THE DISINHERITED ETERNAL STATE

Introduction

When interpreting Scripture, we always have to ask ourselves is this literal or is it metaphoric? Metaphoric or symbolic language does speak to reality but the symbol is not to be taken literal. The concept is literal. Metaphoric or symbolic language is representational. An example is found in John 10:9, "I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture." Is Jesus saying that He is a literal door? Obviously not. He is like a door in that to enter into the kingdom of God, one must go through him. This is representational truth. When interpreting Scripture, one must be consistent. Many are literal when convenient and they sometimes misrepresent symbols as literal.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

Deuteronomy corresponds to the fifth point of the covenant model, inheritance or disinheritance. Deuteronomy 32:22 reads, "For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains." God is a jealous and holy God as Deuteronomy 4: 24 says so clearly, "For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God." Fire as expressed here is representational. We know that God is portrayed as a fire in Hebrews 10:26-27, "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 27But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries," and Hebrews 12:29, "For our God is a consuming fire." His divine judgment and wrath are depicted as fire which burns to ashes. These Scriptures demand a metaphoric interpretation.

The Bible clearly teaches that there will be an eternal state. Jesus said in Matthew 25:46, "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal." Hell or the lake of fire are representative of eternal punishment. This is a never ending, always continuing torment without end. Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus. We read in Luke 16:22-24, "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; 23And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame." Jesus had said in verse 19 of this chapter, "a certain rich man." Clarke says it may be either a parable or real history. If a parable, then we are looking at the idea or concept of hell as being a place of torment, whatever that torment may be. One of the torments of hell is regret. There is the regret of not living one’s life for the Lord and the missed opportunities.

Point five of the covenant model is inheritance. It also means disinheritance. In fact, those who are not born again have always been disinherited as Revelation 20:5-6, "But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." If there is a first resurrection, then it follows that there is a second resurrection. The first resurrection is a bringing to life from the first death. Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:1, "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins." To be quickened is to be made alive. We know Romans 6:23 says in part, "The wages of sin is death..." Sin produces death. Being born of the Spirit brings resurrection life. This is also the message of John 5:24, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." This is an example of the first resurrection i.e. the resurrection into spiritual life from spiritual death.

If there is a second death, then it ensues there is a first death. Revelation 20:11-15 talks about the disinherited, "And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Is this lake of fire composed of literal fire or is it representative of the eternal state of damned? Here is the final judgment depicted before the eternal state. Everything has been recorded. Jesus said in Luke 12:47-48, "And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." There will be degrees of punishment in the lake of fire. Some receive greater torment than others.

Conclusion

Jesus said in John 5:28-29, "Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 29And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." There is coming one general judgment. Which will be your eternal state?

THE DEVIL'S TEN COMMANDMENTS

Introduction

We live in a world of antithesis. There is a physical law that says "for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." In philosophical terms, this means if there is life, there is death. If there is truth, there is a lie etc. Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace." Here is antithesis stated openly. If we love something, then we automatically hate the opposite of the object of our love. Proverbs 8:13 tells us some things to hate, "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate." If we have the fear of the Lord, we will, by definition, love their converses.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

If there is a God, then there has to be a devil. The word "devil" means adversary. He is the antithesis of God. The Lord Jesus said of him in John 8:44, "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it." Clearly, the devil is a liar. The Lord Jesus Christ, on the other hand, said in John 14:6, "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." Since the Lord Jesus Christ is these three things, the devil would be the reverse. He would say, "I am the desert, the lie, and the death."

In presenting the opposite, we understand what the other is. The devil has his ten commandments also. Deuteronomy 5:6-21, "I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 7Thou shalt have none other gods before me. 8Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth: 9Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, 10And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. 11Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. 12Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee. 13Six days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work: 14But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou. 15And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day. 16Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. 17Thou shalt not kill. 18Neither shalt thou commit adultery. 19Neither shalt thou steal. 20Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour. 21Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour’s wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour’s." These are God’s Ten Commandments.

We know that the devil’s would be just the opposite. His would be 1. Thou shall have other gods. 2. Thou shall make graven images and bow down and worship them. 3. Thou shall take the Lord’s name in vain. 4. Forget the Sabbath day by desecrating it. 5. Dishonor your father and mother. 6. Thou shall kill. 7. Thou shall commit adultery. 8. Thou shall steal. 9. Thou shall bear false witness against your neighbor. 10. Thou shall covet everything your neighbor has. Is there a basis in Scripture for the above? God said to Adam in Genesis 2:16-17, "And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." This is clear and emphatic. Breaking God’s command would result in death. The devil comes along and asserts in Genesis 3:4, "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die." One word, "not," changes a truth into a lie. In the same way, an omission of a word does the same thing. When did the devil begin telling the truth anyway?

Conclusion

The devil has tried his level best to change God’s world. He is the epitome of failure. The devil will use Scripture quoted out of context, if it furthers his ends. He attempts this with the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 4:6-7, "And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. 7Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." By taking Scripture out of context, we can make the Bible say whatever we want to. The devil never could follow rules, especially those of grammar.

ARE THERE DEGREES OF MURDER?

Introduction

In our humanistic times, murder is determined by degrees. Humanism determines murder by a subjective standard rather than an objective one. They never consider the result. What is the result of murder? Life can only be taken on God’s terms and never apart from it. The Lord Jesus Christ said in John 7:24, "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment." We are not to judge superficially or subjectively but by an objective standard which is God’s law. We know that the sixth commandment states very clearly in Exodus 20:13, "Thou shalt not kill." Murder is taking of life outside of God’s exceptions.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

There are four exceptions, self-defense, war, accident, and the death penalty. Self-defense is found in Exodus 22:2, "If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him." We can take life within this specific parameter. War is found in Numbers 1:2-3, "Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names, every male by their polls; 3From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies." God told Moses who was to go to war. Therefore, God says that war is at times permissible. Of course, the Bible gives the death penalty for certain offenses. It is the death penalty for the guilty. Genesis 9:5-6 gives us truth, "And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man. 6Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man." The civil government has been given the authority to man to kill those guilty of offenses that God has prescribed.

Numbers 35:16-21 reads, "And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. 17And if he smite him with throwing a stone, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. 18Or if he smite him with an hand weapon of wood, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death. 19The revenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer: when he meeteth him, he shall slay him. 20But if he thrust him of hatred, or hurl at him by laying of wait, that he die; 21Or in enmity smite him with his hand, that he die: he that smote him shall surely be put to death; for he is a murderer: the revenger of blood shall slay the murderer, when he meeteth him." There is no listing of murder in degrees here. The Bible is emphatic on this point of murder. The Bible gives specific instances of what is clearly murder. When someone uses a weapon, their intent is clearly to murder someone. The Bible does not say this is first degree or second degree murder. It says they are murderers. While we cannot determine the subjective intents of someone, we can objectively. The Lord Jesus Christ gave us this principle in Matthew 7:17-20, "Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." We can determine accurately by someone’s outward actions what the intents of their heart are.

The apostle John talked about what a murderer is in his first epistle. 1 John 3:11-13 reads, "For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. 13Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you." Based upon these scriptures, it is clear that murder comes from hatred. Murder is the not the source. Hatred is where it all begins. Murder is an end result and not a source.

John further wrote in 1 John 3:14-15, "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. 15Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." Love is equivalent of life and hatred is the equivalent of death. Love can only be defined by the law of God. To define it in any other way is to argue for murder in degrees. In other words, the humanist refuses to acknowledge the truth and call something what it is. Murderers manifest the true condition of their heart right out in the open. Some hate others but control themselves from actually physically murdering someone. This does not mean that they are not still murderers. If they hate anyone, they are murderers.

Conclusion

The Lord Jesus Christ corrects many misconceptions in His Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:21-22 reads, "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 22But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire." Everything must have a just cause. Just causes can only be defined by God’s objective law. To determine things subjectively is to try and become one’s own god. Anger is permissible with a cause. We should be angry at murderers and give them what they deserve, the death penalty!

ABOMINABLE CUSTOMS OF THE LAND

Introduction

Man apart from God is a sinner. A sinner is someone who is lawless or antinomian. This is what John declared in 1 John 3:4, "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law." Lawlessness is the chief characteristic of the devil. John also wrote in 1 John 3:8, "He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." This verse is clear that sinners are of their father, the devil. The devil is the first sinner. John further wrote in 1 John 3:10, "In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother." Those who do not follow and obey the law of God are children of the devil. It is cut and dry.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

God told Moses to tell the children of Israel the following in Leviticus 18:19-25, "Also thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is put apart for her uncleanness. 20Moreover thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbour’s wife, to defile thyself with her. 21And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD. 22Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. 23Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion. 24Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: 25And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants." These abominable practices were being done by the people of Canaan. God was going to use the children of Israel to bring about His judgment upon them.

An abomination is something that is extremely hated and exceedingly detestable. Sinners are going to sin. God, however, only allows them to proceed so far and then He cuts them short in their sin. This is what Exodus 20:5, "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me." God does not allow evil to continually compound. He decapitalizes them and they have to start all over again. God hates sinners and He hates sin.

These practices of the heathen of Canaan were extremely loathsome to God. He did not tolerate it forever. All sexual sins fall under the seventh commandment. Having marital relations with a menstruating women is an unclean practice according to God’s law. To lie with one’s neighbor’s wife is a breaking of the seventh and tenth commandments of adultery and coveting.

It is confusion for a man to have sexual relations with another man. This type of situation is characterized by these individuals burning themselves out in their lust as Romans 1:27 states, "And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet." The Amplified Bible renders "burned in their lust" as, "Set ablaze (burned out, consumed) with lust." In other words, they are burning themselves out doing what wholly unnatural and wicked. The homosexual spiritually is one of the most perverse spirits. They have crossed a line and it is extremely difficult to get them to repent of their vileness. God has nothing but abhorrence for such wickedness. This wicked practice is also a violation of the law of distinction. God made them male and female, not male and male. Homosexuals cannot reproduce. Therefore, they represent the epitome death. Proverbs 8:36 characterizes the sodomite, "But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death." By their abominable actions, they demonstrate their hatred of God. The feelings are mutual.

For a man or woman who has sexual relations with an animal proves they are a reprobate. Paul wrote of such in Romans 1:28, "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient." The Amplified Bible says about the reprobate mind, "...God gave them over to a base and condemned mind to do things nor proper or decent but loathsome." Loathsome is a despicable act. It is wholly wicked to carry out such unnatural acts. God utterly detest such individuals that would stoop to such wickedness. There are degrees of sin. Some sins are worse than others. Homosexuality and bestiality are among the worse in God’s sight.

False worship and profanation of the Lord’s name were forbidden also in this list of abominable practices. The first and second commandments prohibit have any other king than the Lord and worship is to be to God only. Molech worship was being practiced in the land of Canaan. This is a false god and it also involved idolatry. These people also used their gods name commonly. God prohibits His name to be thus used. We are to reverence His high and holy name.

Conclusion

God said to Moses in Leviticus 18:30, "Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God." God detested these abominable customs. They are an affront to His holiness.