The Wrath of God Part 4

God’s Spiritual Fire

 

Introduction

 

This article is a transcribed sermon given to a local fellowship group in May 2005 as part four of a five part series on a subject I’ve entitled; "The Wrath of God".   I have decided to reformat these sermons into booklet form, but they can also be obtained on CD’s or audio cassettes.  This article will address what is called, "God‘s spiritual fire".  As the Bible explains; God himself is a "consuming fire" (Deuteronomy 4:24 and Hebrews 12:29).  The question is, what does God consume?  The Father and Jesus Christ will make their "abode" in true sincere believers that love Christ and keep His words (John 14:23).  If God truly dwells in believers then His Spirit will actually "consume" the worthless bad works of carnal flesh.  It’s called overcoming, spiritual maturity and growth; and it is a life long process.  This "consuming" process only happens in the lives of true believers that the Father has to draw, and the word draw means to "drag" (John 6:44).  This means that carnal flesh will RESIST God’s spiritual consuming fire; therefore it is not based on our choice to be dragged into this fire.  It has to be the Father’s choice to DRAG us into His consuming fire when He gives us His Spirit after He calls us.  That calling is the belief and faith in His Son‘s sacrifice; and this belief and faith also has to be given by the Father.  God’s spiritual fire will try every man’s work, and it will consume all the worthless bad works represented by wood, hay, and stubble (1Corinthians 3:12-13).  The "firstfruits" that the Father DRAGS are tried by this fire now during this age, but the rest of mankind will have their works tried later in what is called the "lake of fire".  I want to clarify that we are saved only by the works and faith of Jesus Christ, therefore our salvation does not depend on our own personal works of study on this subject.  But we are to love God because He first loved us (Romans 5:8), and one way to love God is to love and study His original inspired words.  Please read the following transcribed sermon very carefully…….

 

Today I want to talk about a subject that we all are very familiar with.  When we come across a certain word in the Bible it generally gets our attention and it causes us to fear and respect God. Since we all are very familiar with this certain word, and are aware of the destructive power of the meaning of this word it does indeed get our attention.  The word is "fire", and this is my subject today that I call God’s spiritual fire.  This will be part 4 on the wrath of God.  We all at a very early age understood the destructive nature of fire, and the first impressions of the physical world we were all born in are stamped in our minds and generally will stay with us all our lives.  The first impressions we had of the Bible when we very young also molded our thinking of what Bible is all about, and that mold generally stays with us all our lives; but of course we can change the first impressions and the stamped images in our minds if we have to. 

 

When I was very young I was given a New Testament in school and I read it through several times.  At a very early age I was under a first impression by the Amish preachers that Jesus Christ was the most peaceful, kind, warm, and loving man that every lived.  But when I read some of the statements of Jesus Christ they were anything but peaceful, kind, warm, and loving.  I mean He actually called a certain people "serpents" and a "generation of vipers, and yes, He had no peaceful, kind, warm words at all for the lawyers.  In my very young mind this Jesus Christ was a complete different man than the first impressions I got from the Amish preachers and the Christian world around me. 

 

So at a very early age I had to change the stamped first impressions.  I read the statement where Christ said that the meek shall inherit the earth.  This certainly did not line up at all with the first impressions that were told me at a very young age.  I was told that we will go to heaven and the earth was going to burn up.  In my young mind my question was how are the meek going to inherit the earth if it’s going to burn up?  And I asked my mom that question, and she got a strange look on her face and said there are many things in the Bible we are not supposed to understand.  She implied that the English New Testament was not what I should be reading.  She said our bishop must be honored and believed above all else and it is best that you do not ask these questions anymore. 

 

In my very young mind I knew there was something very wrong here, and from then on I was on the road of many questions and I knew instinctively that my questions would never be answered by our beloved bishop or any Amish preacher.  You see, in my mind at a very early age I knew the Bible must be believed above all else instead of what my bishop happened to believe.  But my dad was very supportive of my questions, and as the years passed I read many books and articles about the Bible and I was very aware that these books and articles were only men’s opinions and how they interpreted what they thought the Bible really said and meant. 

 

In my teenage years I already knew that men cannot be trusted simply because they generally all had different opinions and interpretations.  You all know what I am talking about.  At a very early age I was on the road of truly searching for the truth, but I could not understand why my thinking was so different from all my friends in school.  It seemed the Bible of all books was the last thing they wanted to talk about, and I knew any discussion about the Bible might set me apart as very strange and weird.  Over the years I was very careful who I talked to but I could always talk to my dad. 

 

As the years passed I came across Herbert Armstrong’s writings and he seemed to be very different; he really seemed to know what he was talking about.  But I knew in my heart he also was just another man with opinions.  But his opinions seemed to be much more in line with what the Bible taught than any other man I ever heard.  My curiosity got the best of me and it was only a matter of time that I was on my way out of the Amish Church.  As the years passed I become aware that the World Wide Church was also just another Church run by men that told you what to believe, and it wasn’t long before we left that Church. 

 

So what am I saying, and why am I talking about my personal spiritual experiences?  And it was a very turbulent and an uncertain experience over the years; just ask Liz sometime what I put her through in this religious experience.  Brothers and sisters, what I am saying do not build and put your spiritual house in the care of men, but in the solid rock of Jesus Christ. 

 

The Bible was designed in a very special way to cause you and I not to follow men, but to search, study, and understand the truth on our own.  That does not mean we cannot learn from others.  But it has to be the Holy Spirit of God that opens our minds to understand. 

 

1John 2:27 KJV But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

 

This does not mean that men cannot teach, but it is the anointing power of Jesus Christ that opens up the understanding.  We will abide in Christ if we trust in that anointing.  It is the Spirit of God that does the real teaching of the truth.  You see, mortal men are not able to do that; they can only guide you through the scriptures.  So when I or any other man teaches it is only guiding you through the scriptures and then we have to let the words of God do the teaching. 

 

We have to believe the scriptures to build on the rock of Jesus Christ.  But of course the teacher can tell you what he believes and how he understands the scriptures, as he should.  But people happen to understand scripture in different ways, and we have to be careful not to allow differences to divide and separate us.  I like what Brain said; the speakers have a job to do.  We can thank God that we all are different and that we all think differently.  The sin is when we ignore or refuse to believe the scriptures. 

 

The natural tendency is to say, yes I know the Bible says that but it cannot mean that.  How many times have we all heard that before?  Why didn’t God inspire men to make the scriptures plain and easy to understand?  Could it be that the scriptures are deliberately designed to cause us not to follow or look to any man for the truth?  Could it possibly be that God wants us to carefully study as individuals so we can be found worthy of the truth?

 

Proverbs 4:7 KJV Wisdom [is] the principal thing; [therefore] get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. 

 

The point Solomon made (a very wise man) is that we have to put forth the effort with all our getting; then God will open the mind to understand.  But God is patient and merciful to those that don’t care to get understanding; but don’t blame God if your spiritual house will crumble when it’s tested because it was build on sand, and not on the rock of Jesus Christ (and it will be tested). 

 

Matthew 13:34 KJV All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:

 

Why do you think Christ spoke in parables?  A parable is from two Greek words explaining that it is a fictitious narrative to throw alongside.  Christ deliberately spoke fictitious things alongside the truth, and notice He did that every time He spoke to the multitude.  

 

Mark 4:11-12 KJV And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all [these] things are done in parables: 12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and [their] sins should be forgiven them. 

 

It was only given to the apostles to know the mystery of the kingdom, but even they did not understand until the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was in them opening their understanding. 

 

John 12:40 KJV He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with [their] eyes, nor understand with [their] heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. 

 

Why would God deliberately blind their eyes and harden their hearts?  We just read it; for the very reason so they would NOT see and understand.  God knew the multitude had no desire to get understanding.  Christ spoke fictitious stories to deliberately hide the mystery of the kingdom so that they would not understand; so that they should not be converted and their sins forgiven.  Christ did not want to heal them at that time.  A spiritual healing that would cause the multitude of Christ’s day to be on the way of salvation; which it is very obvious that Christ did not want that to happen.  Could it possibly be that God does not want to heal the vast majority of Israel and this world in an evil age? 

 

My next question is; are we still living in an evil age?  But God calls many during this evil age, but only a very few are chosen (Matthew22:14).  Chosen for what and how does God determine who to choose?  This only means this choosing has to be very conditional.  In other words, those chosen in this evil age have to be tested, proven, and qualified for a very definite purpose, and I mean qualified.  Saints must control the self before they are not qualified to rule others.   So the question is, how does God test and prove to know who is qualified?  This brings me to the subject I want to talk about today; God’s spiritual fire. 

 

We all know what physical fire is, and the consuming destructive power it has.  The Bible was designed to use symbols of earthy things that we understand in our physical world.  God in His infinite wisdom used physical things to illustrate and show to us the spiritual things.  The Old Covenant was based on many physical types and patterns which carnal Israelites could see and understand, and as we know, all these things were patterned after the heavenly and spiritual things.  The principle is that physical things are used to picture the spiritual; or the true reality.  Physical things wax old and are temporary as the Bible says; but the spiritual things are the true reality and they are permanent. 

 

During the Old covenant the law of burnt offerings was mentioned many times.  There were peace offerings, trespass offerings, wave and heave offerings, etc. and these laws all pictured things about of the plan of redemption in how God deals with sin, and how God was appeased and satisfied through the law of offerings.  Offerings made by fire were by far the most offerings mentioned.  There must have been a very important reason for the burning of the flesh of helpless dumb animals.  The priests killed and shed the blood and set the animals on fire on the alter, and all that was left was ashes. 

 

Exodus 29:18 KJV And thou shalt burn the whole ram upon the altar: it [is] a burnt offering unto the LORD: it [is] a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the LORD. 

Exodus 29:25 KJV And thou shalt receive them of their hands, and burn [them] upon the altar for a burnt offering, for a sweet savour before the LORD: it [is] an offering made by fire unto the LORD. And thou shalt receive them of their hands, and burn [them] upon the altar for a burnt offering, for a sweet savour before the LORD: it [is] an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

 

Notice these burnt offerings were to be a sweet savor unto God.  Why would God love to smell the smoke of the burning flesh of helpless dumb animals? 

 

Genesis 8:20-21 KJV And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart [is] evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.  

 

This is the first time we find where God smelled a sweet savor, and it was when Noah offered on the alter burnt offerings.  There is something about the burning flesh of clean animals that puts God at ease with the imagination of man’s evil heart.  

 

The word "sweet" properly means restful, that is, pleasant delight.  Sweet savor is found forty three times and it has to do with the sacrifices and offerings made by fire.  What kind of lesson was God trying to instill in the minds of carnal minded Israelites with the burning flesh of helpless dumb animals?  Why would God be restful and take a pleasant delight to smell the smoke of the burning flesh of clean animals?  Sweet savor in the NT is found only in 2Corinthians 2:14-16.

 

KJV Now thanks [be] unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. 15 For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: 16 To the one [we are] the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who [is] sufficient for these things?

 

A sweet savor of Christ simply means a thing well pleasing and a satisfaction to God.  The apostle Paul didn’t just invent the term sweet savor when he wrote this epistle; no, he was quoting sweet savor out of the many places in the Old Testament.  Since only clean animals were offered as burnt sacrifices we also have to be washed and cleansed in baptism before we become a sweet savor to God. 

 

It is well pleasing to God to be consuming and destroying things about us that must be burned up and must die.  Notice it says death unto death and life unto life.  In other words, those that perish are already dead and waiting their second death.  Those saved are alive and living for Christ and are waiting for the next life.  But both groups still have physical life and both still did not die physically.  It should read those "being saved" and those "being lost".  Young’s translation says it correctly: 15 because of Christ a sweet fragrance we are to God, in those being saved, and in those being lost; 16 to the one, indeed, a fragrance of death to death, and to the other, a fragrance of life to life; and for these things who is sufficient?

 

Those being saved have life unto life, meaning they have already died; but of course they did not yet die physically.  But something about them was being put to death, consumed, and destroyed simply because they were being saved; but not yet saved.  Notice it was a sweet savor or fragrance to God, which was well pleasing and a satisfaction to God BOTH for the dead waiting their second death and those that already died and are being saved.  What has to be consumed and utterly destroyed while still living in the flesh, and how does God do that, and why is God restful and has pleasant delight, and it is well pleasing and a satisfaction for God to do that? 

 

The law of offerings made by fire under the Old Covenant tells an interesting story.  The results of all those burnt offerings show the consuming of the flesh; which God loved to smell and took a pleasant delight in and was restful.  But why does it have to be burnt flesh?  You can kill animals, you can slit its throat, shed all its blood, you can cut the flesh in small pieces; you can even bury the carcass and let the flesh rote in the ground; but bones do not rot do they?  Everything about the bodies of clean animals had to be literally burned up, consumed, totally destroyed, and reduced to ashes.  Burnt offerings simply show the profound reality of the permanent results of God’s spiritual fire. 

 

The Israelites were only acting out the lessons of the plan of redemption and they had to use the flesh, blood, and bones of animals as a temporary substitute of their own flesh bodies of inherited sin.  The sacrifices were only a substitute, and substitute means to put in place of another.  The work of salvation was Christ dying as a substitute for all Israel and He made the real atonement; not only for a few; but for all of Israel.  Salvation is the work of God that He has to do; it is His pleasant delight, His satisfaction; and His spiritual fire is a major part in that work. 

 

Romans 6:5-12 KJV For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [in the likeness] of [his] resurrection: 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with [him], that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7 For he that is dead is freed from sin. {freed: Gr. justified} 8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

 

The body of sin has to be destroyed by God’s consuming spiritual fire.  The body of sin demands that it become a burnt offering.  Notice he that is dead is freed from sin.  There is that first death mentioned again, and it cannot mean simply the death of the body when it is buried six feet under.  Notice the body of sin might be destroyed.  The work of salvation is a work in progress, and if we be dead with Christ (notice if) then we are freed from sin, or freed from the results and wages of sin which is death.  But which death are we freed from?  We certainly are not free from the physical death that we all face anyhow.  No, even Christ had to face that death apart from the wages of sin because Christ never sinned. 

 

Romans 6:22-23 KJV But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin [is] death; but the gift of God [is] eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Notice "being made free"; it means the same as being saved.  It is a process that God is doing in us.  The wages of sin does include the physical death because we all sin and get buried when we die.  But the wages of sin has to also include the spiritually dead in Christ and that death is the body of sin being destroyed as a burnt offering and a sweet savor to God.  It is being destroyed; that is why we should not serve sin and obey the lusts thereof, as we read in Romans six. 

 

Hebrews 12:28-29 KJV Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: 29 For our God [is] a consuming fire.  

 

That word "consuming" means to consume utterly.  In other words, God utterly and completely destroys by fire.  We all are familiar with water baptism but what is the baptism of fire?  Since God is called a consuming fire and when God’s Spirit is given at baptism and dwells in us then the consuming fire also dwells in us.  The Holy Spirit is God’s spiritual fire and it directly affects our thinking, it causes repentance, it causes us to fear God, it causes us to believe God’s words, it causes us to live a different life.  It is God’s spiritual fire that causes us to choose these things.  It is the law of cause and effect, and if these changes are not forthcoming eventually in our lives then we might not have God’s spirit and His spiritual fire is not destroying the body of sin.   

 

Matthew 3:10-12 KJV And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and [with] fire: 12 Whose fan [is] in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

 

I believe the fire talked about is the same fire that applies both for the wheat and the chaff.  I believe those baptized with the Holy Spirit is also with unquenchable fire.  In other words, God’s spiritual fire will burn up what is called the chaff; but the wheat is not burned up but it is still baptized with unquenchable fire. 

 

By the way, the Holy Ghost is simply the Holy Spirit.  The word is "spirit", and why would we want to call God’s Spirit a ghost; especially a holy ghost?  I do not believe God appreciates being called a ghost or a spook.  These words came from a religion known as spiritualism and "ghost" belongs in Halloween; not in our Bibles.  Most all translations use "spirit" instead of ghost, simply because that is the original word.  God is a spirit (John 4:24).  He is not a ghost or a spook.  Ghosts mean disembodied spirits, and some believe these spirits can become visible and be seen.  It is also said that when Christ died He gave up the ghost.  No, He gave up His spirit; just like all of us give up our spirits back to God when we die. 

 

Another thing I would like to mention and for what its worth to all of you.  As we know, God’s Spirit is sometimes translated as a personal "he"; such as HE is the comforter, or HE will guide you in all truth, etc.  You know the scriptures.  In the CLT God’s spirit is simply worded as "it"; never as a personal HE.  In other words, IT is the comforter, or IT will guide you.  The Holy Spirit is simply the mind and power of God the Father that is given and shared in the minds of believing saints as they are able to bear it. 

 

1John 5:7-8  KJV For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

 

Now I want to read it as it should read: For there are three that bear record; the Spirit, and the water, and the blood, and these three agree in one.  All the other words were added to the Latin Vulgate to support the unbiblical trinity doctrine.  They are words that were added to the original text and should not be in our Bibles.  I checked other translations and most do not use the words; in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost and there are three that bear record in earth.  The Holy Spirit is not a third person of the Godhead; but it is part of the Godhead.  It is God’s spiritual and unquenchable fire.  But God is also love (1 John4:8, 16).  So how do we reconcile God as a consuming fire with the God that is also love? We normally do not think of an all consuming destructive fire as an act of love from a God that is love. 

 

1Corinthians 3:12-15 KJV Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. 4 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

 

I thought salvation is by grace and not of works.  That is very true, and that is why every man will still be saved.  But here we have works tried by fire apart from grace; which has to include every man because every man has some sort of works.  These works have to be tried by fire to determine if there will be rewards.  We know the lake of fire is for unbelievers but it is also works tried by fire and is a judgment of works.  It is called the white throne, and Rev 20:12-13 says it is a judgment according to works.  So is the fire of 1Cor 3: 12-15.  That is why I believe the lake of fire is the "day" that will declare every man’s work of what sort it is. 

 

But God’s spiritual fire tries the works of those baptized by fire NOW because judgment must begin with the house of God in the lives of believers now in this evil age.  Both of these fires are symbolic and show the truth of God’s intention for both of these fires to judge and try every man’s work; but in their own order; the believers works now and the unbelievers works in the lake of fire. 

 

Literal fire does not burn up human character flaws symbolized as wood, hay, and stubble.  But as literal fire does burn up literal wood, hay, and stubble, so also does God’s spiritual fire burn up human character flaws.  We are not told of this wood, hay, and stubble in the lake of fire, nor of the gold, silver, and precious stones; but both these fires are judgments according to works. 

 

Don’t ever think that the work of overcoming it is not a "tried by fire" stressful experience.  The mental stress and anxiety of overcoming and controlling our carnal nature is caused by God’s spiritual fire in us now.  The baptism of fire is having one’s carnal mind with all its ungodly passions, thoughts, and deeds, burned clean and pure by the consuming fire of God’s Holy Spirit.  If we do not feel the pressure, the stress, the strain of overcoming, and the war going on in our bodies of sin, then we might not have God’s Spirit. 

 

Just as real literal fire is used to refine and purify gold and precious metals, so God’s spiritual fire refines and purifies us from our sinful and carnal nature.  And likewise, as real literal fire is used to burn up wood, hay, and stubble, so God’s all consuming spiritual fire will consume and burn up all the impurities in our life.  These things must die.  I believe this purging is the second death. 

 

We are told in Revelation2:11 that he that overcomes will not be hurt of the second death.  Whether the person God subjects His consuming fire to has many good character qualities or if he doesn’t have any good qualities; the person himself will be purged, purified, and then saved by God’s all consuming fire.  That is what 1Cor 3:15 says, and we had better believe it.  

 

Every Israelite who has ever lived will be subjected to the cleansing fire of God’s Holy Spirit.  I repeat, judgment must begin at the house of God now in this evil age.  God is burning out all our character flaws so that God can chose qualified saints to rule with Jesus Christ. Vanity, greed, self-righteousness, laziness, hypocrisy, wickedness, pride, materialism, stubbornness; the list goes on. 

 

What are the first impressions we had all our lives on the lake of fire?  Did you ever wonder why brimstone is included in the lake of fire?  As if God’s consuming fire alone is not enough.  Brimstone is the Greek word thion which means in the sense of flashing, and it means sulfur.  Strong’s Lexicon says brimstone was used as divine incense; or should I say, sweet savor?  It also says burning brimstone was regarded as having power to purify, and to ward off disease.  Now isn’t that interesting? 

 

Thion to taken from the word thios; which was translated divine and godhead, and the other Greek word is theos and was translated as God; which means the supreme divinity.  God is not only a consuming fire but He is also brimstone. 

 

The consuming fire and brimstone is God purifying, refining, and cleansing His people Israel.  The Encyclopedia Britannica says sulfur is often called brimstone or burning stone, and ignited sulfur is mentioned in the earlier records of many countries as having been used for religious ceremonies, for purifying and fumigating buildings, and for bleaching cloth.  I find that very interesting. 

 

Words have meanings and brimstone is a symbol, and this purifying, fumigating, and bleaching action are things being purified and being made white.  It is called the white throne judgment; not a throne of "darkness".  Under the caption: Methods of Production it says; ancient producers described their method of obtaining sulfur from its ore as purification by fire.  Purification by fire sounds very biblical.  Under Physical Properties: Sulfur is tasteless and odorless; it has no action on the skin.  Sulfur is also a poor conductor of both heat and electricity. 

 

I repeat, words have meanings, and to symbolically apply or flash sulfur means there is no physical pain in the lake of fire because of no action on the skin, and if there is literal heat sulfur as a poor conductor for heat; and therefore would serve no purpose in the lake of fire.  Twentieth Century Dictionary says: sulfur has hundreds of beneficial uses; innumerable uses not the least of which are purifications and medicines. 

 

So why do we find sulfur in the lake of fire?  I could also ask; how can God be a wrathful God and called a consuming fire, and at the same time; how can God also be love and a merciful God?  I could also ask; why is the second death a tormenting experience?  I am not implying anything and I am not telling you what to believe; I am only sharing this information for what its worth to you. 

 

In my last sermon I talked about the salvation of all Israel.  I was aware before I gave the sermon that you all do not believe that God will save all Israel.  If someone told me six months ago that I would be standing here and teaching you that God will save all Israel I would have laughed him out of the house.  I quoted Isaiah 45:25: In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.  I also quoted Paul in Romans11:26: all Israel shall be saved.  I want to tell you, there are many more scriptures that support all Israel being saved.  All I am asking, brothers and sisters, what do these scriptures mean?  I happen to believe they mean what they are saying. 

 

Unless you can explain how all the seed of Israel somehow just means a few or some of Israel.  Unless you can explain how all the seed is just something spiritual, or that seed does not mean real offspring or children.  Unless you can explain why Isaiah did not just say "a few" or only a "remnant" will be justified and shall glory.  Isaiah did mention a remnant in other scriptures; so did he contradict himself?  If you believe that all the seed of Israel does not mean all the seed; then disagree with Isaiah.  Why disagree with me or why blame me if I happen to believe what Isaiah and Paul wrote.  Unless you can explain why I should not believe that God will do what He wills and wants to do; that is to justify and glorify all the seed of Israel. 

 

We can all ask Isaiah what he meant when we see him, and I truly believe we will all see Isaiah someday.  I could be wrong but I believe the conversation could go something like this.  You will walk up to Isaiah and say, Isaiah, I know God inspired you to write that all the seed of Israel will be justified and glorified, but Christ said statements that seem to totally disagree with that.  Isaiah will smile and say, brother so & so; God never intended to justify and glorify all the children of Israel during the evil age.  Haven’t you read about the purpose of the ages? 

 

Isaiah will say, most of Israel during the evil age were unbelievers, and only a very few found the way of salvation.  Most of Israel did not want to know the real Jesus, and neither did the real Jesus know them, as Christ said.  Brother so & so, that is why most were not able to enter the kingdom and were cast out.  Sure, many were called but only a very few were chosen during the evil age. 

 

Well Isaiah, I know it was God’s will to save all Israel, but I did not believe it was possible because most of Israel did not want to be saved.  My dear brother so & so, haven’t you read that nothing is impossible with God?  Why did you doubt God’s ability to save all Israel when it was His will and intention all along?  Isaiah, I still want to know what you actually meant by all the seed of Israel being justified and glorified.  Well brother so & so I will tell you what God really meant.  Now listen carefully word for word; In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified and shall glory.   That is what God really meant.  Ok Isaiah, I guess I have to believe that, but I do not understand how God will do that.  Oh, brother so & so, now you are saying you don’t understand.  That is much better, before you were saying you did not believe. 

 

In conclusion, I want to say; you all have to build your own spiritual house and I am sure none of us wants to build on the shifting sands of deception and on the opinions of men that molded our modern day Christian first impressions.  But build, grow, and overcome we must if we want to be in the first resurrection to rule with Jesus Christ.  You cannot build on the rock of Jesus Christ unless you believe the meaning of the words of God and all the symbols and words have to fit in the big picture of the overall plan of God. 

 

Like I said, I am not telling you what to believe, I am only telling you what I believe; as I should.  I have nothing to hide and I am not ashamed to tell you what I believe.  You all might think I am going off the deep end or something but I know we can all agree that we serve a God that is infinitely more powerful that we could ever imagine with our very limited carnal minds.  What you heard today was a fire and brimstone message, but you will never hear this type of message from the modern Churches.  Why is it that generally people have no problem at all with a fire and brimstone message that spells eternal doom for the billions of souls that God did not save?  Yet at the same time they confess it was God’s will to save everyone. 

 

What kind of people are we to believe an all powerful God is not able to do what He wills and wants to do?  Today you heard the other side of the fire and brimstone story.  Isn’t it strange that we are so quick to denounce the modern Churches, yet we believe some of their doctrines including their version of the fire and brimstone story?  Do you really believe it is a sweet savor and pleasant delight for God to do the fire and brimstone work in the way the churches believe; which God will fail to save by far most of His family?  God help us to believe and build on the rock of Jesus Christ. 

 


  

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