“Christ’ representative on earth is the Holy Spirit” Jesus made this clear to His disciples a few short hours before Gethsemane: “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you … Read More
It is time for me to begin my first blog. My very first entry, and God willing, the first of many. For some time now this site has seen little improvement due to a lack of effort on my part, … Read More
1And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
2And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
3And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.
4And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.
5And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,
6And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
7But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.
8And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.
9And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.
10And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
11And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.
And cried with a loud voice, and said,
What have I to do with thee, Jesus,
thou Son of the most high God?
I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.
And Simon Peter answered and said,
Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath
he given to the Son to have life in himself;
That all men should honour the Son,
even as they honour the Father.
He that honoureth not the Son honoureth
not the Father which hath sent him.
For God so loved the world,
that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should
not perish, but have everlasting life.
For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me;
and they have received them, and have known surely that I
came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him,
because he not only had broken the sabbath,
but said also that God was his Father,
making himself equal with God.
Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified,
and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest;
because I said, I am the Son of God?
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
And this is life eternal, that they might
know thee the only true God, and
Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh,
when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem,
worship the Father.
22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship:
for salvation is of the Jews.
At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father,
Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things
from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
The Emerging Church is a movement that claims to be Christian. The term ‘Emerging Church’ is used to describe a broad, controversial movement that seeks to use culturally sensitive approaches to reach the postmodern, un-churched population with the Christian message. Some Emerging Churches might use props such as candles, statues, and incense along with poems, open mics, and videos, etc. EC services are sometimes extremely informal, while others are more formal.
Emerging Churches seek to reach the lost by focusing on relationships and developing a “story,” a “journey of life” that is expressed through the “narrative” of learning. These words and others are often used by emerging teachers in describing their religious experience. Other terms sometimes used are “reimagine,” “tribe,” “story of Jesus,” “deconstruction,” etc. There is sometimes an ambiguous, feelings-oriented desire to experience God and also share in the lives of people as they seek to find God in their way. Some Emerging Churches are inclusivistic (those outside of Christianity will be saved), while others are not. Some Emerging Churches are environmentally focused, while others concentrate on local issues. Some downplay doctrine, reinterpret creeds, and de-emphasize tradition, while others hold to them. Obviously, it is difficult to define precisely what is emerging and what is not.
Seeker-sensitive churches are similar to Emerging Churches except that Emerging Churches are sometimes lax doctrinally, where seeker-sensitive churches, which sometimes are lax in presenting the gospel, hold nonetheless to orthodox theology. Seeker-sensitive churches try to meet people’s needs through programs, where Emerging Churches do this by investing time in people’s lives. Seeker churches tend to focus on people in their thirties and up where Emerging Churches tend to reach people in their teens to thirties. But, some areas of the Emerging Church are so similar to seeker-sensitive churches that it is hard to tell the difference. So how do you distinguish between the two? Generally, a church is emerging if it seeks to reach those lost in the post-modern culture, rejects doctrinal absolutes, and, of course, proclaims itself to be emerging.
Following are some of the common traits I have discovered by reading through Emerging Church material. But please understand that not all Emerging Churches adhere to all the points listed.
Hopefully you can see some problems in the list. But, I have to say it again, not all Emerging Church adherents agree with all the points. Emerging Church pastors Mark Driscoll and Dan Kimball both acknowledge the necessity of preaching doctrinal truths which properly define Christianity while others like Brian McLaren are extremely lax when it comes to proclaiming the true biblical faith, so much so that he’s been called a false teacher.2
There is no official single Emerging Church or Emerging Church doctrine so there is no unified structure to examine. But, there are a lot of Emerging Church writings. The more I read them, the more concerned I become. It is apparent that the movement as a whole is off-center and is sacrificing time-honored biblical truths for a let’s-get-along kind of attitude.
This rejection of traditionalism (regimented service, hymns, organs, a dress code, “we’ve always done it this way”, etc.) has made it easier for those who don’t like absolute truth statements, who reject exclusivism (that Jesus is the only way). They are thus drawn to very casual settings where they can also more easily reject traditional doctrines such as the Trinity, the deity of Christ, and his physical resurrection.
“Sit down here next to me in this little restaurant and ask me if Christianity (my version of it, yours, the Pope’s, whoever’s) is orthodox, meaning true, and here’s my honest answer: a little, but not yet. Assuming by Christianity you mean the Christian understanding of the world and God, Christian opinions on soul, text, and culture… I’d have to say that we probably have a couple of things right, but a lot of things wrong, and even more sprints before is unseen and unimagined.”6
Remember, the Emerging Church is, in part, reacting against the modernistic, absolute structure of stale traditional churches that want people to convert to their style of worship and time-frozen culture. Instead, Emerging Church members believe it is necessary to establish relationships with people, going where they are, meeting them on their level, and then later presenting doctrinal truths after they have become part of their lives. I must admit, this is what Jesus did. He was involved with the lives of the disciples, interacted with them, grew very close to them and taught them by example, not just propositionally.
Even though there are some pastors in the Emerging Church Movement that are true to scripture, the movement as a whole needs to stick to the essentials of the Christian faith, otherwise, in spite of its proclamation to renew Christianity afresh, it will become stale and heretical. No one, no movement of people should ever be so arrogant as to say that they can’t fall into error — even though they seek truth. As I’ve always said, if you want to mess something up, all you need is two things: people and time. The Emerging Church movement has much good in it, but it also has a good bit of bad already within its doors.
Emergent Church Leader, Rob Bell, has lit up the blogosphere with the firestorm he is causing with what many believe to be heretical views on God, Christ, and Salvation in his new book, Love Wins.
The book is currently number one in Amazon’s “Religion and Spirituality” section. The subtitle of Bell’s book reads that it is “a book about heaven, hell, and the fate of every person who ever lived.”
The Emerging Church has often been described as being as hard to define as nailing Jell-O to a wall. This is, in part, because the pieces are always moving and emergent leaders are continually redefining themselves. It is also due to the fact that there is no genuine commitment to propositional truth, so emergent leader’s tend to be very evasive and their lies are as slippery as an eel. You never seem to get straight answers. This was demonstrated most vividly in Rob Bell’s recent interview with Martin Bashir on MSNBC.
During the interview, Bell squirmed and dodged query after query like a belly dancer on speed, as Martin Bashir confronted him with his unscriptural ideas about Hell and universal salvation. If nailing down the views of the Emerging Church is like nailing Jell-O to the wall, Bell’s interview with Bashir was like watching Jell-O (Rob Bell) getting splattered against the wall (Martin Bashir)!
This is what happens when a smarmy postmodernist, who has capitulated and conformed to the world, is confronted with being consistent and telling the truth.
When you listen to Bell, you have to ask, “What ever happened to the holiness of God and the sinful nature and depravity of man? How about the wrath of God? Or, the straight gate and the narrow road that Jesus speaks of?”
According to Bell, who views Hell through rose-colored glasses, Hell is just one last pit stop a person makes before Heaven. After a long life of rebellion against God…if it’s too hot…don’t worry, you can choose to accept God’s love and you will be whisked away to the streets of gold!
For Rob Bell, Hell, is merely an emergent ‘purgatory’ where men like Adolph Hitler and Joseph Stalin are being held for “pruning” and “correction.” It has nothing to do with the wrath of God. Hell is simply what we make it. If you change your mind and want to go to Heaven, all you have to do is find the exit. If Hell is too uncomfortable, you will have infinite chances to get right with God by accepting his love; which, Bell claims will ultimately melt the heart of every man. Tragically, this deception misleads people into believing that they will be able to escape Hell long after they have been dead and buried.
Bell vs. Bashir
As Martin Bashir interviewed Rob Bell, the words “Bell Accused of Committing Heresy”were emblazoned across the television screen and Bashir stated that the “mega church pastor has ignited a theological firestorm by suggesting that… all will be saved. He argues people will be persuaded by God’s love, postmortem in the life to come.” Bashir, a professing Christian himself, accused Bell of soft peddling Hell and fleecing the flock:
“You’ve indicated one of the problems with the book, you’re creating a Christian message that’s warm, kind, and popular, for contemporary culture but it’s, frankly, according to this critic, unbiblical and historically unreliable. That’s true, isn’t it?”
Bashir, sensing Bell’s duplicity, became irritated by Bell’s refusal to give him a straight answer, and then accused him of speaking out of both sides of his mouth. After Bell tersely denied that he was a Universalist, Bashir immediately followed with a scathing indictment:
“You’re amending the gospel so that it’s palatable to contemporary people who find, for example, the idea of Hell and Heaven very difficult to stomach. So here comes Rob Bell, he’s made a Christian gospel for you and it’s perfectly palatable, it’s easy to swallow.”
At this point, Bell knew he was in deep trouble. He was being exposed before a national audience. On the one hand, he was clearly espousing a version of universal salvation, yet in the same breath he was denying that fact and lying through his teeth! In his effort to appeal to the masses with his watered down version of Hell and the Gospel, Bell became painfully aware that by blatantly admitting Universalism, he would be placing himself completely outside the pale of Christian orthodoxy and be considered a heretic.
Overall, Rob Bell knows if he comes clean he could potentially lose a large segment of his evangelical audience, which has long grown tired of his balancing act on the precipice of orthodoxy and heterodoxy. He is a Universalist, but knows if he fully leaves the closet and clearly proclaims his heretical views he will severely compromise his following.
Martin Bashir was right. Rob Bell is changing the message of the Gospel for the sake of broadening his audience. In his book, Love Wins, Bell tells us that the traditional understanding of Christ’s teaching on Heaven and Hell “isn’t a very good story” (p. 110). Bell wants a story that will make unrepentant rebels against God feel comfortable in their sin.
Tickling Itching Ears
In Chapter Four of Love Wins, Bell criticizes some statements of faith that he has taken from evangelical church websites that reflect Jesus’ teachings on Hell: “The unsaved will be separated forever from God in hell.” After giving a number of examples with which he feels uncomfortable, Bells states, “All this, on a website. Welcome to our church.” (pp. 95-96). Here, we see Bell’s real concern, he wants people to feel welcomed to his church. He doesn’t want Jesus’ true teachings on Hell to diminish the numbers.
Bell states that “no amount of clever marketing will attract people if we teach that ‘God will punish people for all of eternity.’”So he forges his own brand of “marketing” by redefining Hell and diminishing its horrors. Bell empties Hell of God’s wrath and shortens its duration.
Bell claims that by softening the message, the Gospel will become more attractive to non-believers. It is true that a watered down message will increase the number of non-believers at ice cream socials and Christian love feasts; but, at what point does changing the message of the Lord Jesus Christ make the true Gospel a ‘different’ gospel? What right do we have to change the everlasting Gospel?
The truth is Jesus taught that the Father is seeking those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24). We are commanded to present the Gospel to a lost and dying world and to preach and teach God’s Word off the very pages of Holy Scripture. To do anything less is to betray the one true God who sent His only begotten Son to save us. We are not loving others, as Jesus commands us to do, if we do not present them with God’s truth and the very real consequences that await those who reject Him.
Bashir’s accusation that Bell is changing the Gospel to make it more palatable to popular culture is what the apostle Paul warned false teachers would do in the last days:
“Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound[ teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”
–2 Timothy 4:2-4
The false doctrine of Universalism has been called the “beautiful heresy” because it is seductive and tickles the ears. Before Rob Bell’s revealing interview with Martin Bashir, Bell was interviewed by Christian media which lobbed him one soft ball after another so he could always hit them right out of the PR park. What a shame, that it took a liberal news organization filled with Godless atheists, like MSNBC, to hold Rob Bell’s feet to the fire and confront him with compromising the biblical message to accommodate popular culture. Incredibly, it appeared far more as though Martin Bashir was the informed pastor, and Rob Bell the novice.
In a radio interview with Paul Edwards that was conducted after Martin Bashir exposed Bell, Edwards stated that Bashir had raised the ire of the liberal emergent crowd because their Goliath couldn’t answer the questions and was brought down.
Bashir told Edwards that after reading Rob Bell’s book propagating the heresy of Universalism, that Bell was dishonest in his handling of church history and Holy Scripture. Bashir accused Bell of making deliberate historical errors to support his views on Universalism. He stated that Bell would not admit he was a Universalist even though it is stated as much in Love Wins.
Bashir summed up Bell’s book, Love Wins this way:
“[H]e says in his book ‘God’s love melts everything in the end, and at the end of the day, you can be antagonistic toward Christianity, but after you die, God’s love will melt your opposition, and you’ll walk into heaven.”
He told Edwards that Bell is chipping away at the Gospel and reshaping it so that he will not be offensive, but in effect, he is emptying it of its critical content and at the same time, strategically positioning it as ‘mainstream evangelical.’
He further stated that if Bell were to have admitted what he was really teaching in his MSNBC interview, his constituency would have run for cover and he would lose his popularity. Bashir said, “When I read the book… I saw what I believe… is an egregious disregard for history, and a treatment of biblical text in the most selective and perfunctory manner.”
Rob Bell’s denial on MSNBC of the heresy of universal salvation is not only betrayed by the content of his book, but by his own church’s (Mars Hill) FAQs page. As you can see with your own eyes, according to the Mar’s Hill website, he is at the very least, a “hopeful Universalist.”
The Love Wins FAQ’s state that Bell holds that:
“Those who reject the invitation [to salvation] experience a purifying “fire” of judgment in hell, yet there is hope…. Love Wins helps us have a biblical imagination that leaves room for the hope of the redemption of all while recognizing humanities free will to continue to reject God….[Bell] is proposing that God’s love is so big that the invitation to God’s grace may extend into the next life so that all could be saved.”
(Click Here for a PDF of the original Love Wins FAQ. It has since been updated on their site due to the firestorm caused over the book.)
The emergent-friendly, Global Dictionary of Theology, makes a distinction between ‘Hopeful Universalism’ and ‘Convinced Universalism’:
“Hopeful universalism finds reason in Scripture to be hopeful that everyone will be saved, but they do not believe that we can be certain of this. Convinceduniversalists, on the other hand, are certain about this, despite of the fact that Christians have traditionally believed that the Bible clearly teaches that some will be eternally condemned.”
However, Bell speaks with a forked tongue. Bell vacillates between being a ‘hopeful universalist’ and a ‘convinced universalist’, stating, “we may get other opportunities [in hell] (Hopeful Universalism)” (p. 197); but ultimately, “NO ONE can resist God’s pursuit forever because GOD’S LOVE WILL EVENTUALLY MELT EVEN THE COLDEST HEARTS.” (p. 108, emphasis added)
Read that last line again and tell me that Rob Bell is not a “Convinced Universalist!” Whether he speaks like a hopeful or a convinced Universalist, he is a Universalist, nevertheless!
Add this to the fact that Bell promotes in Love Wins, “At the heart of this perspective is the belief that, given enough time, everybody will turn to God and find themselves in the joy and peace of God’s presence. The love of God will melt every hard heart, and even the most ‘depraved sinners’ will eventually give up their resistance and turn to God.” (p. 107)
Will All, Most or Few Be Saved?
Indeed, in the very preface of Love Wins, Bell contradicts Jesus’ teaching that few would actually be saved. Bell writes:
“There are a growing number of us who have become acutely aware that Jesus’ story has been hijacked by a number of other stories, stories Jesus isn’t interested in telling…. A staggering number of people have been taught that a select few Christians will spend forever in a peaceful, joyous place called heaven, while the rest of humanity spends forever in torment and punishment in hell with no chance for anything better.” (Rob Bell, Love Wins, from p. viii of the preface)
Where did hundreds of millions of Christians, over the last 2,000 years, ever get the notion that the way to eternal life was narrow, and that few would enter by the narrow gate to be saved? That notion, of course, came directly from the lips of our beloved Lord Jesus himself:
“Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.” –Luke 13:22-24
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” –Matthew 7:13-14
Jesus stated as clearly as it could be stated, that only a “few” find the “narrow door”… and “narrow… Road”… that “leads to life,” while “many” take the “wide” and “easy” road that “leads to destruction.”
I hope and pray that those who have fallen prey to Satan’s wiles through the Emerging Church Movement will wake up and choose the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ over those of Rob Bell! If we choose Rob Bell’s teachings over and above the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ, can we truly call ourselves Christians? Obviously not!
Contrary to Bell’s heretical teaching that Jesus will accept their repentance later in Hell, Jesus said many “will try to enter and will not be able to.”
Who then is really hijacking the Christian faith?
Apparently, it is Rob Bell and other Emergent Leaders who have sought to distort the message of Jesus by telling stories that make the masses feel comfortable in their sin. After all, if they go to Hell, Bell assures them that he believes God will give them many more opportunities to come to God!
Sadly, such teaching will lead many to conclude, “Who cares how wickedly we live? Who cares about those who are starving to death around the world and who have not heard the Gospel? Who cares how many lives we destroy? Why not live like ‘hell’ if we can still go to Heaven?” As the song by Prince states, “Let’s party like it’s 1999!”
Rob Bell states that those who hold to what has traditionally been understood to be the biblical teaching of Heaven and Hell “don’t throw very good parties” (p. 179). That may be true… if you “call evil good and good evil”(Isaiah 5:20) and you believe, contrary to the scriptures, that “drunkards, adulterers and fornicators will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Cor. 6:9-10, Eph. 5:5-8, Gal. 5:19-21, 6:7-9, Rev. 21:8, 22:15)
Of course, if you are a Universalist like Bell, you are ignoring Christ’s warnings of the eternality of Hell and His call to holiness and the narrow road. You are misleading the masses and providing them with a false hope that they will one day get to Heaven… eventually.
For Rob Bell, the gate to eternal life is broad. Bell states in Love Wins, “What Jesus does is declare that he, and he alone, is saving everybody. And then he leaves the door way, way open.” According to Bell, so broad and wide is the narrow road, that you can take the broad road to Hell with the assurance that Jesus continues to “leave the door way, way open” until you decide to take the wide gate into Heaven. Contrasting this to the teachings of Jesus, this is an outright lie and a major deception!
False Prophets Among Us
It is a sobering thought that Jesus went on to state in the verses immediately following His teaching on the narrow and broad roads, that false prophets would come in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15-21). Such false prophets stand at the cross roads between the broad and narrow road, claiming to represent Christ, while pointing their followers toward the broad road that leads destruction, assuring them that it eventually leads to Heaven. Consider this for a minute. Isn’t this exactly what Rob Bell is doing?
The Lord warned us in His Word that we are to earnestly contend for the faith, for false prophets would come and turn the grace of God into a license to sin (Jude 1:4). Rob Bell is turning the finished work of Christ into an open sesame, a license to sin with impunity in this life while guaranteeing a shot at Heaven after spending time in Hell!
Bell teaches, “Forgiveness is unilateral. God isn’t waiting for us to get it together, to clean up, shape up, get up—God has already done it” (p. 189). He deceptively claims that you don’t need to do anything right now, you can simply live like hell and cash your check after you die and go to eternal bliss!
Bell also erroneously teaches that:
This unbiblical claim by Rob Bell that God will eventually melt the hardest hearts in Hell and bring them to Heaven implies that Mao Zedong, Josef Stalin, Adolf Hitler, Genghis Khan, and even Judas Iscariot, will one day be able to walk the streets of gold! Never mind that Jesus said it would be better for Judas that he was never born (Matthew 26:24). As we have seen, Bell tells us that “no one” can resist God’s salvific will.
If Bell is right, and anyone and everyone receives more opportunities to come to Christ in Hell, then Jesus was wrong when he warned that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit was an unpardonable sin. (Matthew 12:31-32, Luke 12:10, Mark 3:28-29)
What kind of deterrent would it be to tell a group of potential serial killers, rapists and child molesters that they need not worry about repenting or going to prison for the rest of their lives, or suffering the death penalty because they have already been forgiven? If this fact holds true, all they would need to do is tell the judge they will receive his love later. However, if they still end up in prison for some reason, they still can – on their own accord later – change their minds and the judge would freely let them out and even pay for an awesome vacation to the Bahamas or another island paradise! What a deal!
Logically, this kind of mindset would only encourage criminals to continue on with their wicked and perverse thoughts and deeds. However, Rob Bell is offering this same type of counterfeit hope of post mortem salvation, which is absolutely foreign to the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. Tragically, this deceiving and licentious doctrine will prove to be a powerful satanic attack that will actually help to swell the population of Hell. Many of those who might otherwise repent, will sadly buy into Bell’s lie and take his false doctrine to its practical conclusions. Wrong doctrine leads to wrong living and could potentially lead many straight to Hell for all eternity.
Rob Bell is promising his vast audience eternal life, even if they choose to continue in their sin and earthly rebellion against God. This is essentially the false doctrine that God rebuked the false prophets of spreading in the days of Ezekiel:
“And you have encouraged the wicked by promising them life, even though they continue in their sins.” –Ezekiel 13:22b
In contrast, God warned Ezekiel that he had better be faithful to preach His warnings or the blood of the lost would be on his head:
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, ‘You wicked person, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.” –Ezekiel 33:7-8
James warned that not many of us are to be teachers, for teachers will receive a stricter judgment (James 3:1). The apostle Paul was faithful to share both the totality of Jesus’ Gospel and preached “the goodness and severity of God” (Romans 11:22). Paul understood the eternal consequences of Jesus’ message and knew that he would have to preach the whole counsel of God if he was to be free from the blood of those he shared with:
“Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God. Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.” –Acts 20:26-27
Tragically, Rob Bell and other emergent leaders, have a lot of blood on their hands.
Bell Waters Down Hell
Rob Bell not only redefines Hell by teaching that it will only be a temporary abode for those who want to leave later, but he redefines Hell by claiming that it is not so much about the after life, but it’s about what you make of the life here and now. In his book, Velvet Elvis, Bell had already stated this position:
“For Jesus, heaven and hell were present realities. Ways of living we can enter into here and now. He talked very little of the life beyond this one…” –Rob Bell (Velvet Elvis, p. 147)
Bell seems to be thinking that most of his audience is biblically uniformed, as he claims that the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16) was not really so much about the rich man going to Hades after he died, but about the “hell” he was supposedly making of his life in the here and now (pp. 77-79).
In Chapter Seven of Love Wins, Bell states:
“Hell is our refusal to trust God’s retelling of our story,” and “We create hell whenever we fail to trust God’s retelling of our story.”
Bell denies the biblical Hell by stripping Hell of all of the fire, wrath, darkness, and torment that Jesus described.
For Rob Bell, Hell is:
“…a word that refers to the big, wide, terrible evil that comes from the secrets hidden deep without our hearts all the way to the massive, society-wide collapse and chaos that comes when we fail to live in God’s world God’s way.” (p. 95)
Bell also believes:
“We do ourselves great harm when we confuse the very essence of God, which is love, with the very real consequences of rejecting that love, which creates what we call hell.” (p. 177)
Bell’s teaching that Hell is what you make it and you are already experiencing it now on earth will allow many to view Hell as quite heavenly. Since there is pleasure in sin for a season, many sinners will consequently be quite happy with the hell they have made and will see no reason to repent until the ‘kicks’ turn to ‘kick backs’ and it is too late.
Bell the Preterist
Rob Bell takes every possible liberty to deny reality and to either explain Hell away or get everyone into Heaven, regardless of his or her rejection of God and the Gospel. Bell not only empties Hell of God’s holy wrath, he creates an exit door from the inside out and claims that Hell is merely what we make it. He also claims that most of the imagery of future judgments in Hell were fulfilled on earth in AD 70 (p. 81).
Of course, Bell’s appeal to preterism falls flat for a plethora of exegetical reasons. It will suffice at this juncture to point out that the early church fathers, such as Polycarp (who was a disciple of the apostle John) and Irrenaeus, inform us that the book of Revelation was written by the apostle John during the reign of Domitian in the 90’s, more than 20 years after the destruction of Jerusalem. Thus, the book of Revelation, for that reason and many others, could not have been describing what happened in AD 70!
Ultimately, Rob Bell trivializes what Hell really is. While Bell speculates and redefines Hell in his interview with Martin Bashir, he accuses Christians – who take Jesus at face value – as speculating about what happens after death. He stated, “My experience has been a lot of Christians built whole dogmas about what happens when you die, and we have to be very careful we don’t build whole doctrines and dogmas on what is speculation.” To this, Bashir wisely responded, “You’re the one making speculation about the after life.”
Rob Bell’s unscriptural and wild speculation about Hell being a temporary abode is more akin to world religions like Islam, and cults like Mormonism, than it is Christianity!
Those of us who know God do not have to speculate about the after life. We are speculating when we believe God’s faithful testimony.
“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” –Hebrews 9:27
The Bible also clearly teaches that those who die with genuine faith in Jesus Christ will be “absent from the body… [and] present with the Lord.” (2 Cor. 5:8, Phil 1:21-23, Hebrews 12:22-23, Revelation 6:9)
Jesus declared that one must be born again to enter the kingdom of God (John 3:3, 5, 7). Jesus also made it clear that those who will not believe will be condemned (John 3:16-21). Jesus further declares that those who refuse to come to Him would die in their sins (John 8:24).
Jesus made it clear that those who reject Him go to Hades upon death (Luke 16:19-31). He further revealed in the book of Revelation that Hades is a temporary holding facility (like a county jail) and that after Christ’s millennial reign the wicked dead will be raised and appear at the great white throne judgment. At that point, they will be judged by their deeds and cast into the lake of fire along with Hades itself (Revelation 20:11-15, 21:8, 22:15). The revelation of Christ reveals that even after being in the lake of fire for over a thousand years, ‘the beast’ and ‘the false prophet’ will still be there (Revelation 20:10).
There is no hint or indication that anyone will receive a second chance in Hades or the lake of fire. Rather, Jesus revealed that there will be no rest, day and night, forever and ever (Revelation 14:9-12).
Eternal or Temporal Punishment?
By claiming that the unrepentant wicked will have a chance to get to Heaven from Hell, Rob Bell has gone beyond that of Edward W. Fudge, who states in The Fire That Consumes, “the wicked, following whatever degree and duration of pain that God may justly inflict, will finally and truly die, perish and become extinct for ever and ever.” (Fudge, The Fire That Consumes, 1982, p. 425)
While Fudge softened what the scriptures actually state about Hell’s duration, Bell has taken it a step further and advocated a form of universalism, claiming that most, if not all, who go to Hell, will someday spend eternity in Heaven.
Rob Bell wants us to believe that the words translated “eternal,” in relation to Hell’s duration, like the noun ‘aion’ and the adjective ‘aionios’, only mean ‘age’. The truth is that the words ‘aion’ and ‘aionios’ can refer to an age or, ‘all eternity’.
In the Olivet discourse, after revealing that He will separate the righteous from the wicked like a shepherd separates sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-45), Jesus states that the wicked “shall go away into eternal [aionios]punishment: but the righteous into eternal [aionios] life.” (Matthew 25:46, ASV)
Jesus employed the exact adjective ‘aionios’ to describe the duration of Hell as He did for Heaven. If Hell is merely temporal, then so is Heaven! Would Bell claim that believers will only enjoy temporal life in Heaven and then cease to exist or go to Hell? I think not! Thus, if we acknowledge that Jesus was using ‘aionios’ to describe the eternal duration of life that the righteous will experience, it is an inescapable conclusion that He used ‘aionios’ to describe the eternal duration of the punishment of the wicked.
Rob Bell is utterly and unconscionably careless with the scriptures on such an important subject as where the lost will ultimately spend eternity. He would have us believe that Matthew 25:46 merely refers to an “age of pruning” rather than “eternal punishment” (p. 91). Bell claims that the Greek reads ‘aion’ (a noun), and ‘kolazo’ (a verb), in Matthew 25:46. When in reality, it is ‘kolasin’ (a noun), and ‘aionion’ (an adjective), with the adjective ‘aionion’modifying punishment (literally, ‘eternal’ punishment).
Since the same adjective ‘aionios’ modifies the duration of life and punishment in the very same verse, sound and unbiased exegesis must conclude that all those who go to Hell, as described by Jesus in 25:46, will suffer eternal punishment.
Nobody ever accused Bell of being a careful and exacting exegete of Holy Scripture; but tragically, his misrepresentation of Jesus’ teaching will likely have a disastrous affect on the souls he is misleading.
Rob Bell errs greatly in that the Greek word ‘aionion’ is used 50 times to describe the eternal life of the believer (John 3:15-16, 10:28, Romans 5:21, 6:23) and it is used repeatedly to describe God’s eternal nature (Romans 16:26, 1 Timothy 6:16, Hebrews 9:14). It is even used to emphasize the unending eternity we will experience as believers, in contrast to the temporal age of the present material world.
“For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” –2 Corinthians 4:18
Thus, it makes far more sense to understand ‘aionion’ to express that which is eternal when it comes to the duration of the punishment of the wicked (Matthew 18:8, 25:41, 25:46, 2 Thessalonians 1:9, Jude 7). All of this undermines Bell’s lame attempt to get his audience to see the word as an exclusive reference to a temporal age or quality of life; especially, when eternal life is contrasted with eternal punishment in the very same verse (Matthew 25:46).
Biblical Scholar D.A. Carson, commenting on Matthew 25:46, says :
“…there is no shred of evidence in the N.T. that hell ever brings about genuine repentance. Sin continues as part of the punishment and the ground for it.” (D.A. Carson, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (Matthew 13-28), Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1995, p. 523)
Again, Carson says in regard to Matthew 25:46:
“What is hard to prove, but seems to me probable, is that one reason why the conscious punishment of hell is ongoing is because sin is ongoing.” (D.A. Carson, The Gagging of God, Leicester, Apollos, 1996, p. 533) (Ref. is made to Stott, Essentials, op. cit., p. 319)
I believe that what Carson believes is “hard to prove” is quite provable from scripture, as we shall see in a moment. Rob Bell is right to point out that God is not partial (Romans 2:4-11) and that He loves the world and sent His son to die for the sins of the world (John 3:16, 1 John 2:2). But he greatly errs is his insistence that God will eventually melt every heart and that God’s grace is ultimately irresistible.
No Second Chance in Hell
God’s Word is clear that one can so harden their heart that they will no longer hear the voice of God (Hebrews 3:6-14). When we see the post mortem pleadings of the damned in scripture, we never see them offered another chance to get right with God or told to “wait until you are purified or finally forgiven in the future.” Rather, we see when they do plead, the door to heaven is shut (Matthew 25:1-13) and they are cast away as evil-doers (Matthew 7:21-23). They are told that those who are on earth need to respond to the revelation given to them on earth or they are without hope (Luke 16:27-31).
The scriptures are clear:
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.” –John 3:36
The scriptures speak of those whose hearts have become so hard that “it is impossible to renew them again unto repentance” and who end up being cursed (Hebrews 6:4-8). The scriptures state that “there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins” but only “fiery judgment” that will consume God’s adversaries (Hebrews 10:26-31).
In the book of Hebrews, God further states:
“See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears, he could not change what he had done.” –Hebrews 12:16-17
The Lord makes it clear that there will be a time when it is too late to repent and even the cries for mercy from the wicked will go unheard by God:
“Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me, since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD.” –Proverbs 1:28-29
There is hardly any wiggle room for a second chance in hell in these passages or anywhere in Scripture. Bell would have his readers believe of the book of Revelation that “the letter does not end with blood and violence” (p.112). That, of course, depends on whether or not you are saved or lost. Certainly, the redeemed enter into a New Heaven and a New Earth filled with unending bliss in the presence of God (Revelation 21 & 22).
In contrast, the book of Revelation ends with far greater horrors than blood and violence for the impenitent wicked. In fact, God warns in the last chapter of the book of Revelation that the time will come when the wicked will go into eternity and continue to be wicked and the righteous will continue to be righteous:
“Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” –Revelation 22:11
This is one of the most devastating declarations in Christ’s Revelation to the Universalist’s heresy. The wicked do not only go into Hell and the lake of fire; but, part of their judgment from God includes the fact that they are left in the wicked state they have chosen! This would point to the fact that they continue to store up wrath for themselves even after entering the lake of fire.
We read that during the tribulation period God will make Himself known though His judgment and the preaching of the everlasting Gospel. However, the scriptures state that in the last days lawlessness will increase (Matthew 24:10-12) and that the wicked will proceed from bad to worse (2 Timothy 3:1-7, 12-13). During the tribulation period we read that the wicked, even though they know God is the source of their judgments (Revelation 6:15-17), will so harden their hearts that they will refuse to repent and give God glory (Revelation 9:21,16:8, 11). Thus, the verdict is that those who are sentenced to Hell never show genuine repentance and have gone beyond the point of no return. They “still do evil” and will “still be filthy” (Revelation 22:11). Like that of Judas, it could be said of them, it would have been better if he had never been born. This is hardly something that could ever be said of one who would have an opportunity to be saved in Hell and end up enjoying heavenly life for eternity!
Tragically, Rob Bell has brought great confusion to many biblically uninformed believers (1 Corinthians 14) and ironically, in the name of ‘cooling’ Hell and getting everybody into God’s Kingdom, he is contributing to its population and the damnation of more souls! He has done this by tickling the ears of the masses, by telling them that they may be able to hold on to their sin, and that they can put off repentance until after they die. Sadly, Rob Bell is leading more and more people to Hell, all deceptively in the name of love! “The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel” (Proverbs 12:10).
Hell and Love
Jesus did not soften the truth about Hell and eternal punishment in an attempt to make His message more palatable to accommodate culture. Rather, Jesus warned about Hell more than all of the prophets and apostles combined.
Jesus did this and gave His life for the sins of the world, because He cares deeply for us and does not will that any would perish (Mathew 18:14). His heart truly does break for those who refuse to follow Him (Matthew 23:37-39). Jesus warned about Hell because He doesn’t want anyone to choose to go there. He warned about Hell because He knew well that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Proverbs 1:7) and wisdom (Psalm 111:10).
Not one soul will ‘inadvertently’ slip through the cracks and end up in Hell. We all deserve to be condemned (Romans 3:1-10, 23; 6:23) and we should all be going there. However, God is love (1 John 4:8, 16) and in His incredible mercy and grace He demonstrated His love for us in His incarnation (John 1:14) and in His substitutionary sacrifice on the cross for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2). God demonstrated His own love to us, that while we were still sinners, He sent His Son to pay the penalty we deserve (Romans 5:6-10).
He reveals to us that He has no pleasure in the death of anyone, “For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live”(Ezekiel 18:32). His heart is that all would be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).
Jesus enlightens the heart of everyone who comes into the world (John 1:9), and convicts the world of sin by His gracious Holy Spirit (John 16:8). He causes the grace that brings salvation to appear to all men (Titus 2:11). He supernaturally makes his covenant known to those who fear Him (Psalm 25:14), even as He did to Cornelius.
God taught Peter that He is not partial, but extends His grace, without partiality, to all those who truly fear Him (Acts 10:34-35). Thus, God made His saving covenant known to Cornelius, who responded to the initial light of God’s grace given to him (John 1:9). Jesus taught that those who desire to do the will of God would come to know who He is (John 7:17). Those who respond to the gracious light God has given to them are given by the Father to the Son (John 17:6).
How God does this is at times mysterious, as it was with Cornelius. Jesus did not come into the world to condemn the world, but that the world would be saved through Him (John 3:17).
There is no indication in scripture that a person has a second opportunity to get right with God in Hell. If we reject the light that leads us to Christ, we will simply get the wrath that we deserve, due to our rebellion and sin against the holy and just God. God’s wrath is founded upon His thrice holy character and man’s utter contempt and rebellion against His holy law. Thus, we will have no one to blame but ourselves (Romans 1:18-21; 2:5). The Bible states that“today is the day of salvation” and “now is the acceptable time” (2 Corinthians 6:2). Let us not put off today what we will not be able to do after we die.
Pray for the Lost
May God give us the grace, in these times of apostasy, to hold fast to Jesus’ teachings and remain faithful to our loving and Holy Lord to the end. May God deliver His bride from the cotton candy Christianity that is endemic in Emergent Churches and among false prophets who lead the lost into believing they can put off repentance until after death.
I actually feel sorry for Rob Bell because he is leading countless souls astray, and the Bible clearly states that teachers will receive a greater judgment (James 3:1). I feel even greater sorrow for the poor souls that are following him into perdition. Please pray with me that Rob Bell would spend more time reading the Bible instead of reading and quoting New Agers and hanging out with the Dalai Lama. Let us pray with the same fervor for Rob Bell and other aberrant Emergent teachers, as Paul prayed for those who fell into heretical teachings in his day:
“Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.” –2 Timothy 2:25-26
Let us hit our knees and cry out to God to guard His beloved bride from the ear tickling, flesh inciting, false doctrines that are beginning to permeate the church in these last days! Pray that God would reveal to Rob Bell just how serious it will be on judgment day to have the blood of thousands of people on his hands when they are pointing to him as the one who deceived them into believing they would have another chance and God says, “Depart from me into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Matthew 25:41, 46)
Rob Bell states in his book that Jesus never used language like “turn or burn”; but the truth is, Jesus twice stated that “unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:3, 5)
Dear reader, if you have not yet turned to Christ for salvation in repentant faith, it is critical that you throw yourself at the feet of the Lord Jesus and accept the sacrifice He made for your sins. Don’t put your faith in Rob Bell over faith and trust in Jesus! The odds are too great, the stakes are too high, and eternity is far too long!
For His glory,
Joe Schimmel
Tony Jones’ continuous leftward slide into apostasy
By Marsha West
Emergent Church guru Tony Jones, the former national coordinator of Emergent Village, has been holding the issue of homosexuality “in abeyance” because “homosexuality is one issue that I don’t want to get wrong.” On November 23 he came out with his personal view on this hotly debated topic.
Drum roll please…… He’s for it.
After years of pondering and praying, praying and pondering, he managed to come up with the wrong answer. How do I know this? Because his “revelation” doesn’t line up with Scripture.
Evidently what the Bible teaches on sodomy made Tony feel uncomfortable, so he decided to hold back his opinion until he could come to terms with what he was “feeling.” I say “feeling” because his conclusion doesn’t comport with the written Word of God, which he professes a belief in, but decides things from his gut, I guess. Heaven forbid he should offend the “gay” community!
On Tony’s “blogalogue” he wrote a carefully crafted statement to start the “conversation” rolling — with no mention of Scripture to back up his “enlightened” view. Before Tony gets to the point, he shares his personal story and tells how he viewed homosexuality in his early years. He wasn’t a conservative, nor was he a liberal; he says he “pretty much walked the middle of the road.”
I have to commend Tony for admitting he was wishy-washy on the issue of sodomy. Problem is, our pastors and leaders aren’t supposed to be spiritual wimps. All Christians are to boldly “contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3).
Jones also admits that he understood the biblical prohibitions to sodomy:
“I’ve always thought that all persons should be afforded the same rights and no one should be discriminated against. But I also knew that the biblical prohibitions to homosexual sex should be taken seriously. And I remember quite a few debates in which I argued against homosexuality using the argument from natural law, the book of Genesis, and my own pithy deal-closer, “Look, the parts don’t fit. The plumbing’s not right. That’s how we know how God feels about it.” (Emphasis his.) [1]
Then he drops this bombshell:
“And yet, all the time I could feel myself drifting toward acceptance that gay persons are fully human persons and should be afforded all of the cultural and ecclesial benefits that I am. (“Aha!” my critics will laugh derisively, “I knew he and his ilk were on a continuous leftward slide!”)”
I’m one critic who’s not laughing derisively. In fact, I’m not laughing at all. I find it unfunny, and profoundly troubling, that a former pastor who holds a doctorate from prestigious Princeton Theological Seminary does not have a simple grasp of the Bible’s clear teaching on same-sex sex. I also find it troubling that a leader in the ECM, who has a ton of influence with young people, would lend his support to same-sex “marriage” knowing full well that many undiscerning Christians will adopt his “progressive” view on the subject, simply because they hold him in high regard. “The problem is,” said Ravi Zacharias, “non critical people listening to this stuff absorb it.”
What people are absorbing from emergents isn’t authentic Christianity, it’s neo-evangelicalism. In other words, liberalism. I’ve covered the ECM in past columns. To find out more, read “Emergent Church Spreading Spiritual Cancer” [2] or watch Roger Oakland’s video on YouTube. [3]
T.M. Moore tackles evangelical liberalism in “Near Christianity.” He believes:
“Liberalism…is not Christianity at all, or, at best, a corrupt version. As J. Gresham Machen argued so eloquently in the last century, liberal Christianity has many appealing features, and much to commend it. In many ways it is a quite fascinating and alluring religion. It even uses all the language of Christianity and holds Jesus in high esteem. But for all that, liberal Christianity just isn’t Christianity. Indeed, Machen argued, it’s not even close.” [4]
Tony Jones’ version of Christianity is corrupt. What he professes is not the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, the ECM has all the earmarks of a cult – what Dr. Walter Martin called the “cult of liberal theology.” (Look for more on cults in a future article.)
I’m sure many people found it puzzling that Tony referred to homosexuals as “fully human persons.” (Actually, all sinners are fully human persons.) Why did he borrow a term that’s used by the pro-life movement to describe pre-born babies? “Gays” are obviously fully human (as are pre-born babies) so is he saying that those who don’t support same-sex “marriage” are denying their humanity? Or was he simply pointing out that some Christians think homosexuals are subhuman? A small minority of Christians who oppose homosexuality may feel that way, however, it’s not only wrong headed to believe homosexuals are subhuman, it’s that kind of thinking that does great damage to the cause of Christ!
Equally disgraceful is the fact that many professing Christians believe that a baby in the womb is not a fully human person until it’s able to breathe on its own! These same “Christians” believe they alone have the right to choosewhether or not a pre-born baby is allowed to live or die. They will vehemently defend the right of “gay” couples to marry, yet when it comes to defenseless babies, they’re voices are silent. But I digress.
Historic orthodox Christianity holds that God’s people must “love thy neighbor as thyself.” Translated, this means we are to love all human persons. It’s a commandment, not a suggestion. So out of love for homosexuals, followers of Jesus Christ must gently tell them of the transforming power of Jesus. (1 Pet. 3:15) Believers are also commanded to pray for those who are in bondage to sin….because prayer changes things. Militant “gay” activists don’t want the public to know that it’s possible for a homosexual, who is in bondage to sin, to “change,” his/her orientation. It’s a fact that many men and women have left the homosexual lifestyle and are now straight. (For proof of this, visit the ex-gay website, PFOX)
Evidently Tony Jones doesn’t believe in God’s transforming power as he has now concluded that Christians must embrace homosexuality:
“I now believe that GLBTQ can live lives in accord with biblical Christianity (at least as much as any of us can!) and that their monogamy can and should be sanctioned and blessed by church and state.”
For those who have never heard of GLBTQ, it’s an acronym for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered and Questioning.
Without getting too far afield, it’s impossible for a practicing homosexual, a bisexual or a transgender person to live in accord with biblical Christianity. (See Lev. 18:22, Lev. 20:13, Rom. 1:26-28, 1 Cor. 6:9-10.) The fact is, Scripture teaches that it’s a sin to have sex outside the bonds of marriage. GLBTQ behavior is “against nature” and “unseemly.” (Rom. 1:26-28) My point is that for the serious Christian, manmade (unbiblical) laws should have no bearing on how we think about someone’s “sexual orientation.” A Christian’s marching orders come from God!
Unfortunately, in our postmodern culture all too many so-called Christians accept what the culture deems the “norm” instead of looking to the Bible to see what God says is legitimate and acceptable! If the Bible expressly forbids something, then it’s wrong to engage in it. Not only that, it’s a slap in the face to Christ to condone what He condemns!
How could a Bible-believing Christian not know that the scriptures make a strong statement on homosexuality — God forbids it! With that in mind, the “conversation” believers in Christ should be having is how we can best articulate a Christian worldview on the hotly debated issues, instead of tossing God’s Word into the junk heap and embracing the cult of political correctness.
Getting back to Tony Jones’ “blogalogue,” I’m sorry to say that in winding it up he felt it necessary to make this rather flippant remark:
“Well, I suppose this blogalogue will be a test of whether I have good theological and philosophical reasons for supporting the rights of GLBTQ persons to marry, or whether I’ve simply caved to the mushy inclusivity of pluralized nothingness. In either case…I’m looking forward to this conversation, and I’m praying that it is ultimately glorifying of God.”
Jesus made this hard statement regarding prayer:
“Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth” (John 9:31).
Regarding God’s will, here are a couple of questions people of faith need to ask themselves: Is it God’s will for human beings to change His rules (as stated in the Bible) because some rules seem outdated, intolerant, hateful, unfeasible, hard to follow, silly, etc.? Is it God’s will for people to decide what is morally right and wrong based on, not what the Bible teaches, but on how they “feel” about certain issues?
Stunningly, Tony Jones’ new found beliefs on same-sex sex are not based on what God’s Word says. What he has come to believe is born out of his compassion for those who struggle with same-sex attractions. Like many neo-evangelicals, he has bought into the liberal theology that trusts in a person’s “feelings” rather than trusting in God. By disregarding the plain teaching of Scripture, and continuing his leftward slide, Tony Jones has shown himself untrustworthy and a false teacher.
A word of warning: Engaging in a theological “conversation” with a wiley false teacher can lead you into dangerous waters. The sad fact is that many who follow the teaching of charismatic religious leaders, speakers and writers, are drowning in a sea of apostasy! Take for example emergent pastor and author Brian McLaren. Much of his teaching is highly unorthodox. For one thing, he has called the doctrine of hell and the cross “false advertising for God.” Not only that, in an interview with “Time Magazine” a few years ago, he spouted his unbiblical view on homosexuality:
“Frankly, many of us don’t know what we should think about homosexuality. We’ve heard all sides but no position has yet won our confidence so that we can say ‘it seems good to the Holy Spirit and us.’ That alienates us from both the liberals and conservatives who seem to know exactly what we should think.” [5]
Because he doesn’t know what to think about the practice of sodomy, he suggested a five-year moratorium on making pronouncements. In the meantime:
“[W]e’ll practice prayerful Christian dialogue, listening respectfully, disagreeing agreeably. When decisions need to be made, they’ll be admittedly provisional. We’ll keep our ears attuned to scholars in biblical studies, theology, ethics, psychology, genetics, sociology, and related fields. Then in five years, if we have clarity, we’ll speak; if not, we’ll set another five years for ongoing reflection.” [6]
McLaren, who prides himself on representing “a more intellectual approach to Christianity” ridicules Christian fundamentalists:
“I don’t dislike fundamentalists, taken individually–they tend to be pretty nice folks. Get them together in a group though, and I get nervous. I start to twitch and break out in a rash.” [7]
Since McLaren obviously believes the Bible is foolish and inconsequential perhaps it’s the Lord who is causing him to twitch and break out in a rash!
Thanks to Tony Jones the dialogue on what to think about homosexuality has ceased. Will Brian and other emergent gurus join forces with Tony, or with orthodox Bible scholars? Time will tell.
In the meantime, some emergents will continue the “conversation” on homosexuality, knowing full well that people are dying — and some of them are headed straight to hell! Somehow they miss the urgency. Christians who believe the Bible’s teaching on hell must get out of their comfort zones and lovingly confront anyone who is in rebellion against God. Sure, Jesus palled around with sinners, but He never condoned their sin, nor did He tell the apostles to listen to the so-called experts, then after five or ten years decide what is, and is not, sin! The One who spoke the universe into existence and remains sovereign over His creation is the real expert on determining what sin is. Thankfully, He did not leave it up to sinful humans, who carry around more baggage than the airlines, to decide!
So, then, should conservative Christians worry about the ECM’s unorthodox teaching and their continual attacks against the historic fundamentals of the faith? Would it be better to just ignore these people and pray that the movement will soon fade away? Or should we fight it tooth and nail?
“Let’s not be confused here nor be too hasty to dismiss Tony Jones’ influence not only within the emergent church, but within the broader professing church itself. It’s easy to think; “Well, he’s only one guy and there is a lot of bad teaching out there”, but if you’re a discerning Christian you will have noticed by now that the post-modern vain philosophies of the emergent/emerging church are deeply infecting the Biblically illiterate youth of our day who are being fed a steady diet of spiritual poison while sitting under the teaching of hirelings. Men like Tony Jones, Doug Pagitt, Rob Bell, Dan Kimball and Brian McLaren are influencing an entire generation to embrace vain traditions and a re-imagined theology that runs contrary to the historic, orthodox tenets which are fundamental to the Christian faith itself! This is nothing less than a Counter-Reformation!” [8]
I’ll close with a quote from renowned theologian, Dr. R.C. Sproul:
In every age the church is threatened by heresy, and heresy is bound up in false doctrine. It is the desire of all heretics to minimize the importance of doctrine. When doctrine is minimized, heresy can exercise itself without restraint.
Brian McLaren is a prolific writer who is in demand as a speaker and a kind of emerging church spokesman. He’s appeared on television and radio and has written several very successful books: “A Generous Orthodoxy,” “The Secret Message of Jesus,” “Finding Faith,” “Everything must change,” etc. His words are packed with deconstruction, reinterpretation, challenging ideas, and even a reluctance to accept historical biblical theology. Many have said his books are inspiring, thoughtful, and deeply insightful regarding culture and the need to integrate Christian theology into it. I think that is highly unfortunate since McLaren doesn’t seem to understand biblical theology very well (if he does it isn’t apparent to me), and he also appears to be replacing orthodoxy with liberalism.
Brian McLaren was born in 1956. “He graduated from University of Maryland with degrees in English (BA, summa cum laude, 1978, and MA, in 1981). His academic interests included Medieval drama, Romantic poets, modern philosophical literature, and the novels of Dr. Walker Percy. In 2004, he was awarded a Doctor of Divinity Degree (honoris causa) from Carey Theological Seminary in Vancouver, BC, Canada.”1 He went on to found the Cedar Ridge Community Church.2 He is no longer the pastor there, having resigned his position in order to pursue his speaking schedule. In addition, he is on the board of directors of the emergent village, a kind of think-tank for emerging church promotion.
Alright, so what does Brian McLaren teach doctrinally? Since he founded the Cedar Ridge Community Church, we can examine its doctrinal position and conclude that it still represents Brian McLaren’s statement of faith — especially since his picture is still prominently displayed at the top of several of its pages. A quick look at crcc’s website and you can find some interesting information. First, on the beliefs page I’m happy to see the Church affirms the doctrine of the Trinity, the incarnation of the Word in the person of Christ, the virgin birth, and his death and physical resurrection. So far, so good.
However, there is a problem in that there is no statement that the Bible is inspired and inerrant. I could not tell if the Church affirms or denies universalism, the false teaching that everyone will eventually become saved. In addition, I saw nothing that mentioned the final judgment and eternal damnation of those who die outside of Christ.
On the church staff page there is a list that includes women pastors. Women pastors are not biblical and it tells me that the church is not taking the word of God seriously, at least in this issue. Instead, it is adopting a non-historical, unbiblical, and liberal position.
One other thing I found worth mentioning is the following quote on the Vision and Mission page:
“Imagine a community that dares to dream of heaven on earth; a community where everyone is accepted and respected and their journey cherished, regardless of their background, beliefs or place in society.”
Perhaps I’m being nitpicky, but I see a problem. Are we to cherish people’s journey that led them to murder, rape, theft, etc.? I have a problem cherishing such sinful things. It doesn’t mean we are to reject the people who have committed them if they are seeking reconciliation with God. But such feel-good statements make me cringe. Perhaps I am being overly critical here, and perhaps they did not mean to include such sinfulness in their statement, but it is not well thought out. It just seems too sentimental to me.
I’ve done a lot of research on McLaren, reading his books, and I’m very sad to say that there are some serious problems. One of the most disturbing I have found is his endorsement of a book by Alan Jones called Reimagining Christianity. McLaren wholeheartedly approves of the book, and yet in this book Alan Jones says that the vicarious atonement of Christ is not a vital doctrine. He casts strong doubt over the Bible’s reliability, denies the virgin birth, says Christianity is sadomasochistic, affirms evolution, and sees religions such as Islam and Buddhism as equally valid compared to Christianity. In my assessment, Alan Jones is not a Christian and no true Christian should ever support the book Reimagining Christianity.
But, what does Brian McLaren actually teach? Some pretty disturbing things! You can go to the first and second articles that list a series of quotes from him. In them you will see how troubling Brian McLaren’s teachings really are. Among the quotes, he states things like Christianity is a little true, that perhaps our understanding of Christianity is wrong, that masculine pronouns used to describe God should be avoided, that we probably haven’t got the gospel right yet, that understanding nothing is good, that Gandhi followed the way of Christ, that being saved is not being saved from God’s damnation, that we haven’t got the homosexuality issue right, and that systematic theology is a practice in arrogance.
Therefore, I can only conclude that Brian McLaren is a dangerous teacher.
I’m truly dismayed that Brian McLaren is as popular as he is in Christian circles. His acceptance and promotion as a good Christian teacher is evidence of a profound lack of spiritual discernment rampant in the body of Christ today. This is not to say that he does not have some good ideas and some good insights, but he is not properly representing the core teachings of the Bible. Instead, he offers a watered-down gospel, a politically correct assessment of Biblical teachings, and instructions that remind me of New Age philosophy.
The church should be busy about its business of housecleaning, of getting the plank out of its own eye, of removing false teachers from within its doors, of properly articulating the doctrines of Christ for which so many Christians have shed their blood, instead of advocating feel-good, politically correct ideologies to please the bleating of goats. McLaren is to be avoided because he is leading the goats away from the truth.
As you heard from my prayer this morning, we are going to study the message that God has for us in 2 Peter 3. Now before we begin reading at verse 3, allow me to say that this epistle of Peter was written very close to the end of his life. In fact Peter, probably, at this time was imprisoned, and he was about to be crucified with his head down, by his own request. And so we have, in chapter 3, the last written words from the apostle Peter shortly before his death. Now the last words, I believe, are very important words, and so it would be well for us to listen to what the apostle Peter has to say. And, by the way, we’re going to notice that he is speaking about the end time generation. He’s speaking about our day and age. Now let’s turn in our Bibles to 2 Peter 3, and I would like to begin at verse 3, 2 Peter 3:3. In other words, this is of the utmost importance. Now let’s stop there just for a moment. We’re told by Peter that in the last days… That places it within our time frame. …in the last days scoffers will arise, mockers will arise, and they will want to live according to their own lusts. Now this is very, very important as we begin our study, because we’re going to notice that these individuals are actually delaying, and postponing the coming of Jesus. In fact they’re going to say, Where is the promise of His coming? And the reason why they want to postpone the second coming, the reason why they’re saying where is the promise of His coming? is, because according to verse 3, they want to live according to their own lusts. You see, people who live according to their own lusts do not really want Jesus to come. They are not anxious about Jesus coming. And so Peter begins by saying that in the last days mockers will come who live according to their own lusts, and they will want to postpone, and delay, the coming of Jesus for that particular reason.
I’d like to begin our study today by going back to Genesis 1 where we find the story of creation. Now I’m not going to review all the story of creation. I’m just going to go to one verse which summarizes the conclusion of the creation story. It says in Genesis 1:31 that God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. But as we’ve studied, God placed a test in the garden of Eden. That test was found in a tree, and He expected Adam and Eve to live in harmony with the specifications that He had laid down. Now we know from our study, that Adam and Eve failed the test. They ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And as a result they sinned, and the consequences of their sin were death, and suffering, and sorrow. Now I would like us to just reflect upon the law of God for a moment. The law of God, the ten commandments, demands perfection. It requires perfect conformity to its specifications. Now if perfect conformity is not given to the ten commandments then they require the death of the individual who transgresses them. And, of course, Adam and Eve failed the test. They failed to offer a life of perfect obedience to the law, and therefore they became subject to death. But not only were Adam and Eve impacted by sin, we actually find, as the story moves along in the book of Genesis, that all of creation, all of nature, was impacted by Adam and Eve’s sin. Not only do we find the death sentence falling upon man, but also death came into all of creation in consequence of sin. All nature began to decay and to die. Now the only way in which creation could be restored to the condition that it was in originally, is if man offered a perfect life of obedience to the law, because the law says obey and live.
We want to begin our study today by turning in our Bibles to Revelation 12:17. As we’ve studied before in this seminar, this verse is actually a pickup on Genesis 3:15. And it’s actually speaking about the end time remnant of God on planet earth; the remnant that will go through the final tribulation, and will actually be in this world when Jesus comes. It says here in Revelation 12:17: That is the devil. The woman represents the church. Or the remnant of her seed. The remnant is the last portion of God’s people. And now notice that this remnant has two characteristics. It says: Notice that the end time remnant will keep the commandments of God, and will have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Now the question is, what is the testimony of Jesus Christ? We know that the commandments of God means the ten commandments. But the testimony of Jesus; we need to take a look at what the Bible has to say about that. What is the testimony of Jesus? Well, let’s turn in our Bibles to Revelation 19:10, Revelation 19:10. Here we have a clear explanation as to what the testimony of Jesus is, which the remnant will possess in the end of time. It says there, by the way, a majestic being appears to John, who is the writer of the book of Revelation, and we find these words about the encounter: And I fell at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, That is the angel said to John, See that you do not do that. I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren, who have the testimony of Jesus. What do the brethren of John have? They have the testimony of Jesus. And then it says, Worship God, for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. So here we have a definition of what the testimony of Jesus is. It is the spirit of prophecy, which means that the end time remnant is going to keep the commandments of God, the ten commandments, and they are going to have the testimony of Jesus, which is the gift of prophecy, or the spirit of prophecy. Now there’s a third characteristic that this end time remnant is going to have, and that characteristic is found in Revelation 14:12, Revelation 14:12. And, by the way, this verse repeats one detail which we already read in Revelation 12: 17. It says here, speaking about the end time remnant: We’ve already seen that in 12:17. So the end time remnant has faith; not any old kind of faith, but the faith of Jesus, the faith that Jesus had. And so we find three characteristics in these verses, about the end time remnant: they keep the commandments of God, they have the testimony of Jesus, which is the gift of prophecy, or the spirit of prophecy; and they also have an unbreakable faith, the faith of Jesus.
During the course of this seminar we have been studying stories in Genesis which have a prophetic dimension. And our theme verse in this series has been Genesis 3:15, that famous text that speaks about the warfare between the serpent and the woman, and between the serpent’s seed and the woman’s seed. Now, you’ve probably noticed that the book of Genesis has a series of twosomes. You have the serpent and the woman. You have the serpent’s seed and the woman’s seed. You have Cain and Abel. The sons of God and the daughters of men. Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, Joseph and his brothers. Basically the book of Genesis is an amplification of Genesis 3:15. The story of Esau and Jacob is actually a microcosm that illustrates the issues in the great controversy between good and evil on planet Earth. I would like us to notice how this controversy is introduced in Genesis 25:22, 23. You see, this story is more than about Jacob and Esau. Jacob and Esau are typological, they’re symbolic. They represent two worldwide groups at the end of time. Their characters illustrate the characters of two classes of people that will exist till the end of time. And we catch this from the very beginning of the story, from the moment of their birth. Notice Genesis 25:22, 23. Was there a great controversy from the womb? Absolutely! Now we find very clearly from the very beginning that the strong will lose, and the weak will win in this battle, or this controversy. We’ll notice a little bit later on in the story that Jacob acquired the birthright, whereas Esau, to whom it originally belonged, lost it.
In our last lecture we studied about the story of Jacob and Esau. And we noticed that Jacob and Esau, these two brothers, actually represent two different characters that people on planet Earth will have throughout the course of history, and particularly at the end of time. In other words, Jacob and Esau represent two different types of characters that will distinguish one group from another upon this earth, particularly in the end time. And, of course, the struggle between Jacob and Esau represents the final struggle in controversy between those people with those two character manifestations: the righteous, and the wicked. Now I just want to review a little bit about what we studied in our last lecture to set the stage for what we’re going to discuss in our lecture today. First of all I would remind you about the character of Esau. Esau believed that the law of God was a yoke of bondage, and he actually believed that the law of God restricted his freedom and his liberty. He wanted to proclaim his freedom from rules and regulations. We also notice that Esau had no particular interest in the responsibilities connected with the birthright. The responsibilities involved being a righteous ruler over his household, being the spiritual leader, the priest of his house, and having the privilege of being the progenitor of the Messiah. He could care less about any of these responsibilities. And we actually noticed that Esau lived for the here and now instead of being forced on the sweet by and by. Now the character of Jacob was different. Even though we know that Jacob sinned against God when he stole the birthright from his brother, and he deceived his father, Jacob was not given over to sin. In fact, Jacob appreciated the duties of the birthright. He actually understood what it meant to be the ruler, the righteous ruler of the household. He understood what it meant to be a spiritual leader, or priest of the household. And he understood the awesome responsibility of being the progenitor of the Messiah. In other words, being a member of the holy line which would bring the Messiah into the world. And, of course, we studied last time that Esau was a very hardened and rude person, whereas Jacob is described as being docile and mild. We also studied last time that the life of Jacob is really an illustration of God’s people, particularly at the end of time, but actually beginning at the very origin of human history. Let me just review some of those elements.
In the Bible there is perhaps no more mysterious figure than an individual called Melchizedek. He’s an individual who is mentioned in Genesis chapter 14. Throughout the course of Christian history there have been different views about the identity of Melchizedek. Some people have felt that Melchizedek is actually another name for Michael the archangel. Others actually believe that Melchizedek was another name for Shem the son of Noah. Still others have believed that Melchizedek is really a name for Christ in his preincarnate state and still others have believed that Melchizedek is actually a manifestation of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. Now I want to tell you as we begin that I don’t believe that any of these views is correct. I believe that Melchizedek was actually a historical figure who comes on the scene and disappears from the scene very quickly. Actually I would like to begin by reading a statement, a very important statement, that we find in the Review and Herald, February 18 of the year 1890. This is written by Ellen White. She says this about Melchizedek: It was Christ that spoke through Melchizedek, the priest of the most high God. Melchizedek was not Christ, but he was the voice of God in the world and the representative of the Father. And all through the generations of the past Christ has spoken, Christ has led his people and has been the light of the world. And so we find very clearly in this statement that Melchizedek was not Christ. Melchizedek was actually a representative of Christ. And we want to study about that representative of Christ as the story is found recorded in Genesis chapter 14 and verses 18-20. In fact, let’s begin our study by reading those verses.
We’d like to begin our study today at that verse which has basically been the theme of the Genesis series: Genesis chapter 3 and verse 15. Genesis chapter 3 and verse 15. Here God is speaking to the serpent. He’s speaking to Satan… to the devil… and notice what He says: Genesis chapter 3 and verse 15 speaks about two seeds. One Seed is righteous and the other seed is wicked. But in our study this morning we don’t want only to talk about the righteous Seed and the wicked seed. In fact, we’re going to discover that there’s only one kind of righteous Seed but there are actually two types of wicked seeds. Now you’re probably wondering what I mean by two types of wicked seeds. Well, the fact is that in our study today we’re going to notice that there is one type of wicked person who is overtly wicked. In other words, openly wicked. We would call them ungodly. And by the way, this type of individual would be illustrated by the publicans and the sinners of Christ’s day. Outcasts of society. Ungodly so to speak. But then there’s a second type of wicked seed, and that is those who are covertly wicked. In other words, they don’t appear wicked on the surface but they are wicked actually in their thoughts and in their hearts. They are covertly wicked. And of course this type of wicked person is illustrated by the scribes and the Pharisees. And so when Genesis 3:15 speaks about a wicked seed we need to understand that that seed includes two different types of wicked people. First, those who are overtly wicked – in other words, they live a disorderly lifestyle and don’t care much about it – and those who are covertly wicked. In other words, they put on a wonderful veneer, a wonderful exterior, but their hearts and their minds are far away from God illustrated by the scribes and the Pharisees.
Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do calamities afflict our lives? Why many times do our lives appear to be out of control with no guiding force? Well, in our subject today we are going to study about History’s Invisible Guide. And we’re going to notice that history generally – in our lives specifically – are not composed of disconnected events that have no relation one to another. We’re going to see that in this world and in each of our lives there are two forces struggling to gain dominion and power. And we’re going to notice that even though many times bad things happen to good people God ultimately will use those bad things and He will turn them into good. But it’s only as we look back on our lives that we understand this. When we’re looking forwards and we’re going through these trials, it’s difficult many times for us to understand exactly what is happening. Now we’re going to study this subject from the perspective of a wonderful story that we find towards the end of the book of Genesis. It’s the story of Joseph. I don’t see any story in the Bible that speaks about God’s providence in such a marvelous way as the story of Joseph. Now, it probably would be a good idea for us to examine first of all the home life of Joseph. You know, we live in a world today where people have a tendency of passing the buck and blaming other people, blaming circumstances, blaming heredity, blaming the environment for the things that happen in their lives. But as we look at the life of Joseph we discover that Joseph had a less-than-ideal heredity, he had a less-than-ideal environment, and less-than-ideal circumstances in his home. And yet Joseph cooperated with God and the end of the story is absolutely glorious. Now let’s talk a little bit about the family life of Joseph. As you know, Jacob was deceived into marrying Leah. But he did not love Leah. And the Bible tells us that Leah with Jacob had four sons. Let’s read about this in Genesis chapter 29 and verse 30
In our lecture today we are going to study mainly Genesis chapter 24. It’s the story of Abraham, Isaac, Eliezer, and Rebekah. And in order to understand this story we have to start a little bit earlier in the book of Genesis. We need to go back to Genesis chapter 15 and verse 4. Genesis 15:4. Here God is speaking to Abraham and Abraham thinks that Eliezer perhaps might have to be the heir. And so Abraham is thinking about adopting Eliezer and making him the promised heir. But notice what God said to Abraham. In other words, “You’re not going to adopt Eliezer; Eliezer is not going to be your heir. It is going to be your very own son. ” Now we’ve already studied in this seminar earlier the story of Genesis 22 which I call “the almost sacrifice of Isaac” because Isaac was not actually sacrificed. He was sacrificed in figure because he pointed forward to Jesus Christ. Now as we’ve studied, in that story Abraham is a symbol of God the Father and Isaac is a symbol of Jesus Christ His Son. And in the story that we’re going to study today once again Abraham is a symbol of God the Father and Isaac is a symbol of God’s Son Jesus Christ. Now it’s very important for us to realize that when Abraham… when Abraham in Genesis chapter 24 sends his servant Eliezer to look for a wife for his son Abraham is an old man. We might call him “the ancient of days. ” In fact, if you look at the chronology of the Bible you’ll discover that Abraham was approximately 140 years old. Probably more accurate to say 139 years old. And Isaac at this point was approximately 40 years old. And so you might call Abraham “the ancient of days. ” In fact, let’s notice what Genesis chapter 24 and verse 1 has to say about Abraham. It says here: So you have Abraham… “the ancient of days. ” He has a son called Isaac but there’s a problem, and that problem is that Isaac, though he’s approximately 40 years old, does not have a wife. And in order to carry on the seed so that the Messiah can eventually come, it’s necessary for Isaac to have a wife. And so the process… In Genesis chapter 24 begins describing the process of getting a wife for Isaac.
It was the afternoon of the resurrection, and 2 of the followers of Jesus, not of His 12 disciples but two of the followers of Jesus were walking to a little village relatively near Jerusalem called Emmaus. And as these two men were walking to Emmaus. Jesus – who had resurrected from the dead that morning – actually caught up to them and started walking with them. You can find this story in Luke chapter 24. And we’re going to read a couple of verses from there in a few moments, but I want you to catch the picture. And so Jesus catches up to these two men that are walking to Emmaus and He says to them: “What is it that you’re talking about? And why are your faces so sad? ” And, of course, the two men look at Jesus and if they lived today they probably would have said “What planet have you been on for the last three days? Haven’t you known what has happened in the city of Jerusalem during these last three days? Impossible that you shouldn’t know about it if you were in this region or in this area. ” And then in Luke chapter 24 and verse 21 we hear the disappointment of these men. Actually I want to read Luke chapter 24 and verse 21. You can almost hear it in their voice as we read this verse. It says there in verse 21: “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. ” We thought that this Man was going to redeem Israel and now is the third day since He was crucified. You can hear the disappointment in their voices. And then, of course, Jesus spoke to them in direct terms. And I would like to read His words in Luke chapter 24 and verses 25 through 27. Actually, this is quite a rebuke of Jesus. Notice what He says in Luke 24 and verse 25. “Then He said to them: ‘O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory? ‘ ” And now notice verse 27: “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets He expounded to them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself. ” We have three categories that are mentioned here by Jesus.
In order to understand the meaning of marriage we need to begin at the very beginning of creation week. So I’m going to review the days of creation culminating with what God did on the sixth day of creation week. The first day the Bible tells us that God spoke light into existence. The second day he spoke the firmament into existence. On the third day he spoke the dry land and the trees and the flowers and the plants into existence. On the fourth day God placed the sun and the moon and the stars in their positions by the power of his word. On the fifth day God spoke the birds and spoke the fish into existence. On the first part of the sixth day God spoke the land animals into existence. And then, of course, the Bible tells us that towards the end of the sixth day most likely God created man and woman. Let’s notice that as it’s found in Genesis chapter 1 and verse 27. Genesis 1 and verse 27. This is towards the very end of the sixth day. It says… And then of course a little bit further down in verse 31 we find that is says,… Now remember that. Indeed it was very good… So you have God creating in six days. Towards the end of the sixth day God makes man and woman and then at the end of the sixth day God looks upon his work and he sees that it is very good. Now you notice that God did not explain how he created man and woman. Genesis 1 verse 27 simply says that God made man and woman, male and female, but it doesn’t explain how. And so we’re left with the question and of course in Genesis chapter 2 God is going to recapitulate, in other words, he’s going to repeat some of the things that he left unsaid in Genesis chapter 1. And one of those things which was not explained is how he created man and how he created the woman. Now let’s notice first of all how God created Adam, the man. Genesis chapter 2 and verse 7 explains it… Now I want you to notice here that with man God did something different than with the rest of creation. The rest of creation he spoke into existence.
In the book of Hebrews chapter 11 we find in the first 22 verses a list of heroes that are first mentioned in the book of Genesis. Now these individuals that are mentioned in Hebrews 11 are great heroes of faith. And our subject for today is Unshakeable and Unbreakable Faith. Basically we’re going to study the meaning of faith in holy scripture. Let’s begin then at Hebrews chapter 11 and I would like to read verse 1 where we find the definition of faith. Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 1. It says here in this very well-known verse: Now the word substance could better be translated the assurance. “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for… ” And the word evidence could better be translated proof. “the proof of things that you cannot see. ” And so faith gives us assurance of the things that have not taken place yet. Assurance of things we hope for. And faith is the proof of things that we cannot see as of now with our physical eyes. So obviously, faith helps us look into the future. Faith helps us see what is invisible to the naked eye. Now we want to begin discussing faith – the meaning of faith – in Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 3. We’ve defined the meaning of faith. Now we want to take a look at Hebrews 11:3. It’s the first event that is described where we need faith in order to grasp it. It says there: Basically, this text is telling us that God made the visible universe from that which could not be seen. In other words, He created the universe out of nothing.
As we look at scripture it becomes very evident that the relationship between God the Father and His Son Jesus is a pattern of the relationship which should exist between husbands and wives. And so as we begin our study I want to describe very briefly the relationship that exists between God the Father and His Son Jesus. And then of course we’re going to notice that God the Father and His Son Jesus at a certain point decided to have children just like husbands and wives decide to have children. Then, of course, we’ll move on to speak about God’s method of discipline with His children as a pattern for the methods of discipline that we should follow in disciplining our children as husbands and wives. Now let’s begin by analyzing the relationship between God the Father and His Son Jesus. I’d like to begin by turning in my Bible… and I invite you to turn to your Bible as well. We’ll begin with John chapter 10 and verse 30. John chapter 10 and verse 30. This is a very short verse. I don’t think… at least I don’t have to look it up. It’s one of the shorter sayings of Christ. And basically He says: Notice the Father and the Son according to this text are what? The Father and the Son are One. Though they are two they are really One in a very special sense. We all know that the Father and the Son are two correctly? But actually they’re One according to this text. Now another point that I want to underline is found in John chapter 1 and verses 1 to 3. John chapter 1 and verses 1-3. Here we find a description of the relationship of Jesus with His Father. And there’s a particular preposition in Greek that I want to emphasize. It says there: Then it speaks about creation after that. Now in Greek there are two main prepositions that are translated with. One is the Greek preposition sun, s- u-n, which means just to be with someone. But the preposition that is used here for with that the Son “was with the Father” is the Greek preposition tros which means to be with but with movement towards. In other words, it’s with but having a relationship with. And so this preposition… When it says that the Word was “with God” it means that, yes, He was present along with Him but there was a relationship between them. They moved, so to speak, towards one another. There was a very close relationship between them.
We want to begin our study today at Genesis chapter 6 and verse 5. Genesis chapter 6 and verse 5. Here we find a description of the mental attitude of those who lived before the world-wide flood in Noah’s day. And it tells us there in this very well-known verse: This sounds pretty much like a world where most minds were identified with evil. Now notice Genesis chapter 6 and verses 11 and 12 on the aftermath or the result of this condition of the corruption of the minds of those who lived before the flood. It says in verse 11: So we see that every intent of the heart of man was only evil continually. And as a result, the Bible tells us that the earth was filled with violence. Now the question is: what led to this situation in the world? In other words, what led to the thoughts of man, of the heart of man being only evil continually? And what led to the corruption of the earth? Genesis chapter 6 has the answer to this question. We find in Genesis 6 verses 1 through 4 an explanation of the cause for this deplorable condition in the earth. We’re going to begin at Genesis 6:1. And now notice. Immediately after saying that the sons of God entered to the daughters of men we’re told: And then it comes back to speak about the sons of God and the daughters of men in verse 4: It says: So very clearly, what led to this wicked condition referred to in Genesis 6:5 was what we find in the first four verses: the sons of God entering in to the daughters of men. Now the expression “entering in to the daughters of men” means to have sexual relations. It’s a technical term in the Old Testament that means to have sexual relations. And so basically, what Genesis 6:1-4 is telling us that the sexual connection or the intermarriages between the sons of God and the daughters of men is what led the human race to be in this condition where every intent of the thoughts of the heart was only evil continually
The title of our study today is Innocent Until Proven Guilty. Now it might be surprising to some of those who are here that that’s the way in which God operates. It is not a modern concept of jurisprudence. You know, in the United States we say that you’re innocent until proven guilty. But this aspect of the judgment that we have in our system of government actually is based on a divine principle that we find in scripture. Now what I want to do is go through several stories that we find in the book of Genesis that deal with the issue of judgment. And then we will end our study by noticing the concept of judgment in the book of Revelation. And we’ll see that the same sequence of judgment in Genesis is found also in the book of Revelation. Now let’s being our study in Genesis chapter 2 and verses 16 and 17. Genesis chapter 2 and verses 16 and 17. It says there, and we’ve read this in previous context before: Now there are three things that I want to underline in these two verses with which we began our study today. First of all, in these verses there is a moral authority who is God. Secondly, that moral authority has a moral code or a moral law. In this case, it’s the command to not eat from the tree. So the moral ruler has a moral commandment or a moral law. And in these verses God who is the moral authority who has this moral code tells man that if he eats from the tree the penalty is going to be what? Is going to be death. So you have a moral authority. You have… In the second place, that moral authority has a law or a code and disobedience to that law or to that code brings as a result death.
We’d like to begin our study today at Genesis chapter 5 and verse 24. Genesis chapter 5 and verse 24. Here it’s speaking about an individual called Enoch. And by the way, Enoch is the only person in Genesis 5 who did not die. You’ll find in the list there that it says: “he died, he died, he died, he died. ” But when it comes to Enoch Enoch did not die. It says there in Genesis chapter 5 and verse 24 the following: “So all the days of Enoch were 365 years… ” I’m starting at verse 23 for the context. It says in verse 24: It doesn’t say that Enoch died. It says he walked with God and God took him. Now in the book of Hebrews we have additional information about Enoch. Go with me to Hebrews chapter 11 and we want to read verse 5. Hebrews 11 and verse 5. It says here: So Genesis tells us that Enoch walked with God. In the book of Hebrews it explains that walking with God means that he pleased God. To walk with God is to please God. Now a detail which many people have missed is that according to the Bible Enoch was the first prophet. Go with me in your Bibles to the book of Jude… Jude 14 and 15. And I only mentioned the verses because Jude has only 1 chapter. Jude 14 and 15. It says there: So was Enoch a prophet? Sure he was. Now do you notice in these verses the number of times that the word “ungodly” is used? 3 or 4 times in this passage the word “ungodly” is used. And the emphasis is that Enoch – this man who walked with God, this man who pleased God – actually rebuked the evil which was in the world before the flood and prophesied about the final judgment against those who practice wickedness and who live ungodly lives in the end time. We begin to catch the picture that God’s prophets are raised up by God to rebuke wickedness,
I’d like to invite you to open your Bibles with me to the book of Genesis, chapter 28, and we will begin reading at verse 10. However, before we start reading, I need to give you a little bit of background; the background to this particular passage. We probably all know the story of Jacob, and how Jacob lied to his father, deceived his father, stole the birthright from his brother, and as a result of this he had to flee from his home. The Bible tells us that as he was fleeing from home, he felt a deep burden of guilt, because of the sin that he had committed. And after traveling for many, many hours, Jacob arrived 42 in a place which later would be called Bethel, which means the house of God. And this is where I want to pick up our reading in Genesis 28:10. And then it continues saying: Very interesting dream that God gave to Jacob. This has become known as the story of Jacob’s ladder, which is certainly a misnomer, because this is not Jacob’s ladder, this is the Lord’s ladder. It’s kind of like saying Noah’s flood. You know, it wasn’t Noah’s flood, it was the Lord’s flood. And so, really, this is the Lord’s ladder. Now the question is, what does this dream symbolize? You see, every story in Genesis is not only a story but a prophecy. And so this story must have some prophetic significance. And the question is, what is its prophetic significance? You notice you have a ladder. The top of the ladder reaches unto the highest heaven. The bottom of the ladder is firmly rooted on earth. And between the two points there are angels ascending and descending upon the ladder. What could be meant by this dream? Well, the fact is that we don’t have to guess. Turn in your Bibles with me to the gospel of John 1:51, the gospel of John 1:51
In our lecture for this moment, we are going to speak about God’s heavenly counsel. We want to begin our study in the book of Job chapter 38. I’m going to focus especially on verse 7. I want to give you a little bit of background about Job, before we read this verse and the verses that surround it. You know the story of Job. Basically, chapter 1 and 2 tells us that Job lost everything that he had. The only thing he didn’t lose was his life. He lost his health, servants and his wife turned against him His friends turned against him. He lost servants, he lost all of his animals, he lost all of his properties. In a matter of minutes, he lost everything that he had. That is the first two chapters. Beginning in chapter three, Job starts complaining to God. He starts asking God to explain the reason why he’s going through this period of crisis. He says to God, I was a family man, I offered sacrifices for my children, I used my riches to benefit the poor. I clothed the naked. I blessed humanity. I consecrated my life to you. So why is this happening to me Please explain. From chapter 3 to chapter 37, God’s only answer is absolute silence. This frustrates Job. So, all throughout these chapters, 3 through 37. Job is crying out for God to explain his suffering and God says nothing to Job. Finally, in chapter 38. God is going to tell Job, Job, now I’m going to ask the questions and you answer me. Lets read Job 38, beginning with verse 1. Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, Who is this that darkened counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me. God is saying, it’s my turn to ask questions. Notice verse 4. What is being described in these verses? Creation. I want you to notice verse 7, this is the key verse in this whole passage. It says in verse 7. that when God did all of these things, he laid the foundation of the earth, he laid the measures he laid the foundations and the cornerstone it tells us in verse 7 something happened when He did that. This is pre-creation or at the moment of creation at least. Did you notice that when Jesus created this world there were two groups that celebrated God’s work? One group is called the stars of heaven and the other group is called the sons of God.
Let’s begin our study in the book of Psalms reviewing what we studied in our last lecture. Psalms 8:3-5 It says here… God placed Adam as king on planet Earth. As we noticed in our last study Adam allowed himself to be Over come by an enemy, the devil. On the mount of temptation, according to Luke 4:5-7 Jesus, embattled with Satan. Satan says to Christ when he shows him all he kingdoms of the world All of the kingdoms of the world will I give to you because they have been delivered unto me and to whom ever I wish, I give them. In other words, this world had a new king and the territory was taken over by Satan. The human race needed a redeemer. The problem is, that scripture tells us that every single descendent of Adam also became a servant to this new king, a servant of Satan. We find in the book of Romans 3:10 In other words, all of the descendants of Adam, also became servants or slaves of Satan. There was no one within the human race that could recover, that which was lost. The human race needed a redeemer and of course, the redeemer appeared. I need to tell you something about the redeemer and who he needed to be.
John 1:1-3 speak about the Creator at the very beginning. It says there: Now there are three elements in this passage that I want to underline: 1. the expression, in the beginning. 2. The word God. And 3. Created heavens and earth. Now it’s interesting to notice that in Genesis 1:1 you have the very same elements that you have in John 1:1-3, because in Genesis 1:1 you have, In the beginning God created heavens and earth. In John 1 you have, In the beginning, the Word, who is God, created all things. And so, obviously, the Creator of the book of Genesis was none other than Jesus Christ. Now even though Jesus was the Creator, He placed on this earth as His ruler, or as His king, the original man who was placed on this planet: Adam. Let’s turn in our Bibles to Psalm 8, where we find this clearly revealed. Psalm 8, and we’re going to read verses 3-5, Psalm 8:3-5. Here David says: By the way, the word man there is Adam, the word Adam. Was Adam crowned? Yes. Who is crowned? kings. Now what was his realm of dominion? What was his territory? Let’s continue reading. Verse 6. Heavens, earth, sea, was the realm of dominion of this new king, Adam. But then, of course, came the tragic story of the inception of sin into the world, and another being took over the throne. He deposed Adam, so to speak, and he sat on the throne, and took over the territory that originally was given to Adam. And, of course, we know who that was. It was Satan. Turn with me in your Bibles to the gospel of Matthew, actually the gospel of Luke. It’s also told in Matthew, but let’s read Luke’s story about this: Luke 4:5-7, Luke 4:5-7. It says there: Notice, the devil is showing Jesus all of the kingdoms of the world. Verse 6: Now the question is, who delivered the kingdoms of the world to Satan?
I have the privilege of travelling quite a bit, not only within the United States, but also to other countries of the world. And I find it very interesting that people choose all different kinds of reasons why they want to choose a particular church to attend. I’d like to share with you, as we begin our study today, some of the reasons that people have given me in my travels for their belonging to a certain church. Some say, well, my friends attend this certain church, and that’s the reason why I go there. Other individuals say, well, my family has belonged to this church for generations, and why change a good thing? Still others say, I attend such and such a church because it has the most members. Others say, I choose to go to this church because it has upbeat worship services, or it has wonderful programs, or it has plenty of felt needs seminars. Others say, I attend this church because of the location, and because of the wonderful physical plant that the church has. Others say, I go to this church because it has the most charismatic, and wonderful preacher on planet Earth. Still others look at the church as a social club. They say, well, you know, my social life is excellent at church, and that’s the reason why I go to this specific church. My question is, are these really the true criteria which should lead us in choosing which church we should belong to? I believe that all of these things are important, but I believe that there’s something which is far more important than any one of these that I’ve mentioned, or all of them put together. And that is we should choose the church that God specifies in scripture, as being the church which is in harmony with His truth as it is presented in Holy Scripture. And so in our study today we’re going to examine the Biblical characteristics of the true church, and we’re going to allow the Bible to tell us if, in this world, there is a true church, and whether we can actually find it. Now we’re going to follow a very carefully reasoned presentation. We’re going to follow step by step. You remember that I mentioned in a previous lecture, the principle of historicism. Prophecy begins fulfilling in the days when the prophet wrote, and it continues fulfilling without interruption until the close of time. That is going to be the method that we will use for identifying the true church in our study today. We’re going to begin our study in Revelation 12, and we’re going to move through this chapter and notice the different stages that we find here in this wonderful symbolic chapter of Holy Scripture. Revelation 12, and I want to read verse 1. It says: Now I want to dwell on two particular symbols in this verse: Symbol 1. the woman; and Symbol 2. the twelve stars that she has on her crown. or on her garment.
During the course of this seminar we have been studying primarily the meaning of Genesis 3:15. And I would like to refresh our memory about that verse, which is foundational to all of scripture. In that verse, God is speaking to the serpent, and Adam and Eve are standing there and listening. And God says to the serpent, I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. One thing is very, very clear in this verse, and that is that there are only two groups that exist in this world from the beginning till the end of time. Only two seeds: the seed of the righteous, and the seed of the wicked. Now in our study today we’re going to notice that in the group, which is classified as the wicked, there are three different kinds of people, whereas on God’s side there is only one type of person. So in the category of Satan’s seed are three types of people, whereas on the side of God’s seed there is only one type. Now we’re going to study today the famous parable of Jesus of the sower who sowed the seed. And as we begin, I would like to say that this parable is found in all three of the synoptic gospels. What I mean by the synoptic gospels is Matthew, Mark, and Luke. This parable is found in all three of these gospels, which means that we’re not going to remain only in one gospel as we study this parable.
There is no subject that Jesus addressed more frequently than the subject of money. Now Jesus spoke about a lot of things: He spoke about the love of God, He spoke about the judgment and other subjects. But time, after time, after time in the gospels, Jesus speaks about money. And so this evening, in our study, we’re going to discuss what the book of Genesis has to say about investing; investing our material resources. And our study is going to be very simple. We’re going to study four principles that we find in the book of Genesis, and which are amplified in the rest of scripture, on how to administrate the money that God has blessed us with. So lets begin with our first principle, which is found in Genesis 1:1, Genesis 1:1. I don’t even have to look up this verse in my Bible. I don’t think you have to either. It says there: Clearly we find in this text that God was the Creator. And because God was the Creator, we know that He is the owner of everything. And so in Genesis 1:1 we find our first principle, and that is that God is the owner of everything, because He created everything. Now lets notice some other texts in the Old Testament which underline this specific principle. Psalm 24:1, Psalm 24:1. We find this same principle expressed in different terminology. It says there in Psalm 24:1: So notice once again the idea that the world is the Lord’s, and all of the fullness thereof. When it says the fullness thereof, it’s referring to everything that is in the world. By the way, many people might think that perhaps we’re just reading from the Old Testament. But allow me to say that the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:26 actually quotes Psalm 24:1, and reaffirms in the New Testament that the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.
In our lecture today we are going to study about the eight laws of health in the book of Genesis. And basically we’re going to look at the eight laws of health in five different periods of human history. The first period is, of course, at the very beginning before sin came into the world. The second stage where we’re going to look at these 8 laws of health is between the fall and the flood. The third stage that we’re going to take a look at is the period between the flood and today. And the fourth stage is as things are, of course, today. And then the final stage that we’re going to deal with is how the eight laws of health will be practiced among God’s people once sin is eradicated from the universe. So we’re going to study the eight laws of health from the way they were at the beginning; from the fall to the flood; from the flood till today. We’re going to say a few things about between now and the end of time and how those laws of health apply eventually in God’s everlasting kingdom. Now, we’re going to deal with three points in each one of these five sections. We’re going to first of all take a look at the environment which existed at these different stages. Secondly, we’re going to take a look at the 8 laws of health at each stage. And finally we’re going to look at how life could be prolonged during each one of those stages. Now let’s begin at the very moment that God created this world. At the beginning, man was created with a perfect body and he was placed in a perfect environment. The ecosystem was in perfect balance. The air was crystal clear. The water was pure and refreshing. The earth was absolutely fertile with no pests, no weeds, no thorns, and no thistles. Animals did not eat animals for food. There was no death. There was no disease in the world. In other words, the environment at creation was perfect for the preservation and for the prolongation of life. This is the reason why in Genesis 1 and verse 31 we find at the conclusion of creation that God… In other words, God made at the very beginning a perfect environment in which Adam and Eve lived.
We want to begin our study today by turning in our Bibles to Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26. Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26. We read this verse before but now we want to read it in a slightly different context. Genesis chapter 1 and verse 26. We find the following words: Now let’s stop there. “Let us make man in Our image according to Our likeness. ” How was man made originally? He was made in the image and likeness of God. And by the way, if you read on in Genesis 1 and 2 you’ll discover that both man and woman were created in the image and the likeness of God. Now notice also what we find in Genesis chapter 1 and verse 31. Genesis chapter 1 and verse 31. This is the conclusion of creation and we are going to be told what creation was like when Jesus finished His work. It says here in Genesis 1:31: Everything that God made at creation was good. There was not one taint of evil. Every inclination of the heart of man was towards good. He had a righteous holy nature inclined only to good. Now I want you to notice one further detail as we examine the original condition of man. Let’s turn in our Bibles to Luke chapter 3 and verse 38. Luke chapter 3 and verse 38. This is the conclusion of the genealogy of Jesus and we’re told something here about Adam. It says there in Luke 3 verse 38: Very clearly Adam and Eve were created sons and daughters of God. And they were created good. They were created in the image and likeness of God.
We would like to begin our study today by turning in our Bibles to Genesis chapter 1 and verses 1 and 2. Genesis chapter 1 and verses 1 and 2. We’ve read these verses before. We probably can recite them from memory. But there are four points that I want to underline as we begin our study. It says: Four ideas. The earth before creation was without form, void, in darkness, and it is described as “the deep. ” And then of course God which we’ve already discovered is Jesus Christ… God proceeded to create this world, to put it in order, and to fill it. And I’m not going to read the verses in Genesis chapter 1 that describe the order of creation. I’m just going to mention the verses and also what God did on that specific day. And I’m going to do it for a specific purpose. Of course the first day the Bible says that God made the light. In other words, He dispelled the darkness and light appeared. The second day God made the firmament. And basically it’s described as God separating the waters from the waters. He put waters under the earth and he put waters above the earth. Above the earth to make the world a gigantic greenhouse so to speak and under the earth to water the earth. Kind of like with an automatic sprinkler system. So He placed water above and He placed water below. The springs of water if you please on the second day. The third day God made the dry land and He also created the trees, the plants, the grass, the flowers… upon the earth. On the fourth day we find that God made the sun, the moon, and the stars. On the fifth day God performed two works of creation. He made the fish that swim in the waters and He made the birds that fly in the air. On the sixth day we find that God created the land animals and then finally He created man and woman. And when God finished His work of creation we find that He looked upon what He had made and it was very good.
I’d like to invite you to turn in your Bibles with me to the book of Revelation chapter 21. Revelation chapter 21. And we want to read verses 10 through 13. Revelation 21 and verses 10 to 13. Here the New Jerusalem is being described and it says this: We find here a description of the New Jerusalem. And what I want you to notice as we begin our study is that the New Jerusalem has twelve gates. And on each gate is one of the names of the twelve sons of Jacob. Now the question is: what are those names? We’re not told in the passage that we just read so we must go to Revelation chapter 7 and verses 1 through 8. Revelation chapter 7 and verses 1 through 8. Here we find in the first three verses a description of the great tribulation which is soon to come upon the world. It says in verse 1: By the way, when the winds are released that’s the tribulation… the period of the plagues. Time of trouble such as has never been seen in the history of the world. Verse 2: I want you to notice here that the reason for the sealing is to identify those who are going to go through the tribulation so that their lives are preserved, their lives are spared. That’s the reason why it says before the winds are released “seal My servants on their foreheads. ” In other words, it is a mark of protection upon God’s people who will go through the tribu- lation when the winds of strife are released. And then I want you to notice who are the ones that receive the seal. Verse 4:
There is no battle in the history of the world that has received more publicity than the Battle of Armageddon. I’d like to begin by reading the passage which deals with the Battle of Armageddon. It’s found in Revelation chapter 16 and verses 12 through 16. This is the sixth plague of the seven plagues of Revelation. And it says this: Now in our lecture today we are not going to study everything relating to the Battle of Armageddon. Many many books have been written on this battle. And by the way, most of what has been written about this battle is flat wrong. But as I read the books that have been written about the Battle of Armageddon I am amazed to see that the writers comment on everything in this passage abundantly, but there’s one verse which seems to be shuffled under the rug and very little is said about that specific verse. You see, as I have read books from many different denominations about the Battle of Armageddon they have very much to say about the waters of the Euphrates drying up and the kings from the east and the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet and the three evil spirits like frogs. There’s very much exposition when it comes to this, but the verse which rarely receives much of a comment is verse 15. In fact, you know the interesting thing is that this is the only time between Revelation 3:21 and Revelation chapter 21 that Jesus clearly speaks in Revelation. So if this is the only verse where Jesus explicitly speaks between Revelation 3:21 and Revelation chapter 21, it must be a very important verse.
I’d like to begin by mentioning something which I have underlined previously in our studies. And that is that when Jesus or God, because Jesus is God, created this world Adam and Eve were not eye- witness of the work of Jesus. In other words, Adam and Eve saw Jesus create absolutely nothing. The only way in which Adam and Eve could be certain that God was the Creator was not because they had scientific evidence, historical evidence, or empirical evidence. The only way that they could be absolutely certain was because they believed God’s story when He told them: “I was the Creator. ” They had to accept it by faith. Now God put a test in the Garden of Eden to see if they actually were willing to believe in His story, whether they would show their loyalty to God as their Creator and as the only true God. And that test, of course, was a tree: the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Now go with me to Genesis chapter 2 and let’s examine several important details about this specific tree. And we’re going to go very quickly because we’re then going to make an application of what we study from primarily Genesis chapter 2. Now go with me to Genesis chapter 2 and verse 16. Did God first give a positive command about what they could do? Yes. He said: “All of the trees of the garden are for your personal consumption and for your personal, everyday use. ” But then I want you to notice that the positive command is followed by a negative command. It says in verse 17: So God in this commandment begins with the positive. He says: “You can partake and enjoy of any tree of the garden BUT I have reserved one tree which is off limits which you are not to partake of. This is My tree… you are not to use it for your own personal use. ” Positive command… negative command. “All the trees you can use except for this one. ” Now I want you to notice where this tree was located in the garden.
We would like to begin our study today reviewing three prophecies that we have already gone over in this seminar. The first of these prophecies is found in Revelation chapter 12. And basically I’m just going to review. We’re not going to look up the verses because we’ve studied this before. Revelation 12 begins in the Old Testament with this woman who is with Child. That indicates that this is the Old Testament period because the Child has not been born yet. And then, of course, you have this dragon. And this dragon wants to devour the Child as soon as the Child is born. It becomes very clear that this power is Rome because Rome is the power which tried to slay Jesus when Jesus was born. Now this dragon had ten horns. And the ten horns represent the ten divisions into which the Roman Empire was divided. Then as you continue with this process in Revelation chapter 12 you have the woman fleeing into the wilderness for 1,260 days or time, times, and the dividing of time. And then you find at the end of that period that the earth helps the woman and swallows up the waters of persecution which the dragon spewed out of his mouth. And then finally in verse 17 you have the dragon angry with the woman. And he goes to make war with the remnant of her seed who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. So we’ve moved from the Old Testament before the Child is born to Rome when the Child is born 54 to the ten divisions into which the Roman Empire was divided to the 1,260 years to a time when the earth helped the woman eventually to the final war when the dragon is enraged with the woman and goes to make war with the remnant of her seed who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. So Revelation 12 begins in the Old Testament and it continues till the final war of Satan against God’s people.
I’d like to begin by reviewing Revelation chapter 12 which was our subject of study in our last lecture. And basically this chapter is foundational for the lecture tonight and the lecture for tomorrow night. Because Revelation chapter 12 shows the different stages of the controversy between Christ and Satan and it shows that the culprit behind the scenes is the devil. In other words, Revelation 12 connects with Genesis 3:15. Now in the subject that we’re going to study tonight which is Daniel chapter 7 and Revelation 13 the connection is not as obvious because Genesis 3:15 is not mentioned in connection with these prophecies. But with the background of Revelation chapter 12 you see that Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 are to be understood within the context of Revelation 12 because they follow the same order of events, the same sequence. Now I’m going to go quickly through Revelation chapter 12 and review what we studied in our last lecture. We find there a woman who is with Child. She’s pregnant. When John sees her, the Child has not been born yet. Right? Which means that this represents the church in which period? In the Old Testament period before Jesus is born. But then we notice that the Child is born, and what power is ruling at that time?
We want to begin our study today by reviewing what we studied in our last lecture. If you remember, we studied the prophecy of Daniel chapter 2. You remember that king Nebuchadnezzar had this dream and in the dream he saw a gigantic image. The head of the image was of gold. The breast and the arms were of silver. The belly was of bronze. The legs were of iron, and the feet were of iron and clay. And then Nebuchadnezzar saw a gigantic stone come from heaven and smite the image on its feet and broke the image into smithereens. And then that stone became a mountain which filled the whole earth. Now I’m going to review the sequence of nations which are mentioned in Daniel chapter 2. The head of gold represents the kingdom of Babylon which governed from the year 605 BC till the year 539 BC. The breast and arms of silver represent the kingdom of Medo-Persia which governed from 539 BC to 331 BC. The belly of bronze represents the kingdom of Greece which ruled from the year 331 BC till the year 168 BC. The fourth kingdom of iron represented by the legs represents the iron monarchy of Rome. In other words, the Roman Empire. And of course the feet of iron and clay, ten toes, represent the divisions of Western Europe. But you’ll notice that the divisions of Western Europe are a continuation of Rome because the feet have iron just like the legs have iron but this is a different kind of Rome. It is a continuation of Rome because it’s the same iron as the legs, but it is a different kind of Rome because it is a mixed Rome.
We want to begin our study today in the book of Genesis chapter 1 and verse 28. Genesis chapter 1 and verse 28. And I’m going to underline two ideas that we find in this verse… which we have underlined before. But we’re going to look at this from a different perspective in our study today. Here God is creating man and notice what He says… verse 28: Two ideas. First of all man was given dominion and secondly, the territory of his dominion was everything relating to planet earth. In other words, God expected Adam and Eve to reproduce, to fill the earth with a holy race, and that God’s kingdom would spread all across the earth. But then sin came into the world. Notice what we find in the gospel of Luke chapter 4. The gospel of Luke chapter 4. We read this before, but let’s read it again. And beginning with verse 5. The devil takes Jesus to a high mountain, and I want you to notice what the devil shows Jesus. It says in verse 5: You can imagine the broad sweep of human history that the devil shows Jesus. And then notice what he says in verse 6: Do you notice in this passage that at this point the devil has stolen the kingdoms of this world? Because he’s offering them to Jesus and he’s saying that they have been given over to him. And we understand that it was Adam that gave the kingdoms over to Satan. And so you have the kingdom going from Adam to Satan… sitting on the throne and exercising dominion because the devil usurped or stole the position of Adam. In fact, the reason why Jesus came to this world was to recover the throne and to recover the territory. Jesus had to come to this world to live a life without sin. He had to gain the victory where Adam failed. And He came to this world to die for sin to pay for all of our sins so that Jesus could restore the throne to man and could restore the earth and the kingdoms of the world to man. And we know that Jesus gained the victory. I want you to notice what happened as a result of the victory of Christ.
I’d like to just do a little review of what we studied in our last lecture, because it’s foundational for what we’re going to discuss in our lecture today. As you remember, this magnificent story of Genesis chapter 22 is describing the fact that God was going to bring a Seed into the world, and that Seed was going to be offered as a burnt sacrifice, or as a burnt offering to save the world from its sins. Now this was presented to Abraham in symbol form, as a shadow of the reality, which would come in the future. And, of course, the shadow was what we studied; all of the parallels between what happened then, and what happened at the time of fulfillment when Jesus came. The bottom line is that in this story God was telling Abraham that He, that is God, was going to save the human race by providing a substitute for sinners. That is the key point. And as we noticed in our study, Abraham understood this very well. I’d like to begin by reading John 8:56, where we find this idea clearly expressed; that Abraham understood what this was all about. John 8:56. Here Jesus, speaking to the Jews says: Did Abraham understand that God was going to provide a seed who would bring the blessing, who would restore the earth, who would bring about a multitude of redeemed people that no one can number, and who would remove the curse? Very clearly, Abraham understood that God was going to do this, by a supernatural miracle. Now the story that we’re going to study in our lecture today, is actually the story that comes immediately before the one that we studied last time. It’s the story of two sons that Abraham had. The first of those sons, of course, was Ishmael, and the second of those sons we spoke about in our last lecture. His name was Isaac.
I’d like to begin our study today at Genesis 1:26, 28, Genesis 1:26, and then we’ll jump down to verse 28. There are four points that I want to underline in these two verses as we begin our study. Verse 26 says: Then God said, Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness: and let them have dominion… That’s the first idea that I want us to notice: dominion. That means kingship, rulership. Let them have dominion. And then it speaks about the territory. Second point: their territory. It says: over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Two points: 1. God gave man dominion. His dominion was exercised over planet Earth. Now we want to notice also verse 28, verse 28. It says: Then God blessed them. This is the third element that I want you to notice. God blessed them, and God said to them, And God said to them… Fourth element… Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth… And then the same idea is repeated as at the beginning of verse 26… and subdue it: have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Four ideas: 1. Dominion 2. The territory, the earth. 3. The blessing. 4. A multiplicity of descendants. And, of course, the idea was that the descendants would be holy and righteous, just like Adam and Eve. But then sin came into the world, and Satan took the plan, which belonged to God, and ruined it. The devil took dominion over the earth. The devil took over the territory of the earth. Instead of the blessing three times in Genesis 3 and 4, we find the word curse. And instead of filling the earth with a race of righteous and holy people, the Bible says that the earth was filled with people, but it was a violent and iniquitous race like Satan. And so the fourfold plan of God was spoiled. Instead of man having dominion, Satan took dominion. Instead of man owning the earth, Satan stole the earth. Instead of the blessing came the curse. 5:00 And instead of a multitude of holy descendants, there was a multitude of a corrupt race, which eventually led to the worldwide flood. But God had set forth a plan to recover these four things which Adam and Eve, and their descendants lost.
We’d like to begin our study today in the book of 01:58 Genesis 9:1, Genesis 9:1. This verse is describing God’s plan for Noah and his family, and their descendants after the flood. And we find the following words: You notice that God’s plan after the flood was that humanity should scatter abroad over all of the earth, and fill the earth. Now the Tower of Babel episode took place approximately one hundred years after the flood. And as we read Genesis 11, we discover that human beings did exactly the opposite of what God had told them to do. Instead of scattering abroad over all of the earth, they conglomerated together, they consolidated together in one place. Let’s go in our Bibles to Genesis 11:1, 2, Genesis 11:1, 2. It says: Actually, a better translation is “as they journeyed toward the East,” because if you look at the geography, you’ll discover that Mt. Ararat is in Turkey, and Babylon, where the Tower of Babel was built, is actually southeast from Turkey. And so a better translation, as many modern versions have it, is that they travelled towards the east. It says that they: Now undoubtedly the reason why they decided to dwell there was because Ararat is a place where there are many mountains. The land is not so fertile. Therefore they looked for more fertile ground. It’s interesting to notice that Genesis 11 begins by saying that they all spoke the same language. Now if you look at the world today you’ll discover that people who speak the same language tend to band together. Language unites people in a national unity. It’s much more natural to unite people who speak the same language and the same dialect. We’re going to find in this story, however, that the devil had a very special plan in mind, taking into account that there was one language and one speech.
I’d like us to begin our study today in the book of Luke 17:28-30, Luke 17:28-30. We’ve already studied the story of the flood in Noah’s day, and we discovered that the whole flood story is an illustration of events which are going to take place at the end of time. Now in our lecture today we are going to study that the story of
02:18 Sodom and Gomorrah also is an illustration of events which will take place at the very end of time. Lets begin reading at verse 28. After talking about the flood, Jesus says, Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot; they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but in the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. And now notice verse 30. Even so, in other words, in the same manner. Even so, will it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. Jesus Himself told us that the story of Sodom and Gomorrah is symbolic of events which will take place at the very close of human history. And so what we want to do in our lecture today is draw a parallel between what happened then, and what is going to happen now, as we approach the end of time. I’d like us to begin in Genesis 13:10 where we have a description of the valley where Sodom and Gomorrah were before the cities were destroyed. Genesis 13:10. This is when Lot and Abraham parted ways. You remember that Lot went into the valley where Sodom and Gomorrah were, whereas Abraham decided to stay in the country outside the cities. It says here in chapter 13 and verse 10: And then it explains in parenthesis: You notice that that whole valley, according to this verse, was beautiful. In fact it compares this area with the garden of Eden, of all things! In other words, it was a very fertile region. Now if you go to that region today, you’re going to find just the opposite.
One of the greatest questions, one of the greatest existential questions that have ever been asked is the question that Job asked many, many millennia ago. If a man die, shall he live again? In our study today we’re going to discuss the mysteries of life and death. And basically what we’re going to do is study this subject in ten specific points. And I want to tell you where we’re going as we begin, so that when we get there we know that we have covered all of the ground. The first point that we want to study is what is life? Than after we’ve determined what life is, we want to go and ask the question, What is the body of man? What is the body of man? And that might be self-explanatory, but we’re going to examine what the Bible has to say about the body. In the third place, we want to examine what the spirit of man is. What is the spirit? In the fourth place we want to examine what the Bible defines as the soul. What is a soul, and what happens when a person dies, with the soul? The fifth point that we want to analyze is: How could life be perpetuated at the very beginning? Did man have an immortal soul, or was there an external source of life that man needed to partake of? The sixth point that we want to study is what is death, according to scripture? The seventh point that we want to deal with is where does man go when he dies? Where do women go when they die? Point number eight, if we die is there hope of living again? Point number nine, when will death be totally eradicated from the universe? And finally, why is this subject that we are studying so important to understand in this day and age?
The title of our study today is, New Age or Ancient Lie? And we want to begin our study at Matthew 6:9, Matthew 6:9. There’s a very important principle that is expressed here in what is known as The Lord’s Prayer. Matthew 6:9. Here Jesus says this: Now why are we beginning our study with this verse? Because this verse has some very important information which will be useful in our study in understanding our study for this evening. First of all this verse makes it very clear that God 02:57 is a personal God, because we’re supposed to address Him as Father. And so if He’s our Father, we are His sons and daughters. We are His children. The only way that this can be true is if God is a person. The second point that I want us to notice is that God is in a specific place, which in the Bible is called heaven. In other words, God inhabits a certain place, a certain location, which in this verse is called heaven. Now we’re going to notice in our study this evening many things that you’ve thought about, and you’ve heard many times before. But I want you to notice the way that all of the points are interconnected, because at the end of our study we’re going to talk about a philosophy which has almost taken over the whole world, including the Christian world.
We want to begin our study today at Genesis 3:15, Genesis 3:15, which is the verse that has kind of guided us in our study together. It says there in Genesis 3:15, God is speaking to the serpent, to the devil. As we’ve studied, God was telling Satan that He was going to send a Seed to this world, born of a woman, to do battle with the devil. In the process of the battle, the devil was going to be able to bruise the heel of the Seed of the woman, but the Seed of the woman was going to crush his head in the process. We’ve noticed that when the serpent, when the devil heard these words, he made up his mind that he was not going to allow that Seed to come. And so the first method that the devil uses to try and keep the Seed from coming, is to attempt to kill the Seed. And we find this method of the devil illustrated in the story of Cain and Abel. In that story we have all four elements of Genesis 3:15. We have enmity, we have a woman, we have a serpent, and we have two seeds. And, of course, the story as it develops, we find Cain killing Abel. And, of course, the devil is is very happy because he feels that God’s plan has been frustrated. Now no Seed can come from this lineage. But God knew better. And so we find in Genesis 4:25 that God gave Adam and Eve another seed. Well, actually, lets read that verse, Genesis 4:25. It says: And then she explains why he was called Seth. It says there: And so through Seth the lineage continues. And soon the devil thinks in his mind, If I attempt to kill all the seeds, and God brings another seed in place of the one that I killed, I’m never going to be successful. There has to be a better method of doing away with the possibility of this promise of God being fulfilled. And so the devil goes to his second plan: Plan B.
As I mentioned in my prayer, this evening we are going to study two devastating end time deceptions which have captivated almost the entire world. And when I say the entire world, I’m not only speaking about the secular world, I’m speaking also about the religious world. Most of the religious world has accepted, and teaches these two devastating errors that Satan has prepared to deceive the whole world in the end time. Now these two errors are very closely related one to another. They are two separate errors, but they are not independent. They are interlinked, which means that if you believe one of the errors, you will automatically believe the other, because they are very, very closely connected, and if you teach one, you will automatically teach the other as well. Lets begin our study in the book of Romans 3:20, Romans 3:20. And the point that I want to underline now as we read this verse, is that if there is no law, there can be no sin. This is the first point. We’re going to follow a very logical order in our study today, so don’t get distracted. Don’t go to sleep on me, because if you just dose off for a couple of minutes, you’re going to lose the sequence of what we’re going to study. My first point is that if there is no law there can be no sin. Now go with me, as I mentioned, to Romans 3:20. The apostle Paul says: How do we know sin? by the law. By the law is the knowledge of sin. So if you don’t have the law, you wouldn’t have the knowledge of sin. Now lets go also to Romans 4:15, Romans 4:15. Here we find the same basic idea, but in different words. It says there… The apostle Paul once again is writing. He says: Because the law… And some people say, See, the law is bad because it brings about wrath. Now wait a minute. Why does the law bring wrath?
I’d like to begin our study today at the place where we began our study last time. And, of course, that has to do with the first two chapters of the book of Genesis. What I’m going to do is review certain very important elements that will be fundamental for what we’re going to discuss in this evening’s lecture. First of all, I would like to underline the fact that I’ve mentioned many times before, and that is that Jesus Christ was the Creator of Genesis 1. Jesus Christ was the Creator of Genesis 1. That’s critically important for what we’re going to discussin our lecture today. The second point that I want us to notice in our study is found in Genesis 1:31-2:1, Genesis 1: 31-2:1. Notice what it says: And now notice verse 1: Question: When did Jesus finish His work of creation? On which day? Very clearly, He finished on the sixth day. Correct? Now, let’s notice verse 2. It says in Genesis 2:2: And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. Three points that I want us to notice: 1. Jesus was the Creator. 2. Jesus finished His work of creation on the sixth day. 3. Jesus rested on the seventh day. We’re going to come back to this later on in our study. It’s critically important. Now I want you to notice also as we review what we studied in our last lecture, that man did not do any work in order to exist.
Cracking the Genesis Code Video 10 text summary
I’d like us to begin our study today at the book of Exodus 20:8-11, Exodus 20:8-11. This is the fourth commandment of the law of God. The law which God wrote with His own finger on tables of stone, with, actually, flames of fire, according to scripture. It says here: In it you shall do no work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates:… And then we have the reason why God gave this commandment. Notice verse 11. It says: That is He made it holy. Now there are two things that I want us to notice as we begin our study. First of all, the reason for the observance of this commandment is creation. It says that God gave us this commandment because in six days He made the heavens, the earth, the seas, and all that is in them, and He rested the seventh day. So this commandment is actually a creation ordinance. The second thing that I want us to notice about this verse is that it clearly tells us that God did three things with the Sabbath. First of all, we are told that He rested. And I want you to remember these words: He rested. Secondly, He blessed the Sabbath. And in the third place, we find that God hallowed it, or sanctified it; He made it Holy. So three ideas: resting, blessing, and hallowing. And it points us back to creation. Now if this commandment points us back to creation, where do you suppose would be a good place to go to find out why God gave it? I think it would be a good idea for us to go back to the book of Genesis, because that’s where we find creation described. This commandment sends us back to Genesis. So let’s go back to Genesis.
I’d like to begin our study today by turning to that very central and important verse, Genesis 3:15, Genesis 3:15. This verse is central to everything that we’re studying in this seminar. Here God is speaking to the serpent and He says this: That is the serpent and the woman. That is the Seed of the woman. Now you’ll notice here that the Seed of the woman, according to this prophecy, was going to bruise the head of the serpent. Now in our study today we’re going to analyze the story where there is a death blow given to the head. It’s not a story in the book of Genesis. It’s actually found in 1 Samuel chapter 17. It’s the famous story of David and Goliath, which probably we’ve heard since we were children, if we’re adults. It’s a spectacular story. A story where David, against all odds, overcomes and defeats this, supposedly, invincible giant. Now I’d like to just go through this story. I’m not going to read all of the verses, because we don’t have the time to read all of the verses. You can read 1 Samuel 17 at your leisure. But there are certain points in this chapter that I want to underline, because they’re important for what we’re going to talk about in the second half of our study together. First of all, I would like to mention that when this story takes place, Saul was the king of Israel. However, if you read 1 Samuel 15:26 you’re going to discover that Saul, because of his disobedience, God had already told him that he was going to be deposed as king. In other words, Saul was no longer going to be the king of Israel, because of his disobedience. Now, in this context we find that because of Saul’s disobedience, you can read 1 Samuel 15 and 16, Israel suffered one defeat after another at the hands of the Philistines, their arch enemies. In fact almost in every single battle that Israel was involved with, with the Philistines, they lost ground, and they lost battles; all because of the disobedience of Saul. Israel, in other words, needed someone to recover the kingship, which had been lost by Saul. Israel needed a champion to recover that which had been lost, because they had been defeated so severely in all of their battles in recent times.
I’d like to begin our study today at the gospel of Matthew 24, and we’re going to read verses 23 and 24, Matthew 24:23, 24. Here Jesus is speaking about the end time. And I want you to notice the warning that Jesus gives concerning the end time. He says there in Matthew, once again, 24:23, 24: Now imagine deceptions that are so powerful that they will almost deceive even the elect. Now the question is, to whom did Jesus give this warning? Notice Matthew 24:4, Matthew 24:4. Notice who Jesus is speaking to. And Jesus answered and said to them,… That is the disciples, if you look at the context. …Take heed that no one deceives you. Who was in danger of being deceived? The disciples. Deceptions so powerful that they would deceive, if possible, although the syntax indicates that it’s not possible. But if it were possible, the very elect. Obviously Satan’s final deception’s will be very, very, powerful, very delusive. And, therefore, we need to understand how the devil deceives. Now let’s go to Genesis 2:15, and read once again the command that God gave to Adam and Eve
04:04 in the garden of Eden. Genesis 2:16, And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat: for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. Now I need to ask you some questions about this prohibition that God gave Adam and Eve. First of all, was the command of God clear? Was it complicated? hard to understand? No.
04:48 Was it simple? His command was simple and clear. Was it an easy command to obey? Sure it was. I mean, do you think Adam and Eve were starving to death when they came to the tree? They had no reason to, because God told them that they could eat of every tree of the garden. So probably Eve, when she came to the tree, wasn’t even hungry. There’s more than physical appetite involved here. So what I’m saying is that the command was clear. By the way, Eve understood it, because she repeated the words of God to the serpent. Only she added a few things that God had not said, like God didn’t say you can’t touch it. He said you can’t eat of it. Eve added to what God said. We’ll come to that later.
I’d like to begin our study at the book of Genesis 1:31. We’ve read this before, but we want to read it again. Genesis 1:31. It’s speaking here about the conclusion of God’s work of creation. And at the end of creation we find these words: Then God saw every thing that he had made, and, indeed, it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. So at the conclusion of creation week, with the exception of the seventh day, which we will discuss later on, we’re told that everything that God made was very good. Now this includes the vegetable kingdom. The garden of Eden was kind of like a botanical garden. The Bible tells us that there were no thorns. There were no thistles. There were no weeds before sin. It included also the animal world.
03:01 According to Genesis 1:30 all animals before sin were vegetarians. It includes also the kingdom of human beings. They were in perfect harmony, in perfect accord. The Bible tells us that Adam and Eve were one. They were created one by God. But God placed a test in the garden of Eden. And if Adam and Eve passed the test creation would continue as God had intended. But if Adam and Eve did not pass the test, then creation would
03:45 fall into chaos, into disarray. Now that test was found in a tree. Go with me to Genesis 2:16, 17, Genesis 2:16, 17. So God placed in the garden of Eden a test. He said creation will continue very good, as I created it,
04:29 as long as you abstain from eating from the tree; As long as you keep my commandment. And as we’ve seen, all of the commandments were contained in that one commandment. The Bible tells us that Adam and Eve sinned, and as a result creation, to a great degree, was thrown into disarray. As we’re told in Genesis 3:18, the earth began producing thorns and thistles, which were unknown before sin. The Bible also indicates, as we move along, that the animal kingdom became a violent kingdom. Animals started killing animals for food. We also find that in consequence of sin, that oneness between Adam and Eve was broken, because as we mentioned
05:27 in our last lecture, Adam began blaming God for giving him Eve, and Eve began blaming God and blaming the serpent. In other words, that oneness was broken in consequence of sin. Something terrible had happened to this world as a result of sin. You see, what happened is that before sin entered into this world, everything was other centered; was centered towards helping others, living for others. But in consequence of sin, self took the throne. The core of man was changed from others to self, and this was in consequence of Satan telling Eve,
I’d like to begin our study in the book of Genesis 1:31, Genesis 1:31. This is a very well known verse. It’s speaking about the conclusion of creation, and it makes a very important statement. Genesis 1:31. This is at the end of the sixth day. It says there: Then God saw every thing that he had made, and, indeed, it was very good.
02:16 Notice every day God sees, that’s it’s good, but on the sixth day we’re told that God saw that every thing
02:27 that He had made was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Thus the Bible begins by telling us that God made every thing good in this world. But then we go to Genesis 3 and we discover that in the garden of Eden a mysterious serpent shows up. And this mysterious serpent is actually slandering God, which seems to be a discordant note in the context of every thing being created good, and created perfect.
03:08 Notice Genesis 3: 4, 5. See, God had said, you’re going to die if you eat from the tree. The serpent says:
03:26 In other words, God is a liar. Verse 5: Now in Genesis the serpent appears suddenly, speaking, talking, and it makes you wonder where this serpent came from, because God made Adam and Eve in His image. He gave them the capacity to speak. He gave them the capacity to communicate, to make moral decisions, to hold on rational discussions. Here we have a serpent holding a rational discussion with the woman. The question is, where did this serpent come from? Obviously, the serpent, as he’s spoken of here in Genesis 3, was not part of the creation of God. I know that the snake itself was, but the serpent who was using this animal obviously was not created during creation week, because God made everything good. Now where did he come from?
I’d like us to begin our study today by going to the book of Psalm; Psalm 8 and I want to read verses 3 through 5, Psalm 8:3-5. And there are two things that I want to underline in these verses as we begin our study today.
01:59 Here David writes the following words: Now I want you to notice that in verse 5 we’re told that God crowned man with glory and honor. Now who is crowned? a king. And so we find very clearly revealed here that Adam was created to be a king. Now every king has a territory over which he rules, and the question is, over which territory did God create Adam to rule? In the following verses, starting with verse 6, we have a mention of the territory that God gave this new king. It says there in verse 6: So we notice here two things as we begin our study today: 1. Adam was created to be king. That was his function. 2. The territory over which Adam was to govern was everything relating to planet Earth. It says here: the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and all of the animals that wander, or walk upon the earth. So two things, as we begin our study: Adam was created to be king over planet Earth. There’s a third point that I want us to underline, and understand as we begin our study. And that is that according to Genesis 2:9, God placed a tree in the garden of Eden, and the purpose of that tree, known as the tree of life, was to perpetuate the life of Adam and his descendents. In other words, it was God’s plan that Adam, and his descendents, live forever. And so three elements we find of God’s original plan for man: 1. God created Adam as king. 2. His territory was Planet Earth. 3. God created him to live forever along with his descendents.
I want to start out by saying that I do not believe very much in conspiracy theories. Every once in awhile I’ll have people give me videos and DVD’s of people who have these conspiracy theories; for example, about what happened on 9/11, about the idea that it wasn’t an airplane that crashed into the Pentagon, and that really, you know, the Twin Towers actually had dynamite within them and they imploded. I’m not very high on this type of conspiracy theory, to be honest with you. But I can tell you one thing, and we’re going to study this tonight. There is a conspiracy behind the events of human history, and I like to call it the mother of all conspiracies. And this evening we’re going to study about this conspiracy that is taking place in the invisible world, where we can’t really see the movements that are taking place. All we can see is the repercussions in the visible world. We want to begin our study in the book of Job. And basically, I need to tell you a few things about Job before we read chapter 1 and verse 12. There was a meeting that took place in heaven. Very clearly Job chapter 1 describes this meeting. And representing Planet Earth went Satan to that meeting. And the subject of conversation in this Heavenly meeting turned to Job, whom the Bible describes as a perfect man; as a man who had departed from evil; as a righteous man. And the conversation turned to this man who was in harmony with God’s will. And the devil basically accused God, and he said, the reason why Job serves You, and is righteous, and is Holy and perfect, is because You have not allowed me to touch him. But if You allowed me to take what You have given to him, he would blaspheme You in Your face. And in Job 1:12 we find the experience about what God said to Satan in this meeting.
Cracking the Genesis Code Video 2 text summary
We’d like to begin our study at the book of Genesis Chapter 1 and verse 1, Genesis Chapter 1 and verse 1. This is one of the better known texts of Holy Scripture. And I don’t even have to look it up because I have it memorized, and I’m sure you do also. It says there, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. ”
02:14 Three things I want us to notice in this verse. First of all, the expression “in the beginning. ” Secondly, “God. ” And in the third place, “created the heavens and the earth. ” Now let’s go to the gospel of John Chapter 1, and we’ll read verses 1 and 3, and I’m trying to make a point by comparing these two passages of scripture, or these texts of scripture. It says there in John Chapter 1 and verse 1… Very clearly, these two texts of scripture are closely linked, because in both of them you have the expression “in the beginning. ” In both of them you’ll have the idea of God – in fact, the word “God” is used. And in both, you have “creation. ” In Genesis it says that “God created the heavens and the earth. ” In John Chapter 1 it says that “the Word created all things, and without Him nothing was made that was made. ” So, we have the same three ideas in Genesis and in John. The point that I’m trying to make is that the Creator of Genesis Chapter 1 and verse 1 was none other than Jesus Christ, because in John Chapter 1, we find that the Word is Jesus, because we’re told in verse 14 that the Word was made flesh. And, so, the Creator of the book of Genesis is Jesus Christ.
We’re going to begin our study in our lecture today at the place where we ended in our last lecture. Genesis 3:15, Genesis 3:15. Now for those of you who were not here for the previous lecture, I recommend that you get a copy of the hard copy as you go out this evening, because you’ll be able to review all of the details from our last lecture. But basically what we studied is that Adam and Eve sinned and gave up their position of dominion over the earth. And, of course, God pronounced upon them the sentence of death. But we found that God came down to the Garden of Eden and He made that wonderful promise to Adam and Eve as they were listening to God speak to the serpent. And those words of God to the serpent were God’s declaration of war, and they’re found in Genesis 3:15. God is speaking here to the serpent. Three kinds of enmity: between the serpent and the woman, between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman, and between the seed of the woman and the serpent. The enmity runs, in other words, in three directions. But the real enmity is between the seed of the woman, and the serpent, because the last part of the verse says, He, the Seed of the woman, will crush your head, serpent, and you are going to wound, you’re going to hurt His heel. In other words, God is saying, I’m going to send a Seed to the world, and He’s going to do battle with you. In the process of the battle you’re going to hurt Him, but by hurting Him, His foot is going to come down on your head and it is going to crush your head. He’s going to eliminate you. He’s going to destroy you. Now when Satan heard those words he trembled, he shook, and he made up his mind from that point on that he was not going to allow that Seed to come to the world.
Pastor Stephen Bohr is a true servant for the Lord Jesus Christ, and his knowledge understanding and interpretation of the scriptures is amongst the very best that I have ever found. Sola Scriptura, “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little: Isaiah 28:10” is the guiding principle that motivates his studies. Not only does he help with interpretation but explains by allowing the bible to interpret itself. His presentation is excellent and and he gives a true and faithful representation of the Word of God and this series of lectures on Matthew 24 is a must watch for all new Christians as well as those that might be a little lost and unsure of their faith what with all the lies and deceptions that the wicked one has presented to the children of God.
I highly recommend visiting the website of Secrets Unsealed, downloading and studying the resources that he presents for interpretation.
http://www.secretsunsealed.org/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcopRbQkzivS5Kx6Y1hve-g
We are standing on the threshold of great and solemn events. Many of the prophecies are about to be fulfilled in quick succession. Every element of power is about to be set to work. Past history will be repeated; old controversies will arouse to new life, and peril will beset God’s people on every side. Intensity is taking hold of the human family. It is permeating everything upon the earth…. {TM 116.2}
Study Revelation in connection with Daniel, for history will be repeated…. We, with all our religious advantages, ought to know far more today than we do know. {TM 116.3}