Jesus is everywhere in the Bible. It is little wonder though. Doesn't it make sense that the word of God be about the One Who is described as the Word of God.
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." John 1:1-3, and 14 So, to say that the account of the flood and its details speak of Christ isn't at all that difficult to affirm and prove. "And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus Himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know Him. And He said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad? And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto Him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? And He said unto them, What things? And they said unto Him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and have crucified Him. But we trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre, and found not His body, they came saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that He was alive. And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said: but Him they saw not. Then He said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself" Luke 24:13-27 The reason that we can't see Christ in the account of the Flood is that we are just like these disciples. Our eyes are holden (restrained) from seeing Him because we take Him for only a "prophet might in deed and word," and One who has been betrayed and murdered, but not as the risen Lord Who keeps His Word. I say we, not you. The reason that I say that is because I know how easy it is to be just like these disciples. I know how easy it is to let situation cloud my view of Him and thus blind me to what He is doing and what He is like. So, Jesus was patient with these disciples and He will be patient with us as well. He takes them through the Old Testament and expounds to them all the things about Himself. When the passage says "beginning at Moses," it doesn't necessarily mean at the man Moses. It means at the books Moses wrote. Moses was inspired of God to write Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. This fact is attested to by both Jewish and Christian scholars for hundreds of years. Additionally, the scripture itself affirms the inspired writer to be Moses. "This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, a prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sinai, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us." Acts 7:37-38 The book of Genesis contains the account of the Flood, so the account of the Flood must also teach us about Christ in some way. Notice how the rest of the story plays out for the disciples on the Emmaus road. "And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and He made as though He would have gone further. But they constrained Him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And He went in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as He sat at meat with them, He took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished out of their sight. And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the scriptures? And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them, Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. And they told what things were done in the way, and how He was known of them in breaking of bread." Luke 24:28-35 How interesting this is. Jesus doesn't force Himself upon His disciples, but allows for them to seek His fellowship. With this, they are desiring a deeper intimacy. This leads to them knowing Him. How? I believe this happened in two ways. 1.) He gives them an object lesson with the bread being blessed, broken, and then given to them. He, as the bread of life, was blessed of His Father, broken by His Father on the cross, and then the life-giving substance of that blessed and broken bread is freely given to all who will accept it. This is more than just for spirit salvation. It is also quality of life in the Kingdom that is being offered to us. Acceptance of this truth opens our eyes so that we can truly know Who He is. 2.) When He handed the aforementioned blessed and broken bread to His disciples, what did He use? I know that it seems to be a dumb question, but if you think about it, you will see the importance of it. He used His hands. With what had He performed all those mighty deeds? With what had He loved the people? What had the nail scars in them? His hands. They got an object lesson with the bread, and then an encounter with the real Person when He handed them the bread with the very hands that had just been crucified and then raised. It was as if Jesus were making this too easy for them. They no longer called Him "prophet,' now they called Him "Lord." He will make it that obvious to us too, if we will let Him. He will make His character and work known to us in the account of the Flood, if we will let Him. In the Flood account, I can see at least two types of the Lord Jesus: 1.) Noah is a type of the Lord Jesus, and 2.) the Ark is a type of the Lord Jesus. Consider the following: Noah as a type of Christ Type: Noah's name means "rest." His father said that he would comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground the Lord had cursed. (Genesis 5:29) Anti-type: Christ gives to His followers rest both now and in His Kingdom (Matthew 11:28, Hebrews 4:9-16) Type: Noah found grace (favor) in the eyes of the Lord. (Genesis 6:8) Anti-type: Christ was favored of His Father. (Matthew 3:17, 17:5, Mark 9:7, Luke 9:35, 2Peter1:17) Type: Noah was a just (righteous) man and perfect (upright) in his generations, and Noah walked with God. (Genesis 6:9) Anti-type: Jesus was THE JUST (Righteous) Man and was THE PERFECT (upright) Man. There is no doubt the Jesus walked with God continually. (Luke 23:47, 1John2:1, 1John1:3, John 17:11) Type: Noah was given a work to perform by God that would result in the saving of the lives of his family through the judgment of God, and Noah completed the work. (Genesis 6:14-16, 22) Anti-type: Jesus was given a work to perform by God that resulted in the saving of the lives of all those who would believe on Him and become a part of His family. This work saves them from the judgment of God (hell, or even loss of reward), and Jesus completed His work. (John 17:1-4, 19:30) Type: Noah alone was involved in the work. No other person was mentioned as building the Ark. Anti-type: Jesus is the only One Who was able to do the work He performed on our behalf. (1Peter 2:24) Type: Noah's work involved building an ark of gopher wood, that had rooms, and pitched with pitch. (Genesis 6:14) It is unknown what type of wood is gopher wood. The word for pitch here is Kopher (H3734). One of its meanings is price of a life, ransom. How interesting that the ark was sealed in with the price of redemption. Anti-type: Jesus' work involved a cross of wood, that has room for all who will embrace it, and He paid the price of redemption on it. It is unknown what kind of wood was used for the cross. This work on the cross is more than just to save us from the judgment of hell, it is also to continually cleanse the believer to keep them in good standing with the Father so that a reward can be delivered to them at the Judgment Seat of Christ. It, in essence, saves all believers from hell, and saves all believers who continue to embrace it from the negative judgment of the Bema seat of Christ. Type: Noah's work was a work of faith. In his work he saved his whole household and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. (Genesis 7:5, Hebrews 11:7) Anti-type: Christ's work on the cross was also a work of faith. Through His work, He became the heir of righteousness. We also are able to be saved as a part of His household if we continue with Him till the end. Remember, this isn't speaking of saving from hell, but of saving to rule. The saving of our lives (souls) through service here. (John 15:10, 18:9, Philippians 2:8, Hebrews 3:1-6 [really the whole chapter along with the next], 1:1-14, Matthew 16:24-27) Type: Noah offered a burnt offering to the Lord after the judgment of the Flood. This offering was of clean animals and was accepted by God a sweet smelling savor. (Genesis 8:20-21). Anti-type: Jesus having suffered the judgment for our sins offered unto the Lord His Own Self which was a sweet smelling savor to His Father . (John 20:17, Ephesians 5:2, Hebrews 9:6-28) Type: God made an everlasting covenant with Noah and his seed. (Genesis 9:8-9) Anti-type: God also made an everlasting covenant with Christ. (Hebrews 13:20)
Guys, that is enough to chew on for a few days. I'll continue with the study later. Just a thought. Why don't you guys try finding out how the Ark is a type of Christ? :)
Friday, March 25, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
What are the particulars of the Flood?
Hey guys. I wanted to try something a little different for this blog. When I was at Auburn (War Eagle!) going through my preparations to be a teacher, they taught us that teaching through inquiry was the best way of instruction. Before I offend anyone, they also reiterated this idea when I attended classes at the Alabama extension in Gadsden for my Masters degree. I tend to agree. When I read accounts of Jesus' teaching it seems that he used inquiry methodology as well. More often than not, He would begin lessons with a question or illustration that made those that heard Him to question their prior knowledge.
So, here we go. Instead of telling you what I have found during my studies I'm going to ask you a few questions and see what you come up with. So play nice now and let's have some audience participation.
How long was Noah in the ark?
How many people were on the ark?
How long did it rain?
What were the three sources of water for the Flood?
How many animals were on the ark? You don't have to give me an exact total number. I want to know how many of each kind. Be careful on this one, your Sunday school teacher may have told you wrong.
How long did the waters drain from the earth?
Where do you think the waters went?
Who shut the door to the ark?
Who designed the ark?
How many windows were in it?
How many levels were in the ark?
How many chapters of Genesis are devoted to Noah and the Flood? Compare that to Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel. What would that tell you about the importance of this account to God?
Did the Ark rest on the mountain of Ararat when the flood waters receded?
What did Noah do immediately after exiting the ark? What did God do at that time?
Those are "few" good starter questions. Feel free to float some of your own. Sorry, no joke meant. :( I got the idea to do this from a book that I have been recently reading called The Law of the Offerings by Andrew Jukes. In it he essentially says that we don't know the deeper truths of God because we don't take the time to find them out for ourselves. This takes hard work and a lot of time. The answers to the questions that I have posed to you are by no means the deeper truths that are here in Genesis. But, we can't go on to those truths until we lay a solid foundation with the facts of the account. Andrew Jukes wrote his book somewhere around the turn of the 19th century, where biblical knowledge was placed as a higher priority than I fear it is today. If he was saying to them that they were babes and slow of hearing, then what might we be? This is quite an indictment for me and makes me realize how little I truly know.
So, here we go. Instead of telling you what I have found during my studies I'm going to ask you a few questions and see what you come up with. So play nice now and let's have some audience participation.
How long was Noah in the ark?
How many people were on the ark?
How long did it rain?
What were the three sources of water for the Flood?
How many animals were on the ark? You don't have to give me an exact total number. I want to know how many of each kind. Be careful on this one, your Sunday school teacher may have told you wrong.
How long did the waters drain from the earth?
Where do you think the waters went?
Who shut the door to the ark?
Who designed the ark?
How many windows were in it?
How many levels were in the ark?
How many chapters of Genesis are devoted to Noah and the Flood? Compare that to Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel. What would that tell you about the importance of this account to God?
Did the Ark rest on the mountain of Ararat when the flood waters receded?
What did Noah do immediately after exiting the ark? What did God do at that time?
Those are "few" good starter questions. Feel free to float some of your own. Sorry, no joke meant. :( I got the idea to do this from a book that I have been recently reading called The Law of the Offerings by Andrew Jukes. In it he essentially says that we don't know the deeper truths of God because we don't take the time to find them out for ourselves. This takes hard work and a lot of time. The answers to the questions that I have posed to you are by no means the deeper truths that are here in Genesis. But, we can't go on to those truths until we lay a solid foundation with the facts of the account. Andrew Jukes wrote his book somewhere around the turn of the 19th century, where biblical knowledge was placed as a higher priority than I fear it is today. If he was saying to them that they were babes and slow of hearing, then what might we be? This is quite an indictment for me and makes me realize how little I truly know.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Japan
To all our brothers, sisters, and friends in Japan,
All of us in America are deeply moved over the devastation that you have experienced. We are fully behind you and will help you recover. You are continually in our thoughts and prayers. May the Lord comfort your hearts and bring you through this stronger and more assured of the strong bond that you share with us.
In Christ,
Steve Owens
Citizen of The United States of America
All of us in America are deeply moved over the devastation that you have experienced. We are fully behind you and will help you recover. You are continually in our thoughts and prayers. May the Lord comfort your hearts and bring you through this stronger and more assured of the strong bond that you share with us.
In Christ,
Steve Owens
Citizen of The United States of America
Friday, February 11, 2011
What brought on the Flood?
Our God is not capricious, like other so-called deities. When He acts He has a reason, and He isn't unpredictable. God will give us plenty of warning before He calls us into account to Him. He is also very slow to anger. He is quick to show mercy and hear us when we repent. But His mercy and patience do come to an end. There is a time when even our most plaintiff pleas will not be entertained.
The people who faced the judgment of the Flood experienced just that sort of treatment from God. But they, like us, were given ample warning and space to repent before God finally called them into account. So, what was so terrible that God decided to wipe the globe clean of all land-based life and start fresh? It will be to our instruction if we would find this out, and then heed its warning.
When the Flood came, man had only existed outside of the garden of Eden for 1656 years. This figure can be arrived at by carefully reading Genesis 5 and counting up the age at which each man had a son then totaling them. Immediately, we notice something quite odd about the ages of these men (i.e. Adam was 130 years old when Seth was born, and 930 years old at death) Their lifespans were incredibly long, especially by today's standards. Were they really that old when they procreated? For that matter, did they really live as long as the Bible records? If you have read many of my blogs, you will already know my answer to those questions.
I would like to offer a possible explanation for their incredibly long lifespans. The Bible doesn't explain why they lived so long, it just demands that we believe that they did. So, my explanation for it is just a hypothesis, and worth probably about as much as any opinion is. There are two main reasons for the great lifespans: 1.) a protective water canopy surrounding the Earth, and 2.) lack of genetic deformity, or genetic proclivity for a short life. According to science, the causes of aging are still not certainly known, but the theories for it generally fall into two broad categories: accumulated deformity due to environmental conditions and genetic predisposition. This seems to fit quite well with the hypothesis I am presenting.
In Genesis 1:6-8 we read of God's restoration of the Earth on the second day. It states:
"And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day."
This can not be a description of God creating a division of the oceans by the land. The description of God dividing the land and ocean is given on the third day. And even in this description, the ocean isn't said to be divided as we see it today. Notice what it says in v. 9,
"And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so."
So, if you just take the words literally, you have three divisions. Water above the heaven (sky), water below the heaven (sky), and then dry land below the heaven. We have an Earth that has one ocean, and one connected landmass, and one orbital water canopy.
Many people have cast doubt on the Flood by saying that the sky couldn't hold enough water to rain that much water down. And they are correct in this assertion. In fact, according to the USGS website, the atmosphere can only hold about 0.001 % of all the water on the Earth at any given time. Also, according to this site, if it all rained out at once, it would only cover the ground to about an inch. That would be no where near the amount needed to cover every mountaintop to a depth of around 20 feet as stated in Genesis 7. So, the atmosphere could not have been the only source of water for the Flood. The orbital water canopy surrounding the Earth gets around this problem with ease. There is no telling how much diffuse water could have been in orbit around our Earth before the Flood.
I believe that this water canopy had some wonderful beneficial affects on mankind. It would have shielded men from the most directly harmful rays from the Sun. UV radiation is known today to cause many forms of cancer, but it is also known that radiation from the Sun can also negatively impact our DNA. To make a long story short, if you destroy or deform DNA, you cause health problems and sometimes death.
Secondly, according to the scientific theories on aging, some believe that we have genes that program our bodies to prepare for death by shutting them down as we age. This theory has some support. When sheep or any other animal have been cloned from the somatic cells of an adult of their species, they don't live a complete lifespan. It seems that those somatic cells taken from the adult retain a "memory" of the age of the original animal. For example, if a sheep has an ordinary lifespan of 11 to 12 years, a clone taken from a 6 year old sheep should be expected to survive for only 5 to 6 years. There seems to be a genetic predisposition for death, and that predisposition is passed on when the cells replicate to form the clone. (Germ cells, or sperm and egg cells, are different.) Another genetic problem that is thought to cause death is that as DNA is replicated, the copies tend to get less and less accurate. As a result, the DNA becomes less effective at repairing our bodies when damaged, or regulating the body systems. This causes wrinkles, loss of organ function, etc. Eventually, the DNA itself is shortened to a degree to render it nonfunctional. Cell death occurs, and eventually when that occurs enough it leads to our death.
I believe that two things are evident from a Biblical perspective. One is that sin causes death (Romans 6:23). The farther we are down the line from Adam, who was created with a perfect body, the more sin has a chance to work. This can manifest itself as disease and death. The other belief of evidence is that God placed in us genes that limit our lifespan. This could have taken place at the Fall (Genesis 3:19), or after the Flood. I do know that God says in Psalms 90:9-10,
"For all our days are passed away in Thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told. The days of our years are threescore and ten (70 years); and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years (80 years), yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away."
Our normal lifespan is only about 70 to 80 years. We all know of those extreme cases where people live to be 100 or possibly 120, but that is about it. No modern person has lived as long as those recorded in the Bible. There is a reason for that. The sins of the antediluvians has had consequences that still affect us to this day.
So, what was this sin? Let's see what the account says. Genesis 6:1-7,
"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and fowls of the air; for it repenteth Me that I have made them."
Now we come to a somewhat controversial portion of the Word of God among scholars. There are two basic schools of thought as to who these sons of God were. There really is no doubt as to who the daughters of men are. They are human women. But the sons of God are thought by one group to be the "righteous" line of Seth, while another group believe them to be the fallen demonic angels of Satan. My personal belief from scripture is that these sons of God are fallen angels. When you compare scripture with scripture and look at the context of the passage, there really can be no other conclusion. While it is true that both humans and angels are spoken of as "sons of God", when you understand the title, the issue is quickly cleared up.
"Son of God" is a title given to someone who is in a position of rulership or is destined for rulership under God's authority. In Job 1 and 2, we have another description of sons of God.
Job 1:6 states,
"Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them..."
Job 2:1 states,
"Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD..."
Apparently, all the angelic host that are in rulership, both good and bad, are required to report to God on a periodic basis. What would they be reporting to God? God is the ultimate Authority in the Universe, He sets their bounds and degree of power they are allowed to use, and they must give an account to Him of their respective providence. It can't be denied that Satan is the ruler of this world and that he has subordinates (demons) under his authority.
Ephesians 2:2 states,
"Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air (Satan), the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:"
Ephesians 6:10-13 states,
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."
This really gets at the heart of the cause of the Flood. In the years before the Flood, the daughters born to men had started allowing (maybe even seeking) fraternization with demonic angels. As a result of this unholy action, several things occurred. It produced a race of giants wholly against God and his people. It produced a further degradation of the human race, whereby the thoughts of their hearts were evil continually. Sounds quite familiar to me. This is a very good description of the world we live in today (Luke 17:26-30).
God then sets a limit as to how long He will allow this degradation to go on. He give man 120 years to repent and turn to Him. Then at the end of those 120 years God sends judgment on mankind in the form of the Flood. What about those sons of God? God deals with them as well.
2Peter 2:4-5 states,
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell (tartarus), and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;"
(See also Jude 1:6)
God didn't allow these demonic angels to stay free. He incarcerated them into the lowest parts of hell to await the judgment of the Great White Throne.
"Tartarus" (G5020) tartaroo - the name of the subterranean region, doleful and dark, regarded by the ancient Greeks as the abode of the wicked dead, where they suffer punishment for their wicked deeds,
The Greeks saw Tartarus as the worst part of hell. Only the worst of the worst went to this region. It is interesting to note that this is the only occurrence of this word in the New Testament and it is in connection to these angels who went into the daughters of men. The offenses of those demons were so great, they could not be allowed to roam about freely. Why was it considered so great? Because it was an attempt to prevent the birth of the seed of the woman, the Lord Jesus Christ (Genesis 3:15). If they could completely infect the entire human race with their seed, then the Lord Jesus could never have been born. Their attempts were nearly successful. It came down to only one family of eight people.
So our take home message, as it were, is that we should never entertain any sort of demonic influences in our lives. We should resist them in the power of the Lord. We shouldn't actively go out and be "demon hunters," but we should allow God to be our defense and His word to be our offense. We should seek to be like Noah. We should have our lives bent toward God and His ways. If we do, we will be delivered through the judgement that is coming and enter into a new world.
The people who faced the judgment of the Flood experienced just that sort of treatment from God. But they, like us, were given ample warning and space to repent before God finally called them into account. So, what was so terrible that God decided to wipe the globe clean of all land-based life and start fresh? It will be to our instruction if we would find this out, and then heed its warning.
When the Flood came, man had only existed outside of the garden of Eden for 1656 years. This figure can be arrived at by carefully reading Genesis 5 and counting up the age at which each man had a son then totaling them. Immediately, we notice something quite odd about the ages of these men (i.e. Adam was 130 years old when Seth was born, and 930 years old at death) Their lifespans were incredibly long, especially by today's standards. Were they really that old when they procreated? For that matter, did they really live as long as the Bible records? If you have read many of my blogs, you will already know my answer to those questions.
I would like to offer a possible explanation for their incredibly long lifespans. The Bible doesn't explain why they lived so long, it just demands that we believe that they did. So, my explanation for it is just a hypothesis, and worth probably about as much as any opinion is. There are two main reasons for the great lifespans: 1.) a protective water canopy surrounding the Earth, and 2.) lack of genetic deformity, or genetic proclivity for a short life. According to science, the causes of aging are still not certainly known, but the theories for it generally fall into two broad categories: accumulated deformity due to environmental conditions and genetic predisposition. This seems to fit quite well with the hypothesis I am presenting.
In Genesis 1:6-8 we read of God's restoration of the Earth on the second day. It states:
"And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day."
This can not be a description of God creating a division of the oceans by the land. The description of God dividing the land and ocean is given on the third day. And even in this description, the ocean isn't said to be divided as we see it today. Notice what it says in v. 9,
"And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so."
So, if you just take the words literally, you have three divisions. Water above the heaven (sky), water below the heaven (sky), and then dry land below the heaven. We have an Earth that has one ocean, and one connected landmass, and one orbital water canopy.
Many people have cast doubt on the Flood by saying that the sky couldn't hold enough water to rain that much water down. And they are correct in this assertion. In fact, according to the USGS website, the atmosphere can only hold about 0.001 % of all the water on the Earth at any given time. Also, according to this site, if it all rained out at once, it would only cover the ground to about an inch. That would be no where near the amount needed to cover every mountaintop to a depth of around 20 feet as stated in Genesis 7. So, the atmosphere could not have been the only source of water for the Flood. The orbital water canopy surrounding the Earth gets around this problem with ease. There is no telling how much diffuse water could have been in orbit around our Earth before the Flood.
I believe that this water canopy had some wonderful beneficial affects on mankind. It would have shielded men from the most directly harmful rays from the Sun. UV radiation is known today to cause many forms of cancer, but it is also known that radiation from the Sun can also negatively impact our DNA. To make a long story short, if you destroy or deform DNA, you cause health problems and sometimes death.
Secondly, according to the scientific theories on aging, some believe that we have genes that program our bodies to prepare for death by shutting them down as we age. This theory has some support. When sheep or any other animal have been cloned from the somatic cells of an adult of their species, they don't live a complete lifespan. It seems that those somatic cells taken from the adult retain a "memory" of the age of the original animal. For example, if a sheep has an ordinary lifespan of 11 to 12 years, a clone taken from a 6 year old sheep should be expected to survive for only 5 to 6 years. There seems to be a genetic predisposition for death, and that predisposition is passed on when the cells replicate to form the clone. (Germ cells, or sperm and egg cells, are different.) Another genetic problem that is thought to cause death is that as DNA is replicated, the copies tend to get less and less accurate. As a result, the DNA becomes less effective at repairing our bodies when damaged, or regulating the body systems. This causes wrinkles, loss of organ function, etc. Eventually, the DNA itself is shortened to a degree to render it nonfunctional. Cell death occurs, and eventually when that occurs enough it leads to our death.
I believe that two things are evident from a Biblical perspective. One is that sin causes death (Romans 6:23). The farther we are down the line from Adam, who was created with a perfect body, the more sin has a chance to work. This can manifest itself as disease and death. The other belief of evidence is that God placed in us genes that limit our lifespan. This could have taken place at the Fall (Genesis 3:19), or after the Flood. I do know that God says in Psalms 90:9-10,
"For all our days are passed away in Thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told. The days of our years are threescore and ten (70 years); and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years (80 years), yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away."
Our normal lifespan is only about 70 to 80 years. We all know of those extreme cases where people live to be 100 or possibly 120, but that is about it. No modern person has lived as long as those recorded in the Bible. There is a reason for that. The sins of the antediluvians has had consequences that still affect us to this day.
So, what was this sin? Let's see what the account says. Genesis 6:1-7,
"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and fowls of the air; for it repenteth Me that I have made them."
Now we come to a somewhat controversial portion of the Word of God among scholars. There are two basic schools of thought as to who these sons of God were. There really is no doubt as to who the daughters of men are. They are human women. But the sons of God are thought by one group to be the "righteous" line of Seth, while another group believe them to be the fallen demonic angels of Satan. My personal belief from scripture is that these sons of God are fallen angels. When you compare scripture with scripture and look at the context of the passage, there really can be no other conclusion. While it is true that both humans and angels are spoken of as "sons of God", when you understand the title, the issue is quickly cleared up.
"Son of God" is a title given to someone who is in a position of rulership or is destined for rulership under God's authority. In Job 1 and 2, we have another description of sons of God.
Job 1:6 states,
"Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them..."
Job 2:1 states,
"Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD..."
Apparently, all the angelic host that are in rulership, both good and bad, are required to report to God on a periodic basis. What would they be reporting to God? God is the ultimate Authority in the Universe, He sets their bounds and degree of power they are allowed to use, and they must give an account to Him of their respective providence. It can't be denied that Satan is the ruler of this world and that he has subordinates (demons) under his authority.
Ephesians 2:2 states,
"Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air (Satan), the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:"
Ephesians 6:10-13 states,
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."
This really gets at the heart of the cause of the Flood. In the years before the Flood, the daughters born to men had started allowing (maybe even seeking) fraternization with demonic angels. As a result of this unholy action, several things occurred. It produced a race of giants wholly against God and his people. It produced a further degradation of the human race, whereby the thoughts of their hearts were evil continually. Sounds quite familiar to me. This is a very good description of the world we live in today (Luke 17:26-30).
God then sets a limit as to how long He will allow this degradation to go on. He give man 120 years to repent and turn to Him. Then at the end of those 120 years God sends judgment on mankind in the form of the Flood. What about those sons of God? God deals with them as well.
2Peter 2:4-5 states,
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell (tartarus), and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;"
(See also Jude 1:6)
God didn't allow these demonic angels to stay free. He incarcerated them into the lowest parts of hell to await the judgment of the Great White Throne.
"Tartarus" (G5020) tartaroo - the name of the subterranean region, doleful and dark, regarded by the ancient Greeks as the abode of the wicked dead, where they suffer punishment for their wicked deeds,
The Greeks saw Tartarus as the worst part of hell. Only the worst of the worst went to this region. It is interesting to note that this is the only occurrence of this word in the New Testament and it is in connection to these angels who went into the daughters of men. The offenses of those demons were so great, they could not be allowed to roam about freely. Why was it considered so great? Because it was an attempt to prevent the birth of the seed of the woman, the Lord Jesus Christ (Genesis 3:15). If they could completely infect the entire human race with their seed, then the Lord Jesus could never have been born. Their attempts were nearly successful. It came down to only one family of eight people.
So our take home message, as it were, is that we should never entertain any sort of demonic influences in our lives. We should resist them in the power of the Lord. We shouldn't actively go out and be "demon hunters," but we should allow God to be our defense and His word to be our offense. We should seek to be like Noah. We should have our lives bent toward God and His ways. If we do, we will be delivered through the judgement that is coming and enter into a new world.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Was the Flood of Noah a Myth?
It is no wonder to find nonbelievers who don't believe that the Flood of Genesis 6 - 9 actually happened. What surprises me is when I talk to other Christians and they don't believe the Flood actually took place. Some, partially believe and say that it was only a localized event in the Middle East. In this study, I hope to show you from a biblical stand point why Christians should believe that the record in Genesis is accurate and worthy of our study.
1.) If you are a believer, you should believe that the Bible is God's Word and the original wording of the text has been preserved for us by God. With this said, I do not believe that every Bible version is an accurate representation of the original Greek, Hebrew, and Chaldee texts. In addition to this, some versions of the Bible are only paraphrases (i.e. The Living Bible). I can understand only bits and pieces of Greek text, that is why I encourage anyone with $10 to $15 to buy a Strong's Concordance. The concordance will help you tremendously in your study of the word of God.
Even with some mistranslation, any believer who desires to understand God's truth can see and understand it. God is more than capable of revealing Himself and His plans to anyone (Romans 1:19-20). Any translation of the Bible that is based on the original languages should be a pretty good translation. I am more comfortable using King James because it is based on the original languages, and my ear has been trained to understand its wording. This is what God had to say about his word:
Psalms 12:1-8,
"Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men. They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak. The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongues that speaketh proud things: Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail: our lips are our own: who is lord over us? For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him. The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. The wicked walk on every side when the vilest men are exalted."
When God inspired the writers of the Bible to record the Bible, God Himself (Who is perfect) looked at every word that was to be recorded seven times to make sure that the particular word was the one He wanted to say. Not only that, God has preserved these seven-times-chosen words from the time they were recorded until forever. It is very important to God that His word is delivered to us in just the way that He meant it.
Josh McDowell (a former atheist) does a wonderful job in his work, The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, in establishing the case for the preservation of the biblical text. In chapter three of his book he asserts that there are three basic principles of historiography (historical reliability): 1.) bibliographical test, 2.) the internal evidence test, and 3.) the external evidence test. In this chapter, McDowell puts the New Testament portion of the Bible through these three tests. I want to focus only on the first test. The bibliographic test is a way of testing the method by which a document is handed down through time. "In other words, since we do not have the original documents, how reliable are the copies we have in regard to the number of manuscripts (MSS) and the time interval between the original and extant (currently existing) copies? (McDowell p. 33-34)" According to McDowell's research, copies of the number of New Testament, that are either partial or complete versions date from the second through the fifteenth centuries, and total over 5600. If you include other language copies the number jumps to close to 25,000. The next closest contender in this test for accuracy of an ancient text is Homer's Illiad with only 643 extant manuscripts with the first of these dating only back to the thirteenth century. John Warwick Montgomery is quoted in the book to say "to be skeptical of the resultant text of the New Testament books is to allow all of the classical antiquity to slip into obscurity, for no documents of the ancient period are so well attested bibliographically as the New Testament (p. 35)." What he is saying is that if we can't trust the original text that has been handed down to us through these manuscripts of the New Testament then we can't trust any ancient manuscript as to its accuracy. This would include even the historical documents that reveal to us the history of the ancient world.
Even though Josh McDowell's focus was on the New Testament in chapter 3, he does establish the bibliographic authenticity of the Old Testament in chapter 4 of the same book. If you are interested in reading this chapter, or the entire work (which I recommend), feel free to pick up a copy. You can find it in almost any Christian bookstore.
You might say to me, "Wait a minute, didn't you just say that there are some translations of the Bible that aren't that great?" While this is true, good translations are available. Anyone who is interested in finding and reading one is more than capable of it. If you will notice that the very Psalm that I quoted refers to vanity, and flattering lips. I don't believe that this vanity or flattering lips would be limited to just secular things like science. This vanity and flattering lips would also be found in the sacred world as well. God is more than able to preserve His word. He is also more than able to preserve His people from error. He can also lead you to an accurate translation of His word.
Genesis 7:17-24:
"And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered. And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days."
If God's word has been accurately handed down to us, and His words are true. Then when He states that there was a world wide flood that topped the mountains by over 20 feet, we should believe it, no matter what any man says about the matter. This is no morality story filled with exaggerations meant to scare us into being good. It is an accurate account of God's judgement on a rebellious mankind.
2.) Jesus believed in the historical reality of the Flood. In Matthew 24:37-39 (paralleled in Luke 17) Jesus states:
"But as the days of Noe (Greek spelling of Noah) were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be."
Either Jesus was an ignorant, backward, back-woods carpenter who was heavily influenced by His culture and prejudiced by His religion, or He was and is God Himself, Who knows all, sees all, and is all powerful. It can't be both ways. If God Almighty says that there was a flood, then there was a flood, despite anyone's opinion about it. If you are a Christian, you should accept this as truth. In addition to this, Jesus ties the events of the flood to His second coming. He treats them both with the same amount of certainty. If He is wrong about one of them, then he could be wrong about the other. If the flood is in doubt, then His return is in doubt. How could any believer that says they believe in His return doubt the flood?
3.) The prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel both believed in the Flood and Noah. Both of these prophets record God's warnings to the Nation of Israel, and in them speak of Noah and the Flood. And for that matter, God the Father believed in the flood.
Isaiah 54:9,
"For this is as the waters of Noah unto Me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee."
Ezekiel 14:14, 20,
"Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith Lord GOD.
Though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own soul by their righteousness."
4.) The writer of Hebrews also believed in a literal Flood and Noah.
Hebrews 11:7,
"By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."
5.) Peter, the apostle, believed in a literal Flood and Noah.
1 Peter 3:19-20,
"By which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water."
2Peter2:5,
"And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the the ungodly;"
There seems to me to be little doubt from a biblical standpoint as to the reality of the Flood. It may seem to be a fantastic story that stretches our ability to imagine, but nevertheless it doesn't change the fact of the matter. Our inability to see all the facts, and our reticence to believe what has been recorded for us, are quickly alleviated if we just remember Who it is that sent the Flood in the first place. If the God of the Universe is capable of making the entire Universe FROM NOTHING, then how hard would it be to bring a world-wide flood upon the earth? It is not that our God is lacking in power, it is that we are lacking in faith. We shouldn't believe the lie that to accept the Flood is to give up all rational scientific thought. We should just realize that our belief is based in the Person who can do all things, and Who does all things, without our permission or ascent that we think it is possible. This same God walked on the water too. He changed water into wine. He parted the Red Sea and the Jordan river. He has also given to water some very amazing natural abilities that make our lives possible. Why not believe that He is capable of using it to judge us? The real reason we have trouble with the concept is that we don't like facing up to the fact that He will call each of us to give an account of ourselves. If we can disprove or otherwise ignore the judgement that others faced, it makes it easier to do the same in our own situation.
1.) If you are a believer, you should believe that the Bible is God's Word and the original wording of the text has been preserved for us by God. With this said, I do not believe that every Bible version is an accurate representation of the original Greek, Hebrew, and Chaldee texts. In addition to this, some versions of the Bible are only paraphrases (i.e. The Living Bible). I can understand only bits and pieces of Greek text, that is why I encourage anyone with $10 to $15 to buy a Strong's Concordance. The concordance will help you tremendously in your study of the word of God.
Even with some mistranslation, any believer who desires to understand God's truth can see and understand it. God is more than capable of revealing Himself and His plans to anyone (Romans 1:19-20). Any translation of the Bible that is based on the original languages should be a pretty good translation. I am more comfortable using King James because it is based on the original languages, and my ear has been trained to understand its wording. This is what God had to say about his word:
Psalms 12:1-8,
"Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men. They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak. The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongues that speaketh proud things: Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail: our lips are our own: who is lord over us? For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him. The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. The wicked walk on every side when the vilest men are exalted."
When God inspired the writers of the Bible to record the Bible, God Himself (Who is perfect) looked at every word that was to be recorded seven times to make sure that the particular word was the one He wanted to say. Not only that, God has preserved these seven-times-chosen words from the time they were recorded until forever. It is very important to God that His word is delivered to us in just the way that He meant it.
Josh McDowell (a former atheist) does a wonderful job in his work, The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict, in establishing the case for the preservation of the biblical text. In chapter three of his book he asserts that there are three basic principles of historiography (historical reliability): 1.) bibliographical test, 2.) the internal evidence test, and 3.) the external evidence test. In this chapter, McDowell puts the New Testament portion of the Bible through these three tests. I want to focus only on the first test. The bibliographic test is a way of testing the method by which a document is handed down through time. "In other words, since we do not have the original documents, how reliable are the copies we have in regard to the number of manuscripts (MSS) and the time interval between the original and extant (currently existing) copies? (McDowell p. 33-34)" According to McDowell's research, copies of the number of New Testament, that are either partial or complete versions date from the second through the fifteenth centuries, and total over 5600. If you include other language copies the number jumps to close to 25,000. The next closest contender in this test for accuracy of an ancient text is Homer's Illiad with only 643 extant manuscripts with the first of these dating only back to the thirteenth century. John Warwick Montgomery is quoted in the book to say "to be skeptical of the resultant text of the New Testament books is to allow all of the classical antiquity to slip into obscurity, for no documents of the ancient period are so well attested bibliographically as the New Testament (p. 35)." What he is saying is that if we can't trust the original text that has been handed down to us through these manuscripts of the New Testament then we can't trust any ancient manuscript as to its accuracy. This would include even the historical documents that reveal to us the history of the ancient world.
Even though Josh McDowell's focus was on the New Testament in chapter 3, he does establish the bibliographic authenticity of the Old Testament in chapter 4 of the same book. If you are interested in reading this chapter, or the entire work (which I recommend), feel free to pick up a copy. You can find it in almost any Christian bookstore.
You might say to me, "Wait a minute, didn't you just say that there are some translations of the Bible that aren't that great?" While this is true, good translations are available. Anyone who is interested in finding and reading one is more than capable of it. If you will notice that the very Psalm that I quoted refers to vanity, and flattering lips. I don't believe that this vanity or flattering lips would be limited to just secular things like science. This vanity and flattering lips would also be found in the sacred world as well. God is more than able to preserve His word. He is also more than able to preserve His people from error. He can also lead you to an accurate translation of His word.
Genesis 7:17-24:
"And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered. And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days."
If God's word has been accurately handed down to us, and His words are true. Then when He states that there was a world wide flood that topped the mountains by over 20 feet, we should believe it, no matter what any man says about the matter. This is no morality story filled with exaggerations meant to scare us into being good. It is an accurate account of God's judgement on a rebellious mankind.
2.) Jesus believed in the historical reality of the Flood. In Matthew 24:37-39 (paralleled in Luke 17) Jesus states:
"But as the days of Noe (Greek spelling of Noah) were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be."
Either Jesus was an ignorant, backward, back-woods carpenter who was heavily influenced by His culture and prejudiced by His religion, or He was and is God Himself, Who knows all, sees all, and is all powerful. It can't be both ways. If God Almighty says that there was a flood, then there was a flood, despite anyone's opinion about it. If you are a Christian, you should accept this as truth. In addition to this, Jesus ties the events of the flood to His second coming. He treats them both with the same amount of certainty. If He is wrong about one of them, then he could be wrong about the other. If the flood is in doubt, then His return is in doubt. How could any believer that says they believe in His return doubt the flood?
3.) The prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel both believed in the Flood and Noah. Both of these prophets record God's warnings to the Nation of Israel, and in them speak of Noah and the Flood. And for that matter, God the Father believed in the flood.
Isaiah 54:9,
"For this is as the waters of Noah unto Me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee."
Ezekiel 14:14, 20,
"Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith Lord GOD.
Though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own soul by their righteousness."
4.) The writer of Hebrews also believed in a literal Flood and Noah.
Hebrews 11:7,
"By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."
5.) Peter, the apostle, believed in a literal Flood and Noah.
1 Peter 3:19-20,
"By which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water."
2Peter2:5,
"And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the the ungodly;"
There seems to me to be little doubt from a biblical standpoint as to the reality of the Flood. It may seem to be a fantastic story that stretches our ability to imagine, but nevertheless it doesn't change the fact of the matter. Our inability to see all the facts, and our reticence to believe what has been recorded for us, are quickly alleviated if we just remember Who it is that sent the Flood in the first place. If the God of the Universe is capable of making the entire Universe FROM NOTHING, then how hard would it be to bring a world-wide flood upon the earth? It is not that our God is lacking in power, it is that we are lacking in faith. We shouldn't believe the lie that to accept the Flood is to give up all rational scientific thought. We should just realize that our belief is based in the Person who can do all things, and Who does all things, without our permission or ascent that we think it is possible. This same God walked on the water too. He changed water into wine. He parted the Red Sea and the Jordan river. He has also given to water some very amazing natural abilities that make our lives possible. Why not believe that He is capable of using it to judge us? The real reason we have trouble with the concept is that we don't like facing up to the fact that He will call each of us to give an account of ourselves. If we can disprove or otherwise ignore the judgement that others faced, it makes it easier to do the same in our own situation.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Why would God tell us the story of Cain and Abel? Part #2
I hope to finish up our study of Cain and Abel with this post. There really is a wealth of information that can be gleaned from this passage of scripture. I have the sinking suspension that, even though I have studied, I am just uncovering the tip of the iceberg.
Genesis 4:3-5,
"And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering He had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell."
As we have seen in previous studies, Cain was a saved individual. The issue at hand was about bringing the proper offering, an offering of the best. Cain failed to bring the proper offering because he failed to act "by faith". The only way an individual can act "by faith" is to hear a commandment from God and then obey it (Romans 10:17). God must have expressed to man the proper "gifts" to bring to Him, even though it isn't recorded for us until Leviticus.
Hebrews 10:38-11:4,
"By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh."
Abel's offering was accepted and he was witnessed by God to be righteous (Greek dikaios - "in a wide sense, upright, righteous, virtuous, keeping the commandments of God) because he offered by faith. His work was directed by his faith. It is the same situation found with Abraham offering Isaac, as in the words written by James in James 2:21-24 state:
"Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect (complete, mature)? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only."
It is impossible to say that Abraham wasn't a believer before he offered his son on Mt. Moriah. In the same way, Cain and Abel were both saved and bringing an offering or gift to God. Abel and Abraham both brought to God their very best, their most dear. Cain did not.
This lead to God not respecting Cain's offering/gift. Cain becomes very angry (Ephesians 4:26-27), and allows his countenance to fall. God then intervenes and gives to Cain counsel to turn from the path that he is traveling down.
Genesis 4:6-7
"And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If you doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire,and thou shalt rule over him."
Cain ignores God's warnings. How many believers do the same? Cain then continues down his path of self destruction.
Genesis 4:8,
"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him."
Sin pounced on Cain, and in turn, Cain pounced on his brother and slaughtered him. When Christians fail to heed God's warning in his word, when they fail to be renewed in their minds, when they fail to look up rather than down, the end result is the same. We go down the path of error and apostasy. We begin to attack those who stay on the path that God lays out. When we follow God's path, we are His disciples (or pupils), when we follow Satan's path we become his disciples (or pupils) even though we are saved.
In the Greek of the New Testament the world "children" is sometimes translated "teknon." A "teknon" G5043 - child metaphorically: 'in the New Testament, pupils or disciples are called children of their teachers, because the latter by their instruction nourish the minds of their pupils and mould their characters). Christians who allow their minds to be nourished and moulded by Satan can be called the "children of Satan" (Again, check out previous studies on how Peter was similarly characterized).
1 John3:10-12,
"In this the children (teknon) of God are manifest, and the children (teknon) of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. (that sounds familiar) For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and this brother's righteous."
If the voice we listen to is that of Satan, our end will be the same as Cain's end. If the voice we listen to is God's voice, then we can enjoy the recognition and acceptance of Abel. But, let's not miss the point that Abel paid a price for being righteous. He lost his life, being slaughtered by his own brother. There will be other Christians who will do the very same thing to us.
The word "slew" in the passage is "sphazo" G4969 - to butcher (especially an animal, for food or in sacrifice) or (generally) to slaughter, or (specially) to maim (violently). Don't be surprised when this happens, God has warned us beforehand that it will occur.
2Timothy3:12-17,
"Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works."
To further the point that it isn't an issue of being eternally saved where Cain is involved, notice the last part of 1John3:12,
"And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous."
It is a matter of work, both Cain's work and Abel's work, not faith toward eternal salvation. The word for work here is ergon -G2041 - toil (as an effort or occupation); by implication, an act. Cain went from not giving his best to God, to the point of actually working against God's plans and purposes. He apostatized.
Jude speaks in very similar terms about apostates in his epistle. Jude originally wanted to speak on the subject of spirit salvation (eternal salvation), but the Holy Spirit wouldn't allow it. He directed Jude to warn Christians to contend for "the faith" the religious beliefs of Christians against apostates that had crept in without being noticed.
Jude 3-5, 8, 10-11a, 13,
"Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness (unbridled lust, excess), and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.
But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain,...
Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever."
There are many parallels here with Cain. God approaches Cain a second time after he kills his brother. Consider what He says,
Genesis 4:9-12,
"And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? And He said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto Me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall unto henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth."
God, it seems, gave to Cain one last shot to come clean. Maybe if he had been repentant and thrown himself down on God's mercy, things could have been different. Instead he lies, and on top of that denies that his brother is his responsibility (keeper - H8104 - shamar - to hedge about, guard, to protect, attend to.) Think of this in light of James 5:19-20 and Hebrews 10:19-25, Cain should have been the more mature one (he was older). He should have been instructing his younger brother on how to serve the Lord.
God says that Cain will be a fugitive and a vagabond. Fugitive in this passage is "nuwa" - H5128 - to waver. Vagabond is "nuwd" - H5110 - to nod, to wander, flee, disappear. Ultimately, because Cain had turned his back on God's correction and slew his righteous brother, he was destined to waver and wander without guidance. Christians who apostatize do the same. They waver from one opinion to another on spiritual matters because they ignore God's leading and correction. They are left to wander in the world without purpose, because they have denied the true purpose of their calling. Notice how this parallels the description in Jude 13,
"Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame;" The sea is unstable. It wavers back and forth. James 1:5-6 and Hebrews 10:23.
"wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever (aion G165 -age)" The wandering stars are Christians who have no direction. They are Christians who will ultimately end up in Outer Darkness (See the last study: What is Outer Darkness?). The duration of their stay is for an age, the Kingdom Age. The Kingdom Age is that time when Christ will set up His rulership up on this Earth and will reign for 1000 years. Faithful Christians will enjoy this joyful time and participate in His government. Unfaithful Christians, those who followed in the way of Cain, will not. Consider the following warning passages to Christians:
1 Corinthians 6:9-11,
"Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God."
Galatians 5:16, 19-21,
"This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."
Ephesians 5:1-6,
"Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to god for a sweet smelling savour. But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience."
Revelation 22:12-16a,
"And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. I Jesus have sent Mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches.
It is amazing. When you look to the final dwelling place of Cain, where he built his own city, you can see the full implications for Christians who follow in his ways. Nod is the word "nowd" - vagrancy. Homeless. Truly Cain was homeless. Through his own sin he had robbed himself of his true home. Christians who are unfaithful will do the same. And for an age, they will become vagrants from the Kingdom and be consigned to Outer Darkness.
Genesis 4:3-5,
"And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering He had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell."
As we have seen in previous studies, Cain was a saved individual. The issue at hand was about bringing the proper offering, an offering of the best. Cain failed to bring the proper offering because he failed to act "by faith". The only way an individual can act "by faith" is to hear a commandment from God and then obey it (Romans 10:17). God must have expressed to man the proper "gifts" to bring to Him, even though it isn't recorded for us until Leviticus.
Hebrews 10:38-11:4,
"By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh."
Abel's offering was accepted and he was witnessed by God to be righteous (Greek dikaios - "in a wide sense, upright, righteous, virtuous, keeping the commandments of God) because he offered by faith. His work was directed by his faith. It is the same situation found with Abraham offering Isaac, as in the words written by James in James 2:21-24 state:
"Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect (complete, mature)? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only."
It is impossible to say that Abraham wasn't a believer before he offered his son on Mt. Moriah. In the same way, Cain and Abel were both saved and bringing an offering or gift to God. Abel and Abraham both brought to God their very best, their most dear. Cain did not.
This lead to God not respecting Cain's offering/gift. Cain becomes very angry (Ephesians 4:26-27), and allows his countenance to fall. God then intervenes and gives to Cain counsel to turn from the path that he is traveling down.
Genesis 4:6-7
"And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If you doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire,and thou shalt rule over him."
Cain ignores God's warnings. How many believers do the same? Cain then continues down his path of self destruction.
Genesis 4:8,
"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him."
Sin pounced on Cain, and in turn, Cain pounced on his brother and slaughtered him. When Christians fail to heed God's warning in his word, when they fail to be renewed in their minds, when they fail to look up rather than down, the end result is the same. We go down the path of error and apostasy. We begin to attack those who stay on the path that God lays out. When we follow God's path, we are His disciples (or pupils), when we follow Satan's path we become his disciples (or pupils) even though we are saved.
In the Greek of the New Testament the world "children" is sometimes translated "teknon." A "teknon" G5043 - child metaphorically: 'in the New Testament, pupils or disciples are called children of their teachers, because the latter by their instruction nourish the minds of their pupils and mould their characters). Christians who allow their minds to be nourished and moulded by Satan can be called the "children of Satan" (Again, check out previous studies on how Peter was similarly characterized).
1 John3:10-12,
"In this the children (teknon) of God are manifest, and the children (teknon) of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. (that sounds familiar) For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and this brother's righteous."
If the voice we listen to is that of Satan, our end will be the same as Cain's end. If the voice we listen to is God's voice, then we can enjoy the recognition and acceptance of Abel. But, let's not miss the point that Abel paid a price for being righteous. He lost his life, being slaughtered by his own brother. There will be other Christians who will do the very same thing to us.
The word "slew" in the passage is "sphazo" G4969 - to butcher (especially an animal, for food or in sacrifice) or (generally) to slaughter, or (specially) to maim (violently). Don't be surprised when this happens, God has warned us beforehand that it will occur.
2Timothy3:12-17,
"Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works."
To further the point that it isn't an issue of being eternally saved where Cain is involved, notice the last part of 1John3:12,
"And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous."
It is a matter of work, both Cain's work and Abel's work, not faith toward eternal salvation. The word for work here is ergon -G2041 - toil (as an effort or occupation); by implication, an act. Cain went from not giving his best to God, to the point of actually working against God's plans and purposes. He apostatized.
Jude speaks in very similar terms about apostates in his epistle. Jude originally wanted to speak on the subject of spirit salvation (eternal salvation), but the Holy Spirit wouldn't allow it. He directed Jude to warn Christians to contend for "the faith" the religious beliefs of Christians against apostates that had crept in without being noticed.
Jude 3-5, 8, 10-11a, 13,
"Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness (unbridled lust, excess), and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.
But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain,...
Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever."
There are many parallels here with Cain. God approaches Cain a second time after he kills his brother. Consider what He says,
Genesis 4:9-12,
"And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? And He said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto Me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall unto henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth."
God, it seems, gave to Cain one last shot to come clean. Maybe if he had been repentant and thrown himself down on God's mercy, things could have been different. Instead he lies, and on top of that denies that his brother is his responsibility (keeper - H8104 - shamar - to hedge about, guard, to protect, attend to.) Think of this in light of James 5:19-20 and Hebrews 10:19-25, Cain should have been the more mature one (he was older). He should have been instructing his younger brother on how to serve the Lord.
God says that Cain will be a fugitive and a vagabond. Fugitive in this passage is "nuwa" - H5128 - to waver. Vagabond is "nuwd" - H5110 - to nod, to wander, flee, disappear. Ultimately, because Cain had turned his back on God's correction and slew his righteous brother, he was destined to waver and wander without guidance. Christians who apostatize do the same. They waver from one opinion to another on spiritual matters because they ignore God's leading and correction. They are left to wander in the world without purpose, because they have denied the true purpose of their calling. Notice how this parallels the description in Jude 13,
"Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame;" The sea is unstable. It wavers back and forth. James 1:5-6 and Hebrews 10:23.
"wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever (aion G165 -age)" The wandering stars are Christians who have no direction. They are Christians who will ultimately end up in Outer Darkness (See the last study: What is Outer Darkness?). The duration of their stay is for an age, the Kingdom Age. The Kingdom Age is that time when Christ will set up His rulership up on this Earth and will reign for 1000 years. Faithful Christians will enjoy this joyful time and participate in His government. Unfaithful Christians, those who followed in the way of Cain, will not. Consider the following warning passages to Christians:
1 Corinthians 6:9-11,
"Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God."
Galatians 5:16, 19-21,
"This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."
Ephesians 5:1-6,
"Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to god for a sweet smelling savour. But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience."
Revelation 22:12-16a,
"And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. I Jesus have sent Mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches.
It is amazing. When you look to the final dwelling place of Cain, where he built his own city, you can see the full implications for Christians who follow in his ways. Nod is the word "nowd" - vagrancy. Homeless. Truly Cain was homeless. Through his own sin he had robbed himself of his true home. Christians who are unfaithful will do the same. And for an age, they will become vagrants from the Kingdom and be consigned to Outer Darkness.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
What is Outer Darkness?
I think that now would be a good time to pause in our study of the typology of Cain and Abel to interject a word study on Outer Darkness. In reality, this interjection is quite appropriate because we are just about to discuss the end result of Cain's lack of faithfulness to God, and by typological implication, the end result of an unfaithful believer's life that was lived for themselves.
Too many teachers of the Word fail to grasp the full weight of what awaits a believer at the Judgement Seat of Christ when they have lived a life of unfaithfulness. Many believe that the Judgement Seat of Christ is just a rewarding seat. They believe that the believers that will stand before Christ after the Rapture will only be congratulated, or at the most scolded for lack of service. They see no real loss at that judgement. The scriptures speak of something a lot more serious.
To begin with, lets look at some relevant verses to help support the case that I will be making.
1 Corinthians 3:11 - 15 states:
"For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire."
It is very clear from this verse that our works will be judged by the Lord. Only those works that are of quality (works done by faith) will remain, while those that are worthless (not of faith) will be burned. Not only that, the unfaithful worker suffers loss. This loss isn't consignment to hell, because the Bible is very clear here. He is saved, but suffers loss of reward.
The fact that the works of Christians will be judged by Christ at the Judgement Seat can be established quite easily. Look at the following verses:
Romans 14:10 - 12 states:
"But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God."
2 Corinthians 5:8 - 11 states:
"We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labour, that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether if be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persaude men; but we are manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in you consciences."
It is undeniable that every Christian will have to give an account of their faithfulness to God at the Judgement Seat of Christ. We like to think of only the good things that might flow forth from this judgement of God, and not the things that might not be so pleasing to us. But, whether or not we like to think about it or not, it is possible that each of us could hear something that will make our very beings quake. This could be placement into Outer Darkness.
Now, lets turn to the subject of Outer Darkness. The phrase "Outer Darkness" comes from two Greek words:
exteros (G1857) - exterior: -outer
skotos (G4655) - shadiness, i.e. obscurity: - darkness.
So, the definition would be "the darkness the outer" - darkness outside the limits of a lighted palace. The idea that this imagery should bring to you will be very clear if you imagine a wedding or party that is being held at night. In the center of the festivities would be the bride and groom (Jesus and His most intimate followers), around them would be their friends and relatives (faithful Old Testament Saints, and faithful followers of Christ), and on the outside of the party you would find those that had been excluded from the marriage feast (unfaithful believers). These unfaithful believers can see the festivities, but they cannot participate in them. They can see the lighted palace, but they themselves are on the outskirts. The guests on the inside may be laughing and enjoying the joy of the marriage along with the bride and groom, but not those on the outside. They may even be crying over what they could have been a part of.
Before you reject the notion out of hand, see what the Bible has to say. Then judge for yourself what it really says. I know that many of us have been told that in heaven there will be no tears. This isn't the case. Tears are not wiped away by God until after the 1000 year reign of Christ (Revelation 21:1-4) So, please, stay with me a little longer and consider what I have to say.
There are three occurrences where the words for Outer Darkness are explicitly used. There are several more where it is implied. My intention will be to focus more on the places where it is actually used. All three occurences are in the gospel of Matthew. The first is Matthew 8.
Matthew 8:5 - 13 says:
"And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto Him a centurion, beseeching Him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou has believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the same hour."
The centurion knew his place. He knew who Jesus was (Savior and King). He believed that Jesus was capable of healing the servant with just a word. The centurion understood what an authority structure meant. Jesus had supreme power, therefore, whatever He said would happen. So, the centurion believed God and his actions were directed by that belief. Jesus in response says to the Jews that He was preaching to about Himself, that Gentiles who show this kind of faith will be able to enter into the kingdom (remember the party I spoke of earlier). Those saved Jews that didn't believe that Jesus was the King, or didn't want to allow Him to be their King would be cast out of the kingdom (but not into hell). They will be cast into outer darkness. The weeping and gnashing of teeth comes from their realization of what they could have had. You must make a distinction between the Kingdom of Heaven and Heaven. They are not the same thing. The parallel passage in Luke 13:24-30 has some very interesting things to say as well.
The second occurence is in Matthew 22.
Matthew 22: 1-14 states:
"And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come. Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage. But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: And the remanant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy, Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered to gather all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests. And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen."
This parable is a very thinly veiled description of what was happening, and was going to happen after Jesus' first advent. The Father is preparing for the Son a wedding feast. He has sent servants (Old Testament Prophets, John the Baptist, the Apostles, and other Servants) to bid the Jews to the feast. The Jews didn't think much of the offer that had been presented them, and in fact they killed the Prophets, John the Baptist, and the Apostles. In 70 A.D. Jerusalem was destroyed by the Roman army, which was an instrument of God's divine Judgement. God then turned to the Gentiles and is presently calling them to come to the feast. Entrance into this feast requires Gentiles to first be saved, and then have proper wedding attire. Wedding attire is "fashioned" from the good works that are done out of faith. (Revelation 19:7-10, and 1 Corinthians 15:35-50) Guests that are not properly clothed, aren't allowed to be at the feast. The guest that the King finds in the parable is speechless. He has nothing to say because he has no excuse for not being prepared. As a result of being unprepared, he is cast into the darkness outside the wedding feast. In the same way, any believer who is unprepared (by having done no good works out of faith) will also find themselves in the darkness outside the kingdom of God.
The last occurence is in Matthew 25.
Matthew 25:13-30:
"For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delievered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou delieveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things, enter thou into the joy of thy lord. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou delieveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. Then, he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou has not sown, and gathering where thou has not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance : but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
In this last parable, we see the full transition. Only Christians are in view. Many teachers teach that only two of the servants were saved. This can not be the case and the integrity of the passage remain intact. These people in view are all described as "servants". They are all given the Lord's goods. No unbeliever can thus be described. Once more, each servant is called into question as to how they worked with the Lord's goods. Faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus isn't the basis for judgement. Being profitable or unprofitable to the Lord is the basis. It is clear from the passage that when the Lord returns, He will bring us into account for how we have handled what He has entrusted us with. Reward will follow for those who have handled the things of the Lord wisely, while outer darkness and loss of reward will be the fate of those believers who have been lazy and wicked.
These are the passages where the words "outer darkness" are actually used. But I believe that there are several more where it is implied. One such passage is found in Matthew 24.
Consider Matthew 24:44-51:
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his Lord hath made him ruler over his houshold, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his Lord when He cometh shall find so doing ("watching" - see v. 42). Verily I say unto you, that He shall make him ruler over all His goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My Lord delayeth His coming; And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for Him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
I really don't know how much plainer the Lord can make this. It is quite clear from the text, if it is read with an open and honest mind, that both are servants (believers) and both are dealt with according to how they acted, and how they worked (in other words, how they lived). It is clear if we start having the mindset of the world, then our Lord will not be pleased, to say the least. The state of the unfaithful servant is described in terms very similar to those of outer darkness.
Once you begin to make the distinctions between faith and works, the kingdom and heaven, and spirit, soul, and body; these truths concerning our accountability to the Lord become evident. There are many more examples that could be cited, but I hope and trust that these few here will be sufficient to make us stop and think, and to search out the scriptures for ourselves. Really, it matters little what I have to say. What is important is what God has said. Truly we are blessed when we just let Him speak.
Too many teachers of the Word fail to grasp the full weight of what awaits a believer at the Judgement Seat of Christ when they have lived a life of unfaithfulness. Many believe that the Judgement Seat of Christ is just a rewarding seat. They believe that the believers that will stand before Christ after the Rapture will only be congratulated, or at the most scolded for lack of service. They see no real loss at that judgement. The scriptures speak of something a lot more serious.
To begin with, lets look at some relevant verses to help support the case that I will be making.
1 Corinthians 3:11 - 15 states:
"For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire."
It is very clear from this verse that our works will be judged by the Lord. Only those works that are of quality (works done by faith) will remain, while those that are worthless (not of faith) will be burned. Not only that, the unfaithful worker suffers loss. This loss isn't consignment to hell, because the Bible is very clear here. He is saved, but suffers loss of reward.
The fact that the works of Christians will be judged by Christ at the Judgement Seat can be established quite easily. Look at the following verses:
Romans 14:10 - 12 states:
"But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God."
2 Corinthians 5:8 - 11 states:
"We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labour, that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether if be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persaude men; but we are manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in you consciences."
It is undeniable that every Christian will have to give an account of their faithfulness to God at the Judgement Seat of Christ. We like to think of only the good things that might flow forth from this judgement of God, and not the things that might not be so pleasing to us. But, whether or not we like to think about it or not, it is possible that each of us could hear something that will make our very beings quake. This could be placement into Outer Darkness.
Now, lets turn to the subject of Outer Darkness. The phrase "Outer Darkness" comes from two Greek words:
exteros (G1857) - exterior: -outer
skotos (G4655) - shadiness, i.e. obscurity: - darkness.
So, the definition would be "the darkness the outer" - darkness outside the limits of a lighted palace. The idea that this imagery should bring to you will be very clear if you imagine a wedding or party that is being held at night. In the center of the festivities would be the bride and groom (Jesus and His most intimate followers), around them would be their friends and relatives (faithful Old Testament Saints, and faithful followers of Christ), and on the outside of the party you would find those that had been excluded from the marriage feast (unfaithful believers). These unfaithful believers can see the festivities, but they cannot participate in them. They can see the lighted palace, but they themselves are on the outskirts. The guests on the inside may be laughing and enjoying the joy of the marriage along with the bride and groom, but not those on the outside. They may even be crying over what they could have been a part of.
Before you reject the notion out of hand, see what the Bible has to say. Then judge for yourself what it really says. I know that many of us have been told that in heaven there will be no tears. This isn't the case. Tears are not wiped away by God until after the 1000 year reign of Christ (Revelation 21:1-4) So, please, stay with me a little longer and consider what I have to say.
There are three occurrences where the words for Outer Darkness are explicitly used. There are several more where it is implied. My intention will be to focus more on the places where it is actually used. All three occurences are in the gospel of Matthew. The first is Matthew 8.
Matthew 8:5 - 13 says:
"And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto Him a centurion, beseeching Him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou has believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the same hour."
The centurion knew his place. He knew who Jesus was (Savior and King). He believed that Jesus was capable of healing the servant with just a word. The centurion understood what an authority structure meant. Jesus had supreme power, therefore, whatever He said would happen. So, the centurion believed God and his actions were directed by that belief. Jesus in response says to the Jews that He was preaching to about Himself, that Gentiles who show this kind of faith will be able to enter into the kingdom (remember the party I spoke of earlier). Those saved Jews that didn't believe that Jesus was the King, or didn't want to allow Him to be their King would be cast out of the kingdom (but not into hell). They will be cast into outer darkness. The weeping and gnashing of teeth comes from their realization of what they could have had. You must make a distinction between the Kingdom of Heaven and Heaven. They are not the same thing. The parallel passage in Luke 13:24-30 has some very interesting things to say as well.
The second occurence is in Matthew 22.
Matthew 22: 1-14 states:
"And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come. Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage. But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: And the remanant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy, Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered to gather all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests. And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen."
This parable is a very thinly veiled description of what was happening, and was going to happen after Jesus' first advent. The Father is preparing for the Son a wedding feast. He has sent servants (Old Testament Prophets, John the Baptist, the Apostles, and other Servants) to bid the Jews to the feast. The Jews didn't think much of the offer that had been presented them, and in fact they killed the Prophets, John the Baptist, and the Apostles. In 70 A.D. Jerusalem was destroyed by the Roman army, which was an instrument of God's divine Judgement. God then turned to the Gentiles and is presently calling them to come to the feast. Entrance into this feast requires Gentiles to first be saved, and then have proper wedding attire. Wedding attire is "fashioned" from the good works that are done out of faith. (Revelation 19:7-10, and 1 Corinthians 15:35-50) Guests that are not properly clothed, aren't allowed to be at the feast. The guest that the King finds in the parable is speechless. He has nothing to say because he has no excuse for not being prepared. As a result of being unprepared, he is cast into the darkness outside the wedding feast. In the same way, any believer who is unprepared (by having done no good works out of faith) will also find themselves in the darkness outside the kingdom of God.
The last occurence is in Matthew 25.
Matthew 25:13-30:
"For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delievered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou delieveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things, enter thou into the joy of thy lord. He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou delieveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. Then, he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou has not sown, and gathering where thou has not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance : but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
In this last parable, we see the full transition. Only Christians are in view. Many teachers teach that only two of the servants were saved. This can not be the case and the integrity of the passage remain intact. These people in view are all described as "servants". They are all given the Lord's goods. No unbeliever can thus be described. Once more, each servant is called into question as to how they worked with the Lord's goods. Faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus isn't the basis for judgement. Being profitable or unprofitable to the Lord is the basis. It is clear from the passage that when the Lord returns, He will bring us into account for how we have handled what He has entrusted us with. Reward will follow for those who have handled the things of the Lord wisely, while outer darkness and loss of reward will be the fate of those believers who have been lazy and wicked.
These are the passages where the words "outer darkness" are actually used. But I believe that there are several more where it is implied. One such passage is found in Matthew 24.
Consider Matthew 24:44-51:
"Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his Lord hath made him ruler over his houshold, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his Lord when He cometh shall find so doing ("watching" - see v. 42). Verily I say unto you, that He shall make him ruler over all His goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My Lord delayeth His coming; And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for Him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
I really don't know how much plainer the Lord can make this. It is quite clear from the text, if it is read with an open and honest mind, that both are servants (believers) and both are dealt with according to how they acted, and how they worked (in other words, how they lived). It is clear if we start having the mindset of the world, then our Lord will not be pleased, to say the least. The state of the unfaithful servant is described in terms very similar to those of outer darkness.
Once you begin to make the distinctions between faith and works, the kingdom and heaven, and spirit, soul, and body; these truths concerning our accountability to the Lord become evident. There are many more examples that could be cited, but I hope and trust that these few here will be sufficient to make us stop and think, and to search out the scriptures for ourselves. Really, it matters little what I have to say. What is important is what God has said. Truly we are blessed when we just let Him speak.
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