hell – Page 2

Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead

Posted on January 27, 2015May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

The Glorious Return

29“But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30“And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. 31“And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. (Matthew 24:29-31)

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: (2 Timothy 4:1)

And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, (Hebrews 9:27)

But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. (1 Peter 4:5)

The Judgment of Babylon

God will judge all people for their lives. No one these days likes to think about the LORD as judge, not even some Christians. Of course, the difference between Christians and non-believers is that though our lives will be examined and assessed, we will not be judged in wrath. Jesus exhausted God’s wrath for our sins while He was on the cross. There is no condemnation for us now. (Romans 8:1). Even at that, it is still excruciating to think of Jesus staring at our heart and soul with His piercing eyes (Revelation 1:14) and know all our words, deeds, and even motives as He sends our works through the fire to either become silver and gold, or burn away as hay and stubble. (1 Corinthians 3:12)

For those who are not in Christ, the judgment will be terrible. Who can stand?

The arrogant cannot stand in your presence. You hate all who do wrong; (Psalm 5:5)
The LORD reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment. (Psalm 9:7)
He rules the world in righteousness and judges the peoples with equity. (Psalm 9:8)

God is holy and He judges. He knows each and every word the unsaved say. He sees all their deeds. He knows motives in the heart. Nothing is hidden from Him.

Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the LORD, How much more the hearts of men! (Proverbs 15:11)

Make no mistake. Jesus is a loving God, but He is a holy God who judges all men.

As a part of his sovereignty and authority, God is executor of his righteousness within the created order. Jesus Christ shares in this ongoing work.

(Source: Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes)

He judges individuals, nations, rulers, families, cities, and His own people. The eternal punishment of the ungodly is sure. (certain Ro 1:18 See also Pr 10:24; Isa 13:11; 26:21; 66:16; Jn 5:28-29; Eph 5:6; Col 3:6; 1Th 5:3; Heb 2:2-3. Source: Manser). It will be everlasting,(2Th 1:8-9, Isaiah 33:14), and the wicked will be forever separated from God’s presence.

God is serious business. He means what He says, that all rebellion will be judged and punishments meted out accordingly. I am firm on this today because as I said earlier, man does not like to think of God’s judgments. But we must.

They diminish His holiness by vain talk and babblings about visions, as Beth Moore does when she says God calls her “Honey” and “Babe” in her alleged visions. They besmirch His majesty and His wrath by writing books about erotic encounters, as Anne Voskamp did in her book One Thousand Gifts (“I fly to Paris and discover how to make love to God.” etc.) They blaspheme Him like in The Shack by William P. Young, by portraying God as a female pancake making Aunt Jemimah who says “Sin is its own punishment, devouring you from the inside. It’s not my purpose to punish it; it’s my joy to cure it.”

Oh, but God does both.

God is a MAJESTIC JUDGE, potent in holiness and coming in wrath to judge all the living and the dead.

The following verses speak to judgment

JUDGMENT.
The General: 1 Chr. 16:33; Job 14:17; Job 21:30; Job 31:13–15; Psa. 9:7; Psa. 50:3–6; Psa. 96:13 Psa. 98:9. Eccl. 3:17; Eccl. 11:9; Eccl. 12:14; Ezek. 18:20–28; Dan. 7:9, 10; Amos 4:12; Matt. 3:12 Luke 3:17. Matt. 7:22, 23; Matt. 8:29 With 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6. Matt. 11:22 Matt. 10:15. Matt. 12:36, 37, 41, 42 Luke 11:31, 32. Matt. 13:30, 40–43, 49, 50; Matt. 16:27 Mark 8:38. Matt. 22:13 vs. 11–13.; Matt. 23:14; Matt. 25:1–14 [Luke 19:12–26.] Matt. 25:15–46; Mark 4:22; Mark 13:32; Luke 10:10–14; Luke 12:2–5; Luke 13:24–29; Luke 20:45–47; John 5:22; John 12:48; Acts 2:19–21; Acts 10:42; Acts 17:31; Acts 24:25; Rom. 2:5–10, 12–16; Rom. 14:10–12; 1 Cor. 3:13; 1 Cor. 4:5; 1 Cor. 6:2; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Thess. 1:7, 8; 2 Tim. 4:1, 8; Heb. 6:2; Heb. 9:27; Heb. 10:27; 1 Pet. 4:5, 7; 2 Pet. 2:4, 9; 2 Pet. 3:7, 10–12; 1 John 4:17; Jude 6, 14, 15, 24; Rev. 1:7; Rev. 6:15–17; Rev. 11:18; Rev. 20:11–15; Rev. 22:12.

According to Opportunity and Works: Gen. 4:7; Job 34:11; Prov. 11:31; Prov. 12:14; Prov. 24:11, 12 Psa. 62:12; 2 Tim. 4:14. Isa. 3:10, 11; Isa. 5:15, 16; Isa. 24:2; Isa. 59:18; Jer. 17:10, 11; Jer. 32:19; Ezek. 7:3, 4, 27; Ezek. 9:4–6; Ezek. 16:59; Ezek. 18:4 [vs. 5–9.] Ezek. 18:19–32; Ezek. 33:18–20; Ezek. 39:24; Hos. 4:9 Hos. 12:2. Amos 3:2; Zech. 1:6; Matt. 10:14, 15 Matt. 11:24; Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5; 10:12–15. Matt. 12:37; Matt. 23:14 Luke 20:47. Mark 14:21; Luke 11:49, 50 v. 51.; Luke 12:47, 48 [See parable of the vineyard, Isa. 5:1–6. Of the farmer, Isa. 28:24–28. Of the wicked tenant farmers, Matt. 21:33–36. Of the talents, Matt. 25:14–30.]Luke 13:6–9; Luke 19:12–27; Luke 21:1–4; John 3:19, 20; John 5:45; John 9:41; John 12:48; John 15:22, 24; Rom. 2:5–12, 27; 1 Cor. 3:8, 13–15 v. 12.; 1 Cor. 4:5; 2 Cor. 2:15, 16; 2 Cor. 11:15; Gal. 6:5–10; Eph. 6:7, 8; Col. 3:25; 1 Tim. 1:13; Heb. 2:2, 3; Heb. 10:26–30; Heb. 12:25; Jas. 2:12, 13; 1 Pet. 1:17; 2 Pet. 2:20, 21; Rev. 2:23; Rev. 20:12, 13.

(Source: Swanson, J., & Nave, O. (1994). New Nave’s Topical Bible. Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems.)

Why am I writing about judgment? Because it is infrequently discussed these days. It is an unpalatable topic for too many people. But our God is holy and He is glorified in judging the wicked. Judgment in Holiness is one of His sovereign attributes and as such is is profitable for men to ponder His great and mighty decisions.

Anyone not in Christ has not been forgiven of their deeds, which are hostile to God and against Him as enemy. He will judge them and they will then endure eternal torment in hell forever to pay the penalty for those sins. DId you know that…

“And they shall go out and look on the dead bodies of the men who have rebelled against me. For their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.” (Isaiah 66:24)

Matthew Henry Commntary speaks of that verse from Isaiah-

But our Saviour applies it to the everlasting misery and torment of impenitent sinners in the future state, where their worm dies not, and their fire is not quenched (Mk. 9:44); for the soul, whose conscience is its constant tormentor, is immortal, and God, whose wrath is its constant terror, is eternal. (3.) What notice shall be taken of it. Those that worship God shall go forth and look upon them, to affect their own hearts with the love of their Redeemer, when they see what misery they are redeemed from. As it will aggravate the miseries of the damned to see others in the kingdom of heaven and themselves thrust out (Lu. 13:28), so it will illustrate the joys and glories of the blessed to see what becomes of those that died in their transgression, and it will elevate their praises to think that they were themselves as brands plucked out of that burning. To the honour of that free grace which thus distinguished them let the redeemed of the Lord with all humility, and not without a holy trembling, sing their triumphant songs.

Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume (p. 1218). Peabody: Hendrickson.

Oh, yes, the gratitude that we are spared! The humble thankfulness with which we sing His praises. Our Redeemer! We are a blessed group, never forget His lovingkindness to those whom He chose for Himself. We are His trophy of grace, and looking upon the wicked in torment, how much more will be fall to our own knees in crushed and broken contriteness and relief to worship such a God!

Why we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear (Hebrews 12:28)

death, hell, john prata

In Memoriam: John Baptiste Prata, Jr.

Posted on December 21, 2014May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

One never knows when the numbers of our days will reach the last digit. It did for my 81-year-old father on December 15, 2014. He never expected a short vehicular errand to result in his last breath on earth, but it did. The fatal crash, which sent two others to the hospital, sent John Baptiste Prata, Jr to his eternal destiny. He did not know the Lord.

The news reports say that he was attempting to make a left turn onto a busy highway, and failed to yield to oncoming traffic. He left this earth the way he lived, failing to yield to the Holy One, who for all of my father’s 81 years, stood ready to forgive his sins. But my father never repented. He failed to yield.

Naples Daily News: Driver in fatal wreck identified

NBC-2: Fatal crash on US-41 in Collier County

As he came forth of his mother’s womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand. (Ecclesiastes 5:15)

demons, end time, hell, prophecy, sky booms, sky quakes, sounds of the apocalypse

Sky Noises/Sounds of the Apocalypse continue to perplex, frighten

Posted on February 22, 2014October 2, 2019 by elizabethprata

In January of 2012 I wrote a report of the global sky sounds people have been hearing. Variously called sky hums, sounds of the apocalypse, or sky quakes, they have appeared recently and have not only been heard by many, but have been recorded and reported on by mainstream news. I wrote:

Strange noises in the sky: hums, booms, and other apocalyptic escapades
“The noises are usually a low pitched hum that veritably drives the residents crazy, or a boom from the sky that people liken to a sonic boom. When they occur, the authorities receive dozens to hundreds of phone calls asking if there had been an earthquake. In most cases, the boom is not related to a military activity nor aeronautic exercise, not to a quake, and not to drilling or explosives. These things are checked out and the usual explanation is usually absent, leaving residents to wonder what is the cause of the noise. That’s why they are termed mysterious.”

Since the general emergence of these sounds; a few years ago, they have continued to perplex and frighten. Just this week in St. Paul, Minnesota, another spate of sounds frightened the residents there.

St. Paul Residents Ponder Loud, Mysterious Noise Heard Thursday Morning
“A loud, strange noise early Thursday morning woke up some residents in St. Paul and frightened others. People heard it for about an hour, in and around the Highland Park and Mac Groveland neighborhoods. KSTP called Ramsey County dispatch and sent a crew to investigate. Dispatch said they received about 10 calls from homeowners wondering what the noise was. They sent out a few officers to investigate but they couldn’t find anything. The howling traveled for miles, right through the walls of homes.”

Now, there is a difference between these particular sounds, and other sounds that normally occur and startle residents. For example, the transformer in front of my house was struck by lightning and blew up, and it made an enormous sound which scared me (and the cats) like to death. However, it was the suddenness of the sound and the loudness of the sound and not the sound itself which was startling. I recognized it as a normal, if very loud sound. The same with a thunderclap and the same with the boom associated with the earthquake that happened near GA this week, and the same with sonic booms that occasionally happen as jets takeoff at the Air Force Base some distance away. We have a catalog of sounds in our head and when we hear one we classify it. The brain immediately categorizes those sounds as infrequent but normal.

Not so with these sky booms. They aren’t even particularly loud, but it seems that is it the quality of the sound that spooks people. They are unclassifiable. Here are some quotes from people who heard the St. Paul noise-

Howling sound ‘creeps out’ St. Paul
–“It was kind of a howling, kind of a scraping, kind of a metallic sound,” said Aaron Buesing.
–Trudy Moloney explained it as “kind of a somber music and eerie sounding.”

MYSTERY HOWL: What caused haunting St. Paul sounds?
Although some likened the sound to a whale song, others admit the spine-tingling tones seemed a little ghastly.

St. Paul residents try to place eerie early morning noise
Part ocean waves, part wild animal call, part distorted howl
Descriptions included scraping metal, industrial grinding, voices over a loudspeaker, even music.

Quite often, the noises are described as metallic, spooky, and eerie. They describe them as chains clanking or sometimes, something straight from hell.

In this report from the UK, also from last week,

Coventry residents left baffled by mystery ‘Independence Day’ noise
“Reports have come in describing a loud noise in the sky which lasted around one minute and was heard by residents in Whitley, Walsgrave, Stoke and Wyken. Mitch Wise, 19, from Walsgrave, said the noise was so loud he could hear it inside his house despite all the windows and doors being closed. He said: “I did think it sounded like something out of Independence Day, that kind of noise.” [Independence Day, the alien invasion movie]

Or this from Kentucky, also this week:

Booms in the Night; Officials scurry to locate source; MSU professor offers explanation for strange sounds
“A series of strange noises awakened Murray-area residents in the pre-dawn hours Friday, causing law enforcement agencies to answer several calls related to mysterious sounds that were being reported. Dr. George Kipphut, chairman of the Murray State University Department of Geosciences, said he is relatively certain that a phenomenon known as a frost quake is the cause of the eerie resonance…. I’ve never heard one, and this is unusual for this climate we live in,” Kipphut said. Kipphut said frost quakes — officially known in the geological community as cryoseisms — are more associated with the extreme northern portions of the United States into Canada.”

Even when the loud booms and explosions are heard and there is likely a natural explanation, like cryoseisms, it seems that there exists something weird with these, as well. In the above story, they are happening in places where they don’t usually. In the article below, they are happening much more frequently than they ever have.

A cryoseism is a frost quake. As Wikipedia explains, “They may be caused by a sudden cracking action in frozen soil or rock saturated with water or ice. As water drains into ground, it may eventually freeze and expand under colder temperatures, putting stress on its surroundings. This stress builds up until relieved explosively in the form of a cryoseism.”

This past January in Vermont, apparently several cryoseisms occurred. As Gib Brown, who works as both a geology and physics educator, explains, “I thought a tree fell on my house,” Brown recalled. “I looked outside, I looked up and down the street, couldn’t see anything. It had to have been a cryoseism.” Brown likened the phenomenon to the way potholes can be formed by freezing water, except under the earth, where their invisibility adds to their mystery. Brown called the frost quakes fairly rare but not wildly unusual. “I would say the numbers this year are way above average,” Brown said.” [underline mine]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let’s turn from the fact of these noises and the reaction to them … to the Bible. I’d said in the blog essay I wrote two years ago that the Bible specifically does not address the noises as a sign. Though officials have searched for an explanation (airplanes, drilling, ice, etc) they have come up empty. Neither biblical nor secular explanations seem to be coming to the fore. So from this paragraph forward there is only speculation on my part. However there is perhaps an application to the end times that I want to share.

First, there are these verses from Jeremiah 25:30-31

You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say to them:

“‘The Lord will roar from on high,

and from his holy habitation utter his voice;

he will roar mightily against his fold,

and shout, like those who tread grapes,

against all the inhabitants of the earth.

31The clamor will resound to the ends of the earth,

for the Lord has an indictment against the nations;

he is entering into judgment with all flesh,

and the wicked he will put to the sword,

declares the Lord.”

Verse 31, ‘the clamor’ also is translated ‘a noise.’ Pulpit Commentary says of ‘a noise’, the word is used elsewhere for the tumultuous sound of a marching army, or the roar of waters.

Many people say that the noise they’ve been hearing includes a clanking or a metallic sound. I’ve said before that I often wonder if it is leak-through from the unholy angels gathering for the great unleashing upon the world. When prophet Elisha asked God to open his servant’s eyes, I wonder if in addition to seeing the angelic army … if he heard anything too.

Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (2 Kings 6:17)

The fear.

There is fear of the LORD, which isn’t a scary fear for a Christian. CARM says of the fear of God:

Yes, we should fear God because He is the Almighty Creator who can discipline us should we rebel against Him. He is so holy and so awesome that being in His presence brings an inspiring fear. … When anyone experiences the Majesty of the Lord, he naturally is humbled and the awesome greatness of God automatically produces a normal and healthy fear.

But we do not need to fear God’s judgment. As for satan, we need not fear him because Jesus has already overcome satan. We only need resist satan and he will flee from us. (James 4:7).

The unsaved don’t fear God. They do not fear satan either. They unknowingly serve satan. If they happen to have encounters with the supernatural, often times satan’s ministers appear as angels of light, (2 Corinthians 11:14-15) or in new age terms, ‘spirit guides.’ Since satan chooses either to allow himself to be culturally diminished (as in a pointy horns and a red tail made fun of on Halloween) or as a gentle spirit guide, muse, or another kind of other worldly helper, the unsaved don’t fear satan.

What would people think whose incorrect notion of satan or spirit guides were to be unmasked and they say the demons as they really are?

I believe they are getting a taste of it with these sky noises. If these people who heard the sky noise for one second and were frightened out of their wits, what will happen when they see the very demons of hell unleashed?

And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.a 2He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft. 3Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. (Revelation 9:1-3)

Read the rest of Revelation 9.

These demons are allowed to torment any person during the Tribulation who does not have the seal of God on their foreheads. How would you feel to see a demon chasing you? Biting you? Tormenting you? The Greek word for torment in the verse is literally “torture”.

These sky booms have no liken in the world. They aren’t made naturally. They frighten people, and I believe the sounds are made supernaturally.

Matthew Henry said of the Jeremiah verse, “Who can avoid trembling when God speaks in displeasure?” And who among the unsaved can avoid trembling when the demons of hell sound their chains their appearance?

You know how it energizes the arena when Queen’s “We will rock you” STOMP STOMP CLAP comes over the loudspeakers? Of course it would incite the demons’ maniacal glee to know the time is near. Because they know. (Matthew 8:29). I wonder if the restless demons in gloomy dungeons (Jude 1:6, 2 Peter 2:4) are chanting “we will, we will bite you!” CLANK CLANK CLAP

It’s interesting to think hypothetically of the sky booms as a demonic version of this:

The GOOD NEWS is that Jesus paid it all, and we no longer need fear God in a bad way nor fear what satan can do to us. If you repent, nothing on earth can frighten you. Not an eerie noise, not a demon masquerading as an angel of light, not even satan.

And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)

Repent, for the time is near.

death, eternity, hell, jesus

When it is your turn to die

Posted on August 3, 2013August 17, 2025 by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

In 2013, Aerobatic Wing Walker Jane Wicker and her pilot Charlie Schwenker were killed when the plane crashed at a Dayton, OH airshow.

The second before the plane crashed, the Dayton Ohio air show announcer said as wing walker Jane Wicker positioned herself on the upside down wing: “Jane Wicker, on top of the world!” One second later, she was dead.

I often speak of the soon return of Jesus. Today is one day closer to His return than yesterday was. Paul used to speak of Jesus’ soon return often. As a matter of fact, every New Testament book except Philemon speaks of Christ’s coming. You need to be ready.

However, we are not guaranteed a tomorrow. Yes, Jesus could come, but death could come also.

James 4:14 says “yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”

I often wondered what Ms Wicker was thinking as she sat on the upside down wing. Nothing indicated that one second later she would be dead. Did she think she had loads of time left to ponder the deep mysteries of faith and salvation? Had she put it off until tomorrow, but tomorrow never came?

I hope she was saved by grace of Jesus.

So many people are abruptly taken out of this world to meet their eternity. Yet so many people put off for tomorrow what they should be reconciling today. I remember during a sermon one of my elders had said that as a teen they were evangelizing in a grocery store. One of the team gave the gospel to a man who was exiting. He said he did not need Jesus. He walked out of the sliding door to the sidewalk and dfell down dead right then.

If you are not saved, then do not put off to tomorrow what should be done today. God has appointed you to a limited number of days in this lifetime. You do not know what that number is.

“Show me, LORD, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure.” (Psalm 39:4-5).

Taking care of business means coming to grips with a few things. First, this life is not all there is. We are given a limited number of days to dwell upon the earth, but this body and this life is only phase 1. After death, there is a phase 2. If you have repented of your sins and believed on the resurrected Jesus as Lord and Savior, you will go to heaven and be with Him. You will be given a glorified body that is impervious to death or sickness, has no sin nature, and can withstand the full blast of His glory and Holiness. (1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 50; Philippians 3:21).

If you rejected Jesus in this life- and you don’t have to actively reject Him but passively fail to accept him (doing nothing is the same as rejecting) then you will go to hell after you die. This is a place of eternal separation from God and you will be given a body that can withstand the full blasts of the punishment that will be inflicted on you as eternal payment for your sins and crimes against Him. (Revelation 14:11, 2 Thessalonians 1:5-9)

It is a lie that you will be annihilated, that there is nothing else after death. It is a lie that hell is only temporary. It is surely eternal, as your sins are eternal and as Jesus is eternal. (Matthew 25:46). That is why Christians can dwell with Him forever, (Matthew 28:20; John 14:3) because He is eternal and He paid the price for our sins eternally when He took God’s punishment on the cross. (Romans 3:23-24).

You say, “God is loving, He would never send people to hell for punishment.” Really? It pleased Him to crush His Son! (Isaiah 53:10). Jesus absorbed all of God’s punishment while He was on the cross. Is God loving who would do that? Yes, He was making a way for YOU, whom He also loves. Jesus did that voluntarily, because He loves His people. If you reject Jesus though, you reject the way to heaven. (John 14:6).

Eternity is real and it is permanent. You do not know what today will bring. Ms Wicker didn’t. I hope these few words from my heart makes you think of the afterlife. For the Christian, it is a joy to ponder the time we will be with Jesus. For the unsaved, there is dread and fear of the unknown. But you can know, your eternity could be secure- if you repent. (Mark 1:15).

———————-

Desmond Tutu Says He Would Prefer Hell Over A Homophobic Heaven And God

Posted on July 27, 2013 by elizabethprata

“Desmond Tutu has said he would rather go to hell than worship a homophobic god. The retired archbishop was speaking at the United Nations’ launch of its gay-rights program in Cape Town, South Africa, a country where there is still much prejudice against gay people. He said: “I would refuse to go to a homophobic heaven. No, I would say sorry, I mean I would much rather go to the other place. “I would not worship a God who is homophobic and that is how deeply I feel about this. “I am as passionate about this campaign as I ever was about apartheid. For me, it is at the same level.” (source)

On another topic, the blogger Ecclesiophilist wrote,

Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols (Acts 17:16, NASB)

In describing Paul’s reaction, Luke uses a Greek word which means “to be irritated or provoked to wrath.” John Stott says that this word “originally had medical associations and was used to describe a seizure or an epileptic fit (Stott, The Spirit, the Church, and the World, IVP, p. 278).” As Paul closely observed the city of Athens, he found it overwhelmed by idolatry. One ancient source sarcastically said it was easier to find a god in Athens than a man. Such idolatry moved Paul to the core. He was provoked in his spirit by the situation.

Henry Martyn, the 19th century missionary to India and Persia, understood quite well the response of Paul to idolatry. When Martyn saw a picture of Jesus bowing down and grasping the robes of Mohammed, he responded, “I could not endure existence if Jesus was not glorified. It would be hell to me if He were always thus to be dishonored.” Martyn was provoked in his spirit by idolatry. His heart burned with the desire to see the preeminence and glory of Christ understood and embraced by all peoples.

It certainly resonates when we read of the saints in their torment in seeing Jesus besmirched. I am tormented by this unholy world. TOrmented daily, I often cry out in my praer closet for the Day to come when all will recognize Jesus is His perfectness and glory. O, what a day! But that day is not yet and we swim through the filth of a world that is piling up with sin, even my own.

Desmond Tutu is a South African social rights activist and retired Anglican bishop. He is allegedly a religious man, but he has created a god in his own image. A.W. Tozer said, “Grace will save a man… but it will not save him and his idol.” Tutu has remade God into a person who represents Tutu’s own thoughts and evil desires, and openly and flatly rejects the Holy God of Israel, Yahweh, the great Ancient of Days. I AM.

It is a hard thing to watch the world crumble. It is harder to watch men crumble. Tutu’s destiny is all but certain, and having had to watch this dreadful state these terrible declarations that consign men to a hell they know not how terrible, is is agony.

However, I love my Christ and I worship Him. I do not worship my own philosophies and I do not reject His clear word and plan as shown to us by the holy writ of the bible. It is an agony these days to see Jesus so dishonored.

What a day when all peoples will bow to Him, and the ones whom He has chosen to be His elect, standing before Him, no, falling down to worship, will be all the more glorious. This Jesus whom Tutu rejects is this Jesus:

“The apostles returned to Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a lonely place, and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a lonely place by themselves. 33 Now many saw them going, and knew them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns, and got there ahead of them. 34 As he went ashore he saw a great throng, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. ” (Mark 6:30-34.)

He loves His sheep!

But make no mistake: God is not to be trifled with. He demands holy living through Christ, and He will exact vengeance for all unholy acts, for they are a blot on His name.

“when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. (2 Thessalonians 1:7b-8)

It is a serious thing to wantonly seek hell, and not heaven. God in His just mercy, will grant it.

days of Noah, demons, hell, revelation

What are "The Days of Noah"?

Posted on February 25, 2013 by elizabethprata

In Matthew 24, Jesus sat down with His disciples and He discussed with them the time of the end. The disciples had asked three questions, seen in verse 3:

“As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?”

Jesus began answering in verse 4, and continued answering down to verse 51, which closes out the chapter.

If you think of that block of text between verse 4 and verse 31 as a short overview of the Tribulation in chronological order, you will be doing well. Let’s break it down a bit:

Verses 4-8, first half of the Tribulation
Verses 9-28, Great Tribulation. The abomination of Desolation ramps up the judgments and tips the world into the Great Tribulation. This is the moment when the antichrist stands in the Temple and proclaims himself God. The persecution of the Jews really begins. This is seen in Revelation 12 onward.
Verse 29-31, After the Tribulation, and gathering those to be judged.
Verses 32-51, general warnings and parables.

Jesus said something in Matthew 24:37-38 about the general conditions of the future times of which He is speaking-

“But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. “For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,”

Matthew 24 is a Tribulation chapter. It has nothing to do with the rapture. When the events described by Jesus in this chapter happen, the rapture will have already taken place. So we wonder how the people on earth will NOT know that the sun going partially dark and the blood in the seas and the mass slaughter and all the rest will not be signs from God, but Jesus says they didn’t believe it the first time. Man was totally corrupt at that time and they laughed and mocked Noah for 120 years as he built a boat bigger than the Queen Mary, right there in the waterless desert. THAT is how deluded the sin-drenched mind is.

Something that made me wonder as to the Days of Noah is this: the demons. We read in Genesis 3 & 6 that the demons were on earth at that time. It was a time of total, saturating sin and all its attendant evil (just like it will be during the Tribulation). Here it is from the bible, with its own heading (from the ESV):

Increasing Corruption on Earth

When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in a man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. (Genesis 6:1-8)

Jesus imprisoned those spirits, the demons who came down and took form and mated with women. He was angry at how they left their glorified positions and did this thing. Jude tells us they are in chains:

Jude 1:6 ““And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.”

After His death, Jesus went and proclaimed his triumph:

1 Peter 3:19 – “in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison,”

Another verse in 1 Peter tells us of these disobedient spirits:

1 Peter 3:20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.

And again, 2 Peter 2:4 about these spirits in the deepest abyss

For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but threw them into the lowest hell and imprisoned them in chains of deepest darkness, holding them for judgment;

The lowest hell is also called Tartarus in the Holman Standard Christian bible and others. It is the lowest part of Hades. It is dark, gloomy, dank, and completely devoid of anything remotely good. It is a place even demons fear. The Legion of demons who possessed the Gadarene man begged not to go ‘into the abyss’. (Luke 8:30). 6,000 men comprised a Legion of army men in the Roman days, so that was a lot of demons. Who knows how many are in the abyss…maybe hundreds of thousands? Those demons and others throughout the ages God has sent to the pit. It must be a very big pit full of festering demons

Now to the point. The Days of Noah…if all those demons were roaming around then, and the days ahead are going to be like the days of Noah, does that mean that adding to the general horrible conditions on the earth that these worst of the worst demons are let out of the abyss? Yes. And look how many of them there are-

And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key of the shaft of the bottomless pit; he opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft. Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth; they were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green growth or any tree, but only those of mankind who have not the seal of God upon their foreheads; they were allowed to torture them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torture was like the torture of a scorpion, when it stings a man.” (Revelation 9:1-5 RSV)

I am thinking that in addition to the general conditions of the Tribulation with its complete corruption on the earth, and the mocking of the righteous and their refusal to believe, that the Days of Noah may indeed be because in addition to the others who have been sent to the abyss at various times, these same demons from the Days of Noah are going to be let out of the abyss to do their terrible work once again.

Just some thoughts. Here is a prayer from John MacArthur:

“Father, we have been led to see things that create fear and a shaking in our hearts, frightening, terrible, horrible things, prepared for those who reject You, who are alive in the day when You bring judgment. And this is but a taste on earth of hell. If it’s this bad on earth, what must it be like in hell where men and women go who reject Christ? Open the hearts, Lord, of those who do not know the Savior that they may escape the terrors of Your just judgment. And, Lord, help us understanding the terror of the Lord as Paul said to persuade men. May we preach the judgment that men may know how desperately they need to escape. Give us opportunity, Lord. We pray in Christ’s name. Amen.”

authority, discernment, hell, scripture, visions, wiese

Discernment: are people’s visits to hell actually true?

Posted on February 17, 2013May 9, 2016 by elizabethprata

So many people these days have had a trip to heaven or hell. Jesse Duplantis, Beth Moore, Colton Burpo, Don Piper, Rick Joyner, Kenneth Hagin, Rebecca Springer, Richard Eby, Dr. Mary C. Neal, Kim Walker Smith of Jesus Culture … the list of people taking a tour of heaven or having had a personal visit from Jesus in another dimension goes on and depressingly on. And hell is not to be left out, either, several people claim to have been personally escorted by Jesus in the underworld as well, such as Victoria Nehale, Mary K. Baker, Bill Wiese.

So what are we to make of all this?

Lies. All lies.

Let’s take a look at the visits to hell. I’ve written several times about the trips to heaven. The bible says that even though you may have had a personal experience, we have a more sure word. Peter wrote that, and he was referring to his own personal visit from Jesus at the Mountain, and having seen the heaven glory and Jesus transfigured. Even Peter says that the word is more sure than a personal experience!

“And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.” (2 Peter 1:19-20).

Peter is saying that the prophetic word, which is the word spoken by the prophets, is sure. Remember Jeremiah 23:16, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord.”

Peter is not saying we should not interpret scripture, he is talking about the source of it. In 1 Peter 1:10, Peter wrote, “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully,”

In other words, the prophets heard the word from the LORD, and they carefully searched out what it meant. The false prophets did not have to search out what it meant because they made it up. Explaining it was just as easy- they made up the explanations. And the word was almost invariably happy, too. See what Jeremiah says,

“They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’” (Jeremiah 23:17).

Sound familiar? I know that it does.

Peter’s credentials were impeccable, being hand chosen by Jesus and endowed with miraculous powers to heal, raise from the dead, and preach! Every single person who came after Peter has credentials which are less stellar, so by default, if he says not to trust his experience, we trust the bible and not our own experience. Otherwise you’re saying, “I trust Jesus Culture’s Kim Walker Smith’s experience of seeing a Gumby Jesus, she seems to be more credible than Peter.”

Laughable, isn’t it? The word is sure!

Now about the people who travel to hell, what of them? Well, those visions and visits are false, too. How do I know? Look at Lazarus.

“The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’” (Luke 16:22b-31)

If we are to believe the people who visited hell, then we are to disbelieve the holy word. First, because we would believe that Jesus changed His mind about sending people from hell to tell the story, and secondly that before, while we are told that people would not believe even a dead brother returned to life telling his family, but now they will believe an unknown person telling the world on Youtube.

Wiese says that he encountered Jesus in hell, who told him to tell other people that hell is real. This varies directly with the word. Do we have a more sure word, or do we not have a more sure word?

Some people are totally unbelievable and are obvious charlatans. Others, like Wiese, or Don Piper, for example, are likable and sincere. However, sincerity of their message does not make it true. Only the word is surely true, and if what someone says is against what the bible says, you must disregard the person’s message and not the bible.

However, isn’t that the point of what satan is doing, with all these Charismatic visions and visits? Even though Piper or Wiese’s message may be good, the source is demonic. Look at what Paul did when the fortune-telling slave girl followed him around.

“She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.” (Acts 16:17-18)

What was Paul’s problem? After all, she was saying something that was true. The problem is, her source was from satan, and a divided house cannot stand. Clarke’s Commentary says, “The Gentiles, finding that their own demon bore testimony to the apostles, would naturally consider that the whole was one system; that they had nothing to learn, nothing to correct; and thus the preaching of the apostles must be useless to them.”

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary explains, “Paul being grieved-for the poor victim; grieved to see such power possessed by the enemy of man’s salvation, and grieved to observe the malignant design with which this high testimony was borne to Christ.”

Isn’t the phrase ‘malignant design’ so very wonderful!

Matthew Henry says of the slave-girl, “Satan, though the father of lies, will declare the most important truths, when he can thereby serve his purposes. But much mischief is done to the real servants of Christ, by unholy and false preachers of the gospel, who are confounded with them by careless observers.”

So even though the message at one point or another from one false prophet or another, may be true, satan’s malignant design in using the message will always be dishonoring to Christ. Bill Wiese and Mary K Baker may be sincere, but satan’s design is to usurp the authority of the Word, just as he was trying to do against Paul (who was speaking the true word) in using the slave-girl who was possessed.

Be discerning about these visits to heaven and hell, and of people’s tales of visitations from Jesus in visions. It is not enough that their message borne from experience may seem consistent with the bible, the bible tells us that we have a more sure word in the Prophets. And that is enough, more than enough, for me. I hope it is for you too.
————————–

FMI:

Justin Peters essay “Your Best Afterlife Now: (An examination and critique of claimed visits to heaven and hell”

Tim Challies reviews Heaven Is For Real and 90 Minutes In Heaven.

Pertinent part begins at 41:14–

hell, tornado, transparent dress

Designer creates dress that turns clear when wearer gets excited

Posted on February 11, 2013 by elizabethprata

Essential reading: Tim Challies on hell

“The Bible warns us that those who do not accept the gospel of Jesus Christ “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9).”

Read more at his blog. It is an excellent presentation of this essential doctrine.

I’m so sad at reading of the huge tornado at Hattiesburg MS, but thankfully so far no deaths are reported. The youtube video uploaded immediately after the storms rolled through were jaw dropping. Weather Channel producer Shawn Reynolds tweeted, “Within 48 hrs, I’ve produced separate shows on historic blizzards & tornadoes. If I ever get bored with my job, shoot me.”

And let’s not forget another 6.0-plus quake at Santa Cruz Islands. (M6.3). The big quakes there never stopped. It has been a busy day and it is not over yet. Weather is getting c.r.a.z.y!

As we edge ever closer to the singularity…”A Netherlands-based fashion designer has created a high-tech dress line that turns clear when you get excited. How’s that for being transparent on a date? Called Intimacy — from designer Daan Roosegaarde, founder of Studio Roosegaarde — the project aims to explore the relationship between technology and the body’s interactions.”

A transparent dress? Hm. I guess he never read the end of Forever Amber.

God, hell, judgment, paul washer, sin, wrath

God’s holiness and His wrath

Posted on October 1, 2012 by elizabethprata

“And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” (Isaiah 6:3).

Holiness is a quality of perfection, sinlessness, and inability to sin that is possessed by God alone. As Christians we are called to be holy (1 Pet. 1:16). But this does not refer to our nature. Instead, it is a command of our practice and thought. We are to be holy in obedience (1 Pet. 1:15). God has made us holy through his Son Jesus (Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 2:9). (source)

Our LORD is holy. We so often focus these days on His friendship with us, His provision to us, His loving-kindness … that we could always use a refresher on His holiness, I think.

“so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of God. (2 Chronicles 5:14)

“Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” (Exodus 40:35)

Our LORD is holy! How wonderful it must have been to be so overcome with His holiness that they could not even stand!

The flip side of His holiness is His wrath. He is angry over sin. On the day of His wrath, which is His anger over sin released, no one will be able to stand, either. His holy fury will overtake the sinful world.

They were “calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” (Revelation 6:16-27).

His sinless perfection is offended at putrid sin. The following is a 6-minute sermon jam from Paul Washer on the Wrath of God. Remember, the flip side to His holiness is wrath over sin.

Wrath
“Biblically, wrath is the divine judgment upon sin and sinners. It does not merely mean that it is a casual response by God to ungodliness, but carries the meaning of hatred, revulsion, and indignation. God is by nature love (1 John 4:16), however, in His justice He must punish sin. The punishment is called the wrath of God. It will occur on the final Day of Judgment when those who are unsaved will incur the wrath of God. It is, though, presently being released upon the ungodly (Rom. 1:18-32) in the hardening of their hearts.”

“Wrath is described as God’s anger (Num. 32:10-13), as stored up (Rom. 2:5-8), and as great (Zech. 7:12). The believer’s deliverance from God’s wrath is through the atonement (Rom. 5:8-10). “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,” (1 Thess. 5:9).” (source)

Praise Lord Jesus that He will accept you if you repent, and you shall be cleansed and redeemed to His bosom. No wrath will be upon you. GO HERE if you want to learn how to be saved from the wrath of God.

hell, jonathan edwards, sinners in the hands of an angry god, wrath

"God abhors you"

Posted on September 13, 2012 by elizabethprata

The default position on earth for every adult is hell. That is the destiny. If a person dies outside of Christ, they will remain outside of Christ for all eternity. Further, because they have sinned against Him and hadn’t dealt with those sins prior to death, they will endure His punishment for all eternity. (Matthew 3:12; 2 Thess 1:9).

But here is the GOOD NEWS.

“For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,” (Colossians 1:13).

Hell, though prepared for the devil and his angels, became the permanent abode for humans. (Matthew 25:41). UNLESS… before a person dies, he repents of his sins and appeals to the Lamb who was slain. Jesus died on the cross as the sacrifice to satisfy God’s wrath. As a sign of that acceptance, God resurrected Jesus. Jesus now reigns and will come again- to judge the earth. (1 Thessalonians 4:14; Romans 14:9).

People don’t realize how close hell is to them at any moment. (Deuteronomy 32:35). Unbelievers are unaware of the gossamer wispiness of the silk net upon which they tread. At any second, it could tear. Your entire life, and your physical body, will slam down into the miry pit. Jonathan Edwards wrote about this in his famous sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” He wrote:

“The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours. You have offended him infinitely more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince; and yet it is nothing but his hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment. It is to be ascribed to nothing else, that you did not go to hell the last night; that you was suffered to awake again in this world, after you closed your eyes to sleep. And there is no other reason to be given, why you have not dropped into hell since you arose in the morning, but that God’s hand has held you up. There is no other reason to be given why you have not gone to hell, since you have sat here in the house of God, provoking his pure eyes by your sinful wicked manner of attending his solemn worship. Yea, there is nothing else that is to be given as a reason why you do not this very moment drop down into hell.”

“God abhors you.” Quite a different story than the one we hear from the Prosperity Gospel preachers, the Gnostic/Mystic teachers and the Emergent pastors, isn’t it?! “God abhors you.” You don’t believe it? Read Psalm 5:5, Psalm 11:5, Lev. 20:23, Prov. 6:16-19, Hosea 9:15, Jeremiah 12:8…

Let’s focus on the Colossians verse for a minute: “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,” (Colossians 1:13).

Rescue? From what? What is the rescue about?

I think of the Twin Towers. Our national day of remembrance for the terrorist hate attack on the US on 9/11/01 is just a few days past. I thought a lot about 9/11 on Tuesday. Eleven years later, it still hurts.

The life we live can be compared to the moments during the time when the planes hit. When the planes hit, people above the strike zone did not know that they needed rescue. They continued to work, they went to different rooms as instructed, or they waited. But they did not know that a fiery death was a short time away. The fires were igniting and the floors were softening under their feet. But they didn’t know it.

When the people above the hole realized the situation, they expected rescue. A fire ladder…a helicopter, something. Their minds would not let them believe that they would end up in the fiery pit. When it became apparent that no rescue could come, they knew that death awaited.

For most people, they do not have that luxury- knowing that death was coming for them and that the ground under their feet would fall away. They made calls, they wrote notes, they said goodbyes. Hopefully, some prayed to Jesus and were saved. Normally the floor is softening under the feet of every person on earth. At one unknown and unforeseen moment, it will give way and they will die.

Man rescues only the body. It is JESUS who rescues the soul and then gives a new body. That was the ONLY rescue awaiting the victims of the terrorist attack on the upper floors. In the world, it is like every person on earth is dwelling on the floors above where the planes hit. They don’t know they need rescue. If at some point, they do become aware, will they wait for man to rescue them? Or turn to Jesus?

Rescue is in Jesus. He rescues from having to spend eternity in the fiery wrath. He abhors sinners, but He loves to forgive.

Jesus RESCUES.

Edwards wrote: “And now you have an extraordinary opportunity, a day wherein Christ has thrown the door of mercy wide open, and stands in calling and crying with a loud voice to poor sinners; a day wherein many are flocking to him, and pressing into the kingdom of God. Many are daily coming from the east, west, north and south; many that were very lately in the same miserable condition that you are in, are now in a happy state, with their hearts filled with love to him who has loved them, and washed them from their sins in his own blood, and rejoicing in hope of the glory of God.”

“Therefore, let every one that is out of Christ, now awake and fly from the wrath to come. The wrath of Almighty God is now undoubtedly hanging over a great part of this congregation. Let every one fly out of Sodom: “Haste and escape for your lives, look not behind you, escape to the mountain, lest you be consumed.”

JESUS rescues.