Can I be sure I’m saved? Will I go to heaven when I die?
These two questions are very
important, and to the writer of this article, two of the most sobering
questions we will ever ask in this life of pain and suffering.
Does the Bible assures us that
we’re saved and going to heaven when we die? The answer is a resounding yes! We
can and I daresay MUST be sure of both of these glorious realities.
Why?
Because through out scripture it
tells us the righteous will be saved and dwell in the presence of the Lord
forever. This reality should provide us with tremendous comfort.
For those of you who are
Christians and have doubts right now about the afterlife, I do not want you to
doubt anymore. My intent is to guide you through the scriptures so it’s
power will permeate your hearts and minds and put them at an eternal ease.
It’s important that you gain a
confidence so rich that you will cling to these truths and never let them go
for they are priceless.
So,
let’s begin.
In Genesis 5:22-24 we read,
“Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah at 300 years and had other
sons and daughters. All the days of Enoch were 365 years. Enoch walked with
God, and he was not for God took him.”
The phrase “for God took him”
means God took Enoch alive to into heaven; Enoch never died. If he was on the
earth he would literally be over 5,000 year old! This is a special case of
course. Enoch was raptured by God into
heaven – means he was translated. What happened to Enoch will happen to the
church in the future[i]
Genesis 6:9 we read that Noah was
a righteous man blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. Noah is in heaven right now.
Genesis 15:5,6 we read where God
himself evangelizes Abram (was his name at that time, name changed to Abraham
in Genesis 17:5), He says, “And He brought him outside and said look toward
heaven and number the stars, and if you are able to number them.” Then He (The
Lord) said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” And he believed God and it was
counted unto him for righteousness.
Two extremely important things
are happening here. This is the first time we read that God who’s the initiator
of the covenant approaches Abraham and tells him what He will do for him. God
at this point is preaching the gospel (or good news) to Abraham telling him
that all nations will be blessed through his seed. Abraham takes the Lord at
His word and the Lord saves Abraham and places righteousness into his account.
What that means is that the Lord justified Abraham to due to his faith in
God. This is a clear picture of how all children of God are saved. When we
take God at His word through the gospel message of salvation, we are made
righteous by God; we are justified by faith or our trust, reliance, adherence
to the word of God (Romans 5:1; Galatians 2:15; 3:8).
In Genesis 18:17-19 we read the
Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do seeing that Abraham
shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth
(emphasis added) shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him that he
may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the
Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham
what He has promised him.”
We see here that God made a
covenant with Abraham and promised to bless him which he did greatly (Genesis
17:1-10a). Jesus said that many will sit with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the
kingdom of heaven (Matthew 8:11
italics added).
God blessed Abraham on earth and
translated that to eternal blessing in heaven where he resides now.
Moses was the man that God chosen
to lead his people out of Egypt. Moses was a man that pleased God and was
more humble than any man on the earth at that time (Numbers 12:3). The Bible
also says that the Lord spoke to Moses face to face (or literally mouth to
mouth), and that he beholds the form of the
Lord. Moses had a most intimate
relationship with God almighty. Moses appears with Jesus and Elijah on the
mountain of transfiguration (Matthew 17:3; Mark 9:4; Luke 9:30)
The prophet Elijah was the second
man taken to heaven alive- by a chariot of fire (II Kings 2:11). Elijah never died.
Psalm 19:7 says, “The law of the
Lord is perfect converting the soul.
The power of God’s word saves the
sinner from within (Romans 1:16).
David in the twenty third Psalm said, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (vs. 6).
David was confident in the
preserving grace of God and knew that he would one day see the Lord face to
face. This clearly speaks of eternal life.
Both the 24th and 25th
Psalms of David speak of the God of salvation (Psalm 24:5; Psalm 25:5).
In Psalm 27:1 David declares the
Lord is his light and salvation.
Psalm 34:22 says, “The Lord
redeems the life of his servants. None of those who take refuge in him will be
condemned.
Proverbs 10:2 says, “Treasures
gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from death.”
Proverbs 11:4 repeats the same
phrase, “Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness
delivers from death.”
So, we see in these two proverbs
alone that righteousness is a virtue that is priceless and infinitely more
valuable than money. To be righteous is synonymous with salvation.
In Jonah 2:9 it reads, “Salvation
is of the Lord.”
Isaiah 25:9 says that we’re to be
glad and rejoice in the Lord’s salvation. This chapter is speaking of the end
times.
Isaiah 42:6-7 says this regarding
Christ, “I, Jehovah, have called thee in righteousness, and will hold
thy hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a
light of the Gentiles; to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners
from the dungeon, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house.
Isaiah 49:6 also speaks of Christ, “yea, he saith, It is
too light a thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of
Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a
light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the
earth.
The entire 53rd
chapter of Isaiah deals the humiliation, death
of Christ and salvation of sinners.
In Jeremiah 31:31-34 we read the
following: Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not
according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took
them by the hand to bring them out of
the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was a husband unto
them, saith Jehovah. But this is the covenant that I will make with the
house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: I will put my law in their
inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people: and they shall teach no more every man
his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah; for they
shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith
Jehovah: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no
more.
Here we see the Lord
establishing an everlasting covenant relationship with the Hebrews. Another
testament to the mercy and grace of God to save his people.
Daniel says in 12:2
that all people will be raised to face judgment, some for everlasting life and
some for everlasting contempt.
Daniel believed in
the sovereign salvation of sinners made righteous, and the just condemnation of
the wicked.
Ezekiel 36:21-29 says that the
Lord will gather Israel from the nations and bring them back into their own
land and cleanse them, sprinkle clean water upon them. Also he will give them a
brand new heart, a heart of flesh so that they obey his commandments.
This the Lord will do this for his holy name’s sake (vs.22).
In Joel 2:28-32 we read: And it shall come to
pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons
and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young
men shall see visions: and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids
in those days will I pour out my Spirit. And I will show wonders in the
heavens and in the earth: blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun
shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and
terrible day of Jehovah cometh. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever
shall call on the name of Jehovah shall be delivered (or saved).
In Micah 7:18-19 it
says, “Who is a pardoning God like you pardoning iniquity and passing over
transgression for the remnant of his inheritance. He does not retain his anger
forever because he delights in steadfast love. He will have compassion on us;
He will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into
the depths of the sea.”
This was a
declaration to Israel directly, but these words penetrate to the present and
affect us today.
Zechariah 9:9 says,
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold your King is coming to you; righteous and having salvation. He is
humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt a foal of a donkey.
This was fulfilled on
Palm Sunday when Jesus entered into Jerusalem on a donkey starting Passion Week
(Matthew 21:5-11).
Matthew 1:21 says
that Jesus shall save his people from their sins.
Luke 19:10 says that
Jesus came to seek and save that which was lost.
Matthew 9:3-6
forgives the sins of the paralytic and heals him. Only God has the ability to
forgives sins. Jesus was making a clear claim of deity. We are all like that
paralyzed man that need forgiveness of sins and healing of the soul. Jesus
demonstrated the lesser miracle of healing the man’s paralysis to amplify the
miracle the crowd couldn’t see, the invisible miracle of forgiving the man’s
sins and His claim to be God Almighty. The man was healed completely inwardly
and outwardly.
In John 1:12-13 says,
But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to
become the children of God, who were born not of blood, nor the will of the
flesh (emphasis added), nor of the will of man, but of God.
At the very beginning
of John’s gospel he explains that salvation is purely and act of God’s
sovereign grace. No human effort can produce the salvation of sinners – ever!
It is always the will and choosing of God to save sinners. Of course this never
negates human responsibility to respond to the call of the gospel message.
John 3:16-17 Jesus
talking to Nicodemus says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only
begotten son, that whosoever should believe in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life. For the Father did not send the Son into the world to condemn
the world, but through Him the world might be saved.
John 6:37-40 we read,
“All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me; and him that cometh to
me I will in no wise cast out. For I am come down from heaven, not to do
mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the will of him
that sent me, that of all that which he hath given me I should lose nothing,
but should raise it up at the last day. For this is the will of my
Father, that every one that beholdeth the Son, and believeth on him, should
have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.’
Here we read that
only those that the Father gives to Jesus are the ones that he saves. These are
the ones that Father will draw to the Son to be saved once they repent and
believe (John 6:44).
In John 10:22-30 we
read, “And it was the feast of the dedication at Jerusalem: it was
winter; and Jesus was walking in the temple in Solomon's porch. The Jews
therefore came round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou hold us
in suspense? If thou art the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered
them, I told you, and ye believe not: the works that I do in my Father's name,
these bear witness of me. But
ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep[ii].
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I
give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, and no one shall
snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who hath given them unto
me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the
Father's hand. I and the Father are one. “
These verses speak to
the choosing and the ultimate salvation of the believer forever. We are in the
grip of the Father and the Son. We will never be lost.
Jesus in John 15:16a
said, “You did not choose me, but I chose you that you should go and
bear fruit and that your fruit should remain or abide.”
Jesus says in John 14:1-3, “Let not
your heart be troubled: believe in God, believe also in me. In my
Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you; for
I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I come again, and will receive you unto myself; that where I am, there
ye may be also.
Jesus promises the
disciples locally and all saints ultimately that he will ascend into heaven,
prepare a place for us, and come back to take us where He is. This speaks of
eternal relationship and love. Those whom Christ died for are most precious
because the Father gave them to the son as a love gift to come and redeem.
Since the Son loves the Father perfectly, any gift the Son receives from his
Father will be loved perfectly; that is all believers in Christ.
Jesus says in John
15:13 that his love was the greatest of all because He gave his life for his
friends. No one can give more than their very life.
In John 17:2-3 Jesus
says, “Since you (The Father) have given Him authority over all flesh, to
give eternal life to all whom you have given Him. And this is eternal life,
that they know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”
John 17:12 says that
those the Father gave to Him he kept and guarded and not one of them is lost except
the son of destruction, Judas Iscariot whose betrayal was foretold way back in
Psalm 41:9, John 6:70-71, and fulfilled in Matthew 26:21-25;Mark 14:21;Luke
22:21-22;John 13:21,26-30.
Jesus prays to the
Father that the disciples would be made pure through the word of God. Not only
are we to be saved by the power of the word, we are to experience and ongoing sanctification
by that same holy word. Jesus also request that those succeeding the apostles
would hear and believe the gospel through their preaching (John 17:20).
In Acts 2 Peter
preaches the first church sermon to the Jews. About three thousand souls are
saved (vs. 41).
In Acts 4:4 we read
that five thousand souls were saved at the preaching of the gospel.
Acts 4:12 says, there
is salvation in no other name than the name of Christ.
The house of
Cornelius are saved and filled with the Holy Spirit by the preaching of Peter
in Acts chapter 10.
The Ethiopian Eunuch
is saved by the preaching of Phillip in Acts 8:38.
Acts 13:47-48 tell us
Paul speaking, for the Lord commanded us saying, “I made a light to the
Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.” And when the
Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord,
and as many as were appointed to eternal
life believed[iii](italics
added).
This is a clear
indication that Jesus was the savior of all men, the Israelite and the pagan
nations. Jesus himself said, “ I have sheep
not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my
voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd (John 10:16).”
The Philippian Jailer
and his family are saved by the preaching of Paul and Silas (Acts 16:31).
Romans 1:16 declares
the word of God as the power of God unto the salvation of Jews and Gentiles to
those that believe.
Romans 5:1-12, Being
therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ; through whom also we have had our access by faith into this grace
wherein we stand; and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not
only so, but we also rejoice in our tribulations: knowing that tribulation
worketh stedfastness; and stedfastness, approvedness; and approvedness,
hope: and hope putteth not to shame; because the love of God hath been
shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given unto us.
For while we were yet weak, in due season Christ died for the ungodly. For
scarcely for a righteous man will one die: for
peradventure for the good man some one would even dare to die. But God
commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ
died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, shall we
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,
being reconciled, shall we be saved by his life; and not only so, but we
also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now
received the reconciliation.
This is an
extraordinary verse in that God knowing our sin state so loved us and sent
Jesus anyhow to die for us. Jesus death was not in vain. Who Jesus died for has
been, or will be saved from their sins and forgiven forever.
Romans 6:23 – For the
wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 8:1- There is
no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.
No one can charge the
believer with guilt due to Jesus wiping the slate clean of those He exonerated
at the cross.
Romans 8:16 – The
Spirit (i.e. the Holy Spirit) bears witness with our spirit that we are the
children of God.
Remember the Holy
Spirit is our pledge, guarantee, or earnest that who God saved in soul salvation, he will consummate in
glorification – bodily salvation (Ephesians 1:14). This makes our salvation
experience complete. Right now we wait in hope of our final salvation
(glorification, Romans 8:24). Right now we’re in
Phase II, ongoing or practical
sanctification.
In Romans 8:28-39
says, “And we know that to them that love God all things work together for
good, even to them that are called according to his purpose.
For whom he foreknew, he also
foreordained to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be
the firstborn among many brethren: and whom he foreordained, them he also
called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them
he also glorified.
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth; who is he that condemneth? It is Christ Jesus that died, yea rather, that was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul in his doxology
of praise clearly lays out the whole plan of redemption, sanctification and
glorificaton. First he discusses how God knew before hand who He would choose
in eternity past to be like Jesus (vs. 29). Secondly, he called, justified
(i.e. saved us, made us right with God), and will glorify us. I heard a statement
that describes our total salvation perfectly, “Salvation is our possession and
destination.” Thirdly, nothing shall ever separate us from the love of Christ.
Whom Jesus saves, he preserves them in salvation forever. The elastic that
holds salvation together is eternality.
Romans 10:9-10 says,
if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart man
believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation.
We have to believe in
who Jesus is – Lord, and what he did – that God raised him from the dead in
order to be saved.
Romans 10:13 says,
whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.
II Corinthians 5:8
says, that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
All those who died in Christ are with the Lord in glory at
this moment.
Ephesians 1:4
declares we (the elect of God) were chosen before the foundation of the world.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says
for by grace you are saved through faith, and
that not of yourselves (italics added), it is the gift of God, not of works
lest any man should boast.
Philippians 1:6 says,
Being confident of this very thing, He that began a good work in you will
complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
What God began in the
Christian, he’ll finish.
Philippians 2:12-13
says, work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works
in you both to will and do of His good pleasure.
Salvation is our gift
from God through Jesus Christ. We’re commanded to develop it. God is also
working in us to produce good fruit and His will in us by the power of the Holy
Spirit.
Colossians 1:13-14 says,
giving thanks unto the Father, who made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance
of the saints in light; who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and
translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love; in whom we have
our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins.
Titus 2: 11-15 says, For
the grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing
us, to the intent that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live
soberly and righteously and godly in this present world; looking for the
blessed hope and appearing of the glory of the great God and our Saviour Jesus
Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all
iniquity, and purify unto himself a people for his own possession, zealous of
good works .
Titus 3:3-7 says, For
we also once were foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and
pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But
when the kindness of God our Saviour, and his love toward man, appeared, not
by works done in righteousness, which we did ourselves, but
according to his mercy he saved us (emphasis added),
through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy
Spirit, which
he poured out upon us richly, through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that,
being justified by his grace, we might be made heirs according to the hope of
eternal life.
These passages parallel Ephesians 2:8-9 mentioned earlier in the article.
I Peter 1:3-9 says, Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his
great mercy begat us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead, unto an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled,
and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who by the power of
God are guarded through faith unto a salvation ready to be revealed in the last
time.
Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, ye have
been put to grief in manifold trials, that the proof of your faith, being
more precious than gold that perisheth though it is proved by fire, may be
found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ: whom
not having seen ye love; on whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye
rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory: receiving the end of
your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
II Peter 2:3-10 says,
seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto
life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own
glory and virtue; whereby he hath granted unto us his precious and
exceeding great promises; that through these ye may become partakers of the
divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in that world by
lust.
Yea, and for this very cause
adding on your part all diligence, in your faith supply virtue; and in your
virtue knowledge; and in your knowledge self-control; and in your
self-control patience; and in your patience godliness; and in your
godliness brotherly kindness; and in your brotherly kindness love. For
if these things are yours and abound, they make you to be not idle nor
unfruitful unto the knowledge of our Lord Jesus
Christ. For he that
lacketh these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the
cleansing from his old sins. Wherefore, brethren, give the more diligence
to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall
never stumble: for thus shall be richly supplied unto you the entrance
into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ.
Not only is our
salvation secure from heaven, we are to make our election sure here on earth
for our benefit and edification. Peter tells us how to do that by developing
and fortifying our faith with: virtue,
knowledge, self-control, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
These are fruits that we as Christians must cultivate in order to provide us
with confidence in God and joy in salvation. This is parallel to Galatians
5:22-23, the fruit of the Spirit. If we do these things continually, we will be
certain of our salvation always. The Christian life is a faith walk in God
through Jesus Christ and it must be practiced. Just like anything else we
practice, the more we do it, the better we become at it, the more proficient we
are, and the more confidence we have in that area of expertise.
How much more should
we imitate Jesus and our relationship to the Father.
We practice/do what
we love. Even if it’s harmful.
I John 1:7 says, we
are children of light if we walk in the light we have fellowship with one
another and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.
I John 2:12 – Says that
our sins have been forgiven.
I John 3:1 says, Behold
what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called
children of God; and such we are. For this cause the world knoweth us
not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we children of God, and
it is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if he shall be
manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is. And
every one that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he
is pure.
I John 4:2 tell us
that every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God.
I John 4:11-12 says
that, this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life and this life is in
His Son (emphasis added). Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have
the Son of God does not have life.
I John 5:1-5 says regarding salvation, Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God: and whosoever loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. For whatsoever is begotten of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith. And who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?
I John 5:13 John says
that he wrote these things to us that we may, “know we have eternal life.”
Jude 24 -25 says, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy. To the only wise God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our
Lord, be glory majesty, dominion, and authority
before all time and now and forever.
Amen.
Jude the half brother
of Jesus Christ said that the only wise God is the one that keeps us from
slipping. God causes all his children to persevere in faith so that we’re what
he commissioned us to be once we’re in his presence.
Revelation 19:11-21
deals with the end of the Great Tribulation and the actual return of Jesus
Christ with the saints of God. Jesus will destroy the armies of the earth:
And I saw the heaven opened; and behold, a white horse, and
he that sat thereon called Faithful and True; and in righteous he doth judge
and make war. And his eyes are a flame of fire, and upon his head are
many diadems; and he hath a name written which no one knoweth but he himself. And
he is arrayed in a garment sprinkled with blood: and his name is called
The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven followed him upon
white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and pure. And out of his
mouth proceedeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and
he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the
fierceness of the wrath of God, the Almighty. And he hath on his garment
and on his thigh a name written, KINGS OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. And I
saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all
the birds that fly in mid heaven, Come and be gathered together unto the
great supper of God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of
captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses and of them that
sit thereon, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, and small and great.
And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies,
gathered together to make war against him that sat upon the horse, and against
his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that
wrought the signs in his sight, wherewith he deceived them that had received
the mark of the beast and them that worshipped his image: they two were cast
alive into the lake of fire that burneth with brimstone: and the rest
were killed with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, even the sword
which came forth out of his mouth: and all the birds were filled with their
flesh.
Revelation 20 deals
with the redemption of the “Tribulation Saints”, the binding of Satan for one
thousand years, and his final judgment
in the Lake of Fire, and the Great White Throne Judgment of the wicked dead,
and their final non-resting place, the Lake of Fire. These events occur before,
during and after the millennium.
Conclusion
I trust this jet tour through the scriptures will give you more confidence in God’s word; more than you ever had before regarding your salvation. I know it was swift. I took you through 5,000 plus years of biblical history; in three days and twelve pages; Genesis to Revelation. Please take the time to read every passage carefully. I know it will transform and bless your life; given you the assurance of your salvation and that peace of mind you need to run this race with joy.
Jesus when praying to
His Father said, “Sanctify them through your truth. Your word is truth (John
17:17).”
II Timothy 3:15-16
Paul talking to Timothy said, “and from childhood you have been acquainted with
the sacred writings which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith
in Christ Jesus. All scripture is breathed out (or inspired –the KJV) by God
and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in
righteousness, that the man of God may be competent equipped for every good
work.
The apostle Paul
charged the church at Philippi to practice the things they learned from him so
that the peace of God would be with them (Philippians 4:7). This is also the
charge we must obey.
Beloved what it boils
down to is we either believe the testimony of God (i.e. the scriptures) or we
don’t.
I trust the word of
God implicitly for it is objective truth.
For those of who you
are not saved, today is the day of salvation, not tomorrow since it’s not
promised. Do not receive the grace of God in vain (II Corinthians 6:2).
END NOTES
[i] For an explanation of what happened to Enoch
in detail read the following passages: I Corinthians 15:51-58; I Thessalonians
4:13-18. These passages specifically deal with the rapture of the church.
[ii] It’s
important for the reader to grasp the import of this strong statement by Jesus.
What he was telling these particular Jews was that they were not part of the
kingdom of God. They are the goats that are described in Matthew 25 who were
cursed into everlasting hellfire (Matthew 25:41-46).
[iii] Those
appointed to eternal life are those whom God chose before the foundation of the
world to be saved. This is a sovereign act of God Almighty. Being we are chosen
before we are born clearly means the plan of salvation is monergistic – a work
of God – alone.
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