When You Ask...And Nothing Happens

Jesus told his followers...

“...I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you...In that day you will not question me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in my name, He will give it to you...I am leaving the world again and going to the Father...In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:16-33)

Jesus was speaking of his return at the close of this age. Only at that time will joy be permanent and only then will we ask of the Father and it will be done.

NOTE, asking for and receiving all that we ask is for that time, NOT IN THIS AGE. He told them that in this age they will have "tribulation"...but the problems of this world and age are temporary and when all the ages are concluded John says...

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away. And He who sits on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new. And He said, Write, for these words are faithful and true." (Revelation 21:3-5)

Eventually, at the close of the ages, death (both the first and the second) will be abolished, and God will be All in All...and all we ask "will be given".

“As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive...each in his own ORDER. Christ the firstfruits, then those who are alive at his coming, then comes the end...death is abolished...that God may be ALL IN ALL.” (1 Corinthians 5:22-28)

In this age, we are free to ask, but sometimes nothing happens...except the peace we get from turning it over to God.

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)

The Destiny of Believers and Unbelievers - From The No Spin Zone

It seems to me from reading the Bible that there are three groups of people talked about…

Group 1: Hebrew Believers - Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendants who believed what God told them down through the years, and

Group 2: Gentile Believers -All other people who heard from God and believed what He said to them down through the years

Group 3: Unbelievers - Everyone else.

The destiny of Groups 1 and 2 are to rule and reign with Christ Jesus during the two ages following this present age in which we live. The first age is referred to as the KINGDOM of Heaven and will last 1000 years.  This age is what Jesus was talking about when he told ISRAEL at his first coming…

"The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15)

From the Old Testament we know that he is referring to the restoration of the Davidic Kingdom promised to Israel. But only a few in Israel repented and the majority followed their religious leaders and rejected Jesus and had him crucified. So Jesus told them…

"Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! For I say to you, from now on you will not see me until you say, BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD.” (Matthew 23:38-39)

So Israel was blinded and the age of the 1000 year Kingdom is postponed. We know this from the question to him from his Jewish followers just before he ascended into heaven…and from Paul’s letter to Rome.

“Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them: It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority… a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in” (Acts 1:6-7; Romans 11:25))

It is the book of Revelation that tells us that this Kingdom age will last 1000 years…

“Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6)

As to when it will begin no one knows the exact date at this time…only the Father…

"But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matthew 24:36)

So what about the Age following the 1000 year Kingdom - The Age of the New Heaven and New Earth.  This age comes after the resurrection of Group 3.

“The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended...” (Revelation 20:5; 21:1)

This age will be one of righteousness...

"But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells...I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away" (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1)

Group 3 (all unbelievers down through the years) will be those being reigned over during the age of the New Heaven and New Earth.  They will NOT be in some fictitious Greek Underworld named Hell by some religious men and their various religions.  They will be reigned over in righteousness by Jesus and believers on the new earth. They will reign "until" every knee has bowed and every tongue confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord...

"But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign UNTIL he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For God has put all things in subjection under his feet. But when it says, all things are put in subjection, it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all...God exalted him to the highest place, and gave him the name above all names that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (1 Corinthians 15:20-28;Philippians 2:9-11)

The ages are then concuded and God will be "All in all".  The details of what follows those ages is hidden by God.  But Paul assures us that...

"Among the mature, however, we speak a message of wisdom—but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of the mysterious and hidden wisdom of God, which He destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it. For if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. Rather, as it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God." (1 Corinthians 2:6-10)

Just the simple truth from the no spin zone.  Pretty simple - until religions start spinning it.

Killing the Soul

"And do not fear those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul; but rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” (Matthew 10:28 CLNT)

Your translation of the Bible probably renders the word "Gehenna" as “hell”. That is unfortunate and an example of how the Bible was translated into English according to the bias of the translators to promote the vain "directions of men" rather than the Word of God.

"Yet in vain are they revering Me, Teaching for teachings the directions of men." (Matthew 15:9 CLNT)

"Gehenna" refers to the garbage dump outside of Jerusalem where trash and dead bodies of animals and criminals were burned. Among that garbage, the worms did not die and the fire was not quenched until it had accomplished the job of destroying the body.

"And if your hand should ever be snaring you, strike it off. It is ideal for you to be entering into life maimed, rather than, having two hands, to come away into Gehenna, into the unextinguished fire where their worm is not deceasing and the fire is not going out." (Mark 9:43-44 CLNT)

So what is Jesus saying to his fellow Jews about "fear" and "Gehenna"?

Remember that while on earth, Jesus preached only to ISRAEL about their promised Kingdom. The Kingdom they once ruled on the earth was now in the hands of the Roman Empire. He told them that they needed to “repent! for near is the Kingdom of the Heavens”, referring to the restoration from heaven of their Kingdom.

"Thenceforth begins Jesus to be heralding and saying, Repent! for near is the kingdom of the heavens!...teaching in their synagogues and heralding the evangel of the kingdom" (Matthew 4:17,23)

Jesus was presenting himself to Israel as the Jewish Messiah who would restore on earth the Kingdom promised to Israel. But he told them that to follow him as Messiah could result in his followers being treated as criminals and could result in their death, with their dead body being cast into "Gehenna".

This would and did bring fear to the Jews. Jesus said they need not fear men who kill them because that is all they could do. Jesus said for them to "fear" God, not those who kill the body and can then do no further damage. For God only could raise both body and soul out of the ashes of the fire of "Gehenna" to reign with Messiah during the Kingdom.

The “souls” of those Jews who did not receive Jesus as Messiah would not be revived until after the Kingdom and would therefore miss out on the reign of Messiah during the 1000 year Kingdom Age.

"And the souls of those executed because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who do not worship the wild beast or its image, and did not get the emblem on their forehead and on their hand- they also live and reign with Christ a thousand years. The rest of the dead do not live until the thousand years should be finished." (Revelation 20:4-5 CLNT)

Those who use the above verse to teach eternal conscious torment in hell show either their lack of study, or that they are intentionally deceiving people for the purpose of growing their institutions. They will one day be "ashamed" to have tried to save souls from the Greek mythological hell of eternal conscious torment…they should fear that they themselves may not be raised to the free gift of eternal life "until the thousand years should be finished".

"For whosoever may be wanting to save his soul will be destroying it, yet whoever shall be destroying his soul on account of Me and of the evangel will be saving it...For whosoever may be ashamed of Me and My words in this generation...the Son of Mankind also will be ashamed of him whenever He may be coming in the glory of His Father." (Mark 8:35-38 CLNT)

”For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. However not all men have this knowledge…” (1 Corinthians 8:5-7)

I suppose that there are as many gods and lords as there have been cultures and religious men over the years. And of course Paul is talking about those men or idols made up by men that people worship. He does not condemn such people to hell, but simply says that all men do not have the knowledge of the “one God, the Father, from whom are all things…and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things”. But they will one day, if not predestined to do so in this life, then after the resurrection of both the just and the wicked. Jesus told his listeners...

“Verily, verily, I say to you — He who is hearing my word, and is believing Him who sent me, hath life age-during, and to judgment he doth not come, but hath passed out of the death to the life…. Wonder not at this, because there doth come an hour in which all those in the tombs shall hear his voice, and they shall come forth; those who did the good things to a rising again of life, and those who practiced the evil things to a rising again of judgment." (John 5:24-29 YLT)

Jesus was speaking to Israel concerning the Kingdom AGE to be established on earth and Revelation 20 tells us this AGE will last 1000 years. At the BEGINNING of that Kingdom those who did the “good things” will be raised from the dead to LIFE and LIVE in that AGE (Daniel 12 tells me that resurrection will occur exactly 1335 days after the Messiah Jesus returns to earth) and these will rule and reign with Christ during that AGE. Revelation also tells us it is at the END of that AGE that the wicked who have practiced “evil things” will be raised from the dead and judged. So what happens to them at the "judgment"?

“And when the thousand years may be finished, the Adversary (Devil) shall be loosed out of his prison, and he shall go forth to lead the nations astray…and there came down fire from God out of the heaven, and devoured them; and the Devil, who is leading them astray, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are the beast and the false prophet, and they shall be tormented day and night — to the ages of the ages. And I saw a great white throne, and Him who is sitting upon it, from whose face the earth and the heaven did flee away, and place was not found for them; and I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God… and they were judged, each one according to their works…if anyone was not found written in the scroll of the life, he was cast to the lake of the fire…— this is the second death…” (Revelation 20:7-15)

The Bible is true, men not so much. Christianity has made the “lake of fire” equivalent to their fictitious hell, but GOD says the “lake of fire” is the "SECOND DEATH". I choose to believe God, you can believe who you want.

But you say, they are still dead. Yes but not forever. I won’t quote the Scripture now but Revelation tells us about an AGE that will follow the 1000 year AGE. It is the AGE of the New Heaven and New Earth. Those of the first rising will continue to rule and reign with Christ while the rest will be dead the SECOND time. Paul was given the mystery of what happens at the close of that age and it is summarized as follows…

“And now, Christ hath risen out of the dead — the first-fruits of those sleeping he became…for even as in Adam all die, so also in the Christ all shall be made alive, and each in his proper order, a first-fruit Christ, afterwards those who are the Christ’s, in his presence, then — the end, when he may deliver up the reign to God, even the Father, when he may have made useless all rule, and all authority and power — for it behoveth him to reign till he may have put all the enemies under his feet — THE LAST ENEMY IS DONE AWAY – DEATH...for all things He did put under his feet…and when the all things may be subjected to him, then the Son also himself shall be subject to Him, who did subject to him the all things, THAT GOD MAY BE ALL IN ALL….The Death was swallowed up — to victory...” (1 Corinthians 15:20-54 YLT)

I am confident that my family and I, along with most of you, will be among those in the “first rising” and we will be happy about it and we do not have to more about the second death (the lake of fire).

“Happy and holy is he who is having part in the first rising again; over these the second death hath not authority, but they shall be priests of God and of the Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6)

But I am equally certain that the bible teaches that death, even the second death, will be abolished and all of God’s creation will have then been reconciled to God by Christ Jesus.

“And himself is the head of the body…a first-born out of the dead, that he might become in all things…first…and through him to reconcile all things to himself — having made peace through the blood of his cross — through him, whether the things upon the earth, whether the things in the heavens. And you — once being alienated, and enemies in the mind, in the evil works, yet now did he reconcile, in the body of his flesh through the death, to present you holy, and unblemished, and unblameable before himself…" (Colossians 1:18-22)

What about conflicting English translations of the Bible? Sincere teachers of the Bible should point out that there is a difference of opinion with regard to the translation of the oldest Greek manuscripts. Here is an example:

Matthew 25:46 King James Version

"And these will go away into everlasting (aionios) punishment (kolasis), but the righteous into eternal (aionios) life."

This verse is most frequently quoted to me to defend the false doctrine of eternal conscious torment in hell. The verse is translated by Young's Literal Translation as follows:

“And these shall go away to punishment (kolasis) age-during (aionios), but the righteous to life age-during.”

This reflects the true meaning of this verse, as originally inspired by the Holy Spirit, and it does not introduce any contradiction to Paul’s later revelation of the eventual Salvation and Reconciliation of ALL.

And when the context in which Jesus was speaking is examined it becomes clear that he is not referring to the eternal destiny of anyone…but is telling Jews where Jews would be during the Kingdom age that Messiah Jesus will establish on the present earth. An age with a definite beginning and end in which Israel would once again be the “head and not the tail” according to Moses (Deuteronomy 28:13). 

Jews who have believed God down through the centuries will be resurrected to live during that AGE and reign with Messiah, and those who do not believe will be punished by not being raised until AFTER that age is over. And by the way the Bible clearly tells us the length of the KINGDOM AGE…1000 years.

“…they did live and reign with Christ the thousand years…they shall be priests of God and of the Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." (Revelation 20:4-6)

Sometimes I wonder if some bible teachers have even read through the Bible.

“24Ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ὁ τὸν λόγον μου ἀκούων καὶ πιστεύων τῷ πέμψαντί με ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον, καὶ εἰς κρίσιν οὐκ ἔρχεται ἀλλὰ μεταβέβηκεν ἐκ τοῦ θανάτου εἰς τὴν ζωήν. 25ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἔρχεται ὥρα καὶ νῦν ἐστιν ὅτε οἱ νεκροὶ ἀκούσουσιν τῆς φωνῆς τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ οἱ ἀκούσαντες ζήσουσιν. 26ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ἔχει ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, οὕτως καὶ τῷ υἱῷ ἔδωκεν ζωὴν ἔχειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ: 27καὶ ἐξουσίαν ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ κρίσιν ποιεῖν, ὅτι υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἐστίν. 28μὴ θαυμάζετε τοῦτο, ὅτι ἔρχεται ὥρα ἐν ἧ πάντες οἱ ἐν τοῖς μνημείοις ἀκούσουσιν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ 29καὶ ἐκπορεύσονται, οἱ τὰ ἀγαθὰ ποιήσαντες εἰς ἀνάστασιν ζωῆς, οἱ δὲ τὰ φαῦλα πράξαντες εἰς ἀνάστασιν κρίσεως. “(John 5:24-29)

This is the way the Greek reads which is the language spoken by  most when Jesus was born. What WE have is umpteen opinions of men as to how to translate those words into English. Here is what I believe to be the best unbiased translation of the above into English, the Concordant Literal New Testament.

24 "Verily, verily, I am saying to you that he who is hearing My word and believing Him Who sends Me, has life EONIAN and is not coming into judging, but has proceeded out of death into life.
25 Verily, verily, I am saying to you that coming is an hour, and now is, when the dead shall be hearing the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear shall be living.
26 For even as the Father has life in Himself, thus to the Son also He gives to have life in Himself.
27 "And He gives Him authority to do judging, seeing that He is a son of mankind.
28 Marvel not at this, for coming is the hour in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice,
29 and those who do good shall go out into a resurrection of life, yet those who commit bad things, into a resurrection of JUDGING. (John 5:24-29 CLNT)

First note the words I have capitalized. If your English version says something different I believe it is wrongly translated.

Second note that whatever you think about this passage only those who “do good” works shall be involved in the resurrection of life, and those who “commit bad things” get the resurrection of judging. No sound bible believing Christian who has read the letters of the Apostle Paul could possibly think this is referring to being eternally saved or condemned.

Third, and most important is the context of the passage. Jesus has been traveling around Israel addressing JEWS ONLY with the message “repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand”. What did he mean and how did the Jewish listeners understand what he was saying?  

They were Jews. The Jews had been promised in the Old Testament that a Messiah would come and reestablish ON THE PRESENT EARTH the Kingdom given to Israel.

Jesus was saying to these JEWS that those Jews who had believed God would be resurrected to life and reign with Messiah during the Kingdom Age (Revelation tells us it will last 1000 years). Those Jews who did NOT believe God and have died will not be raised to live during that period but would have to wait until the end of the 1000 years to be resurrected and be judged by Jesus at the Great White Throne. There he will determine which JEWS get to live and reign during the Age that follows the 1000 years, the Age of the New Heaven and New Earth. Some will get to live during that Age and some will be put to the second DEATH by means of the Lake of Fire…to await the abolishing of death by Jesus when all mankind will be “made alive” and God is then "ALL in all" of his creation (1 Corinthians 15:22-28).

This is NOT complicated, but it does require one to actually read, understand and harmonize ALL Scripture….and stop listening to those who do not.