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Blessings, Curses and the Lake of Fire
by Robert Staniford Revelation 20:11-15 New King James Version (NKJV) The Great White Throne Judgment 11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. "And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." This is not a popular passage of scripture with many Christians today. Increasingly, I'm hearing that a loving G-d would not inflict eternal torment and that those who are not in Christ suffer no more than separation from Him. The idea of separation may sound bad enough to many believers but it hardly strikes the fear of the Lord into non-believers, who are happy enough to think they live lives separate from Him now. Yet the awful judgement of those who reject Christ is clearly stated in scripture, and nowhere with more certainty than in this passage from the Book of Revelation. From the time of the early church, and through the reformation; in every great revival since, the full Gospel message has been preached. That message includes the warning of the consequences of rejecting G-d's free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. So what is it that makes many modern church leaders think that this is no longer a relevant part of their message? In addition, do churches which dispense with the full message truly make disciples? Belief on the Lord Jesus Christ is not simply a free pass to Heaven, it's the doorway to godliness. 2 Corinthians 5:17 New King James Version (NKJV) 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Learning to live in this new creation is a process, the building plan is excellently laid down by Peter: 2 Peter 1:5-10 New King James Version (NKJV) Fruitful Growth in the Faith 5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; Peter shows that it isn't enough to believe we are a new creation, we need to grasp it and walk in it. Nobody can afford to be complacent or blase about this. That reverent fear of the Lord is crucial to a healthy walk of faith. Hebrews 12:28-29 New King James Version (NKJV) 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire. The full Gospel message needs to be preached and the true nature of G-d taught in the churches so that real disciples of Christ are made. This includes those uncomfortable passages. When was the last time you heard the passage from Revelation, which opened this article, preached in your own church? A blessing is promised to those who read and keep the prophesy in Revelation: Revelation 22:7 New King James Version (NKJV) 7 "Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book." But there is also a dire warning: Revelation 22:18-19 New King James Version (NKJV) A Warning 18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. I believe there are many who are deceived into thinking they have to soften the message which has been passed to us, to make the Gospel more palatable. There is a place for reaching out in grace and there is a place to speak the whole truth. There is never a time that the whole truth should be forgotten or lost. Robert Staniford is an author and poet who writes Christian themes, primarily aimed at the secular market. In addition to this, he writes for Faith in the South, a site offering Christian resources to the South of England Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |