "com­ing down from God OUT OF HEAVEN." Rev. 21: 2.

            It is the "PLACE" that Jesus told His Disciples He was going away to prepare for them. John 14: 2. It did not exist at the time Jesus was on earth. It was built between the time Jesus ascended in A. D. 30, and the time when John saw it in vision descend from Heaven in A. D. 96, or if not yet built, it will be built before the Rapture of the Church, for it is to be the Residence of the Bride, the Lamb's Wife. Rev. 21: 9-10. Of Abraham we read-"He looked for a City which hath foundations, whose 'builder' and 'maker' is GOD." Heb. 11: 10. The New Jerusalem is that City. The' Apostle says-"Here we have no continuing city (permanent abiding place), but we seek one to come." Heb. 13: 14.

            The Scriptures speak of three Heavens.

(1) The Heaven of the _earth's atmosphere. "God gave you rain from heaven." Acts. 14: 17.

(2) The Heaven of the Stars. The "High Places" where the "Principalities and Powers" of evil have their abode. Eph. 6: 12. (3) The Heaven where God dwells. It was to this "Third Heaven" that the Apostle Paul was caught up, when at Lystra he was stoned and his spirit apparently left his body. Acts 14: 19-20. Paul calls it both the "Third Heaven" and "Paradise." 2 Cor. 12: 1-4. The two then must be identical, or "Paradise" be a part of the "Third Heaven." It is to this "Paradise Section" of Heaven that the "Soul" and "Spirit" of the Righteous go since the Resurrection of Christ. See the Chapter on "The Spirit World," The word "Paradise" means a "garden" or "enclosed place." It must therefore be a most beautiful place of trees and flowers and fruits. There the "Spirits" of the Righteous in their "Soulish" bodies, conscious and happy, and in fellowship with loved ones and the saints of all Ages, await the First Resurrection, when, having received their glorified bodies, and been judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ, and married to the Lamb (Christ), they go to dwell in the New Jerusalem, the home of the Bride. From this we see that we must dis­tinguish between Heaven proper, and its suburb Paradise. and the New Jerusalem.

            But we must not forget that while Paradise, the place where the Saints of God now dwell, is a glorious place, and the Saints are there in the enjoyment of Heavenly things, that they are under certain limitations. They have not as yet received their resurrection body with all its glorious powers, nor been judged so as to receive their reward, or crown, if they are entitled to any. The description of Heaven and the New Jerusalem as given in the Book of Revelation from the third chapter to the end of the Book, is still future, and the things there described will not come to pass until after the Rapture of the Church, so what is said of the New Jerusalem and its occupants does not apply until after the Judgment of Believers. See my book on Revelation. While the Saints were removed from the Paradise section of "The Under­world" when Christ rose from the dead, and taken to the Paradise of the "Third Heaven" to be near Christ, so that now to depart and be with Christ (Phil. 1: 23) is most blessed, it does not follow that their state there is any more blissful than it was in The Underworld. It is well that we get this Scriptural view of the place and condition of the Saints between death and the resurrec­tion of the body clearly in our mind, for there is so much unscriptural teaching as to the state of the dead between death and the resurrection.

            While the state of the Righteous dead is incomplete, it is most blissful and happy, but more a state of rest and

waiting than a state of activity or service. Rev. 14: 13, 6: 9-11. The Saints in Paradise will be free from sin and temptation, from sorrow, sickness and death. Their environment will be conducive to holy living, and the atmosphere of the place will be that of love. They will enjoy the society of holy men of old, as Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, Isaiah, Daniel, Peter, John and Paul. They shall meet and know their loved ones, and the mysteries of this life will all be solved. They will have a "New Song," and delight in ascribing their salva­tion to the Lamb. But after they get their resurrection body, and are rewarded for their works, they will be as­signed to tasks for which they are best qualified, and for which their earth life fitted them. For instance David will be a King or Prince, Daniel a Statesman, Moses a Lawgiver, Paul a Missionary, for during the Millennial Reign of Christ the saints will be coworkers with Him. Moses and Elijah came back to earth as God's witnesses, and why shall not we? The angels work and the redeemed shall work. _But with all our service we shall never grow old, or tired, or weary, and we shall pass the whole of eternity with our Lord as "joint heir" with Him of an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that shall not fade away, reserved in Heaven for us. 1 Pet. 1: 3-5. Heaven then is our "Father's House," it is a HOME, and a place of "many Mansions." John 14: 2. It will be delightful to go there.' Some people live in fear of death (Heb. 2: 15), and cannot bear to think of it, but those of us who know that Heaven is to be our Eternal Home ought not to fear "Death," for it is "Death" that opens the door for our "Exodus" from earth to glory.

FIRST EXPERIENCES AFTER DEATH

            Did you ever stop to think of what happens to the Righteous Soul during the first five minutes after death? Before the funeral has been held, and the body laid away· in the cemetery, nay, before the undertaker has been sent for, or the neighbors and relatives notified, or the shades drawn, or the silent watchers at the bedside have realized that you are dead you have been FIVE MINUTES Out of the body and reached Paradise and know where you are to spend eternity. Now what will be our experiences in those first five minutes?

 (l) Our first experience will be that death was so easy. That it was like falling asleep and awaking in a beautiful world. That there was no "Valley of Death," with its hobgoblins, satyrs, and demons, to traverse, no "dark river" to cross, but that "Ministering Angels" were waiting to convoy us to Para­dise as they carried Lazarus. Luke 16: 22. Heb. 1: 13­14. What a delight it will be to meet our "Guardian Angel," who has watched over us in our "earth life," and who will not desert us in that supreme moment when we shall need a guide to conduct us to our Heavenly Home.

(2) Our second experience will be the con­sciousness that we have left behind our earthly body with all its weaknesses, sufferings, and limitations, and have a body that is absolutely well and fitted in every way for the spiritual realm in which it is to dwell.

(3) Our third experience will be that we are being trans­ported swiftly upward through the ethereal space toward a beautiful country whose radiance is brighter than the sun, and as we approach it see coming out to meet us and escort us home, groups of angels who sing-"Blessed are they that do His Commandments, that they may have right to the Tree of Life, and may enter in through the gates of the city." Rev. 22: 14.

(4) Our fourth exper­ience will be that we are in a new environment whose atmosphere is LOVE. That there is no discord, or lack of harmony in our new home, and that its chief character­istic is HOLINESS.

(5) Our fifth experience will be the feeling that we are near Jesus. If we do not actually see Him, we shall have the consciousness of His nearness.

(6) Our sixth experience will be that of meeting our loved ones. While the writer does not believe that our loved ones have any direct knowledge of what is going on on this earth, yet he believes that our "Guardian Angel" may communicate with our loved ones and inform them of our coming, and that they will be waiting to receive us.

(7) Our seventh experience will be the meeting with the saints who have preceded us to glory, such as the patriarchs, prophets, apostles and Christian leaders of our own day. The experiences named may not all happen in the first five minutes after death, but they doubtless will happen before our funeral service is over and our body laid to rest in the tomb.

II. HELL

            To have a correct view of the other world, and of "Hell," it is necessary that we have a Scriptural under~ standing of-,

THE UNDERWORLD.

            The Hebrew word "SHEOL" is found 65 times in the Old Testament. It is translated 31 times, "HELL;" 31 times, "GRAVE;" 3 times, "THE PIT." The corre­sponding word in the Greek of the New Testament is "HADES." It is translated 10 times "HELL." "Sheo!" and "Hades" mean "The Unseen State," or the place to which the "Soul" and "Spirit" of the dead go between the death and the resurrection of the body. The "bodies" of the dead go into the "Grave," the word for which in the Hebrew is "GEBER," and in the Greek "MNE­MElON." Neither "Sheo!" nor "Hades" denote the "Hell" of final punishment of the wicked. That is called in the Hebrew of the Old Testament "TOPHET," and in the Greek of the New Testament "GEHENNA." N either do they denote "THE BOTTOMLESS PIT" (Rev. 20: 1-3), that is "ABUSSOS," nor the "prison house" of the "Fallen Angels" (2 Pet. 2: 4, Jude 6), that is "TART ARUS." Their general meaning is-"THE UNDERWORLD."

            That we may the better understand the relation of the places mentioned above to each other let us turn to the Chart, "The Heavens". The word "Sheol" means a "hollow subterranean place," therefore "Hades" must mean the same. It has "gates," for Jesus said that the "Gates of Hell" (Hades), should not prevail against the Church. Matt. 16: 18. And Jesus after His return from "The Underworld," said-"I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the 'KEYS' (of the Gates) of hell (Hades) and of death (the Grave)." Rev. 1: 18. To get these "Keys" Jesus had to descend into the "lower parts of the earth." Eph. 4: 9. The Apostolic Creed says that Jesus de­scended into "Hell" (Hades). Therefore Hades, or "The Underworld," must be in the "heart of the earth," and is so pictured on the Chart. Jesus said to the penitent Thief "TODAY shalt thou be with me in 'Paradise.''' Luke 23: 43. And as Jesus "that day" descended into "The Underworld" or "Hades," "Paradise" must have been in Christ's day in "Hades." But as it had been prophesied of Jesus that His "SOUL" (for His body was in Joseph's Tomb on the surface of the earth) should not remain in "Hell" (Hades), (Psa. 16: 10, Acts 2: 27), therefore, before His body could see corruption, Jesus came back from "Hades." But He did not come back alone. He seized the "Keys of Hades," unlocked the Gates of the Paradise Section (P) in which He was con­fined, and emptied it of its captives, and when He ascended on high He took them to the Paradise section of the "Third Heaven" (E), where they now are, and since then the Paradise Section of "The Underworld" has been empty. Eph. 4: 8-10.

            In the account of the experience of the "Rich Man" and "Lazarus" in the other world (Luke 16: 19-31), Jesus gives us a description of "The Underworld" as it was in His day. According to the narrative, for it is not a parable, for parables do not give proper names as Abra­ham and Lazarus, both the "Rich Man" and Lazarus had died and their bodies had been buried, and what hap­pened to them in the "Underworld," was descriptive of what happened to them in their "disembodied state." In that state they were conscious, could see, hear, speak, and recognized each other. The difference was that Lazarus was in the "Paradise" section of the "Under­world" (P), typified by Abraham's "bosom," while the "Rich Man" was in the "Hell" section (H), not the final Hell, which is "Gehenna" (Lake of Fire), but in the sec­tion of the "Underworld" where the "souls" of the "Wicked" dead go, and remain until the resurrection of the "Wicked" dead. Between the "Paradise" (P) sec­tion, and the "Hell" (H) section of the "Underworld" there is an "Impassable Gulf" (K), (Luke 16: 26), which reveals the fact that there is no possibility of the "Wicked" dead ever getting out of "Hell" into "Para­dise."

            On the Chart this "Impassable Gulf" is represented as the entrance to the "Bottomless Pit," or "ABYSS" (A), the "prison house" of the "Demons" (Rev. 9: 1-21), and where Satan is to be bound for 1000 years. Rev. 20: 1-3, 7-8. The Old Testament speaks of a place in "The Underworld" called in the Hebrew "ABADDON," and in the Greek "APOLEIA." The word is translated in the Old Testament, "DESTRUCTION" (Prov. 27: 20. Job 26: 6,28: 22, 31: 12. Psa. 88: 11. Prov. 15: 11), and the same in the New Testament (Matt. 7: 13. Rom. 9: 22. Phil. 3: 19. 2 Pet. 2: 1, 3: 16). In Prov. 27: 20 it says- "Hell (Hades) and· 'Destruction' (Abaddon) are never full," thus connecting "Abaddon" with "Hades" (Sheol). The inference is that "Abaddon" is a part of "The Underworld," and when we turn to Rev. 9: 1-3, 11, this inference becomes a certainty, for there we read that the "King" of the "Bottomless Pit" is called in the Hebrew tongue "ABADDON," but in the Greek tongue his name is "APOLLYON," that is, the King of the "Bottomless Pit" is named after the Hebrew and Greek words that are translated-"DESTRUCTION." Now the word translated "Bottomless Pit" is "ABUSSOS," or "ABYSS." Nine times do we read of this "Abyss" in the New Testament. Rom. 10:7. Rev. 9: 1-2; 9:11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1-3. It is the place into which the Demons besought Christ not to send them. Luke S: 31.. The "Bottomless Pit" or "Abyss" (A) then is a' deeper compartment in "The Underworld" than "Paradise" (P), or "Hell" (H), and is the place where the "Demons" and baser spirits are temporarily confined until they are finally consigned to the "Lake of Fire" to spend eternity with their Master, Satan.

            To the left of the "Bottomless Pit" is "TARTARUS" (T), the "prison house" of the "Fallen Angels." 2 Pet. 2: 4. Jude 6. These "Angels" are not Satan's angels, for they are at liberty. These "Fallen Angels" confined in "Tartarus" are the "Sons of God" who married the "Daughters of Men," and whose abnormal sin caused the Flood. See Chapter two

pages 21 and 22. They are to remain in their "prison house" until the "Great White Throne" Judgment, when they with the "Wicked Dead" are to be judged. Jude 6.

            To the right of the "Bottomless Pit" is "GEHENNA" (G). This is the "Final Hell" or "LAKE OF FIRE" prepared for the Devil and his angels, into which the "Wicked," after the "Great White Throne" Judgment, will be cast to spend eternity. Matt. 25: 41. Rev. 20: 12-15. It is called "TOPHET" in the Old Testament Hebrew (2 Kings 23 :10. Isa. 30: 33.

Jer. 7: 31-32, 19:6, 11-14), and in the New Testament Greek it is twelve times called "GEHENNA" (Matt. 5: 22, 29-30. 10: 28. 18: 9. 23: 15, 33. Mark 9: 43, 45-47. Luke 12: 5. James 3: 6), and five times the "LAKE OF FIRE." It is as yet unoccupied. The first persons to get into it are the "Beast" and the "False Prophet" (Rev. 19: 20), then "SATAN" and his Angels a 1000 years later (Rev. 20: 10), and then after the "Great White Throne" Judgment' the "Fallen Angels," now confined in Tartarus, and all the wicked whose names are not found written in the "Book of Life." Rev. 20: 12-15. On the south side of Jerusalem was the "Valley of Hinnom." At a high place in this valley called "Tophet," in the times of Isaiah and Jeremiah, parents made their children to pass through the fire to Moloch. 2 Kings 23 : 10. This fire was kindled with brimstone. Isa. 30: 33. The locality afterward became a place for the burning of garbage from the City of Jerusalem. The fires were kept up perpetually, and the decaying matter as yet unconsumed bred worms. Jesus took this valley called "Ge-Hinnom," corrupted into "GEHENNA," and made it a type of "Hell" or the "Lake of Fire," where "their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." Mark 9: 43-48.

            At the upper part of the Chart "Heaven" is shown. It includes the present "Paradise" (E), and the "New Jerusalem" (]). And also gives the relative location of the "Judgment Seat of Christ" (C), and the "Great White Throne" (W). The "Arrow" marked lines give the course and destiny of the "Righteous" and "Wicked" dead..

            There are those who claim that "Sheol" (Hades) and the "Grave" are identical, and as there is no "knowledge" in the grave (Ecc. 9: 5, 10), therefore the soul "sleeps" until the resurrection of the body. But as it is only the "body" that goes into the "grave," it is only the "body" that "sleeps" or has no knowledge. The "Soul" and "Spirit" of a man goes to "Sheol," not to the "Grave." In Gen. 37: 3S we read-"And all his (Jacob's) sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, 'For I will go down into' the GRAVE unto my son mourning.''' The Revised Version substitutes for "Grave" the word "SHEOL," and the American Revision has in 'the margin-"Sheol, abode of the dead," and the American Baptist Publication Society edition, "The Underworld." So we see that Jacob did not mean that he would go "unto my son" in the "GRAVE," for he did not believe that his son Joseph was in the "grave," but that he had been eaten by a "wild beast" (Gen. 37: 33). What Jacob meant was that he would "go down" into SHEOL, "The Underworld," and there he would meet Joseph, for it would be no comfort to go to a place (the grave) where he would know no one.

            In Gen. 25: 8 we read-"Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years, and was 'GATHERED TO HIS PEOPLE.''' The expression "Gathered to his people" has no refer­ence to the "Grave" or "Family Burial Place," for that was over in Chaldea, but it means that Abraham went to "The Underworld" where the souls of his ancestors had gone, and where he would be reunited to them. The same statement is made of Isaac (Gen. 35: 29) with the additional statement, "and his sons BURIED HIM," thus showing that while his "soul" was "gathered to his people" in "The Underworld," his "body" was buried in the "grave."

            Among those who teach that the "Soul" at death goes to "The Underworld," are those who claim that the "souls" of those who are not as yet fully fit for Heaven go to a place called Purgatory.   (These studies will continue next month)

 

Evangelist James A. Nelson  (jan23@cox.net) and his wife of 57 years, Janet, are members of the Village Bible Church, Salina, Kansas.  This page is sponsored by David R. Pickett (dr_pickett@hotmail.com) and our Webmaster is Martin Gutzmer (mrgutzmer@gmail.com).