THE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION

The title of our subject today is taken from a statement Paul made when he was on trial before the Sanhedrin about A.D. 60 in Jerusalem. The Apostle Paul was not only a brilliant theologian he also had what we call today, "street smarts." He had been arrested and was about to be charged with inciting a riot, among other things, which could have possibly resulted in flogging, chains or a harsh prison term. So, realizing his predicament Paul knew he had to think of some way to avert this...and quick. He had already tried to speak to the council only to be slapped hard on the face at the command of Ananias, the high priest, when he said, "I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day." This high priest obviously had no sympathy with Paul probably due to the fact that Paul's passion for Jesus had won many converts from the ranks of Judaism. He may also have remembered Paul (Saul) from former years when Saul himself was a Pharisee, probably a member of this same Sanhedren now called to judge him. Maybe they had even been friends and/or colleagues. Ananias obviously now considered Paul a traitor to his religion and nation. He later traveled to Caesarea to accuse Paul before the Roman governor, Felix. His life was ended in AD 66 by an assassin.

So, when Paul boldly proclaimed that he had "lived in all good conscience before God until this day," Ananias angrily commanded Paul to be slapped on the mouth. He probably not only wanted to punish him for making such a statement that obviously made his accusers look like the "bad guys," but knowing Paul's perfect command of Hebrew, knowledge of the Scriptures and considerable persuasive abilities wanted to shut him up before he had a chance to make any kind of defense. Paul immediately saw he was in a "kangaroo court."

So, realizing all of this he was impressed to try a different strategy. "Paul, knowing some of the council was made up of Sadducees and others of Pharisees and how they hated each other, decided to exploit their antagonism: 'Friends, I am a stalwart Pharisee from a long line of Pharisees. It's because of my Pharisee convictions---the hope and resurrection of the dead---that I've been hauled into this court." Acts. 23:6. This immediately caused a heated argument among them splitting these two factions down the middle. The fighting became so fierce that the Captain had Paul sent back to the safety of the castle which is translated from a Greek word meaning the soldiers camp or barracks. How fitting that the concept of the resurrection should have been the means by which Paul was delivered from his enemies.

As we go on into this new year I thought this same subject would be of some comfort and hope for all of us who have lost loved ones and face the possibility of death ourselves each and every day of our lives. Jesus spoke very emphatically about the resurrection. "Verily, verily, (Truly, Truly) I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live...Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His (Jesus) voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." John 5:25, 28, 29.

The word "damnation" is very interesting and deserves more study. Jesus said the Pharisees would receive "greater damnation," because they devoured widow's houses and said long prayers. So, some of the lost will receive more punishment than others. Some will be beaten with many stripes and others with only a few. Luke 12:47, 48. These Scriptures not only seriously weaken the theory of extinction or annihilation but totally destroy the doctrine of eternal hell fire. Why? Because you cannot have greater and lesser degrees of punishment if every sinner is burning the same length of time in some kind of literal, eternal flame!

Likewise, the doctrine of extinction would also be a permanent type of punishment inflicted equally upon all, thus contradicting Christ's words that some will receive more punishment than others. ... "That servant who knew his master's will, but did not get ready or act as he would wish him to act, shall be beaten with many [lashes]. But he who did not know and did things worthy of a beating shall be beaten with few [lashes]." Luke 12:47, 48. Amplified Version.

But beyond even those logical arguments the doctrine of annihilation and eternal hell both strike very negative blows at the heart of God's character of love. All of God's judgments (decisions) have always been for the purpose of education...to reclaim, re-habilitate, rebuild and restore lives. If this is true all through the history of Israel, and we know it is, then it is also true in the New Testament as well. We see this confirmed in Rom. 11 where Paul even asserts that "All Israel will be saved." Rom. 11:26. Even the seven last plagues are designed to bring this earth's final generation of sinners to repentance. Rev. 16:11. Although they do not repent at the time of the plagues they will eventually be brought to repentance in the ages to come according to Phil. 2:6-11...please note verse 11 especially which clearly says this bowing down and confessing will bring GLORY to God the Father. It could not bring glory to God the Father if it were forced or faked. So, the will of man is not being coerced for Jesus is totally irresistible when He is allowed to present Himself to mankind in all His glory...and this eon will be a time when the "Glory of God will fill the earth."

In Matt. 10:15 Christ also said, "Verily, I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city." (Any city in Israel which rejected His messengers). This is truly amazing! Astounding! Do you realize what Jesus is actually saying? He is telling us that the Sodomites are going to be beaten with fewer stripes than Israel!

Jesus probably received this concept from Ezekiel 16:55 which indicates God's plan to restore Sodom in the final day to her "former estate" even before Jerusalem is restored. Shocking? Yes, it was shocking to me too. But the Scripture plainly predicts God's plan for Sodom. The prophet says that He is going to "bring again...the captivity of Sodom and her daughters." V. 53. Of course, I always thought the only reason God had for bringing up Sodom and all of the rest of the wicked in the final resurrection was to "read them the 'riot act'", so to speak, show them their sins, make them bow down and repent and admit what terrible sinners they were in order to prove that He has every right to destroy them in the Lake of Fire. We have also been taught that another reason why God will destroy the wicked in front of the onlooking universe is to vindicate the righteous who will all have ring side seats from the top of the walls of the New Jerusalem so they can see the Lord bring His fiery wrath down on these dirty sinners, many of whom have persecuted God's people in various ages, even putting them to death. I know many professed Christians who can hardly wait to see this final destruction of the wicked.

In fact, this will supposedly be part of their heavenly reward...to see all the wicked "get their due." But, friends, let me ask you sincerely...is this the true Spirit and attitude of Jesus who told us to forgive our enemies and pray for those who despitefully use us? Can you imagine this coming from the Jesus who asked His Father to forgive those who crucified Him? Can you imagine Him blow torching at least two thirds of His creatures to death with the expectation that the righteous will receive pleasure and satisfaction from such a horrible spectacle? Especially when many of the victims of such "justice" are their own loved ones and friends whose number is as the "sand of the sea." It could be as high as 8 or 10 billion. Is it possible that we have been wrong in our understanding of our heavenly Father's true character of love and His ultimate plan for all the wicked outside of the city?

Let us for just a moment consider two points. The first is the subject of "THE FIRE OF GOD." I have written on this subject extensively in my books and many articles in GLC Newspaper. But it bears repeating. God's fire is not a literal fire. This is very easily proved by remembering that the burning bush on Mt. Sinai was not a literal fire although it appeared to Moses as if it were real fire. Nevertheless, it was the very PRESENCE OF GOD. The same is true on the day of Pentecost. The fire that descended upon the heads of the waiting 120 disciples was once again the PRESENCE OF GOD which the Bible called the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost. This is one ghost we do not have to be afraid of. Actually, this is a ghost we need to be filled with each and every day of our lives. It appeared and was revealed on the disciples heads as "tongues of fire," but it did not singe even one hair or burn their heads for the Holy Ghost or God's presence is not life threatening or harmful in any way. In fact, Hebrews 7:26 tells us that Jesus is "Holy, harmless and undefiled."

Now, point number two is simply this: God knows how to finish what He begins. "Being confident of this very thing, that He (Christ) which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:" Philippians 1:6. Jesus, our Creator and Redeemer began a good work in Adam and has been carrying on this process of re-creating Himself in all of the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve ever since. Most of us have not understood that this 6,000 years of suffering and tears is simply part of God's creative program to bring us all to perfection. Paul states it like this: "For as in Adam ALL die, even so in Christ shall ALL be made ALIVE." Notice, Paul said God is going make "All" alive...not dead, because, "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." I Cor. 15:26. Beloved, if even one of God's creatures goes into eternity "Dead" and not "Alive," or "Redeemed" from death and the grave, then not only has God failed to destroy death, He has also failed to bring His human creation project on planet earth to perfection which Paul emphatically declares God will do, for Jesus never fails. In addition to this Rev. 20:14 clearly states that "Death and hell (the grave) were cast into the lake of fire."

"The Lake of Fire and Brimstone" signifies a fire burning with brimstone; the word 'brimstone' or sulfur defines the character of the fire. The word theion translated 'brimstone' is exactly the same word theion which means 'divine.' Sulfur was sacred to the deity among the ancient Greeks; and was used to fumigate, to purify, and to cleanse and to consecrate to the deity; for this purpose they burned it in their incense. In Homer's 'Iliad' (16:228), one is spoken of as purifying a goblet with fire and brimstone. The verb derived from theion is theioo, which means to hallow, to make divine, or to dedicate to a god. To any Greek, or to any trained in the Greek language, a 'lake of fire and brimstone,' would mean a 'Lake of Divine purification.'" Page 116, "Is Hell Eternal or Will God's Plan Fail?"

With these ideas in mind the words of Jesus in Matthew make a lot more sense and fit in perfectly with Christ's life and words. Jesus did not want His people to die in His day or suffer in any future age or eon. So, He spoke to them very pointedly striving to save them from future suffering. In fact, in the very next chapter Jesus really lit into the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida telling them that if the works that he had performed in their towns had been done in Tyre and Sidon they would have repented in sackcloth and ashes long ago. Matt. 11:22. A person cannot read these passages without asking the question, Well, Lord, if you knew what was needed to bring Sodom and Tyre to repentance why didn't you do it so they would not be lost forever?

This is the natural reaction of the carnal mind for the carnal mind is "enmity against God." Rom. 8:7. All of our studies on the character of God are designed to destroy this enmity by changing the carnal mind into a spiritual mind like Christ so we will be able to think just like Jesus thinks...to be molded into His very image and likeness.

The only reasonable answer is that Jesus knew the people of Sodom would live again in the final age and/or ages of the world, for there are ages to come which includes the 1,000 years in heaven for the saints and then the age or ages after the 1,000 years. We are not told very much about these time periods except that Satan is to be "loosed a LITTLE SEASON." Rev. 20:3. Paul's comment about Moses refusing to enjoy "sin for a season," Heb. 11:25, is an important clue. In this case a season would have been the time Moses ruled the then known world from the throne of Egypt. Moses lived to be 120 years old so a "season" in that instance could have been up to 100 years. I Thess. 5:1 also refers to "times and seasons," which probably refer more to prophetic time periods which are fixed whereas the "little season," of Rev. 20:3 is a period of uncertain length. The qualifying adjective "little" adds a reductionary twist to this end-time scenario. Isaiah 65:20 is another one of those mysterious scriptures which seem to shed light on this same time period. It speaks of the "sinner" who is "accursed" and lives 100 years. I think the King James' translation could be improved. The time frame is after the 1,000 years so it very well could be referring to those who will find themselves outside the city "accursed" for perhaps as long as 100 years of severe disciplinary action that only a loving God knows how to apply to each soul to bring him/her to repentance for God has categorically stated that it is His will...yes, His plan to bring every creature to a conversion of true and righteous repentance and confession that will bring glory to His holy name. However long that may take only God know and He alone has the right and patience to carry it out. For the God of all the earth will always do what is right for He is perfect and holy.

So we know the people of Sodom will come up in that resurrection of the lost after the 1,000 years. It was not time for them to receive the same information and light that the people in Christ's day received. Jesus simply used them as an example to prove what Ezekiel verified...that Israel was much worse than Sodom and Samaria. And what was Sodom's sin? "Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food, and careless, but she did not help the poor and needy. Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them when I saw it. Furthermore, Samaria did not commit half of your sins, for you have multiplied your abominations more than they. Thus you have made your sisters appear righteous by all your abominations which you have committed....bear your disgrace in that you have made judgment favorable for your sisters...they are more in the right than you. Yes, be also ashamed and bear your disgrace, in that you made your sisters appear righteous. Nevertheless, I will restore their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, and along with them your own captivity, in order that you may bear your humiliation, and feel ashamed for all that you have done when you become a consolation to them. And your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to their former state, and you with your daughters will also return to your former state." Ezekiel 16:49-55.

Nahum 1:9 confronts those who imagine evil things about God's method of dealing with sin and sinners. "What do ye imagine against the Lord? He will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time." In I Cor. 10 Paul appeals to some in the congregation who were manifesting fleshly, carnal actions and sentiments. "I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ...for though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.;"

In "The Message," Matt. 11:21 says: "Doom to you, Chorazin! Doom, Bethsaida! If Tyre and Sidon had seen half of the powerful miracles you have seen, they would have been on their knees in a minute. At Judgment Day they'll get off easy compared to you." Once again we are faced with a mysterious import in these verses. Oddly missing are references to an eternal burning hell or even an endless non-existence after God the Father has completely annihilated them with His heavenly blow torch in the lake of fire. In fact, if one reads between the lines there even seems to be a very distinct glimmer of hope.

In order to frighten sinners into obedience some of the ancient fathers, like Saint Augustine, a famous Catholic theologian and writer of the 4th and 5th centuries began changing the true meaning of the Greek words, "Eon" and "Eonian" which are usually translated as "Forever, Eternal." Augustine was not a Greek scholar but schooled in the Roman Latin. The original writings of the New Testament were written in Greek. The confusion that exists in our modern religious world, especially in the USA, is a direct result of zealots like Augustine who, although very sincere in their motives and desiring to save as many sinners from God's wrath as possible, perverted the true and original meaning of the Greek words eon and eonian into the popular meaning that has generally been assigned to it since the days of Jonathan Edwards. Edwards, of course, is famous for his revival sermons back in the 1600's entitled, "Sinners in the hands of an Angry God."

Although a few loving and tenderhearted students of the Scriptures, having been touched with the tenderness and compassion of our Blessed Saviour's life, have moved away from that horrible doctrine of eternal hell fire but they still cling to the concept that God will indeed destroy the sinner eternally...not in endless, burning torment but in a temporary, literal blazing infernal which the Bible calls the Lake of Fire. Although genuinely sincere in their efforts to vindicate the character of God they have unknowingly fallen into basically the same false theological interpretation as the "Hell-Fire, burner-uppers, forever and ever." The proofs for this are many and overwhelming.

First of all, there is the "Law of Primacy or First Use." This simply means that the first and/or original interpretation of a doctrine, based upon the original Greek, is most often the true one. There are exceptions, of course. It is also important to determine how the word is used in many contexts before a fixed and final meaning is assigned. For the first five centuries of the Christian era the interpretation of "Eon" and "Eonian" were that these were segments of time that had both a purpose as well as a beginning and an end. The concept of an endless or eternal period was not taught by the majority of the early church fathers.

In a masterful 219 page book entitled, "ALL IN ALL," A. E. Knoch has unravelled the mystery of this dilemma. In the back of this work he compares seven translations with the Concordant Version to clearly show how unreliable these renderings are, so sincere Bible readers may discard them for the literal and the true.

An eon is the longest segment of time known in the Scriptures. Seven distinct divisions are indicated: pre-eonian time (2 Tim. 1:9), five eons, two of which are future (called the eons of the eons, Rev. 1:6), and time after the conclusion of the eons (Heb. 9:26); I Cor. 15:28). "Age" is not a suitable equivalent because it has no adjective like eonian, and has been spoiled by misuse, being generally applied to an administration. The eons synchronize with the worlds (Eph. 2:2), the eons dealing with the time aspect and the worlds with the cosmic aspect or constitution.

Eon is variously translated as: age, ages ago, age-long duration, earliest ages, last ages, latest ages, remote age, remotest age, always, ancient, any more, beginning, does, end, eternal, eternity, ever for ever, and ever, for evermore, first, very first. Immortal, life, never, nevermore, never while the world lasts, never to the end of my days, of old, permanently, time began, all time, old time, today, universe, world, yonder world--nearly forty variants.

The facts contained in this record of renderings should open the eye of the saints to two vital facts. First, that scholarship is by no means satisfied with the renderings of the Authorized Version. Second, that the lack of method in almost all accepted versions tends to make them a mere record of human opinion. In those having a variety of renderings the meaning of the word seems obscure and contradictory.

However, when the word "eon" is translated consistently and uniformly the meaning is clear, easy to understand and conclusive. In fact, all of the margins and notes support the true translation of "eon" as both meaning and being a limited time period. Those of us who have never subscribed to or believed in eternal hell fire can readily agree with these facts and conclusions. However, we have been just as guilty of subscribing to a false translation and interpretation of the Greek word "eon." "How so," you ask? By turning right around and interpreting this same word "eon" to mean eternal and forever in regards to the results of God's punishment. We carefully explain that the fire does not last forever but goes out or comes to an end. However, we proudly state with an air of superiority, "the results of the fire go on forever and are without end in that the wicked are destroyed forever and never exist again." Beloved, this is just as much a violation of the true meaning of the word "eon" as the first error of eternal hell fire. God uses death as well as many other calamities and problems of life to teach us lessons that will bring us back to Himself. The thief on the cross is a classic example. The Lord also used the experience of death to teach Israel lessons many, many times in their wilderness wanderings. Psalm 78:34 proves this beyond a doubt. "When he slew them, then they sought Him: and they returned and inquired early after God." Paul also refers to other instances when thousands of them lost their lives and became examples for others not only in their day but especially for us in these end times upon whom the ends of the world are come. See I Cor. 10.

Our Wonderful God is totally sovereign over all the issues of life and death. He is still in control and always will be just as He always has been. King Nebuchadnezzar learned this the hard way and finally gave this testimony: "He, (God) doeth according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay His hand, or say unto Him, What doest thou?" Dan. 4:35. God has made certain plans and promises for each of us. But if we fail to enter into and cooperate with His plans for us He does not desert or forsake us. Just because we may fail Him does not mean He will fail us for "Jesus never fails." I Cor. 13:8. Paul explains it like this:

"For what if some (of Israel) did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightiest be justified in thy sayings, and mightiest overcome when thou are judged." Rom. 3:4. I like the following paraphrase for it really brings this out even more clearly.

"So, what if, in the course of doing that, some of those Jews abandoned their post? God didn't abandon them. Do you think their faithlessness cancels out His faithfulness? Not on your life! Depend on it: God keeps His Word even when the whole world is lying through its teeth. Scripture says the same: 'Your words stand fast and true; Rejection doesn't faze you.'"

The prophet Hosea brings this idea out even more emphatically. "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help. I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities? (please notice how all-inclusive God's promises always are in the use of the word 'ALL')....The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: (yet) I will ransom them from the power of the grave (by and through the resurrection) I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction:" Hosea 13:10-14. How could death be destroyed when at least two thirds of the human family, many of whom have never even heard the gospel, are going to be blow-torched to death by this same loving Jesus who has stated that we are to forgive our enemies 7 X 70 or in other words an infinite number of times? Death would not be destroyed but immortalized and memorialized. And for what purpose??? To prove that we better obey God or He will kill us too? The "Fear of death" would be institutionalized and reign in the hearts of every creature on every planet throughout eternity. Of course, the chance of this happening is not only absurd but impossible if we are to believe in a loving God who has taught us all through His Holy Word to not "fear" or be "afraid," especially of Him. I am afraid the father of all lies has really done a number on many of the heads of God's professed people.

Now, let us go to Isaiah 28 for a real shocker. In v. 14 the Lord is speaking to the "scoffing rulers in Jerusalem: You have struck a bargain (covenant) with Death, you say, and sold yourselves to the devil in exchange for his protection against the Assyrians. 'They can never touch us,' you say, 'for we are under the care of one who will deceive and fool them.' " But the Lord God says, See, I am placing a Foundation Stone in Zion---a firm, tested, precious Cornerstone that is safe to build on. He who believes need never run away again. I will take the line and plummet of justice to check the foundation wall you built; it looks so fine, but it is so weak a storm of hail will knock it down! The enemy will come like a flood and sweep it away, and you will be drowned. I will cancel your agreement of compromise with Death and the devil, so when the terrible enemy floods in;, you will trampled into the ground. Again and again that flood will come and carry you off, until at last the unmixed horror of the truth of my warnings will finally dawn on you. The bed you have made is far too short to lie on; the blankets are too narrow to cover you." Isa. 28:14-20.

Now, we come to the verse that speaks of God's "Strange Act." "For the Lord shall rise up as in mount Perazim, He shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act." Most people think this strange act is God's act of destroying the wicked...but according to them He has been destroying people since the beginning of time...so how could there be anything "strange" about that?! No, the only thing strange about what happens in the final day of the seven last plagues is the extent of the damage He allows...such widespread death and destruction on a world-wide scale for in the past He has always limited it...but this time He lets it go. The only ones who are protected are His own people who have received the Mark or Seal of God. In the past the Lord has only allowed Satan to go so far...He has always put limits on his power to deceive and destroy. But in this last hour of earth's history when God lets the floodgates of evil loose...the four angels of Rev. 7...the destruction will be beyond belief. This is God's strange act...it is the first time He has allowed such a thing to happen...and yet even in this most severe of all punishment God still is in control, monitoring the suffering of mankind that the lessons this terrible punishment is teaching them will have its desired and intended effect even though it does not bring them to repentance at that time. The benefits from this disciplinary action will not be realized until after the 1,000 years when everyone will be shown and taught what really caused the plagues and God has never hurt or killed anyone.

Today many men and women think they can run away from God...that they can sow their wild oats without reaping the ultimate harvest. No, friends, sin always has its time of reprisal for you cannot escape the results of what you have sown. The Bible clearly tells us that whatsoever a man sows he will reap. Sin always has it payday...sooner or later. There are people even today who think they will be able to live like they want and then escape God's judgment by taking their own life. I have news for them. You cannot run away from God and His appointment with you.

David found this out and under inspiration wrote: "Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend to heaven, thou art there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there thy hand shall lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, 'Let only darkness cover me, and the light about me be night,' even the darkness is not dark to thee, the night is bright as the day; for darkness is as light with thee." Psalm 139:7-12.

Have you ever heard of Francis Thompson's famous poem, "The Hound of Heaven?" In this work the author explains that he had tried all his life to run away from God but found out that it was impossible for no matter where he ran God always followed and found him...but in the end he discovered that all God ever wanted to do was love him.

And so it is in Isa. 28 that we find God reasoning with His people to stop fighting against His love for they cannot win. Please notice: "And now do not carry on as scoffers, Lest your fetters be made stronger;" NAS. "Now stop your mocking, or your chains will become heavier." NIV. The MLV says, "...scoff no more, lest your bondage be aggravated;" Another says, "So scoff no more, lest your punishment be made even greater..." LB. If I had time I could find many more to illustrate this one, most important point:

These Scriptures do not describe or portray a God who is seeking to burn the sinner in an everlasting, never-ending hellfire nor is He seeking to put the sinner out of existence for good or as we say, "forever or for all eternity." The concepts of extinction and/or annihilation were foreign to the Hebrew mind. Why else would the Lord be pleading with the sinner to stop scoffing so his punishment will not be increased? How can you increase eternal hell-fire or annihilation? Of course, you can't. So, now let us go to Psalm 2 to see first of all how our Wonderful God views all of this rebellion and secondly how He deals with it.

The Psalmist asks the question: "Why do the heathen, (nations) rage and the people (Israel) imagine a vain thing. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against His anointed, saying, 'Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.' He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall He speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion." Psalm 2:1-6. In Hosea 11:4 we learn that the cords they are trying to break free of are "CORDS OF A MAN." And the bands are "BANDS OF LOVE." The RSV says,"I led them with cords of compassion, with the bands of love, and I became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws, and I bent down to them and fed them." V. 4. In spite of all that God did for Israel they rebelled against Him just like the world. But Jesus never gives up for His love just keeps on going from eon to eon or age to age with unending mercy, compassion and love. The Psalmist pictures our Lord as sitting in the heavens laughing at his little children's futile efforts to run away from him. "But God in heaven merely laughs! He is amused by all their puny plans." LB. V. 5 tells us that "Then shall he speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure." We already know that "GOD'S WRATH,' or the "Wrath of God," is not when our Lord becomes angry and destroys people but instead is when He allows man to go His own way and do his own thing, albeit, even then God is monitoring the whole affair as each rebellious sinner learns the lessons God has prepared for him to learn for even the prodigal son was under the guidance and protection of heaven all the while he was in the far country.

Many are the "toys" we seek to entertain ourselves with in this life...the "games" human beings play of one sort of another. God allows these for a period of time in each life and in His infinite wisdom teaches us the lessons He has designed for us to learn through them. But when the time comes for us to move on to more fulfilling experiences in life the Lord allows these toys and games to either fade away and/or become inoperative in our lives which in essence is the same as being destroyed. God is totally sovereign over all the events of life. Daniel explained this to King Nebuchadnezzar in Dan. 2:19-23 after God revealed the "secret" unto Daniel in a vision of the night. Daniel was ecstatic and blessed the God of heaven in front of the King as he began to explain the true meaning of the king's dream: "He changes the times and the seasons, He removes kings and sets up kings, He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding."

Many of the early church fathers understood this profound truth much more clearly than the leaders of organized religion do today. For example the passage in Psalm 2:9 which refers to Jesus ruling the nations with a "rod of iron" and "dashing or breaking them in pieces like a potter's vessel." The modern explanation for this verse is that God uses the force and power in nature to destroy men and their kingdoms. The earthquake in Kobe, Japan is just one example. They believe hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, strikes of lightning, etc. are "Acts of God," which the Lord uses to punish people whenever He sees fit. The Bible, in fact, does refer to these aberrations of nature as "The Wrath of God." But Psalm 78:49 and Rom. 1:18, 24-26 make it crystal clear that God allows these things and yet He is in fact in control at all times even though the evil angels are responsible for the destruction and death of people. This is where it takes faith on our part to believe that a loving God would be able to reveal His Gospel and accomplish His purposes in the earth through such terrible calamities. Here is where a correct understanding of Psalm 2:9 is so vital.

One early church father wrote: "The Son 'breaking in pieces' His enemies is for the sake of remolding them, as a potter his own work; as Jer. 18:6 says: i.e., to restore them once more to their former state." Because we think of death as the ultimate calamity we are quick to ask why a loving God would even allow these things to happen. But the more we learn to trust in His Word and Divine Providence the more He will reveal His loving purposes to us as the end draws near.

In his letter to the believers in Colosse Paul reveals God's ultimate plan and purpose through both creation and redemption. "For by Him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for Him. And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist (are held together). And He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence...And having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven." Col. 1:16-20.

Beloved friend, it is so very important for us to understand the "Ministry of reconciliation," which God has given to us in this last hour of earth's history. Until we understand the full meaning of this ministry and what it includes and encompasses we are not going to receive the Holy Spirit's power in Latter Rain fullness.

In fact, Jesus cannot return "Until the times of restitution of all things," is understood, accepted and entered into as the first step in understanding and accepting the "Ministry of Reconciliation," which is to be the work of every Melchizedek priest. The first and most important step is to learn to love humanity with the same passion and intensity that Jesus loves them. His ultimate demonstration of this love was revealed on the cross when He exclaimed, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." Notice the comment of EGW: "All heaven was filled with wonder when the prayer of Christ was offered in the midst of His terrible suffering." DA 760.

Read this page and the entire chapter for a more indepth understanding of what an educational process the persecution, suffering and death of Jesus on the cross was to ALL the angels, fallen and unfallen alike. Christ knew His death was necessary in order to reveal the depths of Lucifer's rebellion not only to the unfallen angels but to the unfallen worlds as well as to the fallen angels and even to Lucifer himself. One of the hardest tests to endure is to love our enemies. As He was dying on the cross Jesus showed us that it is possible to love even the vilest sinner. I must confess that I used to hate Satan with a passionate intensity worthy of a better cause. I knew that because he is invisible and a spirit being I could not hit him, shoot him, beat him up, etc. Actually there is no command in the Bible to even hate Satan. But I finally figured out that the best way to hurt Satan was to convert as many people to Christ as possible. But it wasn't until I began learning the character message that I realized the depths of God's love...that He does not destroy. That He has never hurt or killed even an evil angel and never will. This was a great mystery to my mind. But, I just accepted the texts that teach us to not speak against Satan and his angels nor bring any kind of railing accusation against them according to Christ's example in Jude 9. This was not easy for me but the deeper I studied into the character of God the less energy I spent being angry at Satan...especially as I understood God's total sovereignty over all things.

But the big breakthrough came when I began to realize that everything is happening according to a plan the Creator mapped out eons or ages ago. He knows the end from the beginning and some day we will understand all of these mysteries in greater detail. But I found out there is plenty to learn right now. In fact, during this last week I've been researching and writing this article I have learned a number of new things about the love of God. t just never stops. And just a few minutes ago, when I was reading DA 760, quoted above, EGW's description of Jesus's sufferings moved me so deeply I began weeping and couldn't type anymore. I am sure many of the angels must have been weeping too.

One of the books that changed my thinking about Satan and his angels is entitled, "Is Hell Eternal or Will God's Plan Fail?" A lady in Seattle showed me this book while I was visiting in her home with some friends one winter evening about 1986. She asked me if I thought there was any chance God could ever bring Lucifer (Satan) to repentance and then to reconcile him back to his throne in heaven. I answered that I didn't think it was possible for Satan had gone to far and would never truly repent. I told her that I believed God would forgive him if he truly repented but I believed he had sinned away his day of grace. These thoughts were based mainly on my reading of EGW's writings as well as my own personal feelings and convictions. About a month later this same lady mailed me this book. I had been thinking and praying a lot about the matter. It is amazing now as I look back on the whole experience and see how God had been preparing me to read chapter XXVI "CONCERNING THE SALVATION OF ANGELS AND DEMONS." I told the Lord I would only read that one chapter because my prejudice was so great. I told the Lord that if I could be convinced Satan could be brought back to God's throne I would read the rest of the book.

Well, you have probably already guessed what happened. I didn't even need to get through the entire chapter before I was convinced of God's great power to reconcile His first angel back to Himself. Oh, my friend how we limit our Creator and make Him out to be a weak, wimpy God who hardly knows from day to day what to do next because of all the devil's rebellious ways. Thomas Allin has stated most eloquently the problem with this theory:

"The popular creed presents us with a Being who fluctuates between tenderness and wrath: One who has ever-changing plans, and a will that is divided, and baffled. For half His creatures, His love is in fact momentary and His vengeance eternal. For the other half, His pity is eternal and His wrath transient. This God is not even Lord in His own house; for the worst and feeblest of His creatures can defeat His most cherished plan; can paralyze the Cross of Christ. In such a God I can see no trace of Him who is almighty and unchanging, whose property is to always have mercy; whose love, tho it must take the form of vengeance against sin, never ceases to pursue the sinners for 'love never faileth'; never to all eternity." "IS HELL ETERNAL OR WILL GOD'S PLAN FAIL?" Page 308.

Thomas Erskine writes in a similar vein about the weaknesses of such a theory: "Hence the painful evasions; the manifold sophistry; the halting logic that (honestly) turns the Bible upside down; i.e., teaching that all men drawn to Christ means half mankind drawn to the devil; all things reconciled through Christ means the final perdition of half the universe. The notion, which is in fact that of the popular creed, i.e., that God is in the Bible detailing the story of His own defeat, is telling how sin has proved too strong for Him; this notion is worse than absurd. Assuredly the Bible is not the story of sin deepening into eternal ruin---of creation darkened forever by a ghastly hell---of God's own Son worsted in His utmost effort. It is from the opening to the close the story of grace stronger than sin---of life victorious over every form of death---of God triumphing over evil." Ibid, 309, 310.

Last August when I was in Arizona I gave a talk on this subject and it was video taped along with one other sermon. Both of these are available to you. I want to share with you just a few sentences that I read on the video.

"This leads us to ask the question, Has the death of Christ on the cross accomplished anything for angels and especially anything for fallen angels or demons?" Page 264. Now, I need to stop here for a moment before I share the rest of Charles Pridgeon's statement. I Pet. 1:10-12 tells us the prophets themselves as well as ANGELS "desire to look into." "Epithumeo," is the original Greek word which is translated here as "desire," but can also mean "long for, covet, to set the heart upon." This indicates there is a lot of longing and emotion in the hearts of all the angels, good and evil. So, they too have been increasing in their knowledge and understanding of God's character and the ultimate plan for all of God's creatures in conjunction with the creation and perfection of this planet. "Not until the death of Christ was the character of Satan clearly revealed to the angels or to the unfallen worlds. The archapostate has so clothed himself with deception that even holy beings had not understood his principles. They had not clearly seen the nature of his rebellion." DA 758. Of course, the evil angels who followed Lucifer found out too late that they too had been deceived. The only difference is they are still living in the shadows of Satan's deception and will remain there until the final day of judgment when God will turn on all the lights revealing His eternal love. Jude speaks of this.

"And the angels that did not keep their own position (habitation) but left their proper dwelling have been kept (preserved) by him in eternal chains in the nether gloom until the judgment of the great day;" Jude 6.

"Kept," is from the Greek word "tereo" which has a very positive meaning as we see how it is used in Rev. 3:8, 10. Strong's 5083 proves that it can also be translated, "To watch or guard from loss or injury, to preserve." Jesus created each one of these angels and has given them free choice. Yet, from all eternity, before He created them, He knew what they would experience and go through to reach perfection. Job 4:18 tells us that our Creator pointed out the mistakes of certain angels. "His angels he charged with folly." KJV. The Amplified Version says the same adding that He also charged them with "error." Just as a loving father seeks to find ways to correct his erring children so God is teaching His fallen angels...in fact, Eph. 3:10 indicates He is teaching them through the elect. Actually, one could view this whole 6,000 years of the Great Controversy as an age of "growing up" and becoming "mature," not only for the human race but for the angelic realm as well. Only an all-wise, loving Creator would have the love and patience to accomplish such a wonderful undertaking.

Not long after I began to study, understand and accept Universal Reconciliation I ran across a little book published in 1986 by Pacific Press. One of the chapters of this book was entitled, "ASSASSIN UNMASKED." On page 70 the author, Ken McFarland, wrote most convincingly these words: Let me say without hesitation that if I were ever to join Russell in his conclusions about God's vengeful cruelty, I would soon join him also in his atheism. For what kind of God is it who grants to man complete freedom of choice, then descends on him in offended and flame-throwing fury when man chooses other than God's way? Those of us who live in free democracies smile knowingly when we hear a totalitarian state claiming freedom for its citizens. We know that the only freedom such citizens enjoy is the 'freedom' to do exactly what the state demands. And where is true freedom of choice if God says, 'Choose My way---or I'll burn you forever'? And what fantasy to believe that such a God could be served from any other motive than fear.

While many of us may reject the idea that God punishes the wicked with unending fire, some of us cling with mysterious tenacity to the idea that God nonetheless does punish the wicked with fire. But is my fear of god to vanish upon learning that if I choose against Him, He will not burn me forever---but will simply burn me to death?

The purpose of punishment, after all, is education---to help a person to learn to associate negative behavior with unpleasant consequences. Even to refer to the end of sinners as the 'punishment' of the wicked, then, is something of a misnomer. For what, pray tell, can one 'learn' from being executed? Page 70 "John: Bridge to Space Island."

Anyone who has been exposed to the deliverance ministry and read very extensively in the SOP knows that Satan and his angels miss the bliss of heaven intensely. Of course, they blame God for all of their problems. This is part of the gross darkness that covers their minds. But the great judgment day is going to remove the blinders so they will be able to see the real truth in all of its glorious splendor. The Bible says they are going to bow down and confess that Jesus Christ is truly God. Phil. 2:6-10. Verse 11 reveals that this bowing down and confessing will bring glory to the Name of God the Father. Beloved, how could such glorious conversions bring glory to God if they were forced or faked? It would be impossible.

Friend of mine, why do you want to continue doubting that God is that powerful enough to even bring the first great rebel back to His throne...not in chains but to unshackle him and his deluded followers from the chains they have forged for themselves much like Christopher Marlow said he had forged his terrible chains in the famous movie "Scrooge," by Dickens. And remember what Scrooge said while at his own future grave site with the angel of Christmas future? He begged for mercy and forgiveness and a chance to prove himself on the basis that he really was sorry for all of his past life of selfishness and desired to change. I immediately saw that as a powerful argument for universal reconciliation.

Now, let us continue on with the quote:

(Demons are spirits not as great as angels, and probably disembodied.) Everything on earth, and also in heaven has been reconciled by His death on the cross. (Col. 1:20). We can understand that it was through the fall of the angels that the heavens became unclean, and we have the Scripture also that He charged His angels with folly (Job 4:18). Through the precious blood, all in the heavens as well as in the earth are to be reconciled. Page 264. Col. 2:10 tells us that all of the angels were in Him for He "is the Head of all principality and power" (Col. 2:10). See also Col. 1:16. Also all of the angels were created by Him, through Him and for Him. He is not about to let any of His creatures remain unreconciled to His great heart of love...His irresistible heart of love.

How all encompassing was the death of Christ? Certainly all mankind was included for He died for the whole world. Angels were also in Him, for He 'is the Head of all principality and power' Col. 2:10). The angels and all creations were in Him. 'For in Him were all things created that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created through Him, and for Him Col. 1:16. These words, 'thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers,' refer to the different ranks of angels." Page 264. Pridgeon then quotes Heb. 9:23, 24 and says that this text teaches that the blood of Christ purifies the heavens. Heb. 2:9 tells us that He was made a little lower than the angels for the "suffering of death." Therefore, He went down to the lowest depths in order to include everyone in His redemptive work, even the fallen angels whom He named and loves yet today. "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do," included all of the angels, even Lucifer (Satan) for Paul tells us that the "princes of the this world," did not realize what they were doing when they led men to crucify Him. I Cor. 2:8. But it was by this very means, the cross, that Jesus "drew all" to Himself, John 12:32. The word "men" is supplied and not in the original therefore, the "all" includes every creature.

A very important additional point I have mentioned in past articles on this subject is the length of God's promises. How long are God's promises good for? How long do they last? For example, Jesus forgiveness at the cross which He obviously extended to the priests and people who were responsible for all of His sufferings and death...to say nothing of Lucifer and his angels' responsibility and guilty. Yet, Jesus' forgiveness was extended to them as well. But they did not accept it at that time. So, the question I am posing is this: "How long does God extend His forgiveness?" Is there a time limit on it like there is on our earthly redeemable gift certificated which have an expiration date on them. So, does God's forgiveness have an expiration date on them? The Bible indicates that there is no time limit on them. See Rom. 11:29; Mal. 3:6; Psalm 89:34; Heb. 13:8. God never changes nor does His promises. He will finish, complete and perfect what He began in the beginning.

Through the years I have received thousands of letters from people who have read my newspaper articles, books and listened to the taped sermons and watched the videos the Lord has helped me make. Yesterday I received the following letter:

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Dear Mike:

Thank you for the video tape on Aids, Linda Thompson, and other programs, plus your three segments of your preaching on the character of God. I Have already had a few of the neighbors in and played it so they could watch it too. But along with the video you sent an extra copy of your GLC newspaper with the article 'God's final judgment on the evil angels." This is what I want to talk to you about.

Way back in the 60's I was working for Boeing in Seattle as a toolmaker, plant one. Next to my bench was a man who said he was an atheist. Here was a good mission field and I went to work on it. We studied many Bible subjects for several days and I thought I was making some headway. But one day he said, 'I have read the Bible all the way through, so what you are saying is no stranger to me. I have read all the stories in the O.T. of the many battles, of countless numbers of people slain in battles, of babies, children, old, helpless people being murdered, run through with spears, hacked to death with battle axes, brains beaten out with a club like the jawbone of an ass...and in the Name of the Lord who planned and gave strength to His people to kill. Now, if that's the kind of God you worship, I don't want any part of Him.'

Mike, I was devastated because I did not have an answer for him. I tried to think up some kind of reason or even an excuse for these things he had mentioned, but I realized he wasn't going to accept any of my reasons let alone any kind of lame excuse. I was just so embarrassed because I was the head deacon and Senior SS teacher at the White Center Church. Well, the company soon transferred me to the Minute Man Project in Ogden, Utah, where I soon became involved in church activities. There was very little time for anything else. But there was always that nagging question in the back of my mind about God killing all those people and the excuses other SDA Church members gave me did not satisfy me.

Then many years later, after we were retired and now living in Arizona, I read one of your newspapers that had an article on this very subject. It made sense so I sent for your book, "INTO THE FATHER'S HEART." I read every word from cover to cover. This was the answer for which I had been searching all those years. It lifted a great burden and soon the next book came out. "THE WONDERFUL TRUTH ABOUT OUR HEAVENLY FATHER." (Pub. 1986. Now out of print.) It greatly reinforced the first book. I ordered several copies and tried to tell others this great news by giving out dozens of your books. But mostly all I got was ridicule...people running your character down. This is standard practice used by attorneys. If you can't prove that the defendant is guilty then you run his character down so no one will believe what he says. I saw this happen to you Mike and knew it was the work of the devil.

But there was still a big question in my mind that I could not answer. I kept asking myself, 'what about that lake of fire in which billions of sinners, all the evil angels and Satan is going to be burned up and consumed in?' According to what I had always believed, God clearly brings fire down from heaven and consumes them while we Christians are watching from the great New Jerusalem, watching loved ones, friends, neighbors, and perhaps one of my children, or grandchildren, or great grand children (I am 86) fry in that lake of fire...And God is frying them! At the same time He has His arms around us in the city that lies four square. Sometimes when I would think about that scene I wasn't so sure I wanted to be in that city. And then a strange thing happened last Sabbath. We were at a home church in Sabbath School when all at once I started thinking about fire. It was as if someone said to me, There was no fire on the earth before sin entered in the Garden of Eden. I just blurted this out to the class and they all looked at me and one person said, "Yeah, I guess that is right." And we just went on with the lesson.

But I kept on thinking about this new idea. My mind was going round and round. I thought that if this is so then the fire we have now must have come from Satan because it consumes and destroys which is just like Satan, in harmony with his character. But then I thought about the Lake of fire again at the end of the 1,000 years. What kind of fire is that? Does Satan bring down his own fire to consume himself, his angels and his followers. That didn't make any sense to me at all.

We returned home with my mind still whirling with these unanswered questions. And then that same afternoon I picked up your God's Last Call Newspaper and started reading your lead article. That is when I found the answer. Praise God, Jesus is wonderful! As I write this letter the tears are running down my cheeks I am so happy. I want to be in that city. I want to be there at the gate to welcome, perhaps, one of my own children, coming up out of that lake of God's fire cleansed, pure and holy, united with the family of God for that fire is not a destroying, literal fire at all, but a revelation of His truth and righteousness, yes, the fire of His eternal love as you explained so well in your article, Mike. I thought the gates were closed to protect us from all of the wicked sinners on the outside. But then I read it for myself. "And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there." Rev. 21:25.

Yes, I want to see the evil angels united with all the angelic host. If the angels rejoice over just one sinner that repents today, think of what that scene will be when the evil angels are cleansed and re-instated in heaven with all the angelic host! I can't think of a word adequate to describe it. And then perhaps the last one to come up out of that lake of God's renewing fire will be Satan Himself, pure, holy, cleansed, with the character of God shining from every part of him. I don't know how long it will take...probably a long time, but I want to see the Father take Satan, once again Lucifer, in His arms and welcome him back as head of all the angelic host of the universe. I want to hear Lucifer as he leads the angelic choir sing in several parts at once. The only words that I can think of to describe it is, "GOD IS LOVE."

Your friend, Lawrence E. Hester.

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My first comment on this letter is that it takes a very special kind of person with a very deep, abiding faith in God and an incredible amount of love and compassion for the human race to write a letter like that. There is so much cruelty and suffering in the world today and I think we all want to see it stopped and the evil people brought to justice and punished. I believe God is going to punish the wicked for He says that He will judge the world. That is not our job. Our work today is to witness for the Lord as to what He has done for us. "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord." Rom. 12:19. The in verses 20 and 21 we are admonished to do good to our enemies by feeding them and giving them drink and by these actions we will "heap coals of fire" on their heads..."be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." In the light of these verses based on Proverbs 25:21, 22, the conclusion I come to is that God's fire is a non-burning, literal fire but a revelation of His goodness and love which is how Great Controversy, page 666 describes it. I hope you will study further on that yourself.

As I come to the end of this article I would like to encourage each of my readers to pray and study for themselves. I know many will not agree the first time. I know I didn't the first time I heard about it. But just pray about it. Ask the Lord to give you an open mind and receptive heart so you may understand any thing He wants you to understand. You may be going through some hard times now...a crisis in your life. Sometimes the Lord allows a crisis to develop in our lives to bring us to a point of enlightenment. Yes, my friend, God often uses these sad, traumatic experiences to wake us up so we may learn new truths. Although these times may cause suffering and mourning they can also bring great enlightenment for it is in the darkest hour the light shines the brightest. I remember one lady told me the day her son committed suicide that she had her husband call me for the specific purpose to find out if I believed suicides would be saved or not. She said that she recalled that I had written something about God's plan to reconcile the whole human race and she wanted to know if there was a chance that her son could be saved even though he had taken his own life.

This is a subject that would require more time and space than I have left today. But let me say that as far as I can tell from the Scriptures God has not pronounced any condemnation on those who took their own life, including Samson, Saul and Judas. There are a few others in the Bible who committed suicide but all the Bible does is tell what happened. Heb. 11:32 mentions Samson as a hero of faith. In Saul's case the Bible records that Saul died because of his transgression of asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it. God clearly condemns contacts with evil spirits...especially seeking their counsel and advice. Saul could have died with a disease or by the sword of the enemy and probably would have if he had not taken his own life. I Chron. 10:4-14. But what caused him to be a failure in life was allowing the evil spirits to take over. And what made that possible was his spirit of pride, envy and jealousy. Nebuchadnezzar and Saul of Tarsus had the same problem but they repented and allowed God to change them. King Saul didn't so he will have to go through the lake of fire in the ages to come.

If you would like to study further on the subject of UNIVERSAL RECONCILIATION OR UNIVERSAL RESTORATION there are three excellent books available on the subject.

Truly your friend and servant in Christ, our Lord. Pastor Mike Clute.

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