November 2nd - The Lake of Fire

“And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for the ages of the ages… And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire…And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death...” (Revelation 20:10, 14,15)

The lake of fire will consume the enemies of humanity which are 1) the adversary (Satan); 2) the governments of humanity (beasts); 3) the religions of men (false prophets); 4) death and hell (the grave).

What about those not found in the "book of life"? Thy experience a "second death".

Remember that both the "just and the unjust" are to be resurrected after death. It is my view that the righteous will be raised immortal, however the wicked will be raised back into their mortal bodies.

"And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to age lasting life, but others to shame and age lasting contempt." (Daniel 12:2)

"...there will be a resurrection which is impending of both the just and the unjust." (Acts 24:15)

The resurrected who are unjust are raised after the thousand year reign on Christ Jesus on this earth, and then stand before the Great White Throne. There they will become believers in Christ Jesus, returned to a second death by means of the lake of fire, and raised again as immortals when death is "destroyed". 

"As in Adam all die, even so, in Christ, shall all be made alive...The last enemy to be destroyed is death...that God may be All in all." (1 Corinthians 15:22,26,28)

Humanity began as corruptible mortals and will end as incorruptible immortals.

"For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal put on immortality. Now, whenever this corruptible should be putting on incorruption and this mortal should be putting on immortality, then shall come to pass the word which is written, Swallowed up was Death by Victory..." (1 Corinthians 15:53-55)

Even though God's plan includs adversaries, sinners, evil, suffering and death, God also predestined all sinners be saved through Christ Jesus bringing “unity to all things in heaven and on earth” when God's plan reaches its conclusion.

“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners...This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who will have all humanity to be saved...we trust in the living God who is the Savior of all humanity, especially believers. Command and teach these things..." (1 Timothy 1:15, 2:3-4, 4:9-11)

"In love He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will— to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.” (Ephesians 1:4-10)

Out of the ash heap of the failures of mortal humans will be born a new, immortal and victorious spiritual creation...praising and loving it gracious God.  There will be no more "cowards, unbelievers, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and liars"...

"So it is with the resurrection of the dead. Sown in corruption, raised in incorruption; sown in dishonor, raised in glory; sown in weakness, raised in power; sown a natural body, raided a spiritual body..." (1 Corinthians 15:42-44)

"Then I saw a New Heaven and a New Earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea no longer existed...Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away...The victor will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son. But the cowards, unbelievers, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars—their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:1-8)

When Scripture is viewed from the standpoint of God's love and justice, all its difficult passages are easily harmonized with His goal of saving and reconciling all to Himself. 

In this expectation believers of this present age are to wait with "patience"...

"For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience." (Romans 8:22-25)

Again, the second death by means of the lake of fire is only for unbelievers after their resurrection to stand before the Great White Throne - and that fire will return their mortal bodies to dust. That second death, and all in it, will be abolished and all therein made alive to enter the New Heaven and New Earth where God is All in all.

November 1st - Denied but not Damned

"...whoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 10:32-33)

What will Jesus deny to those who deny Him?

Certainly not salvation for we know God is the Savior of all humanity.

"..we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all humanity, especially of believers." (1 Timothy 4:10)

What Jesus denies to those who deny Him in this age in which we live is to "REIGN" with Christ during the one thousand year age that follows the return of Jesus to this Earth.

"If we endure, we will also REIGN with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us." (2 Timothy 2:12).

When Jesus returns the mortals left living on this earth will be reigned over by those who have placed their trust in God up until that time. Those who have died will be raised to life . At the end of the thousand years, mortals being reigned over will rebel against bringing destruction to this earth. Then all unjust mortals will be raised and stand before the Great White Throne of God to give account and be judged by Jesus. All of them will bow and acclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord - to the glory of God the Father.

"As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God...at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Romans 14:11; Philippians 2:10-11)

They will then die the second time and raised immortal when death is abolished. God's plan is to  be "All in all".

"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ, all shall be made alive...For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under His feet...The last enemy is being abolished: death... that God may be All in all." (1 Corinthians 15:20-29).

There has always been a remnant of people who believe God. These all endure to the end of life with peace and hope in their heart. All of them will be raised to "REIGN" with Christ Jesus during the one thousand year age that follows the coming of Jesus. That reign is what men who deny Jesus will be denied, however, they will saved and made alive thereafter - or the Bible is false.

"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to everyone. 12It instructs us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live sensible, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13as we await the blessed hope and glorious appearance of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. 14He gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds." (Titus 2:11-14)

October 31st - Rescued!

"For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." (Colossians 1:13)

Most Christians do not agree with me that ALL humanity will be saved and reconciled to God because it is not what they have been taught. I had read the entire Bible more than 20 times before it dawned on me what the following verse clearly says - that God intends to reconcile ALL His creation through Christ Jesus.

"For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile ALL things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven." (Colossians 1:19-20)

Scripture came alive for me again when I came to a knowledge of that truth, and now I embrace Paul's doxology of praise...

"For God has shut up ALL in disobedience so that He may show mercy to ALL. Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen." (Romans 11:32-36)

Happy Halloween! - even the ghosts and goblins are to be reconciled to God. 😇👻

October 30th - The Helpless and Ungodly

"For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly...God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us...having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation." (Romans 5:6-11)

The Bible teaches that the wrath of God is death - and then it is finished.  And, the Bible also teaches that humanity will be saved out of death by Christ Jesus. One of the strangest things to me are Christians who reason that God must send unrepentant people to hell because He is "Just" (as if torturing people forever is the right thing to do).

If you hold to such a false doctrine read Romans Chapter 5 until that doctrine is cleansed from your system....then embrace the loving and truly just God of the Bible.

Humanity now bears the likeness of Adam - sinners, helpless and ungodly. But we are destined the bear the likeness of Christ Jesus - a powerful sinless life-giving spirit.

"So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being;” the last Adam a life-giving spirit...The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. As was the earthly man, so also are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so also shall we bear the likeness of the heavenly man." (1 Corinthians 15:45-49)

"For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?" (Romans 8:29-32)

October 29th - The Way We Were

“And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:15-16)

The above Scripture is referring to Abraham and his family. Had they gone back to Ur from which God had told them to leave, Abraham would not have become the father of FAITH.

“…one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus…" (Philippians 3:13-14)

"...as it is written: What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived - the things God has prepared for those who love him - these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)

 Barbara Streisand sang beautifully about memories in the hit song of the movie The Way We Were…

"Memories may be beautiful and yet, What’s too painful to remember we simply choose to forget.  So it’s the laughter we will remember whenever we remember the way we were."

When times get tough, we have a tendency to want to return to a better place memorialized in the corners of our minds, the beauty and the laughter.  That is OK but keep moving forward because it is our tendency to start longing for what was, rather than looking forward to what we have been promised by God. The future that God has prepared for humanity is far better than the past or present - off the charts better and more than we can ever dream! 

“See, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind." (Isaiah 65:17)

"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” (Revelation 21:3-5)

October 28th - Who are His People?

"...you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." (Matthew 1:20-21)

Jesus came to "save HIS PEOPLE from their sins”.

Institutional Christianity contends that they are "His people". Further, they contend He only OFFERS to save them if they repent of their sins and accept Jesus as their Savior before they die. That is NOT what the Bible says!

Who are "His people"? The book of Acts answers the question.

"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples made by human hands. Nor is He served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man He made every nation of humanity, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands...As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His children.’ " (Acts 17:24-25)

The Athenians were worshipers of all kinds of gods, and had set up shrines for them. They even had set up a shrine for the unknown God. They did so out of fear. They thought that if they offended one of the gods, he might punish them, not only in this life but also in the next - sound familiar?

But Paul tells them that God is calling His children to "REPENT" of such a false idea about God....

"...being then the children of God, we ought not think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to humanity that all people everywhere should repent…” (Acts 17:26-29)

The word "repent" means to "change your mind". The true God of ScrIpture, the One who "made from one man every nation" sent His Son into the world to save its sinners, not condemn them - which demonstrates His Love and mercy.

God is calling the religions of the world to "repent" - that is to change their minds about Him and turn away from the false gods who have been "formed by the art and thought of man"!

The real God, like a good Father, disciplines His children. He does so as any good Father would do who had the power - and in doing so demonstrates His love for His sinful children…

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish (stay dead), but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." (John 3:16-17)

"…have you forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons: my son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him; for those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He disciplines every son whom He receives…God deals with you as with sons and what son is there whom his father does not discipline?” (Hebrews 12:5-7)

"God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God (death). For while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, we will be saved by His life." (Romans 5:8-11)

When will this discipline end? It will end after we all appear at the judgment seat of Christ, also called the Great White Throne. All humanity will then declare that Jesus Christ as Lord...

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad....at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (2 Corinthians 5:10; Philippians 2:10-11)

Humans are ALL the people of God - sinners who fall short of the glory of God. And we are to "repent" from thinking that God is like those angry gods presented by the religions of the world whose gods torture people for their sins.

October 27th - Eternal Redemption

“And I, if I should be exalted out of the earth, shall be drawing all to Myself." (John 12:32)

"I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one is coming to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6)

"...He is able to save to the uttermost those coming to God through Him.” (Hebrews 7:25)

No one gets to the Father except through Jesus. When Jesus was resurrected - lifted up out of death - He drew ALL humanity to Himself.  He alone saves to the "uttermost" and no one can get to God by his or her own free will.

“But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once FOR ALL, having obtained ETERNAL REDEMPTION.” (Hebrews 9:11-12)

Someday the whole world will hear the good news from Jesus Himself.

"It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world…" (John 4:42)

"He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.” (1 John 2:2)

"The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29)

"...this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who wills all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom FOR ALL..." (1Timothy 2:3-6)

I have family and friends who do not believe this, but I am confident that one day they will - and will rejoice with me in the ETERNAL REDEMPTION of all humanity by the blood of the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world.