Fuel For The Fire

“…be filled with the knowledge of His will…” (Colossians 1:10)

19 years ago I began to pray the above prayer for myself. Soon thereafter I began to examine my doctrinal positions.  In doing so I had to face squarely a question I had avoided for the most part - Is it really God’s WILL to separate Himself from unbelievers, keeping them alive eternally to punish and torment them? 

I was determined to be "filled with the knowledge of His will" even if it meant to embrace this doctrine which seemed to me to contradict the love of God. And for 5 years I studied Scripture, and the more I studied, the more it became obvious that this doctrine was not in the original language of His Word.

When the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar wanted to punish the people of God who had refused to worship him, he had them thrown into a furnace of fire...

“But whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire.” (Daniel 3:6)

Is our God like Nebuchadnezzar?

When Jesus’s Jewish disciples wanted to reign down fire from heaven and destroy the Samaritans Jesus told them…

"You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." (Luke 9:56)

Of what spirit is the doctrine of eternal conscience torment? 

Paul had told Timothy...

"...instruct certain men not to teach false doctrines or devote themselves to myths..." (1 Timothy 1:3-4)

So how did it become a doctrine of the church?

It came by mixing the gospel of Jesus, the Savior of the world with Greek mythology, Greek philosophy and Greek theology - which has brought the institutional churches to a sorry state. Listen to one of the Saints of the Catholic church from the middle ages...

"The blessed in the kingdom of heaven will see the punishments of the damned, in order that their bliss be more delightful for them." - Saint Thomas Aquinas

And hear part of two sermons by Jonathan Edwards, a Protestant preacher whose sermons are still quoted by misguided evangelists in our modern era.

“The view of the misery of the damned will double the ardour of the love and gratitude of the saints of heaven...The sight of hell's torments will exalt the happiness of the saints forever. . .Can the believing father in Heaven be happy with his unbelieving children in Hell. . . I tell you, yea! Such will be his sense of justice that it will increase rather than diminish his bliss."

These men are insane and their words some of the most heretical blasphemy against God and Christ Jesus ever uttered. We were warned by Paul to avoid these servants of "Satan"...

"For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness." (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)

And what will be the end of Saint Thomas and Jonathan Edwards?

"Anathema Maranatha!" (1 Corinthians 16:22; Galatians 1:9)

Meaning - such men are devoted to destruction at the coming of the Lord. They will be judged and cast into the lake of fire for their unbelief (the second death is the lake of fire, not eternal conscious torment although it would be poetic justice).

Paul specifically told Timothy what to "prescribe and teach"…

“As in Adam all die, even so, in Christ, shall all be made alive...this is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…God our Savior WILLS all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who have Himself a ransom for ALL...we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of ALL mankind, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (1 Corinthians 15:22; 1 Timothy 1:15; 2:3-6; 4:10)

You are not one of the "believers" if you do not teach the above, nor can people be a "believer" who teach the opposite - the myth of eternal conscious torment. 

When I finally became a "believer", it freed me from these "doctrines of demons". 

"But the Spirit explicitly says that in subsequent eras some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons." (1 Timothy 4:1)

Rejecting the "doctrines of demons" is the only way to believe the clear statements in the Bible that it is the WILL of God that all be saved and the whole world reconciled to God. Read the Bible with the goal of harmonizing all of it with that WILL.  The truth is that God will be ALL in ALL His creation…according to His grace and mercy!

“...through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross" ... "that God may be All in All.” (Colossians 1:20; 1 Corinthians 15:28)

My faith has not been received well by the institutional church and I have found it is wasting time to argue. However, I will from time to time share my thoughts on the truth they ignore, and I will pray that those who read my thoughts will "ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will"...

“…ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may have a walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him.” (Colossians 1:10)

You cannot please God by believing He will allow eternal torment. Trying to build on Jesus, our "foundation", with such teaching composed of "wood, hay and straw" will fuel the fire that will consume those false teachings when we all stand before Jesus to give an account of what we chose to believe about God.

"Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God...For no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on the foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the day will bring it to light.  It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved - even though only as one escaping through the flames." (Romans 14:12; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15)

My advice is to stop fueling the fire!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!

“But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for ALL OF THE PEOPLE; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11)

The birth of Jesus is good news of great joy for “all the people”. Both Jew and Gentile are included in this salvation. And the savior would later tell how he would save us...

"And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." (John 12:32)

We should not celebrate the birth of our Savior without celebrating his love for “all the people”, which amazingly includes the "ungodly" for Paul tell us in his letter to Rome...

“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly...God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us...having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.” (Romans 5:6-9)

The wrath of God upon sinners is finished in death for we are told in Scripture...

“For all have sinned” and “...the wages of sin is death” and "it is appointed until men once to die” (Romans 3:23a; 6:23a; Hebrews 9:27)

But this little baby, born in Bethlehem of Judea over 2000 years ago, grew up and saved the world in His death, burial and resurrection. That is the true joy of Christmas, the gospel for "all the people", including his enemies.

“While we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life...For it is by Grace you have been saved and not of yourselves, it is the GIFT of God...the FREE gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Ephesians 2:8; Romans 5:10; 6:23b)

ALL YOU PEOPLE - HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS! 

And Happy New Year! In it may you come to "a knowledge of the Truth"!

"This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying) as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.Therefore I want the men in every place to pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and dissension." (1 Timothy 4:3-8)

Judgment of the Wicked

The word JUDGMENT is a scary word in the world of religious thought. So I decided to do some studying and thinking about what the Bible says about it. Here is what I found…

The Greek word is “krisis” from which we get our English word crisis. And crisis simply means a critical time where something very important happens or is happening. In other words it is a turning point in time. It seems to me that the equivalent Hebrew word is “mishpat” and is used in the following OT verses…

“…to keep the way of Yahweh to do what is right and duly just (mishpat)." (Genesis 18:19)

“...the Judge of the entire earth, would He not execute right judgment (mishpat)?” (Genesis 18:25)

Scripture views judgment as a turning point where the judge is suppose to do what is right. Judgment made by a human is not always right. But God has given the final Judgment to His Son, Christ Jesus who will do what is right.

“For neither is the Father judging anyone, but has given all judging to the Son.” (John 5:22)

“He assigns a day in which He is about to be judging the inhabited earth in righteousness by the Man Whom He specifies, tendering faith to all, raising Him from among the dead." (Acts 17:31)

He will judge and do what is right, exposing the motives of the heart and then, almost unbelievably, each will receive praise from God.

“Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.” (1 Corinthians 4:5)

How can that be? How can both good and bad people receive praise from God? I think the answer lies in the following verses…meditate on them for a while….

“…it is I who have created the destroyer to destroy.” (Isaiah 54:16)

“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.” (Isaiah 45:7)

“The LORD has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil.” (Proverbs 16:4)

The LORD takes responsibility for creating evil, the destroyer, and the wicked. Don't you think he will do the right thing by them in the end - and save them. Are they not lost and are they not included in the prayer of Jesus while hanging on the cross…

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost…Father forgive them, they know not what they do” (Luke 19:10; 23:34)

Yes God will eventually save all, not because I say so, but because the Scripture could not be more clear...

"Faithful is the saying and worthy of all welcome (for for this are we toiling and being reproached), that we rely on the living God, Who is the Savior of all mankind, especially of believers.These things be charging and teaching." (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

I think it is time for Christians to stop thinking too highly of themselves.

“Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don't think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” (Romans 12:3)

When the final judgment is made it will be based on love, for God is love.

“God is love" … "Love is patient, love is kind...and it keeps no record of wrongs...Love never fails….” (1 John 4:8, 18; 1 Corinthians 13:5-13)

The Remnant - First But Not Last

"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the FIRST to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory." (Ephesians 1:11-12 NIV)

The use of the word "first" implies that there is more to follow. In every harvest there is a small portion of the crop that matures early. In the Law of Moses those first fruits belonged to God and were Holy. In every generation, and in every place, God has had a chosen remnant, those "first" few who trusted Him.

There is a remnant today who are among the "first" to put their hope in Christ. Yet we are "first" only because we were "predestined" to come to a knowledge of our salvation in this Age.  

Faith is a "gift" from God and has nothing to do with works of righteousness. 
To the remnant of Israel God said...

"This is what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone...I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you..." (Ezekiel 36:22-27 NIV)

And to the Body of Christ God has said...

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works..." (Ephesians 2:8 NIV) 

The remnant among Israel and the Gentile remnant known as the Body of Christ are the "first" to trust, but rest assured, God intends to bring the remainder of His harvest into the barn in due time, for that is what He "wants."

"Then Peter began to speak: I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism"..."As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God"..."This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who WANTS ALL people to be SAVED and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for ALL people"..."For as in Adam ALL die, so in Christ ALL will be made alive. But each in turn...” (Acts 10:34; 1 Timothy 2:4; Romans 14:11; 1 Corinthians 15:22 NIV)

The Remnant will be presented to God first, then all of the Harvest.  The Bible is an amazing book, and claims to be the very Word of God.  I'm trusting that it is so "all" must be "saved" because that is what God "wants".  

If you want some more details on how it all ends follow this link...

https://jrwlakey.blogspot.com/2018/10/how-does-this-end.html

Salvation - Plans A and B

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth…male and female create he them…. then to Adam He said, because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, you shall not eat from it; cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life, both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; and you will eat the plants of the field; by the sweat of your face you will eat bread, till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." (Genesis 1-3:19)

Sin brings death - so is there any plan to remedy this situation?

Yes:  Salvation  - Plans A and B

SALVATION - PLAN A: 

 “…love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be children of your Father in heaven…Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."(Matthew 5:43-45)

I cannot think of even one Christian who loves his enemies, blesses those who cuss them, does good to those who hate them and is perfect - can you?

So why did God tell Adam, Eve, Israel and all other folks to do the above, knowing they hadn’t, wouldn’t, and couldn’t?

To point us to Plan B.

SALVATION OF ALL - PLAN B: 

  “…Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures…he was buried…he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” - “The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 6:23)

I tell people in this blog about Plan B. It can be summarized like this.

GOD LOVES SINNERS

GOD SENT JESUS TO SAVE SINNERS

HE SUCCEEDED

SALVATION IS A FREE GIFT TO ALL

BELIEVING THIS PLEASES GOD

BELIEVING THIS GIVES SINNERS JOY AND PEACE 

JESUS IS COMING FOR US ALL

“He who testifies to these things says, Yes, I am coming swiftly. Amen! Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be WITH ALL. Amen.” (Revelation 22:20-21)

The Message of a Missionary

Celebrated feminist Gloria Steinem is quoted as saying...

"The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off." (Pardon her French)

That is the reaction I generally get from Christians to the truth that Jesus is the Savior of ALL mankind, that the hell of religion is a myth, and that the whole creation will be reconciled to God...but it is the teaching of the Bible...

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him...This is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners...we have placed our hope in the living God who is the savior of all people...God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against us, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation...in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace."  (John 3:17; 1 Timothy 1:15; 4:10; 2 Corinthians 5:19; Ephesians 1:7)

Our Missionaries are to declare the truth about the grace of God, that Christ Jesus has Saved mankind and his blood has redeemed mankind, and his cross has reconciled all creation to God - "it is finished"!

Here, in a nutshell, is the gospel of Grace...

"...because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved." (Ephesians 2:4-5)

"God commends His love for us in that while we were sinners Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

“When we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His son.” (Romans 5:10)

“For the wages of sin is death,but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)

“For even as in Adam ALL are dying, thus also, in Christ shall ALL be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:22)

“God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself not counting their sins against them.” (2 Corinthians 5:19)

“And having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile ALL unto Himself.” (Colossians 1:20)

“God our Savior…will have ALL men to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim. 2:4)

"...there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who have himself as a ransom for all." (1 Tim. 2:5-6)

“Trust in the living God, who is the Savior of ALL men, especially believers. Prescribe and teach these things...it is finished" (1 Tim. 4:10-11; John 19:30)

Missionaries are to be sharing the above message of grace. In fact, even Missionaries are not "believers" unless they "prescribe and teach these things".  That may piss you off at first, but it it is the correct Message of grace that sets people free. And this message from God has a success rate of 100%. 

To The Jew First

"This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses…the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses…Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead…And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great GRACE was upon them all...I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile... (Acts 2:32; 3:15; 4:10, 33; Romans 1:16)

The message of the Jewish disciples to the Jewish people was the RESURRECTION of "Jesus Christ of Nazareth". The resurrection of Jesus proved he was their Messiah and Savior. And when they shared that they had witnessed his resurrection - "great GRACE was upon them all".

At first they went ONLY to their fellow Israelites. Then Cornelius, a devout and God-fearing Gentile, had a vision and sent for Peter. Peter told him about the RESURRECTION of Jesus and Cornelius and his household believed. For the first time, the Jewish followers realized that both ethnic Jews and "DEVOUT AND GOD-FEARING" Gentiles would be included in the Kingdom of God.

"At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly...The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles." (Acts 10:1-2,45)

Years later the Jew Saul (Paul) encountered the RESURRECTED Jesus on the road to Damascus and became a witness of his resurrection. At first, Paul spoke ONLY at synagogues where Jews and God-fearing gentiles were allowed. But on his first missionary journey he went to Cyprus where Sergius Paulus, the gentile governor under the Roman ruler Claudius, asked Paul to tell him about the Word of God. And for the first time, a Gentile who was NOT "devout and God-fearing" believed. Paul realized that salvation was the destiny for ALL mankind, not just Jews and Gentile God-fearers, and he taught this truth for the rest of his life under great persecution.

"It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all mankind, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things." (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

People who believe and teach this are still persecuted. The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus is still the primary message, and the result of his resurrection is the "gift" of Salvation to "ALL mankind" by the "GRACE" of our loving and merciful God.

"For the GRACE of God has appeared bringing salvation to all mankind…so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His GRACE in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by GRACE you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the GIFT of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.…" (Titus 2:11; Ephesians 2:7-10)

Capital Punishment

God is a strong advocate of capital punishment.

"The wages of sin is death...

But let's be clear. Death by capital punishment comes to a swift end. God is not an advocate of cruel and unusual punishment like the doctrine of eternal conscious torment. God loves His enemies and after the death penalty is administered, He intends to give them eternal life.

...but the free gift of God is eternal life..." (Romans 6:23)

This "free gift" was one of the mysteries revealed by God to the Apostle Paul.

"When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations..."(Ephesians 3:5)

Down through the years only a few people have tortured others. Much of the torturing was done by political or religious leaders in their wrath against "infidels." But that behavior is how wicked men treat their enemies, not God. When God's wrath is poured out on wicked men it is swift and always ends in the death of its object (i.e. capital punishment). But death is not the end for its objects. Paul tell us...

"I believe everything that is laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, and I have the same hope in God that they themselves cherish, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked." (Acts 24:14-15)

God and religion differ on what happens to the righteous and the wicked after they are resurrected? Religion teaches the righteous go to heaven and the wicked to hell. God's plan, however, is to reconcile and save all mankind by His grace, both Jew and Gentile.

"For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you, how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly... This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel...To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church..." (Ephesians 3:1-9)

The "church" long ago ceased teaching this "manifold wisdom". It has become another religion teaching that the righteous go to heaven and the wicked to hell. But if you want to read a summary of God's plan, the good news that the church was intended to proclaim, it is found in 1 Corinthians 15:20-28 where it is revealed that "all die", and "all will be made alive" so that God ends up "all in all".

"For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive...so that God may be all in all."

Capital punishment is good - it removes the wicked from society. Religion adds eternal torment to their sentence which is bad, but the mystery of God's grace is that He will raise both the "righteous and the wicked" up as a rehabilitated new creation, and give us all the "free gift" of eternal life.

"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 21:5)

Ignorant People - Not Who You Think

"I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery..that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved...God has shut up ALL in disobedience so that He may show mercy to ALL." (Romans 11:25-32)

The mystery was that ALL Israel would be saved, but not until the FULLNESS of the Gentiles has come into a knowledge of their Salvation. It was God who made ALL mankind disobedient so that He can show his MERCY to all.

"Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!...For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory...Therefore... do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the RENEWING OF YOUR MIND, so that you may PROVE WHAT THE WILL OF GOD IS, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 11:33-12:2)

It is God's will to "show mercy to all" .  How?  By saving "all mankind".

"...trust in the living God who is the Savior of all mankind, especially believers" (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

That is totally different from present church doctrine which would only bestow salvation on those who make a free will decision to be saved. Those who believe in limited salvation are not the "believers" Paul is referring to above.  I only know a small number of these "believers".

Paul says we need to have a "RENEWING" of our minds, and see things from God's perspective. By doing so we will see that it is the "will" of God to reconcile and save "ALL mankind" by "GRACE" through Christ Jesus his Son.

"...in accordance with the riches of God’s GRACE he made known to us the mystery of his will... to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ…according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will." (Ephesians 1:7-11)

His will is to save sinners and unify all mankind in Christ.  That is His "plan" and "purpose" - who is going to stop it?  So pray and be thankful for "all mankind"...

"I exhort therefore, that...prayers...and giving of thanks, be made for ALL mankind...For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; who will have ALL men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself A RANSOM FOR ALL, to be testified in due time. Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not; a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity" (1 Timothy 2:1-7)

Few Christians believe the above "truth", but it is still the truth. One only has to seek the "renewing of your mind" and then conform it to the mind of Christ rather than the doctrines of religion.  Place your faith in God and reject the traditions of any Church that denies the "truth" because in the final analysis what you believe will be "manifested" at the "dais of Christ".  Failure to believe that God is showing His "mercy to all" by being the "the Savior of all mankind" and that Christ Jesus "gave himself a ransom for all" will be three of those "bad" things put into "practice through the body" by remaining "ignorant of this mystery".

"...God has shut up ALL in disobedience so that He may show mercy to ALL ...we must be manifested in front of the dais of Christ, that each should be requited for that which he puts into practice through the body...whether good or bad" (Romans 11:32; 2 Corinthians 5:10 CLNT)

Return To Paul

This is what E. W. Bullinger said about the teaching of the Apostle Paul…

“In the apostle’s own lifetime the most spiritual of all the assemblies “turned away from” him (II Timothy 1:15). Some used to tell us to go back to the first three centuries to find pure Christianity ... But our answer is that we cannot go back to the first century; for the very assembly (which received his longest ministry, “so that all they that dwell in Asia heard the words of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 19:10), were the first to turn away from him and his teaching.”

So what teaching did the churches (assemblies) turn away from? And has the modern day church returned to that teaching? No they have not.

The "teaching" of Paul can be seen in the following verses from his first letter to the Corinthians…

“But now is Christ risen from the dead, and became the first-fruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive…the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death…that God may be all in all.” (1 Corinthians 15:20-28)

The Church is to have a "ministry" that shares this good news.  Paul further explains this good news in his second letter to the Corinthians…

“And all things are of God, who has reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and has committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he has made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:18-21)

The "ministry of reconciliation" that God “has committed unto us” is the good news of the salvation and reconciliation of all mankind by and through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ Jesus.

It is that teaching that the “assemblies” turned from more than 1950 years ago. And no, they have never returned. They remain turned from this message of pure grace to a mixture of grace and the works of free will. They have been turned from the truth of a completed salvation of mankind by Christ Jesus, to a great but hopeless commission placed on the churches to save the world. And in the process formulating man-made doctrines such as:

Free will
Substitution Theology
Eternal conscious torment
Immortality of the soul
The Trinity

I was over 50 years old before I begin to see the teaching of Paul which Christianity turned from. I fought it for the same reason most of you do. How could so many wise men be so wrong?

The battle ended for me when I believed the truth and rejected the doctrines of men, and the truth set me free.  The gospel of grace resulting in the salvation and reconciliation of all is now my teaching as it was for Paul. It gives me peace and a blessed hope for the world God loves. 

But, like Paul, to embrace it came with a price - rejection from those "assemblies". Nevertheless, God is the Savior of the whole world. He “will have all men to be saved” from death by the resurrection whether the "assemblies" teach it or not.  Even they will eventually "come to a knowledge of the truth". As Paul says…

“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; Who will have ALL MEN to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself a ransom FOR ALL, to be testified in due time...Trustworthy is the saying and worthy of all welcome, and it is for this we labor and suffer reproach, because we have placed our trust in the living God, who is the savior of all mankind...These things command and teach.” (1 Timothy 2:3-6; 4:9-11)

Who Will Jesus Deny?

"Whoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 10:32-33)

The context is NOT salvation. Jesus was speaking to the house of Israel concerning the promise of God to Israel to reestablish the Kingdom of Israel ON THE EARTH at some time in the future. The JEWS who do not confess that Jesus is their Messiah will be denied entrance into that Kingdom when it is restored by Jesus at his 2nd coming. The timing of this restoration of the Kingdom was the last thing the JEWISH apostles asked Jesus about before he ascended into heaven after his resurrection.

"So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, Lord, is it at this time you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:1-10)

After the ascension of Jesus, Peter told the JEWS that if THEY would repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus he would immediately return and restore the Kingdom as promised by their "holy prophets from ancient time".

"...repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you (Israel), whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time...It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant of God made with your fathers" (Acts 3:20-25)

We Gentiles have no part in this covenant, and Israel did not repent and eventually blindness came upon Israel and remains today - nearly 2000 years later. Paul tells us that this blindness was a "mystery", but Jesus would someday return and "all Israel shall be saved".

"For I would not, brethren that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob" (Romans 11:25-26)

The Bible is full of the details of what happens just before the return of Jesus to restore the Kingdom to Israel. That is what the book of Revelation is all about. But even that age and Kingdom ends after 1000 years.

"Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection...but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." (Revelation 20:6)

Israel is the only nation whom God assigned "priests", despite the so called "priesthood of the believer" doctrine taught in some denominational churches.

As far as the "salvation" of ALL mankind from death (both Jew and Gentile), the knowledge of it was brought to ALL mankind when Jesus came the first time. 

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men..." (Titus 2:11)

This "salvation" will be manifested only when those who are still dead after the "first resurrection" are raised to immortal life, and so all death is "destroyed". 

"And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples, even the veil which is stretched over all nations. He will swallow up death for all time, and the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, and He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; for the LORD has spoken...This is the LORD for whom we have waited; Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation...The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” (Isaiah 25:7-9; 1 Corinthians 15:26)

What is left after death is "destroyed"? Life. Abundant, immortal LIFE - for ALL! That is the good news we are supposed to be sharing.

So, to whom will Jesus deny this salvation? Not one soul.

"It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all mankind, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things." (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

Is that what is taught and believed where you assemble together? 

A place where they "prescribe and teach these things" is hard to find...I'm still looking. I agree with Jesus when he said...

"...when the Son of Man returns, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8)

Very little it seems to me.

Our Destiny - Sinning And Getting Saved

Following is a summary of what I was taught growing up in church…

When a child dies before reaching the age of accountability, that child goes to heaven.  However, if the child reaches the age of accountability he is lost and needs to be saved and it is the Church members Great Commission to save the lost.  The lost will be cast into hell upon death to be eternally punished and separated from God and that lost person's blood may be on the hands of a disobedient Church member who failed to tell them. To be saved the lost person must confess and repent of sin, and accept Jesus as his Savior by his own free will before he dies.  At that point the person becomes a new creature in Christ and will go immediately to heaven at death.  The church further emphasized that if a person is actually saved, he will want to join the Church, be baptized, observe the Lord's Supper, and fellowship primarily with others in the church, and of course, support the ministries of the church with a regular tithe of their income. 

I taught most of this for many years myself until I discovered from my personal study of the Bible over the past 20 years that none of the above is true. Obviously I am not invited to teach in churches anymore. 😃

For those who care, and it is perfectly fine if you don't, following is a brief SUMMARY of my thoughts about what the Bible actually teaches with regard to the history and future of mankind, backed up by some of the many Scriptures on point…

1. SIN of mankind: Eve sinned and Adam joined in that sin and God determined that they and all their progeny would die for their sin. So the dying process passed through to all mankind. Hard work to sustain ourselves was also the result of that original sin.  All are appointed to suffer and eventually die and return to the dust from which our bodies are made…

"...you shall surely die...because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, you shall not eat from it, cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you…By the sweat of your face you will eat bread, till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return….Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind...” (Genesis 2:17; Genesis 3:17-19; Romans 5:12)

2. SALVATION of all mankind: It is God’s WILL and responsibility to save mankind from death, and reconcile all Creation to Himself. No one can prevent God’s WILL from being accomplished. God loves mankind and provided a Savior, His Son Jesus. God, through His Son, has shown us that He will give us eternal life after death. This abundant life will come only after the resurrection.  After the resurrection of all mankind, death, the grave, and sin will be abolished. God will then be All in all mankind and the whole Creation at peace with God.

“As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive...so that God may be All in all...God wills all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth...By grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God...the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord...through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (1 Corinthians 15:22, 28; 1 Timothy 2:4; Ephesians 2:8; Romans 6:23; Colossians 1:20)

God says plainly that He will save mankind and reconcile all Creation to Himself through His Son Jesus, and he will do so because of His Grace alone. Faith gives us the knowledge and hope of this...

"We have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand…God demonstrated his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us…we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him...While we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life...Just as sin entered the world through one man (Adam), and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people…just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act (of Jesus) resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous…where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (1 Corinthians 15:22-28; Romans 5:1-20)

Since I am not holding my breath until asked to teach this truth in churches, I share my thoughts on Facebook.  A few years ago my daughter created a blog for me which can be accessed at jrwlakey.blogspot.com.  It is entitled Random Thoughts On The Really Good News and I post a link to that blog on my Facebook page from time to time. Thanks to those of you who are sleepy enough to read them. Nevertheless, I am not a fan of Facebook in general, or its founder, and I will most likely stop using it in the near future.  But you brave souls can still google my blogspot when you need something to put you to sleep. 😊💤

PS:  The Easter Bunny, Bambi and all pets are included in God's plan!

Paul,the Evangelist

The apostle Paul was an "evangelist" in the true meaning of the word - a bearer of the good news from God. I do not find any evidence that those who consider themselves evangelists today even know what the "evangel" (good news) is so here it is from Paul, the evangelist.

"God commends His love for us in that while we were sinners Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

“When we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His son.” (Romans 5:10)

“For the wages of sin is death,but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)

“For even as in Adam ALL are dying, thus also, in Christ shall ALL be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:22)

“God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself not counting their sins against them.” (2 Corinthians 5:19)

“And having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile ALL unto Himself.” (Colossians 1:20)

“God our Savior…will have ALL men to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim. 2:4)

"...there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who have himself as a ransom for all." (1 Tim. 2:5-6)

“Trust in the living God, who is the Savior of ALL men.” (1 Tim. 4:10)

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

WHAT SHOULD WE DO WITH THE EVANGEL (GOOD NEWS)

"Prescribe and teach these things." (1 Tim. 4:11)

Did He Die In Vain?

"I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain" (Galatians 2:21).

Those who grew up in church should ponder the above. Every church I know of, including the one I grew up in, teaches that salvation is being offered men, but that the offer must be accepted and received by faith in this life. The minimum requirement in my church is to “believe and accept” the gospel. The most legalistic of the churches teach one must repent, be baptized in water and join the church. Some even go so far as teaching that you can lose this salvation if you fall into sin later.

But however minimal the requirement...such teaching implies that Christ died in vain. Salvation is a free gift by the Grace of God, not by works.

“…for the free gift of God is eternal life…For by grace are you saved…for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men….” (Romans 6:23b; Ephesians 2:8; Titus 2:11-13)

God has guaranteed the salvation and reconciliation of "ALL people". That is trustworthy and should be accepted and taught...

“This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

I have had only 2 persons, friends or foes, come to me IN PERSON to object to my telling them that the Bible teaches salvation of all people. One said that he could not agree with me because it went against everything he had been taught in church, but that he would study the Bible until he could tell me why. About one year later he simply said. “I have finished my study...and you are right.” The other just says it makes common sense that an omnipotent God whose nature is Love would find a way to save everyone he created, and that it had always bothered him that God would torture some people in hell forever.

"...there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all..." (1 Timothy 2:5-6)

Faith in the Grace of God

The Bible says this about Jesus Christ…

“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.” (Colossians 1:19-23)

“Before the creation of the world” God chose to RECONCILE sinners to God “through the blood of his cross”, “if” we “continue in” our faith. NOTE: He is talking about the gospel (good news) of “reconciliation” (being at peace with God).

It is said in the Bible that mankind was predestined before creation to be adopted as sons of God..

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious GRACE, which He has freely given us in the one He loves.” (Ephesians 1:3-6)

Note that mankind was “predestined” to become Sons of God “in accordance with His pleasure and will – to the praise of his glorious grace”. That too is the gospel (good news) which gives joy to those in this life if we have “faith”. 

But we do not choose God, or Christ, God chooses us. And God has “predestined” mankind to be “holy and blameless in his sight”. Obviously that has not happened yet, but awaits our resurrection from death, not some decision we make. The final salvation, reconciliation, and glorification of all mankind is a promise we have now to be finished in the future when all will be “blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ”. 

What we have available to us now is our “faith” that God will do what He says.

There is precious little of this faith in our world it seems to me, even among Christianity. Nevertheless, the eventual salvation, reconciliation and glorification of all is guaranteed by God’s “glorious GRACE”.

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God…For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men...For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all...” (Ephesians 2:8; Titus 2:11; 1 Timothy 2:5-6)

The Will Of God

“And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.” (Acts 3:16)

Here we see clearly that it is the faith OF JESUS, not our own faith, which makes us strong, or makes those we see strong. Faith that comes from our own heart or desires cannot and will not strengthen us. Most likely it will depress us for often our will does not coincide with His, therefore it does not come to pass...

“Jesus explained, my food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work…The One who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases Him." (John 4:34; 8:29)

So what is the will of God that Jesus finished? 

The salvation of the world!

Don't fall into the trap of thinking our free will is stronger than God's will. It is not, nor can so called free will prevent Jesus from finishing that which he came to do - save the world. 

Jesus always does the will of our Father God. We do not, for we do not know the details of his will for day to day life. However, we know from the bible that "all things are working together for good" (Romans 8:28), and that "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners", and that God "is the Savior of all mankind"  (1 Timothy 1:15; 4:9-10) – that is the "good" that all things are working toward.

God sent his one and only Son to save it, and as Jesus said after being lifted up on the cross - “it is finished” – having faith that after his death for our sins and burial in the earth, God would lift him “up from the earth” and "draw all men" to himself, not some, but the whole world drawn to him and saved.  It will be completed when he returns to lift us all up out of death into immortal abundant life, both those who keep his word in this age, and those who do not…

“…I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me. This is the will of Him who sent me, that of all that He has given me I lose nothing, but raise them up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father…I myself will raise them up on the last day. And when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself…as for anyone who hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world... So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him…Jesus said, It is finished. With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit...” (John 6:37-40, 12:32, 47; 19:16-17)

So just believe God and trust Jesus to always do the will of our Father, to save the world out of death, which is pleasing to God. Be comforted that a loved one whom you prayed for to get saved but died never having faith...well Jesus's faith trumps his...and he will rise to meet Jesus when he comes, and then, hand in hand with you, will bow with you and will confess Jesus as Lord, all to the glory of God's grace and mercy.

"And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross. Therefore 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." (Philippians 2:8-11)

This is Good and Acceptable In The Sight of God

“God is love…Love never fails” (1 John 4:8; 1 Corinthians 13:8)

That God is love is a characterization of his essence. When we talk about God being Just, or God being Omnipotent, or God being Omniscient we are talking about his attributes. But His essence is love and it is absolute.  And it dictates that He must save the sinner and He must justify the unjust…because He has the power and wisdom to do so.

His love, operating through His attributes of justice, power and wisdom, is directing the outcome of His creation to a place where every knee will bow VOLUNTARILY to God, because they have experienced his Love in the undeniable truth that they are alive, though they had been literally dead. They cannot deny the obvious truth that He has at that time resurrected both the just and the unjust...by the grace of God alone.

“…there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust...For by Grace are you saved...Look unto me and be saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed. In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.” (Acts 24:15; Ephesians 2:8; Isaiah 45:22-25)

This is our hope, the good news that otherwise sinful people, who all die, will be saved by the only One who wants to do so, and has the power to do so.

“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time…As in Adam ALL die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” (1 Timothy 2:3-6; 1 Corinthians 15:22)

Then, and only then will God be loved by all His creation, even as He loves each of us now.

Kept Blameless, How?

“May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)

Kept blameless, how is this possible?

Some say it is because of a choice we make. But I think it is because of a choice God made to send his Son into the world to save it, not just to offer salvation, nor just try to save…but to actually SAVE all “ungodly” “sinners”.

“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world…you see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly…God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us…Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially those who believe…” (John 1:29; 1 John 4:14; Romans 5:6, 8; 1 Timothy 1:15-16; 4:9)

Faith is believing the gospel and it is the means by which mankind can enjoy the good news. But whether sinners have faith in this life or not, God will save all according to the Bible it seems clear to me. 

Maybe the confusion is that some people do not know what they are to be saved from. That too is pretty simple to me. We will be saved out of death, the result of sin, when Jesus returns to resurrect the dead.

“The wages of sin is death...The last enemy to be destroyed is death…Behold I show you a mystery…the trumpet shall sound and the dead will be raised…death has been swallowed up in victory.” (Romans 6:23; 1 Corinthians 15:26, 51-54)

Very few Christian leaders agree with me, but nevertheless it is my conviction that the Bible is clear in teaching the ultimate salvaton of all mankind.  

So what about being "kept blameless"? We are kept that way because after we are "transformed" we in fact will be blameless citizens of heaven, just like Jesus.

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to subject all things to himself, will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body." (Philippians 3:21)

Creation's Liberation

God’s plan for mankind has always been to save them all. The revelation of that plan, however, did not come to mankind until it was revealed to the Apostle Paul between 33 and 50 AD. Up until then God had only revealed his dealings with regard to his chosen people Israel as shown to Moses and the other Prophets to Israel. What He had planned for Gentiles was a “mystery”.

“Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation…which was not made known to people in other generations…This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 3:2-6)

Without the revelation of the salvation of Gentiles as well as Jews, the Gentiles had “no hope” and were “without God in the world” only in the sense that they were unaware of God’s plan for them.

“That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the Common-wealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12)

But God chose Paul to give the good news of His intent to save everyone by the resurrection of the dead to immortal life.

“…this grace was given me to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ, and to make plain to everyone this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known…As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” (Ephesians 3:8-10; 1 Corinthians 15:22)

The church which Paul was establishing with this good news gospel was to share the good news to everyone. It has failed because it was corrupted by religious men starting before Paul died.

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all… I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ…the grace of our Lord overflowed to me, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. This is a trustworthy saying, worthy of full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst.” (Galatians 1:6-11; 1 Timothy 1:14-16)

What we see today is a form of legalism, which only saves those who obey a gospel invented by religious men which has nothing to do with grace and ”which is really no gospel at all”. 

Mankind, through the promise of salvation, are set free from the fear of the harsh penalty of the law (death)- by faith in the glorious “hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.”  The whole creation is to be saved by he same God who "subjected it" to frustration.

“For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved.” (Romans 8:20-24)

Exam Time

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires.” (2 Timothy 4:3)

"The Bible is a book that has been read more and examined less than any book that ever existed." --Thomas Paine (Author, 1737-1809)

The issue, of course, is what is the "sound doctrine" that was abandoned by those "wanting to have their ears tickled".

By the time the Bible was available to the masses in written form the doctrines of men had been established by the religious leaders of the Catholic Church. Those of us who point out some flaws in those doctrines are many times labeled as those who "will not endure sound doctrine". But after examining the Bible as Thomas Paine suggests, I will no longer endure the false doctrines of those religious men who framed their doctrine "in accordance to their own desires".

The "sound doctrine" that Paul was teaching was that although the wages of sin is death, the free gift of God is eternal life for all sinners.  He taught over 1900 years ago.  It was "sound doctrine" at the time, and still is. Examine it for yourselves...

"For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life..." (Romans 6:23)

"This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying) as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth." (1 Timothy 2:3-7)

"It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things." (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

"As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:22)

The problem is that sinful men want only their special righteous group to be saved so they began to "accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires". It started with the Jews who saw themselves, and still do for the most part, as God's only chosen people. And Christianity today feels the same way, and even disagree among themselves which particular Christian group is the real chosen ones to be saved.

We have for our examination the written Word of God in the Bible. One need only to examine it, not just read it, in order to return to "sound doctrine".

"For the grace of God has appeared bringing salvation to all men..." (Titus 2:11)