The Restitution Of All Things A.K.A. Universalism

Jonathan Mathews said:

So if someone receives the Mark of the Beast, will they burn forever in the Lake of Fire. Yes or No?

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Dear Matthew: You are not paying attention.

You have 3 unanswered questions of F.L. that require more than a yes or no. The Lake of Fire and theion rooted in Theos is the Lake of all lakes. If and when you get to exploring aidios and aionios you should begin to realize the scope is awesome.

Do you know what ta panta means? When you begin to grasp the magnitude, your view will be greatly enhanced in your young life.

The 2nd Death

What is the "Second Death"?

Torturing Doubts>>>>Exultant Faith

“After long years of torturing doubts, God had mercy on me and turned my darkness into light, my despair into joy and my misery into exultation. He brought me into touch with His revelation, just as He had written it, apart from most of the mistranslations of well-meaning men, who were bound by creeds and tradition.

I found out that sin and suffering are confined to the eons or ages, as ‘forever’ and ‘everlasting’ should be translated. There will indeed be an awful judgment, but it will not merely punish, but set right all wrongs.

Not only will God bring all of earth’s inhabitants back into the sunlight of His love, but, through the blood of Christ’s cross, He will reconcile all to Him, whether those on the earth, or those in the heavens (Col. 1:20). The present enmity toward God on the part of terrestrial and celestial creatures will, in due time, be used as a background to display His love. That is why I no longer have torturing doubts, but revel in exultant faith.” -James Corham-

God is the Source, Guide, Goal of ta panta

He Comes; He Calls; We Follow

One of the many fundamental truths hidden in plain sight in the Bible, is the truth that when God calls we come, and when He commissions, we go forth in His name....PERIOD! The general and popular concept that God's call is a matter of an offer to come, and His commission is an offer to go forth serving, each respectively subject to our agreement, is the height of contrariety in respect to how Jesus, as Lord, operates administratively in matters of the kingdom of God. Jesus' choice of a word to indicate the effect of the call of God sets the scene for our understanding: In Jn. 6:44, Jesus testified that, "No man can come unto me, except the Father who hath sent Me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day." (KJV)

Though the Authorized Version (King James Version) makes it clear that the action of coming to Christ is not set in motion by our choice to do so, but by the action of the Father, without which NO MAN can come to Christ, yet it, along with other conventional translations, does not make clear the force of the Father's "call." The "call" is really not merely a "call." The Greek word has a far greater force than "call." The force of the Greek word falls nowhere short of "drag." What Jesus really said, in the choice of His wording, was that no man is able to come to Him unless the Father drags that one.

Jonathan Mitchell's Translation of the New Testament presents to us the full force of Jesus' meaning. Here it is with the Greek extended and amplified: "No man is able (or: is presently having power) to come toward Me unless the Father--the One sending Me--should drag him [as with a net] (or: draw him [as drawing water in a bucket or a sword from its sheath]), and I Myself will raise him up (resurrect him; stand him back up again) within (or: in union with) the Last Day." We're not dependent entirely to Mr. Mitchell's text alone, for many other students of New Testament Greek have noted the same fact. Even Vines (very conservative) Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, is careful to note immediately under listing of "draw," that "dragging" is indicated. The sense is continued on as Jesus says emphatically, "...and I Myself WILL raise him up..." (Emphasis mine) No ifs, ands, or buts.

But we can come to the issue from another perspective---that of the Book of Acts record of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus.

Toward a major change of mind (repentance), I implore the reader to check out that record again. You see, most Christians, in reading the account, presume things utterly foreign to what went on there on the road to Damascus, when Saul (shortly to become Paul, an emissary of Jesus Christ) is thrown to the ground by a bright light from heaven, followed by a disturbingly-questioning, attention-arresting, Voice of authority. What we have in that scene is the resurrected, glorified, Jesus, with the kind and level of prerogative possessed only by Deity, commanding Saul's recognition of Jesus' lordship. No, no, no, not anything like the popular concept, "will you accept Jesus as your Lord?"

It's the Lord BEING Lord of Saul, because that's who He IS. It's the Lord COMMANDING Saul into a saving and serving relationship with Christ. There's no mere offer of salvation or service. Saul is made to understand that the One he has been persecuting (in persecuting Christians) ---as Saul as Paul will later write-- "IS Lord of all." When Paul would later write in Ephesians, "For by grace are you saved through faith...," he was explaining the nature of his experience theologically.

What happened to him on the way to Damascus was grace in operation---powerful grace, dragging grace, non-negotiable grace, effective grace,stopping Saul in his tracks and bringing to bear upon and within him, that persuasive Power that births saving faith. Saving faith, the faith that trusts God, comes from being completely convinced by the Truth. The process of saving faith is a process of so absolutely impressing the Truth upon the heart that nothing else is possible. It is, ultimately understood, the faith OF Christ. Jesus had intrusively inserted Himself into Saul's life, and did so, as it were, with batteries included, i.e., when Christ comes in, He comes in with His faith included. Faith is a gift, within the supreme gift of God's Son to us. "For by grace are you saved through faith, and THAT not of yourselves, it is the GIFT of God." (Eph. 2: 8, 9 KJV) The Mitchell translation of the last phrase reads, "the gift of and from God (or, reading it as apposition: the gift which is God)."

Later Paul, in writing to the Church in Philippi, summed it up quite nicely for us: "...that I might apprehend that for which I have been apprehended of Christ Jesus." (Phil. 3:12, KJV) Here again we have a case where the Authorized Version blunts the full force of what Paul was saying. "Apprehend" does convey the action, if we think of "apprehend" as police might apprehend a criminal who is attempting to escape, but it is better rendered from the Greek as "seized," or "grasped," or "taken hold of." Paul desired to grasp that for which he had been grasped of Christ Jesus. How perfectly he describes in those few words what happened to him on the road to Damascus. It's so clear: Jesus grabbed him for Himself and for the kingdom of God.

We see the result as recorded in the end of The Book of Acts, with Paul receiving all who came to him in prison, "speaking to them of those things pertaining to the kingdom of God, and of the Lord Jesus Christ." -John Gavazzoni-

nikolai_42;5330352 said:

The term Anathema is pretty extreme (and final). Paul, for example uses it of himself in Romans 9:3

For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:
Romans 9:3

Same Greek term even if a different English word.

So while I do recognize that that there is room for desiring eternal good for someone, relying on it as a tried means of obtaining a desired end for someone seems to me to be going beyond what is written. In other words, I don't see Peter establishing prayer for the dead - but I do see Paul giving loose reference to it. But certainly not enough to use it as evidence of after death conversion. Just as I see the general universal reconciliation as a decent hope, I don't see it taught in scripture - I see the same thing for prayers for the dead. Not something I would major in - and not enough to build a solid doctrine upon.

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Dear Ace: I can give you another word in koine which is one of the strongest for destruction, that word is apollumi. I intend to pursue this a little later. At the moment I am being challenged by a few lunatics that still dwell at the foot of the mountain, so please be patient.

Do you have any idea how many distinct words there are in Hebrew for destruction? That is correct; over 20! That group of nasty words have a number that link destruction with change and transformation in dual aspect of meaning.

The punishment of the Father of all fathers is not merely correction: it is correction that improves, changes, transforms for the better.

Our God punishes with an objective in view, not as an end in itself!

There are dual aspects to our Father’s Realm as shown in the following…

Tamiym/ 'ymt

To be consumed, destroyed, exhausted and spent, but also to be finished and made sound.

Kalal

Links destruction, being spent, exhausted, as well as to be finished and made sound.

Tamam, the root word of Tamiym

To be finished, complete, summed up, made whole: linked with to be consumed, exhausted, spent and destroyed.

Shalam/ ~IX

Destruction, has the scope of being finished and ended, made good or whole, & being made sound, coupled with to be restored.

Shebar, rooted in Shabar

Breakout, and being brought to birth; and underlying new birth and breakout? To be crushed and broken. Again there is dual meaning in our Lord’s words of destruction and re-creation.

Chalowph

Destruction rooted in being altered, renewed, changed, and to sprout again. It should also be noted that this is not just change, but change for the better.

"In the Christian story God descends to reascend. He comes down;… down to the very roots and sea-bed of the Nature He has created. But He goes down to come up again and bring the whole ruined world up with Him." -C.S. Lewis

“Coming to the close of the last age, we find the earth filled with God’s righteousness. All know Him from the least to the greatest. The earth is filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Through His own blood, Christ has reconciled all back to God. We see every tongue confessing in love and adoration Christ as Lord. This can only be done in obedience and love as it is a unanimous praise of the universe to the glory of God the Father (Colossians 1:20).

It is little wonder that all gladly proclaim redemption’s story. God now rises in everyone, bringing the consummation of God’s plan of the ages – a complete circle, from God in Himself to God in all." -Jack E. Jacobsen-

Every knee, every tongue, every dimension in antiphonal worship

Every created thing (pan ktisma). Every creature in a still wider antiphonal circle beyond the circle of angels (from ktizw, for which see 1 Timothy 4:4 ; James 1:18 ), from all the four great fields of life (in heaven, upon the earth, under the earth as in verse James 3 , with on the sea epi th qalassh added). No created thing is left out. This universal chorus of praise to Christ from all created life reminds one of the profound mystical passage in Romans 8:20-22 concerning the sympathetic agony of creation (ktisi) in hope of freedom from the bondage of corruption. If the trail of the serpent is on all creation, it will be ultimately thrown off. Saying (legonta). Masculine (construction according to sense, personifying the created things) if genuine, though some MSS. have legonta (grammatical gender agreeing with panta) present active participle of legw, to say. And to the Lamb (kai twi arniwi). Dative case. Praise and worship are rendered to the Lamb precisely as to God on the throne. Note separate articles here in the doxology as in Romans 4:11 and the addition of to krato (active power) in place of iscu (reserve of strength) in Romans 5:12 . -A.T. Robertson Word Pictures-

FineLinen said:

Dear Ace: I can give you another word in koine which is one of the strongest for destruction, that word is apollumi. I intend to pursue this a little later. At the moment I am being challenged by a few lunatics that still dwell at the foot of the mountain, so please be patient.

Do you have any idea how many distinct words there are in Hebrew for destruction? That is correct; over 20! That group of nasty words have a number that link destruction with change and transformation in dual aspect of meaning.

The punishment of the Father of all fathers is not merely correction: it is correction that improves, changes, transforms for the better.

Our God punishes with an objective in view, not as an end in itself!

There are dual aspects to our Father’s Realm as shown in the following…

Tamiym/ 'ymt

To be consumed, destroyed, exhausted and spent, but also to be finished and made sound.

Kalal

Links destruction, being spent, exhausted, as well as to be finished and made sound.

Tamam, the root word of Tamiym

To be finished, complete, summed up, made whole: linked with to be consumed, exhausted, spent and destroyed.

Shalam/ ~IX

Destruction, has the scope of being finished and ended, made good or whole, & being made sound, coupled with to be restored.

Shebar, rooted in Shabar

Breakout, and being brought to birth; and underlying new birth and breakout? To be crushed and broken. Again there is dual meaning in our Lord’s words of destruction and re-creation.

Chalowph

Destruction rooted in being altered, renewed, changed, and to sprout again. It should also be noted that this is not just change, but change for the better.

"In the Christian story God descends to reascend. He comes down;… down to the very roots and sea-bed of the Nature He has created. But He goes down to come up again and bring the whole ruined world up with Him." -C.S. Lewis

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Destruction= apollumi

GREEK WORD STUDIES ἀπόλλυμι, 'apollumi' for 'Perish, Destroy'

"For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not apollumi but have everlasting life."

"What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he apollumi one of them, does not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is apollumi, until he find it?

"For as many as have sinned without law shall also apollumi without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law.."

"Do not labor for the meat which apollumi, but for that meat which endures to everlasting life..."

"But if your brother is grieved with your meat, now do you not walk charitably. Do not apollumi him with your meat, for whom Christ died.

"He who loves his life shall apollumi it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal."

The True Basis Of Redemption

“God says He will reconcile all; the whole creation shall ultimately be delivered, and every created thing shall finally praise God (Revelation 5:13).

The point that I wish the reader especially to note is that the final accomplishment of this purpose of God depends on Himself, and not on man. The creature may fail, the Creator never fails; and no amount of blunders, mistakes, failures or perversions of the creature shall disarrange or thwart the plans of the Creator. This is the true basis of redemption.” -A.P. Adams-

A.P. Adams – Kingdom Resources

Redemption is a part of the process of Creation, and Creation is God’s work and not man’s.

I presume that no one will question the statement that Creation is entirely God’s work, but some may object to the statement that Redemption is a part of the creative process, because the common idea is that Redemption was a sort of an afterthought with God, brought in as a remedy for the evil that Satan had wrought; but just one scripture will dissipate this idea, viz.: that Jesus Christ is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev. 8:8), and that God’s people are chosen in him “before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:20); these scriptures plainly show that the Redemption by Christ was no afterthought, but fully contemplated in the original plan, “before the foundation of the world.”

Greek-English Lexicon Of The New Testament by William F. Arndt & Wilbur Gingrich

ta; pavnta.

In the abs. sense of the whole of creation all things, the universe

(Pla., Ep. 6 p. 323d tw'n pavntwn qeov"; hymn to Selene in EAbel, Orphica [1885] 294, 36 eij" se; ta; pavnta teleuta' [s. 2ad above]; Herm. Wr. 13, 17 t. ktivsanta ta; pavnta; Philo, Spec. Leg. 1, 208, Rer. Div. Her. 36, Somn. 1, 241; PGM 1, 212 kuvrie tw'n pavntwn; 4, 3077) Ro 11:36 (Musaeus in Diog. L. 1, 3 ejx eJno;" ta; pavnta givnesqai kai; eij" taujto;n ajnaluvesqai. Cf. Norden, Agn. Th. 240-50); 1 Cor 8:6a, b; 15:28a, b; Eph 3:9; 4:10b; Phil 3:21; Col 1:16a, b, 17>b (HHegermann, D. Vorstellung vom Schöpfungsmittler etc., TU 82, '61, 88ff); Hb 1:3; 2:10a, b; Rv 4:11; 1 Cl 34:2; PK 2 p. 13 (four times).

—In the relative sense, indicated by the context, everything (Kupr. I p. 42 no. 29 ta;" stoa;" kai; ta; ejn aujtai'" pavnta; PGiess. 2, 14 [II bc] in a bill: ta; p.='everything taken together') ejn parabolai'" ta; pavnta givnetai everything (=all the preaching) is in parables Mk 4:11. Cf. Ac 17:25b; Ro 8:32b.

Of everything in heaven and earth that is in need of uniting and redeeming

"And God purposed through Him to reconcile the universe to Himself, making peace through His blood, which was shed upon the Cross--to reconcile to Himself through Him, I say, things on earth and things in Heaven."

"Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous."

Therefore, as by the offense of one, etc. - The Greek text of this verse is as follows: - Αρα ουν, ὡς δι 'ἑνος παραπτωματος, εις παντας ανθρωπους εις κατακριμα· αυτω και ἑνος δικαιωματος, εις παντας ανθρωπους, εις δικαιωσιν ζωης ; which literally rendered stands thus: - Therefore, as by one offense unto all men, unto condemnation; so likewise, by one righteousness unto all men, to justification of life. This is evidently an elliptical sentence, and its full meaning can be gathered only from the context. He who had no particular purpose to serve would, most probably, understand it, from the context, thus: - Therefore, as by one sin all men came into condemnation; so also by one righteous act all men came unto justification of life: which is more fully expressed in the following verse. Now, leaving all particular creeds out of the question, and taking in the scope of the apostle's reasoning in this and the preceding chapter, is not the sense evidently this? - Through the disobedience of Adam, a sentence of condemnation to death, without any promise or hope of a resurrection, passed upon all men; so, by the obedience of Christ unto death, this one grand righteous act, the sentence was so far reversed, that death shall not finally triumph, for all shall again be restored to life. Justice must have its due; and therefore all must die. The mercy of God, in Christ Jesus, shall have its due also; and therefore all shall be put into a salvageable state here, and the whole human race shall be raised to life at the great day. Thus both justice and mercy are magnified; and neither is exalted at the expense of the other. -Adam Clarke-

Dear P.P.S. The eklektos ἐκλεκτός are gathered, or picked out (chosen) by the Father "before the foundation of the world". The Source of this election is the Father's love and grace, NOT human will, but wholly from Him, thru Him & for Him. The eklektos are the first-fruits of the harvest, the malista of Abba.

There is no such animal as "non elect". Those who are not the eklektos are lost sheep who the Master of Reconciliation specializes in reaching in their apollumi condition.

He is the reconciliation for our sins, and NOT for our sins ONLY, but for the sins of the whole world

Yes, my friend, Jesus Christ is the hilasmos of the holos!

Who shall ultimately worship God?

Every creature Rev. 5:13

All flesh Isa. 66:23

All the ends of the world Psa. 22:27

All the kindreds of the nations Psa. 67:7

All the isles of the heathen Zep. 2:11

All the nations whom Thou hast made Psa. 86:9; Rev. 15:4

All the earth Psa. 66:4

The whole earth shall be filled with His glory Psa. 72:19; 97:7.” -K.R. McKay-

Every tongue, every knee, every dimension of Heaven, earth & underworld

Dr.Robert Young

Author of.....

1. A New Translation Of The Bible

2. New Concordance To The Greek New Testament

3. Dictionary & Concordance Of Bible Words & Synonyms.

4. Concise Concordance To Eight Thousand Changes Of The Revised Testament

5. Numerous Other Words In Biblical & Oriental Literature.

Dr. Robert Young Analytical Concordance

pa'ß =

All points, all men, all things. All, whole, completely. (1075 verses)

All = lk=

All, the whole, any, each, every, everything, totality. (24 passages)

All =lylk=

Entire, all. Complete, wholly. (15 verses)

All = br =

Multitudes/ abundance (149 verses)

All= o&loß =

All. Whole. Completely. (99 verses)

This is your mission for today, should you be willing to accept it.... List the koine Greek scholars who maintain all does not mean all.

koine Greek Scholars: All does not mean all =

1. _____________________________________________?

2.______________________________________________?

3.______________________________________________?


The Greek-English Lexicon Of The New Testament by William F. Arndt & Wilbur Gingrich

PAS, pa'sa, pa'n gen. pantov", pavsh", pantov" (dat. pl. pa'si and pa'sin vary considerably in the mss.; s. W-S. §5, 28; cf. Rob. 219-21) (Hom.+; inscr., pap., LXX, En., Ep. Arist., Philo, Joseph., Test. 12 Patr.).

BNR32FAN said:

Then all who says to Him Lord Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven?

“"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'”
‭‭MATTHEW‬ ‭7:21-23‬ ‭NASB‬‬

And all who blaspheme the Holy Spirit will be forgiven?

“And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him.”
‭‭LUKE‬ ‭12:10‬ ‭NASB‬‬

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::Jonathan Mitchell's New Testament Translation::

Rotherham Emphasized

Enter ye in at, the narrow gate; because broad and roomy is the way that leadeth unto destruction,—and, many, are they who enter thereby: 14 Because, narrow, is the gate, and, confined, the way, that leadeth unto life,—and, few, are they who find, it. 15 Beware of false prophets, who come unto you in clothing of sheep,—while, within, they are ravening wolves. 16 By their fruits, shall ye find, them, out,—unless perhaps men gather—from thorns, grapes! or, from thistles, figs! 17 So, every good tree, fine fruit, produceth,—whereas, the worthless tree, evil fruit, produceth: 18 It is, impossible, for a, good tree, to be bearing, evil fruit, neither doth, a worthless tree, produce, fine fruit. 19 Every tree that beareth not fine fruit, is hewn down, and, into fire, is cast. 20 After all then, by their fruits, shall ye find, them, out. 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord! Lord! shall enter into the kingdom of the heavens,—but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in the heavens. 22 Many, will say unto me, in, that, day, Lord! Lord! did we not, in thy name, prophesy, and, in thy name, cast, demons, out,—and, in thy name, many works of power, perform? 23And, then, will I confess unto them, Never, have I acknowledged you,—Depart from me, ye workers of lawlessness!

LIFE AT THE CROSS-ROADS

Matt. 7:13-14

Go in through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the road which leads to ruin, and there are many who go in through it. Narrow is the gate and hard is the way that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

There is always a certain dramatic quality about life, for, as it has been said, "all life concentrates on man at the cross-roads." In every action of life man is confronted with a choice; and he can never evade the choice, because he can never stand still. He must always take one way or the other. Because of that, it has always been one of the supreme functions of the great men of history that they should confront men with that inevitable choice. As the end drew near, Moses spoke to the people: "See, I have set before you this day life and good, and death and evil.... Therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live" (Deut.30:15-20). When Joshua was laying down the leadership of the nation at the end of his life, he presented them with the same choice: "Choose this day whom you will serve" (Josh.24:15). Jeremiah heard the voice of God saying to him, "And to this people you will say, Thus says the Lord: Behold I set before you the way of life and the way of death" (Jer.21:8). John Oxenham wrote:

"To every man there openeth A way and ways and a way; And the high soul treads the high way, And the low soul gropes the low; And in between on the misty flats The rest drift to and fro; But to every man there openeth A high way and a low, And every man decideth The way his soul shall go."

That is the choice with which Jesus is confronting men in this passage. There is a broad and an easy way, and there are many who take it; but the end of it is ruin. There is a narrow and a hard way, and there are few who take it; but the end of it is life. Cebes, the disciple of Socrates, writes in the Tabula: "Dost thou see a little door, and a way in front of the door, which is not much crowded, but the travellers are few? That is the way that leadeth to true instruction." Let us examine the difference between the two ways.

(i) It is the difference between the hard and the easy way. There is never any easy way to greatness; greatness is always the product of toil. Hesiod, the old Greek poet, writes, "Wickedness can be had in abundance easily; smooth is the road, and very nigh she dwells; but in front of virtue the gods immortal have put sweat." Epicharmus said, "The gods demand of us toil as the price of all good things." "Knave," he warns, "yearn not for the soft things, lest thou earn the hard."

Once Edmund Burke made a great speech in the House of Commons. Afterwards his brother Richard Burke was observed deep in thought. He was asked what he was thinking about, and answered, "I have been wondering how it has come about that Ned has contrived to monopolise all the talents of our family; but then again I remember that, when we were at play, he was always at work." Even when a thing is done with an appearance of ease, that ease is the product of unremitting toil. The skill of the master executant on the piano, or the champion player on the golf course did not come without sweat. There never has been any other way to greatness than the way of toil, and anything else which promises such a way is a delusion and a snare.

(ii) It is the difference between the long and the short way. Very rarely something may emerge complete and perfect in a flash, but far oftener greatness is the result of long labour and constant attention to detail. Horace in The Art of Poetry? advises Piso, when he has written something, to keep it beside him for nine years before he publishes it. He tells how a pupil used to take exercises to Quintilius, the famous critic. Quintilius would say, "Scratch it out; the work has been badly turned; send it back to the fire and the anvil." Virgil's Aneid occupied the last ten years of Virgil's life; and. as he was dying, he would have destroyed it, because he thought it so imperfect, if his friends had not stopped him. Plato's Republic begins with a simple sentence: "I went down to the Piraeus yesterday with Glaucon, the son of Ariston, that I might otter up prayer to the goddess." On Plato's own manuscript, in his own handwriting, there were no fewer than thirteen different versions of that opening sentence. The master writer had laboured at arrangement after arrangement that he might get the cadences exactly right. Thomas Gray's Elegy written in a Country Churchyard is one of the immortal poems. It was begun in the summer of 1742; it was finally privately circulated on 12th June, 1750. Its lapidary perfection had taken eight years to produce. No one ever arrived at a masterpiece by a short-cut. In this world we are constantly faced with the short way, which promises immediate results, and the long way, of which the results are in the far distance. But the lasting things never come quickly; the long way is the best way in the end.

(iii) It is the difference between the disciplined and the undisciplined way. Nothing was ever achieved without discipline; and many an athlete and many a man has been ruined because he abandoned discipline and let himself grow slack. Coleridge is the supreme tragedy of indiscipline. Never did so great a mind produce so little. He left Cambridge University to join the army; he left the army because, in spite of all his erudition, he could not rub down a horse; he returned to Oxford and left without a degree. He began a paper called The Watchman which lived for ten numbers and then died. It has been said of him: "He lost himself in visions of work to be done, that always remained to be done. Coleridge had every poetic gift but one--the gift of sustained and concentrated effort." In his head and in his mind he had all kinds of books, as he said, himself, "completed save for transcription." "I am on the eve," he says, "of sending to the press two octave volumes." But the books were never composed outside Coleridge's mind, because. he would not face the discipline of sitting down to write them out. No one ever reached any eminence, and no one having reached it ever maintained it, without discipline.

(iv) It is the difference between the thoughtful and the thoughtless way. Here we come to the heart of the matter. No one would ever take the easy, the short, the undisciplined way, if he only thought. Everything in this world has two aspects-- how it looks at the moment, and how it will look in the time to come. The easy way may look very inviting at the moment, and the hard way may look very daunting. The only way to get our values right is to see, not the beginning, but the end of the way, to see things, not in the light of time, but in the light of eternity. -Dr. Wm. Barclay-

BNR32FAN said:

That’s not what the church taught since the beginning of Christianity friend. Early church writings refute universalism.

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The Beautiful Heresy- Christian Universalism: The Early Church

Universalism: The Prevailing Doctrine of the Christian Church During Its First Five Hundred Years

The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Vol XIII: Index - TOC

God is the Source, Guide, Goal of ta panta

BNR32FAN said:

That’s not what the church taught since the beginning of Christianity friend. Early church writings refute universalism. Suppose your wrong and teaching people they can live however they want here on earth and simply pay for their sins in hell. Those people would burn for all eternity and you would have contributed to their fate my friend. I’m confident that you would not want that fate for them or to be on your conscience. Now suppose I’m wrong and everyone who goes to hell will eventually repent and be saved. Am I endangering anyone’s salvation by telling them hell is eternal suffering? We only get one shot at this and we better get it right the first time because there are no do overs. To entertain the thought of universalism is one thing but to teach it could have terrible results friend. Please consider the consequences for being wrong.

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Dear BNR: Hell is not eternal suffering. Death and hell are consummated in the Lake of all lakes, the Lake of Fire & Deity.

The fact is this, my friend, nobody can live like they want to live!

The polus "were made sinners">>>the identical polus are "made righteous."