Participants: Pr. Louis Torres
Series Code: OTR
Program Code: OTR000724
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01:00 Welcome back to Wichita, Kansas
01:02 and prophecies of hope as we've been digging up 01:05 the future each night as we've been studying 01:07 Bible prophecy evening by evening. 01:09 How many of you've been enjoying the meeting so far? 01:12 Amen. All right. 01:13 We're thrilled that you've been coming. 01:15 We're thrilled that you're watching all across the world. 01:17 And we're excited that Pastor Torres 01:19 has been with us as we've been studying together each night. 01:23 We're just gonna open with the word of prayer 01:25 if you'd bow your heads with me. 01:27 Dear Father in heaven, 01:28 we're so thankful tonight that once again 01:30 we can be here studying Your word. 01:32 We're thankful for the privilege 01:34 and the freedom that we have to open the Bible 01:36 with our those around the world 01:38 who're persecuted for doing that. 01:40 So we're thankful for these-- 01:42 this privilege that we have here tonight. 01:44 We ask Your presence to be with us 01:45 and Your spirit to guide us and lead us 01:48 and we come tonight in Jesus name, amen. 01:51 All right, lets just all stand together 01:54 as we sing our theme song, "Jesus is Coming Again." 02:07 Marvelous message we bring 02:10 Glorious carol we sing 02:14 Wonderful word of the King 02:17 Jesus is coming again 02:21 Coming again, coming again 02:28 Maybe morning, maybe noon 02:31 Maybe evening, but surely soon 02:35 Coming again, coming again 02:42 Oh what a wonderful day that will be 02:48 Jesus is coming again 02:56 What a wonderful thought that Jesus is coming again 03:00 but not just that He's coming again 03:01 but He's coming again soon, amen. 03:03 All right, tonight we have a special treat, 03:06 Don and Luminitsa Mackintosh 03:08 will be sharing our special music with us this evening. 03:23 All right, it's great to be able to sing a song with you 03:26 from Matthew Chapter 24. 03:28 And in Matthew 24 it talks about 03:31 deceptions coming in the last days 03:33 but we can know for sure that the Lord is with us. 03:44 Take heed that no one deceives you 03:49 For many will come in my name 03:54 Saying I am the Christ 03:56 I am the Christ 03:58 Take heed that no one deceives you 04:03 And you will hear of rumors of wars 04:08 See that you are not in trouble 04:13 For all these things must come to pass 04:18 But the end is not yet 04:22 Take heed that no one deceives you 04:27 For many will come in my name 04:32 Saying I am the Christ 04:35 I am the Christ 04:37 Take heed that no one deceives you 04:43 Do you know for sure 04:50 That our Lord is leading you 04:56 Do you know for sure 05:03 That you are in His hand 05:09 For His sake be not troubled 05:16 Take these things that signs 05:21 Look to hear most of the stories 05:29 Look to hear man there 05:34 Coming again, yes, coming again 05:39 My Jesus is coming again 05:44 Coming again, yes, coming again 05:48 My Jesus is coming again 05:54 Do you know for sure 06:01 That our Lord is leading you 06:07 You can know for sure 06:15 That you are in His hand 06:23 Amen. 06:33 Pastor and pastora-- wife. 06:36 It's so good to, be able to hear people sing together. 06:43 A newspaper article came out declaring 06:45 that hell had just been discovered. 06:51 It was up in the North Pole 06:52 and they found an open space up there 06:55 and they heard the sounds of shrieks 06:57 and screams and-- from down below 07:00 and so they decided to lower a microphone down to see, 07:07 how much was sound there. 07:09 And there was actually a newspaper article 07:12 that came like that, hell had been found. 07:14 But you know that there is a town called Hell 07:17 in the United States, are you acquainted with that? 07:19 Yes. Town called Hell, yes. 07:22 But hell is an interesting subject 07:24 that a lot of people are been discussing, correct? 07:28 And the US News says, 07:31 "Hell, A new vision of the Netherworld." 07:34 And if you could notice the devil is pointing to people 07:36 over there who are basking in the sun 07:39 and him over here offering some cocktails 07:42 as they bask in the sun in their bathing suits. 07:47 You will maybe surprised to discover 07:51 that a lot of people are beginning 07:53 to seriously consider all the spiritual ramifications 07:58 that for centuries only a few would be interested in. 08:03 But the Bible reveals that many things 08:07 that will take place in our day had been predicted 08:11 so that we would not be deceived. 08:13 What do you say? 08:14 And it's clear from the scriptures 08:16 that God does not allow anyone else 08:22 to have control of the destiny of man except for Himself. 08:27 You may discover that this passage 08:29 is a good comfort to us. 08:31 Notice the Bible says in Revelation 1:18, 08:34 "I am he that levith" 08:36 who is this speaking? It is Jesus speaking to John. 08:39 "I am he that liveth and was" what? 08:41 "And was dead and, behold, I am alive for" how long? 08:45 "Evermore, Amen, and have the keys of hell and of" 08:47 what? "And of death." 08:51 And then it says 08:53 "that when Jesus appeared to the people in His day, 08:58 they did not understand 08:59 that He was in charge of all that." 09:01 And so He resurrected and went and proved to them 09:05 that He in reality was in command of dead 09:09 and by the fact that He can resurrect, 09:11 He stated "I am the resurrection and the" 09:14 what? "And the life." 09:16 And so when He resurrected the disciples 09:19 did not think that He's resurrected 09:21 and when He appeared to them they thought that-- 09:24 they saw a spirit and Jesus then talked to them and said, 09:29 "As they thus spake, 09:31 Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, 09:33 and saith unto them, peace be unto you. 09:36 But they were terrified and affrighted 09:38 and supposed that they had seen a" 09:39 what? "A spirit." 09:41 What did they think they see? 09:42 They saw pardon me, a spirit. 09:45 But I want you to know this that 09:47 "Jesus said unto them, why are ye" 09:49 what? What's the question? 09:51 "Why are ye troubled? 09:52 And why do thoughts arise in your hearts? 09:55 Behold my hands and my feet that it is" 09:57 what? "I myself." 09:59 Now think of that. 10:01 He doesn't say it is I-- but it is a what? 10:03 I myself, that means underscoring 10:07 the reality as not only other 10:08 but it is Himself and then He says, 10:11 "handle me and see, for a" what? 10:13 "A spirit hath not flesh and bones, 10:15 as ye see me have." 10:17 So let me ask you a question then, 10:18 if Jesus really has the keys of death 10:21 and of hell then can you see the reality 10:26 that He demonstrated it by resurrecting, 10:30 coming to life not as a spirit 10:32 but as a human being. 10:33 What do you say? Did you get the question? 10:36 Did you get the end point of the question? 10:38 In another words, the fact that Jesus could resurrect 10:41 and defy death means 10:43 that in indeed He is the one that has the keys. 10:46 So if anyone has-- 10:48 has the answer to the question of the death as the Christ 10:51 and if anyone has the question of the-- 10:54 the key to what happens 10:55 to you after life it is the Lord. 11:02 There is no question my friends, 11:04 that, that the Bible reveals concerning death 11:08 that if a person does die that he goes to sleep 11:12 but it also reveals then that people 11:15 when they finally die that is when the destruction comes 11:18 that they will be completely destroyed 11:21 and not some individual that continues 11:24 on and on and on and on and on. 11:27 What I was saying by this is this. 11:28 How many of you have heard of hellfire? 11:32 And let me ask you another question, 11:34 how many of you have been to a funeral? 11:37 And how many of you have heard in the funeral, 11:39 the preacher say, "poor soul, he is in hell, 11:42 I can see him right now burning and burning." 11:46 How many of you heard that in a funeral, any of you? 11:49 Yes or no? 11:51 How many of you-- how many funerals have you been to? 11:54 Several. 11:55 And you mean in not one funeral you've heard 11:57 "poor soul, I can see him. 11:59 Yeah, he's really--really been torched about and fried." 12:07 No, in every funeral what do you-- what do you hear? 12:11 "Oh, I can see him walking 12:13 through the pearly gates, right now." 12:16 All right, or "rest in peace" or what? 12:22 "O rest in peace." 12:24 Have it ever occur to you 12:26 that hell must be a very empty place? 12:32 No one seems to go there. 12:36 And yet preachers try to scare people to death with hell. 12:46 The reality is that there are some texts in the scriptures 12:51 that seem to lean to the idea of hellfire 12:55 but please understand that God only promises 12:59 eternal life to those who are saved. 13:02 If you remember John 3:16, what did it say? 13:06 "For God so loved the world that He" what? 13:08 "He gave" what? 13:10 "His only begotten son that, who is so ever believed in, 13:13 him should not" what? 13:15 "Perish" Does it says should not continue perishing 13:19 or does it say should not perish but have what? 13:22 Everlasting life. Everlasting life. 13:24 Now in-- in the book of Romans Paul says something like this, 13:28 "for the wages of sin, is" what? 13:29 "Death." 13:30 "But the gift of God is" what? 13:31 "Eternal life." "Eternal life." 13:32 Now let me ask you a question. 13:34 If you could live on forever and ever and ever in hell 13:37 then what do you have? 13:39 You have eternal life. 13:42 But who is eternal life given to? 13:45 The wicked or the righteous? 13:46 Righteous. The righteous. 13:48 So how is it then that you have people living forever in hell 13:52 when they don't have eternal life? 13:57 Who gives eternal life? God does. 14:00 Do we ourselves have the ability 14:02 to live on forever and ever? No. 14:04 Does a devil have the ability to keep you 14:06 living on forever and ever? 14:07 According to the Bible who is a source of life? God. 14:11 According to the scriptures, who gives life? God. 14:13 And according to the scriptures it says, 14:15 "He that have Son have, life, 14:18 he that have not the Son of God have not, life." 14:21 Well, if you do not have life 14:22 then how can you go on burning forever and ever? 14:31 Does it make sense? No. 14:34 But let me, let me study a little deeper with you 14:37 to help you to understand this whole issue 14:38 because I think it's confusing a lot of people 14:41 and a lot of people think that, 14:43 you know, people actually go to hell and burn forever. 14:45 But I want you to notice what the scripture says. 14:47 First of all Ecclesiastes that tells us 14:49 that the dead know how much? 14:51 "Not anything" that's verse 5 and of course verse 6 says. 14:56 "Their hatred, their love, their envy is now perished 14:59 neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing 15:02 that is done under the earth." 15:03 So when a person dies, 15:04 he doesn't go and burn someplace in-- 15:07 under contrary he just simply rest, what do you say? 15:11 That's what the scripture says. 15:12 Now the Bible does say however 15:15 "that the soul that sineth it shall" what? 15:16 "Die." "It shall die." 15:18 Now the word "soul" simply means that-- 15:22 that which is composed of two things. 15:24 You remember God created man 15:26 and said "that He formed the body from the dust 15:29 and then breathe into his nostrils" what? 15:31 "The breathe of life and man became a" what? 15:34 "A living soul." 15:35 So a living soul is that component of the two things 15:37 and the scripture says, "If you sin you will die." 15:40 Is that what God said to Eve? Yes. 15:43 And how many of you have experienced people dying? 15:46 Then who is correct the devil or Christ? 15:49 Christ said, "You shall die." 15:50 The devil said, "You won't die." 15:52 Who was right? Christ. 15:54 And who is wrong? The devil. 15:56 But he doesn't give up easy so he's trying to keep 15:58 that lie a lie for all the times. 16:00 So he's created all sorts of ideas 16:02 and it's amazing how many different ideas 16:03 people have about death. 16:04 You have reincarnation, you have limbo, 16:06 you have purgatory, you have hell, 16:09 all sorts of different ideas about hell. 16:12 Is that true or life after death, pardon me. 16:15 But the Scripture is very plain that eternal life 16:18 is given to those who chose life 16:22 not to those who chose not life. 16:25 Now the idea of-- of eternal fire of course 16:29 that does not come from the Bible, 16:32 it seems to allude to that 16:34 but if you'd notice in Matthew 10:28, 16:37 Jesus says, "Fear not which can kill the" what? 16:40 "The body, but are not able to kill the soul, 16:43 but rather fear him which is able to destroy both" what? 16:47 "Soul and body in hell." 16:48 In another words, the complete being, the what? 16:51 The complete being, 16:53 the body and the entire thought process and everything. 16:55 In other words, the scripture makes it plain then 16:58 that either you live forever or you die for how long? 17:01 Forever, okay. 17:03 Now having said that 17:05 "The idea of immortality of people having immortal life 17:09 comes from of course from paganism." 17:11 Comes from where? 17:12 Paganism. From paganism. 17:14 Of course it's sad to say 17:15 that lot of people believe that mummify 17:17 and if they could wake up 17:19 and find themselves in the museum 17:20 they would discover it wasn't heaven. 17:24 Is that true? 17:31 I went to the Oslo museum. 17:33 I mean the museum in the Oslo, Norway 17:36 and they have Viking boat that I talk to you about. 17:39 And the sad thing it's just I was sad 17:41 that they believed that they took everything with them. 17:44 So they buried the boat with their servants 17:46 and their livestock and everything else 17:48 thinking they will carry them to the other life 17:51 and unfortunately as I said, if they could wake up 17:54 they find themselves in the museum 17:55 with all sorts of people gawking at them. 17:59 The reality is, friends, 18:01 that what the Bible is true, people die. 18:04 They what? They die, they rest. 18:08 Now one of the problems that people use 18:13 in the Bible is the story of Lazarus and rich man. 18:17 How man of you have heard that? 18:19 And I've heard people say, 18:20 "Look pastor don't tell me that there is no hell down there. 18:25 The Bible speaks about Jesus Himself said 18:27 'that there is rich man that went down there was burning.'" 18:32 But let me-- let me ask you this. 18:33 I've always asked people that do you believe that's literal? 18:36 "Oh, yes it's literal." 18:37 Okay, then let's read it together 18:39 and find out how literal it is. 18:41 Well, as we read Luke 17--15 pardon me, 18:48 I want you to notice how literal it is. 18:50 First of all it says then that this particular gentleman 18:56 who supposedly goes down into-- it should be chapter 16 not 15. 19:01 If you-- chapter 16, it's a TYPO error there 19:05 but none the less, you know, where I am. 19:07 Chapter 16 and verse 19, it says, 19:10 there's a certain man who was wealthy 19:12 and he had plenty to eat and there was a beggar 19:16 that sat by his gate do you remember that? 19:17 And the Scripture then said that the beggar died 19:21 and was carried onto the bosom of Abraham, 19:25 do you see that? 19:26 And then it says, that the rich man died 19:28 and went down to this place of torment. 19:30 Then the Bible says, that the rich man looks up 19:35 and begins to talk to father Abraham. 19:37 You see where I am right now. 19:40 "And it came to pass that the beggar died 19:41 and was carried to Abraham's bosom." 19:44 A verse 22, "And the rich man also died 19:46 and he was buried 19:47 and in hell he lift up his eyes being in torment 19:51 and see if Abraham far off 19:53 and begins this discourse with Abraham." 19:55 And sees Lazarus, where? "In his bosom" okay. 19:59 So he begins to say, "Father, Abraham" 20:01 verse 24, "Have mercy on me 20:03 and send Lazarus that he may dip 20:05 the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue 20:08 for I'm tormented in this flame." 20:10 Okay, so what is Jesus doing here? 20:13 Well, Jesus is giving the people a parable 20:15 but it's a parable based upon the concept 20:19 that the Jews had accepted from the Greeks. 20:22 The Greeks believed that 20:23 this body was a cage of the spirit 20:26 and that when the body died 20:28 then your spirit went to some cleansing place 20:30 or purging place of fire 20:32 and after process of getting purge 20:34 then you finally went to that the bliss. 20:36 Okay, so the Jews had accepted that teaching 20:41 rather than accepting what the Bible had taught. 20:46 And so Jesus is using their ideas 20:49 but He kind of throws a curveball like then. 20:51 And you'd say "well, what do you mean a curve?" 20:53 Well, you see according to the Jewish mind 20:55 it was a rich man that went to heaven. 20:59 If you were rich and you were blessed by God 21:01 and you were close to God 21:02 and that's why you're so well off and all that. 21:04 And you went, where? 21:07 To heaven but if you were poor and miserable 21:09 like just God been describes you went, where? 21:12 Right down to hell because there you'll see your so-- 21:15 it's so miserable it's because you're terrible sinner. 21:18 And even though nobody knew it you find a corpse with you 21:20 because you went down to hell. 21:22 That was the idea. 21:24 So what does Jesus do? 21:25 He sends the poor guy up to heaven 21:30 and He sends the rich guy down to hell. 21:33 But you can imagine the Jews listening to Christ 21:35 and thinking what in the world is going on. 21:37 You got this thing twisted. 21:38 Well, Jesus has got their attention now right. 21:42 And Jesus says, 21:43 "The rich man goes to Abraham's bosom." 21:45 And I've asked the person inside the heirloom. 21:47 I said, "now let me ask you something. 21:49 Do all the saved go to the bosom of Abraham?" 21:54 And immediately, what do you think they said. 21:57 "No that means." 21:58 I said, well, now wait a minute. 21:59 I said you said it's literal. 22:01 If it's literal it can't mean its literal. 22:05 Everyone goes to where to Abraham's chests. 22:09 Now here is the next question, how big is Abraham's chest? 22:17 It must be pretty big, what do you say? 22:19 Yes or no? Yes. 22:21 Well, we know that all the saved 22:22 don't go to Abraham's chest. 22:24 No, it's just analogy an illustration 22:26 because the Jews believed 22:27 that they can trace themselves back to Abraham 22:29 they had a ticket right to heaven. 22:32 And Jesus is simply saying that the rich-- 22:34 that the poor man goes to bosom of Abraham 22:36 symbolizing them the trust of the Jews 22:39 had that they went right to heaven 22:42 because of Abraham's connection with God. 22:45 But listen, there are several things that we-- 22:49 we should consider here. 22:51 Number one, "Is Abraham's chest the resting of the saved. 22:55 Is his chest heaven?" What's the answer? 22:57 No. No. 22:58 Number two, "Can one drop of water cool off 23:01 some one who is supposed to be in extreme heat?" 23:03 No. 23:04 Yes or no? No. 23:06 How many of you've been outside today? 23:08 Any of you? Let me ask you something. 23:10 Could one drop cool you off? No, no. 23:14 Well, if one drop can't cool you off 23:16 and it's not that hot outside in comparison 23:18 to what they say this place is then how hot is this place? 23:24 It must not be very hot. If one drop can cool you off. 23:28 What do you say? 23:30 But listen, how close is heaven to hell then? 23:34 According to this parable, 23:37 the rich man is talking directly, 23:38 to Abraham, who is supposed to be where? 23:41 In heaven. So the question, is how close is heaven to hell? 23:46 According to this parable it must be very close, right? 23:48 But if it's only a parable it bring another message, 23:52 bring another what? 23:53 A message, a lesson. 23:54 And then can the lost communicate with the saved? 23:56 What's the answer to that, yes or no? 23:59 No. 24:00 Will God allow the lost to communicate with the saved? 24:03 What's the answer? Absolutely not. 24:06 So obviously this is a parable 24:08 and Jesus is trying to bring a lesson. 24:10 What's the lesson? 24:11 Well, "If one drop of water can cool, 24:14 then how hot is hell?" 24:15 Not very hot. 24:17 And then the spirits then have physical bodies 24:20 eyes and tongues as it says here. 24:22 It says "that put a drop on my tongue." 24:26 So obviously it's physical, right? 24:28 Yes or no, so the spirits have tongues. 24:31 What's the answer? According to the Bible, no. 24:34 Jesus said, "handle me for a spirit have not" what? 24:37 "Flesh and bones." 24:39 What is Jesus referring to when He said the spirit? 24:41 If you look in Bible, 24:42 Spirit it's nothing more than an angel. 24:44 What is it? An angel. 24:47 The Bible says are they not all ministering spirits. 24:50 So Jesus is saying an angel does not have flesh and bones 24:54 as you and I have. Why? 24:56 Because the Bible says 24:57 "that God made man a little lower than the angels." 25:01 So the angels are ministering spirits. 25:03 You and I are human beings. Is that clear? 25:07 Yes, all right now. What was the lesson? 25:10 The points of the parables, 25:12 number one, "Once dead, our destiny is" what? 25:15 Fixed. Fixed. 25:17 The message was there is great Go-fix. 25:20 Is a what? A great Go-fix. 25:23 Number two, if you not hear Moses and the Prophets, 25:26 you'll not believe God. 25:28 In another words, he said, "Well, follow Abraham look 25:32 if I can't get help then send them to my brothers 25:34 I have a couple of brothers, a five brothers back at home 25:37 and if Lazarus appears to him, don't believe." 25:42 And the message is if they will not hear 25:45 Moses and the Prophets they will not believe 25:47 even if one which arise from the dead. 25:51 In another words, if they will not believe, what? 25:55 The Scriptures they will not believe even if one 25:58 which arise from the dead. 26:00 By the way did a Lazarus resurrect from the death? 26:07 Yes or no? Yes. Yes. 26:09 Did they believe? No. 26:14 Why didn't they believe 26:16 because they would not accept what? 26:18 Moses and the Prophets. 26:20 So what is that telling you then? 26:22 My friends, if you don't believe the Word of God, 26:26 you'll not believe even if one which arise from the dead. 26:32 Why, because it is in this word that it tells us 26:36 that the dead in Christ will rise. 26:40 What do you say? 26:42 And it also tells us that the dead are where? 26:45 In their graves. 26:46 By the way the word "hell" is another word for "grave" 26:54 and some people don't understand that 26:56 but will get to that in just a few minutes. 27:01 If you then consider hellfire you have to ask the question 27:04 is the devil in charge of it, what's the answer? 27:08 Well, most people believe that the devil 27:10 is in charge of hell, correct. 27:14 I mean and most that's what they teach. 27:16 Who did they teach its roasting people down there? 27:20 They teach that the devil is roasting people down there. 27:22 Isn't that true? That's what they teach. 27:25 So the question is that is it devil in charge of hell? 27:28 And if he is then we have a problem. 27:31 If the devil is in charge of hell then 27:34 God and Satan are, what? Partners-- 27:38 God is the judge and Satan is the punisher. 27:43 Do you believe that? 27:45 Do you believe that God and Satan are the partners? 27:47 No. 27:48 Well you say, "well, how do you-- 27:49 how do you come to that conclusion?" 27:50 Very simple. 27:51 No one is speaking when somebody goes to prison 27:54 who sentence them to prison? 27:57 A judge of course. 27:59 And who takes care of the prisoners? 28:02 We call them a warden. 28:03 What do we call them? A warden. 28:05 So the warden and its who, Satan and judge is whom? 28:09 God, so the God and Satan are partners. 28:12 And God saying to you "Okay, you got to hell" 28:15 and then the devil says, 28:16 "Okay I got you in my hands, buddy." 28:20 God sent you to me so I got to take care of you. 28:24 But is that the truth, yes or no? 28:26 Absolutely not, God and Satan are not partners. 28:29 And God would not be fair then. 28:31 Let's suppose that, 28:32 that Cain who killed one person died and went to hell. 28:37 And Hitler who killed over three million people dies 28:39 and goes to hell. 28:40 Who are burnt longer? 28:43 Who will burn longer? Cain. 28:45 Cain would burn longer because he's been burning now 28:47 for about 6,000 years 28:48 and Hitler starts in the 1946, right? 28:52 And so "Oh, Cain is burning for 6,000 years for one person 28:57 and now Hitler at least gets spare 6,000 years. 29:01 Is that fair, yes or no? 29:03 You can see friends, 29:04 that as you look at the situation it is clear 29:07 that the whole idea of an eternal hell 29:11 it's not biblical some people think it is 29:14 but it's really is not because God, 29:16 is not seeking to give eternal life 29:18 to those who are wicked, 29:19 God is seeking to give eternal life 29:21 to those who love Him. 29:25 Now let's-- let's look at some more points on this 29:29 and get some things cleared up. 29:34 "God is trusting a," what? 29:37 "A murderer to be" what? "Just." 29:39 Did not Christ say about Satan he is a murderer from when? 29:44 From the beginning. 29:45 Now if you were a judge and you had-- 29:47 have somebody to get punished, would you put them-- 29:51 somebody in charge of the murderer 29:52 to give judge punishment, would you? 29:55 I don't think so. 29:57 And I don't think that we should accept 30:00 that particular aspect. 30:01 Point number four, God's gift and eternal life to whom? 30:06 To the wicked. 30:08 And we know that eternal life is only given to the righteous. 30:12 And so the devil according to some people 30:14 is in charge of hell 30:16 but according to the scriptures 30:17 there is no space-- place as hell. 30:20 Now you may say, well there is no place like hell 30:24 then what is this that the Bible speaking about? 30:27 How can we come to some rationale conclusion? 30:31 We should understand 30:33 that the Bible says in Revelation 20:10 30:36 "And the devil that deceived then was cast into" what? 30:39 "The lake of " what? 30:40 "Fire and brimstone, where the beast 30:42 and the false prophet are, 30:43 and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever." 30:46 Now they say that there is some text 30:48 they get to burnt for how long? 30:51 For ever and ever. 30:52 The problem with this text 30:54 is that the focus is that they get burned, 30:57 yeah, they all suffer some torment for a short time 31:00 but the burning completes the action 31:02 and they burn forever. 31:06 All right, well, you say, how do you know that? 31:09 Because the scripture is very clear. 31:11 I want you to notice what it says 31:12 about the devil in Ezekiel 28:16, 31:15 "The devil will be destroyed 31:18 by the multitude of thy merchandise 31:19 they have filled the midst of thee with violence, 31:24 and thou hast sinned therefore I will cast thee as" what? 31:29 "Profane out of the mountain of God, I will" what? 31:33 "Destroy thee O covering cherub, 31:35 from the midst of the stones of fire." 31:37 Then it says, "Thou has defiled thy sanctuaries 31:40 by the multitude of thine iniquities, 31:42 by thy iniquity of thy traffick, 31:45 therefore will I bring you forth." 31:47 Pardon me. 31:48 "Therefore will I bring forth a fire 31:50 from the midst of thee, it shall" what? 31:53 Devour. 31:54 Now if something devour something 31:55 what does that mean, it remains? No. 31:57 No, "it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to" what? 32:02 "Ashes upon the earth from sight of all them 32:05 that behold thee." 32:06 So that's the Bible said, that the devil will continue 32:08 to burn for ever and ever, what's the answer? 32:10 No. 32:11 According to the scripture, yes, he will burn 32:13 and that we don't know how long he'll burned for 32:15 but we do know that he'll burn 32:17 because he must suffer 32:18 the punishment of what he's done. 32:19 But the Bible says, 32:20 "Ultimately he will be brought to" what? 32:23 "To ashes." 32:24 This is what the Bible calls the second death 32:30 or the eternal death. 32:33 In the Book of Malachi even, tells us about the wicked. 32:36 Malachi 4:1-3 it says, "For behold, the day cometh, 32:39 that shall as an" what? 32:41 "As an oven, and all the proud, yea, 32:43 and all that do wickedly shall be stubble 32:45 and that day that cometh shall burn them" what? 32:49 "Up saith the Lord of hosts, 32:51 that it shall leave them neither" what? 32:53 "Root nor branch." 32:55 And then the scripture says, 32:56 "And ye shall tread down the wicked, 32:59 for they shall be" what? 33:00 "Ashes under the soles of your feet in the day 33:03 that I shall do this." 33:04 And who says this? "The Lord." 33:06 So what will happen then to the wicked? 33:09 According to the Bible they'll be ashes. 33:10 What will happen to the devil? 33:12 According to the Bible he will be ashes. 33:15 So how long did they burned for, for ever and ever? 33:17 Yes, they burn for ever and ever in the sense 33:20 that the burning takes place and it's done for ever. 33:26 Is that clear? 33:29 But let me make a little bit more clear, okay? 33:33 It's important for us to understand what takes place. 33:37 According to strong concordance 33:39 if you have a strong concordance 33:41 and somebody have been winning one in the seminar, 33:44 the strong concordance says, that Gehenna of fire.' 33:48 This was originally the valley of Hinnom, 33:51 south of Jerusalem, where the filth 33:53 and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned 33:56 a fit symbol of the wicked and their future destruction." 33:59 In another words, there were two types of burial places 34:02 there was Hades which is hell and there was the grave. 34:05 And in both cases then the scripture reveals 34:08 that some people who die and did not have where to bury 34:12 were thrown into the garbage dump. 34:16 Especially, it was done for thieves or robbers. 34:19 People who were crucified. 34:21 If you remember when Christ is crucified 34:22 they did not break his bones 34:24 but they came to the other two thieves 34:25 and broke their bones, their legs. 34:27 The reason for is that they indented 34:29 that these people could not live 34:31 so they did not die hanging on the cross 34:34 and they took them off the cross, 34:35 they broke their legs 34:36 and then they throw them in the garbage dump 34:38 and left them there to die of exposure. 34:40 And finally they would just die 34:41 and then finally they began to rot. 34:43 And that's where the Bible gives you 34:44 the picture of the worms eating them 34:47 and the smoke ascending up. 34:49 Do you remember that? 34:50 Well, if you go to a garbage dump, what do you see? 34:53 You see the smoke, what? 34:54 Ascending up, they burn the garbage dump 34:57 and that's why you have constant smoke ascending up. 35:00 That's the picture that the Bible gives 35:02 of the two burial places. 35:04 Either you get buried in this place that just burns 35:07 which is a garbage dump 35:08 or you get buried in the regular grave 35:11 and Jesus is buried in the regular grave. 35:13 In another words, 35:14 when the crucifixion came there were two burials. 35:17 Christ was buried in the grave 35:19 and the thieves were thrown in the garbage dump, 35:21 both were buried. 35:27 Gehenna then is one 35:29 and of course Hades is the other one. 35:31 "In the LXX which is the Septuagint Bible 35:33 that was translated from the Hebrew to Greek 35:36 and that's the Bible that existent in Jesus day, 35:38 it says "It is a usual translation 35:40 that Hebrew show a grave as in Hosea. 35:44 The word Hades appears on the many ancient tombstones 35:47 in Asia Minor of the grave of such and such a person." 35:51 Okay, if you go to the tombstones 35:53 it says the grave of or the Hades. 35:57 So you have the grave and you have the garbage dump. 36:00 In either place you died and were buried. 36:06 When the Sodom and Gomorrha were destroyed 36:09 the Bible says, in Jude 1:7 36:12 there is only one chapter in Jude. 36:14 In verse 7 it says, "Even as Sodom and Gomorrha 36:16 and the cities about them in like manner, 36:18 giving themselves over to fornication, 36:20 and going after strange flesh, 36:22 and set forth for an example 36:23 suffering the vengeance of" what? 36:25 "Eternal fire" so let me ask you a question? 36:28 Is the city eternal or is the fire eternal? 36:32 What does it say? 36:33 "Suffering the vengeance of" what? 36:35 "Eternal fire." 36:37 Is the city still burning? 36:38 Sodom and Gomorrha, yes or no? 36:41 So which is the eternal, is it-- the people or the fire? 36:46 The fire does the eternal work. 36:48 In other words completes its work 36:50 and that's what the Scripture means 36:52 by this particular phrase of eternal death. 36:56 The fire is eternal not the people. 36:59 And so what the scripture reveals 37:01 is simply that people will finally come to an end 37:04 that there is no particular hell right now 37:07 and that people are actually buried 37:10 and rest in their graves according to the scriptures 37:13 until the resurrection either resurrection of life 37:17 according to John Chapter 5 or the resurrection of damnation. 37:22 Obviously it's important for us to make sure 37:25 then when we resurrect by God's grace 37:27 that we raise up in the first resurrection. 37:32 The second resurrection 37:33 there is no hope in that resurrection 37:36 because the Bible calls the resurrection of damnation 37:39 and that's what leads people 37:41 to what is called the second death. 37:43 So reiterate for those of you who have not been with us 37:45 in the seminar the Bible has two deaths, how many? 37:48 Two death, the first death and the second death. 37:52 The second death is the eternal death, 37:54 the first death it's only a pause all of us if we-- 37:58 if we don't see the Lord coming in our day 38:01 we'll have to die, is that true? 38:04 As much as we were like to live, 38:05 if the Lord doesn't return before we die, 38:08 we will go to our graves. 38:10 The good and the bad go to the graves, 38:12 therefore this death is only a temporary period, 38:16 in another words it is not the punishment, 38:18 it is something that happens to the good and to the bad. 38:21 It is the eternal death that we are to be concerned about 38:24 and that's called the second death, 38:25 what is it called? The second death. 38:27 My friends, if it's a death and it's a death. 38:30 It's not the second life, it's the second death. 38:35 It is the second life for those who love Jesus 38:38 and those who are converted and saved. 38:40 Jonah himself, when he was caught 38:43 in his situation fleeing from God 38:47 and the scripture says that a whale swallowed him 38:50 or a big fish swallowed him. 38:52 He began to pray, 38:53 now I want you to notice the wording here 38:55 "And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, 38:59 he heard me out of the belly of hell cried I, 39:03 and thou heardest my voice." 39:05 So as for as Jonah was concerned where was he? 39:08 Well, he was in hell. 39:09 Now let me ask you a question, 39:11 do you think was hot inside there? 39:13 Yes. Yes or no? 39:15 Yes. Yes or no? 39:16 Yes. Of course, it's hot. 39:18 If you're inside the stomach of a fish and those juices 39:23 are trying to cook you up it's pretty hot, 39:25 what do you say? 39:26 Yes or no? Yes. 39:28 Hey, listen what do you have in your stomach, 39:29 don't you have something cooks up the food, 39:32 we have acid. 39:33 And that acid what does it do? 39:35 It actually cooks up the food, doesn't it? 39:38 Well, listen, if you're inside the belly of a fish 39:42 and it gets pretty hot in there you feel like, you are where? 39:45 You're in hell. As far as, Jonah was concerned. 39:48 So he cried out of hell, 39:50 so that helps us to understand 39:52 that Jonah believed that he had been buried. 39:55 That he had been what? Buried. 39:57 And he was in the grave as it were, buried alive. 40:01 And he begins to cry to God for mercy 40:03 and God did something so that whale spewed out 40:06 and that fish spewed out, Jonah and Jonah then lived. 40:11 And so that's why John 3:16 reminds us 40:14 that eternal life is giving to those who believe in Christ. 40:18 "For God so love the world," 40:19 again "that He gave His only begotten Son, 40:21 that whosoever believeth in him should not" what? 40:24 "Perish, but have everlasting life." 40:26 And so as I said before 40:28 it doesn't say should not continue to perish or perishing 40:31 but rather should not perish period. 40:34 And-- and you can now see then 40:36 that the Bible is clear concerning 40:40 this particular aspect of what happens to people 40:43 when they die. 40:46 Notice that again the scripture speaks about 40:48 in Matthew 25:46, it says, 40:50 "These shall go away into everlasting" what? 40:54 "Punishment." 40:55 Now notice it doesn't say everlasting punishing. 40:58 It says "everlasting punishment." 41:01 So which is the everlasting the person or the punishment? 41:05 The punishment. 41:06 So if you punish it is everlasting. 41:11 How many of you have been punished, any of you? 41:15 How many of you remember being punished? 41:17 As far as you're concerned it's everlasting, right, 41:19 yes or no? 41:21 Boy with mother came out with her belt 41:23 and she whipped that belt around me 41:25 I knew that I had been punished. 41:28 And it's still recorded in my mind 41:31 and sometimes when I remember 41:33 I feel the-- right, everlasting. 41:36 In another words the affect has done its job 41:40 the punishment has accomplished it. 41:42 But the righteous into what? 41:45 Eternal what? Life eternal. 41:47 Can you see that? 41:49 So some go into everlasting punishing 41:51 and some into everlasting life. 41:53 So its everlasting punishment not everlasting punishing. 41:58 Are you clear about that so for? 42:01 All right, then the same is the way 42:05 we do with capital punishment when people do something wrong 42:08 and they have killed somebody you know, Wichita, 42:10 here you had somebody who perpetrated 42:13 and committed some atrocities, is that true? 42:15 Yeah. 42:17 BTK you know what I'm talking about? 42:19 Man who stalk woman and then did all sorts of atrocities 42:24 to those women and then killed them. 42:28 We who are wicked and we are sinners, aren't we? 42:33 Still have mercy even on somebody 42:37 who has perpetrated such atrocities. 42:40 What do I mean by that? 42:42 I can guarantee you that the state 42:45 does not have that man tied to some stick or something 42:49 and peeling him apart bit by bit. 42:53 I can guarantee you that the state has not-- 42:55 does not have that fellow being put in the rack 42:58 and being pull apart for what he has done. 43:05 We are far more merciful than that, isn't that true? 43:08 And when people who perpetrate terrible, horrible things-- 43:11 in some states we have what is called a capital punishment 43:14 which means that it's either 43:16 the electric chair or it's an injection. 43:19 In other words we cannot come to the place 43:21 where we want to keep somebody alive just-- 43:24 just wallowing in his pain and all that 43:28 and we just stand there and enjoy seeing somebody suffer. 43:31 We're not like that, are we? No. 43:35 We think that somebody has done that the most merciful thing is 43:38 to bring their life to seize. 43:41 But listen, listen to what's happening 43:43 people are considering God to be a far greater tyrant 43:48 and sadistic than human beings are. 43:53 For if people were to burn forever 43:55 who would keep them alive forever. 43:56 God. 43:58 God would have to keep them alive forever. 44:00 And I don't believe that we serve that kind of a God. 44:03 I believe that ultimately 44:04 God will have to bring an end to sin. 44:06 And if people attach themselves to sin 44:08 and God has to destroy sin I believe then that God 44:12 when He's destroys sin the sinner will be destroyed. 44:14 But that's not God's desire, what do you say? 44:17 All right, then "If the dead then are dead then 44:21 what about the apparitions who appear to the living?" 44:29 Spiritism is increasing greatly 44:32 in our country and around the world. 44:36 The psychics et cetera. 44:41 I remember a girl who came to me 44:42 and wanted to get baptized 44:44 and I asked why do you want to get baptized? 44:46 She said "because spirits are appearing in my home 44:48 and I want to get rid of them. 44:49 And somebody told me 44:50 if I get baptized I get rid of the spirits." 44:54 She actually saw demons in her home. 44:58 I said, "My sister, 45:00 baptism isn't some magical mystical portion 45:04 just like hanging up a cross and the Dracula moves away. 45:09 Baptism is a matter of demonstrating 45:11 that something has taking place in my heart 45:14 and the persons committing themselves to Christ. 45:18 There is no magical portion in baptism." 45:22 So I had to teach her then. 45:25 Well, I was in Palau, our Palauan islands 45:28 we're having what it's called a Week of Prayer for the school 45:31 and they asked me to speak. 45:32 I was a pastor of the island 45:34 and had the lot of responsibilities. 45:37 We had the academy which is a high school 45:39 and we had an elementary school, 45:41 plus we had the church. 45:43 I had 600 members and I had a lot of-- 45:45 lot of responsibilities. 45:46 But they asked me to do 45:48 the week of prayer so I consented. 45:50 As I began to preach by the second night 45:54 the girl stand in the dorm began to scream. 46:00 They saw a woman dressed in white in their dorm. 46:04 And they were screaming 46:05 because they had never seen that before. 46:08 And of course the girl's dean was so frightened 46:10 that she locked the girls in 46:11 and she wouldn't come out to find out what's going on. 46:15 The next day we discovered what had happened. 46:19 We also discovered that the boys dorm was up above 46:23 and when they heard the girl screaming 46:25 they thought this is silly, 46:26 you know, silly girls what they're screaming about. 46:30 Well, the girls are screaming "buddy murder" 46:32 but no one even was helping them 46:33 so they just screamed all night long. 46:36 Finally, we discovered what taking place 46:39 and so my wife then slept with the girls. 46:43 She said, "girls, I'll sleep with you 46:44 and the Lord will take care of us." 46:47 Well the next night what do you supposed happen? 46:50 The apparition appeared at the boy's dorm. 46:53 And now it was their turn to scream. 46:57 So they were screaming and there was a Korean boy 47:00 who was a Buddhist 47:01 who didn't believe any of those things, 47:03 he's not hocus focus, you know. 47:05 And when he saw the boys screaming 47:06 he just laughed at them, he laughed at them. 47:09 His name was, Yu. 47:12 And so the next day the word came me to that 47:15 the apparition had appeared in the boy's dorm 47:18 and the boys were scared to death. 47:20 So I said, "Okay boys, I'll sleep with you 47:22 and my wife will sleep with the girls tonight." 47:26 The next day in broad daylight, 47:29 the whole school hears Yu 47:32 running with his hair sticking up in the air. 47:37 He saw the woman dressed in white. 47:42 And that boy was pale. 47:45 And I guarantee you he wasn't laughing now. 47:48 He saw the thing. 47:50 So I said to the kids we got a problem here. 47:57 Somebody's inviting the devil to appear in this place. 48:03 And I said if you want to get rid of this apparition 48:06 you're gonna have to get rid of whatever stuff you have 48:09 that is attracting the devil to our campus. 48:14 I'm not gonna tell you what it is, 48:15 I said but I'll let you decide. 48:19 And I brought a barrel you know one of those 50 gallon barrels 48:24 I put outside the dorm. 48:26 And I said okay, we'll wait. 48:30 Well, the students kind of look at each other 48:36 and decided to go inside. 48:39 They came back out, they came back out 48:41 with all sorts of stuff that they had in the dorm. 48:46 They had for example magic balls 48:50 that will give them the answer to the test. 48:54 They had all sorts of interesting things 48:57 that they were using 48:59 and you know what they did with all of that? 49:01 They brought them and dumped them in the barrel. 49:04 And you know what we did with it? 49:06 We set fire to it and may that an offering 49:09 by fire unto the Lord. 49:12 By the way for you young people, 49:16 they took all their rock and roll music 49:19 and threw them in the garbage can, they what? 49:22 They took all the rock and roll music 49:23 and threw in the garbage. 49:25 And now you may say, 49:26 what are you talking about pastor, 49:27 what's wrong with rock and roll? 49:28 You used to be play with Bill Haley and the Comets. 49:29 What's the problem with that? 49:31 When I was playing with Bill Haley and the Comets 49:33 we knew that certain music 49:36 if played that we have a girl for example. 49:39 If we played certain pieces 49:40 that girl would get possessed would go into her-- 49:43 her convulsions and all that and would be come posses 49:46 with either a dump spirit or something else. 49:49 And all it took with just the play the music. 49:51 What did they take? Just to play the music. 49:55 And I can tell you, I can testify 49:57 that I know that music is used by the devil 50:01 to control the minds of people. 50:04 Did you hear what I've said? 50:05 Now you may find that kind of interesting 50:08 but my wife and I written a book called "Notes on Music," 50:11 if you have any questions read it. 50:14 But friends, those kids brought all their stuff out 50:18 dropped it in there we burned it up 50:20 and the wonderful thing is this. 50:22 Afterwards we never had another apparition. 50:28 The kids made a commitment to Christ 50:30 in that wonderful ceremony 50:33 and there was a great victory in that campus. 50:37 We started out with 60 students that particular year, 50:41 40 of them were not Christians and 21 were. 50:44 By the time we finished 50:45 they were 40 Christians and 20 non-Christians. 50:48 In another words there was a great victory 50:49 in the lives in young people. 50:52 What did they see? They saw an apparition. 50:54 What's an apparition? 50:55 Nothing more than an angel who appears 50:58 like a human being especially a departed human being. 51:03 We know that that's the case 51:04 because even in the scriptures it happened. 51:07 In 2 Samuel 12:23, King Saul who departs from God, 51:14 finally the Lord talks to him and he would not listen 51:19 and finally the Spirit of God departs from him. 51:22 King David-- well understands this 51:26 because when his son died 51:28 King David just simply was first of all before he died 51:32 King David was mourning over the, the fact 51:35 that the child could die 51:36 find out when the child did die he got up an ate. 51:39 And of course the people said, "What are you doing, 51:41 getting up and eating now when your child was the sick 51:43 you were fasting and praying and weeping and wailing 51:47 and now that he's dead you're getting up and eating 51:49 that does make any sense?" 51:50 David simply says, "listen now he is what?" 51:56 "Dead, wherefore should I fast? Can I bring him back again? 51:59 I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me." 52:01 In other words, I'm going to die 52:02 and go where he is dead 52:04 but he could never comeback to-- 52:06 to me, is that true, yes or no. Yes. 52:08 Okay, now in Deuteronomy we're warned 52:12 about the particular participation 52:16 with spirit tricks et cetera. 52:18 The Bible says, "A charmer, or a consulter 52:22 with familiar spirits, or a wizard or a necromancer. 52:25 For all that do these things are" what? 52:28 "An abomination unto the Lord 52:29 and because of these abominations 52:31 the Lord thy God does drive them out from before thee." 52:35 There is no question in the Bible 52:37 the idea of dealing with the spirituals 52:40 or dealing with people who are involved 52:41 with that is not pleasing to the Lord. 52:46 I had a friend who was a pastor. 52:50 He had a son and the son develops or contracted 52:57 what it's call leukemia. 53:00 Researching this all and the son was dying. 53:03 My pastor friend began to pray and I going ask with God 53:05 and God would save his son, he was the only boy. 53:09 The son died and my pastor friend 53:12 went into deep depression tremendous grief. 53:16 "Oh, God why that you let my boy die 53:18 I have dedicated my life to serve You, 53:20 why did You do that." 53:21 Do you understand the question that come? 53:24 Well, he told us that two weeks later, 53:29 he was sitting in his bed again mourning 53:35 over that lost of his son. 53:38 And all of a sudden he heard the voice of his boy. 53:42 He was standing right before here 53:45 and the boy was standing there in full life. 53:47 And said, "dad, you don't need to cry for me anymore, 53:53 I'm all right. 53:56 Look at me, dad, I am here." 54:01 When the father saw that he had 54:04 a tremendous battle in his heart. 54:07 The longing that he had to embrace his son 54:11 and at the same time the understanding 54:14 he have about the Bible said, 54:17 the Bible says the dead know, how much? 54:19 Not anything. 54:21 You know, what that pastor friend did, 54:24 he pointed at the thing and said, 54:25 get you behind me Satan, and the thing disappeared. 54:32 What was it? 54:34 There was an evil angel try to appear 54:37 as the departed loved one. 54:39 My friends, they know how we think, 54:40 they know what we look like and they appear 54:43 with the purpose of deceiving us 54:46 and the whole purpose is to separate us from whom? 54:49 From Christ. 54:51 "A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, 54:54 or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to" what? 54:57 "To death, they shall stone them with stones 55:00 their blood shall be upon them." 55:02 My friends, it is clear from the scriptures 55:05 that when people are opening themselves up 55:13 to psychics, to palm breathers et cetera. 55:20 They may not realize so they're putting themselves 55:22 and contact with the every enemy himself. 55:26 But listen, Jesus invites us to accept Him. 55:32 The Bible says, "He that have the Son have" what? 55:35 "Life, he that have not to son of God have not life." 55:39 How many of you want life, can I see your hands? 55:42 And if you want life then what must you do? 55:46 You must accept Christ 55:47 as your Savior, what do you say? 55:48 Amen. 55:49 You say amen to that? Amen. 55:51 I wondered tonight there maybe people, 55:52 I'm gonna ask you the deacons 55:53 who pass out some-- some decision cards. 55:58 Could you do that right now, deacons? 56:00 And I wonder those of you who are here tonight 56:03 perhaps you have never understood the choice 56:06 that you need to make between life and death. 56:09 Perhaps you did not have confidence in the-- 56:14 what the scripture says but tonight you see a clear 56:16 and you realize that only in Christ can you have life. 56:19 Can you take one of these slips of paper 56:21 and can you put your choice there? 56:23 I decide to accept Christ as my personal Savior. 56:27 I want Him to be my life, I want Him to be my Savior. 56:32 I want to be baptized and commit myself to Him 56:35 and begin a new life in Christ. 56:37 Will you take the slips of paper right now 56:39 and will you just place down your decision 56:42 and as you do make that decision, 56:44 remember you're making that decision 56:47 between you and Christ, what do you say? 56:50 Will you prayerfully consider that decision tonight? 56:53 Will you place your hope in Christ 56:55 the only one that can save you? 56:57 Will you make Him your Savior? 56:59 Will you make Him your hope and your salvation. 57:03 Will you place down there your decision 57:05 I desire to make Christ 57:07 my personal Savior and to follow Him. 57:09 Shall we pray together, 57:11 our Father, thank You so much 57:13 for the hope that we have in Christ, 57:16 help us we pray to love Him. |
Revised 2014-12-17