Faith is a gift from God according to scripture. It's purpose is to grow spiritually.
Without faith it's impossible to please God. Faith allows God to work fully in our lives and allows us to partake of the divine nature.
Faith comes by hearing the Word of God....and the "Word of God" is Jesus in our hearts. Faith comes from Jesus speaking to our hearts and us LISTENING and responding.
So, one without faith cannot please God. Will faith be possible AFTER death? Of course not. When we come face to face with almighty God, the truth will be known, and there will be nothing to take on faith. For whatever purpose, God uses faith to test mankind. Without faith, we cannot obtain salvation. It is a two-side transaction. Jesus paid the penalty. We accept by faith.
It means a person has forfeited the blessings of God while in this life. It means that their hearts aren't purified by faith and therefore they will have to be purified by fire. It means they will reap corruption in the flesh. It means they will have to spend an "age" in the Lake of Fire facing God's wrath because of their unrepentance.
God causes the rain to fall on the good and the wicked. Blessings are bestowed on those who believe, and those who do not. Trials and tribulations come to both as well, but the difference is a Christian's trials are actually lessons to teach the Christian to depend on God.
How long is an age by the way?
But it DOES NOT means they will be separated from God for ETERNITY. That would be spiritual DEATH.....and Jesus tasted DEATH for ALL MEN.....so no man will EVER have that penalty because Jesus TOOK IT FOR HIM.
Yes, He did, but that does not mean that His sacrifice is accepted by all.
Was any effort required by man in order for God to place condemnation upon them all in Adam??
We were all born with original sin but we are not condemned for original sin nor are we condemned for the sins we commit throughout our entire lives. We are condemned for one thing and one thing only: rejection of Christ.
The bible clearly states that while we were STILL ENEMIES we were reconciled back to God by the death of Jesus. Mankind didn't have to do ANYTHING to be reconciled back to God. Jesus did ALL that was necessary on our behalf.
Yes, Jesus did all that was required, but there still has to be an acceptance of that gift. If you were to walk into a bank and find that some unknown person had gifted you with a billion dollars, the transaction would not be complete until you signed an acceptance of the gift. This is a good analogy of salvation. Jesus paid for the entire world's sin, but it is not imputed to us unless we accept the gift of salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
So? Just because someone doesn't accept the sacrifice doesn't mean it becomes null and void. It was done on their behalf by Jesus. It was a gift placed upon them by God as a judicial decision. Rejection or acceptance had nothing to do with it. It was a GIFT. No strings attached. Not even the "string" of faith.
That is not what the Bible teaches. The Bible says that faith is required. Read Hebrews chapter 11.
Wrong. It's not misleading. It's what the bible teaches. The bible says that ALL THINGS will be reconciled back to God.
In accounting, a reconciliation is a method of determining what belongs in an account, and what does not. Reconciliation does not always mean a positive reuniting to God, but it means an accounting of all the transactions of all men, both good and bad. At the judgement of both Christian and non-Christian, there will be an accounting of the works of men. None of the works will be accepted as payment for the penalty of sin. Christ will separate those who belong to Him and those who do not. This is illustrated by the parable of the wheat and the tares.
Study the way the wheat is separated from the tares. This is an incredible parable. When the wheat and tares are growing together, it is impossible to tell one from the other. At harvest, the wheat and the tares are cut together and tossed into the wind. The tares are then easily identified and are burned. They must be burned and completely separated from the wheat because they are poisonous. They are not burned until they become wheat. They will never become wheat. The tares are utterly destroyed lest they poison the bread made from the wheat.
We know that ALL THINGS are not reconciled back to God in this life are they?
So that means that SOME THINGS will have to be reconciled back to God after they die. RIGHT??
If you understand the word reconciliation, then, you will find that it does not always mean being reunited. It means a balancing, and a proper ordering and placement of something.
That is why the bible also says that the gospel is preached to those who are dead. Why would it say that unless there was a purpose to it? Why would the gospel need to be preached to the dead unless they had a chance to respond to it?
The Gospel was preached once to the dead prior the Christ's resurrection. It was preached to the OT saints, not those already in hell. It was preached to Lazurus and Abraham, but not to the rich man. Why would Jesus talk of the rich man wanting to warn his brothers if there was going to be a second chance for him and his brothers?
Why do YOU think that God CEASES to deal with a soul after the death of the flesh? There is NO SCRIPTURE to support it.
It is appointed unto man once to die. After that is the judgement. That is paraphrased and I will have to find the chapter and verse for you. That clearly states that man does not get saved after death.
That's exactly what you're doing. You are saying that God's love stops when an unbeliever dies. That His mercy ceases when a person with no faith ceases to live in this physical plane.
Nope. I didn't say that. I said that I trust God to be just. If God punishes an evil man for eternity, then, I trust that God knows what He is doing. I do not have the wisdom to understand the depth of the love of God, nor do I have the wisdom to understand the depth of His justice. I just know that He is both just and merciful, not one or the other.
and as far as us trying to determine what love is, and is not, is easy...it's defined quite clearly for us in 1 Cor. 13.....and one of the definitons says "love keeps no record of wrongs".
Do you believe what the bible says about love? Do you believe God IS love? If so. THen you CANNOT believe that God will torment someone for ETERNITY because that would be Him keeping a record of their wrongs for ETERNITY.
It also says "love is patient, kind, gentle and meek".....do you believe God IS love? Do you believe God is "patient, kind, gentle and meek"? Do you believe a God who is "patient, kind, gentle, and meek" would torment someone for eternity? Would that be kindness or gentleness??
I believe that God will be patient, kind, gentle, and meek to those who belong to Him. I believe that He will deal out harsh judgement on those who are His enemies.
They are crying out for justice. Do you believe justice can only be accomplished if God torments someone for ETERNITY??
This is God's judgement not mine. I accept that my God is a God of Wrath against His enemies. I do not expect Him to be a nimby-pamby, Ghandi-like, emaciated, sickly, weakling. This is how Hollywood represents Christ. However, when Christ returns, let's just say, He will be wearing combat boots! The enemies of God will be defeated and they will be cast out, cast down, tormented for eternity. This is the will of God and I accept it. I do not get excited about it, rubbing my hands together with glee, nor does God. My God is long-suffering and has extended a certain period of time for the world to come to Him. At some point, though, He will put an end to it, and that will be that. No more curse, no more death, no more sickness, no more evil, no more. Those who are not found to be in the Book of Life will not enter in. It is that simple.
Do you think in our courts today that if a robber is sentenced that he only gets justice if the death penalty is given? Are you saying anything less is not punishment and not justice?
You are humanizing God's justice and I think this is a mistake on your part. I do not think that God's justice is remotely like ours. Think of the Law of God. It is impossible for any man to keep. If you break one law, you have broken them all. That is how black and white the justice of God is. Circumstances and childhood experiences will not matter. Underlying causes such as drug addiction, or being poor will not be excuses.
IT seems to be you who are trying to determine what God's justice is.....and putting it in a little box by saying that justice isn't done UNLESS the sentence is eternal punishment. That's ludicrous.
I disagree. I do not make the rules. God does. I accept that. You do not. Instead, you are attempting to make God into something He is not.
Universal reconcilation is perfectly in line with the bible. Universal redemption is clearly taught in scripture.
An "eternal" punishment is NEVER taught.....an "age long" punishment of chastisement and purification is what is shown.
Now, you please answer my questions.....
You haven't shown me that.
Is He lying? If God is sovereign, won't He accomplish His will? Are you saying that man's will can override God's sovereign will?
Yes, in a way, man's FREE will can override the will of God. That is the whole point from Genesis to Revelations. God created us with free will. He desires that we come back to Him, but He will not force anyone. To say that God puts people in a lake of fire until they are ready to accept Him is to say that God is coercing people. It is far more logical to say that God sends people to hell for eternity because of free will. The judgement is simply to prove that the person deserves it. We all deserve it. Jesus steps up, cloaks us with righteousness, and what He deserves becomes ours.
the bible says that Jesus "came to seek and to SAVE that which was lost" Are you saying He failed to save that which was lost?
Are you talking about the Lost Sheep of Israel verses here? If so, you are taking that way out of context.
If God is unconditional love then why do you say that His loves stops when an unbeliever dies? Wouldn't that make His love conditioned upon the unbeliever still being alive? Making it conditional love?
Who says that God's love is unconditional? Show me scripture that says it is unconditional? It says that it endures forever, and it does, but to whom it is directed at is another story.
If the bible says "love NEVER fails" then why do you say that Jesus will fail to save many people from hell? Are you saying that He fails to save them because of their lack of faith? If so, isn't that STILL a failure because He can't overcome their lack of faith by His sacrifice?
Love never fails. If I love someone, and that person does not love me back, my love has not failed. My love is just as pure and enduring whether that person accepts it or not. That does not mean that I want a hateful person around me even if I still love them.
Lisa