We as humans have this unique ability to envision our dreams and to work on them to give that person hope! Without this gift, God said, "Without a vision, my people perish"!
Why is it do we hope? Why do we put so much effort into hoping for things that may never happen! Jesus gave us "hope" in the Old Testament, he as Almighty God said, "Where there is no vision my people perish"! When we visualize something good to happen for or to us, we then "hope" for such a thing to come to pass. We do all we can to work to that "vision". Others simply give up and throw up their hands and leave their lives to "Fate".
It is this "Hope" and "Vision" that keeps us going each and everyday! Animals can't hope nor do they envision what they want to happen to them! We "humans," God created in his likeness and in his image have the ability to "hope" and to create within a "vision" or a goal to reach in their lifetimes. When Jesus died on that cross he took our punishments we so richly deserve and bared them upon himself!
We didn't seek God, he sought us! And it was his spirit that led you to believe in his Son's sacrifice, so he can save you from your sins and wash you clean with his blood that also sealed the New Testament. Before Jesus was incarnated into the human realm, he was the living "Word" of God in heavens realm and Almighty God would require "animal sacrifices" for the atonement of their peoples sins. The high priests once a year would offer an animal sacrifice for the sins of Israel as a nation.
Old Testament they sacrificed a variety of animals later on in the New Covenant Jesus was the sacrificial lamb of God Almighty!
In the Old Testament, animal sacrifices both for the families and for the nation was a commandment of God for the covering of their "sins" this didn't qualify them to go to heaven when they died! It allowed them in "Paradise" but not into heaven.
During the Old Testament times each family would offer to God personally for their individual sins doing animal sacrifices. When these souls departed from this world; they went to a place in Hades called, "Paradise" Abraham's bosom. This is where everyone that was on earth who had faith in God arrived at to wait for their savior Jesus the Christ the Son of the most High God to wash their sins away forever.
Because their sins were not washed away, only covered by the animals sacrificial blood (For life is in the power of the blood). They couldn't enter into heaven until Jesus was born from a virgin and gave his life on the cross for all mankind. the Bible doesn't say too much about what went on in paradise located inside the earth across from hell itself!
He "Jesus", had to die in our place on the cross to pay for the all sins past, present and future for anyone who believes in his sacrifice, the blood he shed on the cross. This sacrifice was pleasing to God; it was a sinless sacrifice and the Almighty God accepted it. This single act of the greatest love in all eternity allowed the "captives" in Hades on the paradise side be taken up and were physically resurrected!
I thought the earth was crust and then mantle, this is what we were taught in school in Geology classes... Does this mean that the Earth is hollow to hold on to Hell and Paradise?
When he, Jesus Christ gave up his spirit to God, he entered into the heart of the earth he preached unto the "captives" imprisoned by satan who in the garden of Eden tricked Eve and Adam from their birthright. these are whom satan made it impossible to ever go into heaven because of Adam had given the title deed of the earth to satan; by Adam/Eve disobeying God's commandment not to eat of the tree of the fruit of knowledge. Yet God was faithful and protected them from the demons of hell!
These Old Testament saints were kept there for thousands of years and across from Paradise, Jesus reveal in the New Testament that a great gulf or separation was fixed between Paradise and hell itself created by Almighty God himself. So no one in hell could passover to get a cool drink of water or demons couldn't inflict pain and suffering to these saints and no one could go across from paradise to the side of hell! (I couldn't imagine why they would have wanted to in the first place!)
This great gulf or divide kept those who died in their sins on one side and paradise on the other side. With shedding of the blood of the sinless lamb, it was the perfect sacrifice, which would enable for the "captives" to be released to go to heaven. But there was much more! It allowed future generations to be "saved" by faith only in the shed blood of Jesus Christ! "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishly but to us becomes the power of God"!
The things we do in the body as "sinners" are being recorded constantly by the angels of God. If you die in your sins, you will be found guilty and put in a local jail before their trial. (Hell) is that jailed of lost souls!
Those in paradise could not visit Hell's side across from them but they could see each other! Jesus spoke of a certain rich man who faired richly all his life and their lied a beggar Lazarus at his gates begging for food or crumbs from his table.
The rich man in the burning flames and Lazarus is comforted, this is the facts Jesus presented in his public teachings to the Pharisees and Saduccees.
The rich man completely ignored Lazarus's need for food or any type of kind donation in that day! Seems like our world today! The poor are ignored while the rich become richer! Imagine this is just one of the stories that Jesus shared with us. I am sure there are many millions of people who have done the same thing to the poor and the ignored and these individuals who didn't help them in the time of need would find themselves in a place of torment and everlasting contempt!
Jesus said that Lazarus was covered with big soars all over his body and the dogs came and licked the soars! When the rich man died he was buried and he opened his eyes in flames of torment. When Lazarus died he was carried by an angel into Abrahams bosom! That was their piece of heaven after their deaths. The rich man could yell across that chasm and get Abraham's attention!
The rich man who died had feelings and he felt tormented in the flames of judgment! He, "the rich man", knew his father Abraham and Lazarus whom he let set at his gates to beg. He had all his sense faculties all working perfectly!
The rich man seen Lazarus with his father Abraham and he yelled out; Oh father Abraham dip Lazarus's finger in the cool water over to touch my tormented tongue; for I am tormented in these flames. Abraham said, "In thy lifetime you fair sumptuously everyday and Lazarus evil things, now Lazarus is comforted and thou are tormented! Besides even if we could do such a thing there is a great gulf between us that no one can passover to either side".
This is an artist conception of the lake of fire but Jesus said, there will be darkness and loneliness, no one would be able to see each other but they will hear the sounds of screaming and cursing while burning in the lake of fire with sulphur and brimstone! Getting no rest day or night! This will be the final second death after the White Throne Judgement.
Think on this, Jesus said there was a conversation in Hades at one time of the past, where he named both Abraham and Lazarus and the angels who carried Lazarus to paradise but Jesus didn't refer to whom the rich man was by his earthly name! Because in Jesus's eyes he doesn't know him because he died in his sins! He doesn't give the "rich man" any credit in his current eternal prison so he doesn't honor him by calling him by his earthly name.
When Jesus's three days were up until his resurrection on the morning on the third day as prophesied by the Old Testament prophets, he preached to the captives on the side of Lazarus waiting place in paradise and took them all with him on their way to heaven! It seems to me, he, Jesus, asked them do you believe what I have done for all of you and they all believed knowing personally what he had accomplished for them and the world!
Now in Hades the abode of paradise lies empty of the once forgotten souls and across from that former place is still an active hell that never gets filled and in fact the Bible declares because of man's sins; "hell enlarges itself"! What about the rich man? According to Jesus he still is suffering in torments, over thousands of years thus far, later he will be judged and thrown into the lake of fire! Can you imagine no rest day or night! Only to be called out to the great white throne of God to receive their final sentencing!
He came to set those captives free! Who were the captives that the Bible talks about?
These captives in Paradise were resurrected with their newly resurrected bodies; these were God's first fruits of the resurrection! They were seen of some 500+ brethren for 40-50 days before they went to heaven! Imagine the dead you once known personally or historically, are resurrected physically and visiting their families and friends and eating at dinner banquets just prior of them going now to heavens gates instead of in the heart of the earth in Hades known as paradise or Abrahams bosom.
Jesus told us, "I will never leave you or forsake you"! And he kept that promise to the Old Testament saints and he also keeps this promise to you and I! No matter what we maybe going through and even being at the doors of death, Jesus is right there ready to usher you into his kingdom upon your last breath of life. You and I and my wife are the fruits of Jesus's harvest!
We are the "wheat" the devils children are the "chaff". The Lord said to the reaper, "Allow the wheat and the chaff grow together and then collect the chaff in bundles and throw them into fires of hell and place the "wheat" into my storehouse".
Unto this day; many Christians never had supernatural experiences from Almighty God and his Son Jesus, yet their faith in Christ as their savior is solid and they don't need proof of his existence. Their faith has saved them! This is not to say no one has experienced miracles this would be ridiculous! I even had miracles in my life! Many don't and some do, it depends on the will of God and the persons personal exercised faith!
There are many people who accepted Jesus Christ by "faith" alone! They seek not after physical miracles like Israel did but they know by "faith" they are saved by and through his blood!
Some like myself have witnessed miracles and visions from the Lord and I personally experienced this myself. I don't know why the Lord chose me for those particular events that happened in my life. I just know Jesus is alive and I didn't need any vision to know Jesus is real; in fact he is more real than any of us in the flesh! He
is God in the flesh! He knows how we feel and relates to our personal or national tribulations.
I talked with a few people in my lifetime that told me, they couldn't believe a God of Love would drag anyone into hell! I told them, you are right it is not God who drags you into hells deepest abyss; it is your "arrogance and pride" that does this for you. Pride sent Lucifer to hell to the sides of the pit, Almighty God didn't make Lucifer sin, Lucifer did it to himself by disobeying God willfully.
Almighty God provided us a way to escape the damnation of hell and that was through his Son Jesus the Christ; the Son of God! "If thou shalt confess the Lord Jesus Christ and believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved! For believing with the heart is counted unto righteousness and confession is made unto salvation"!
The sinners prayer is the first step of salvation but it doesn't stop there!
For his or her's believing heart is accounted unto them as righteousness and their confession is made unto salvation! Sounds simple enough! But men and women of all faiths and religion still think they have to earn their own way into heaven or some even are convinced that there are many roads to heaven! Roman Catholics and satan worshippers and masons etc. These people should re-think their walk and to see if it reflects from the living word of God in what they believe!
Jesus said, "I am the way the truth and the life and anyone who enters in some other kind of way are thieves and robbers! Jesus said, I am the way the truth and the light! No one one comes to the father except through me"!
It doesn't stop there, confessing your sins and asking for forgiveness. Jesus wants us to produce fruits in our lives to be living examples of Jesus to a lost world. How many people do
you know who have talked to people about Jesus their savior?
Truly in todays world, the name of Jesus is considered profanity in and of itself! When you speak about Jesus the liberals both local, federal and state and even republicans
in everyday life go nuts! They don't want to hear about their judgment coming!
If so, are you one of them who feel embarrassed to mention about your salvation and their need for it as well? In all manner of truth I was reluctant because of getting people extremely angry with me! It's a hard thing to do and Jesus said, "If you want to be my disciple you must take up your cross and follow me"!
Oh! That's right, we can't talk about religion at work! Really! If you were to ask me how many times I heard the name of Jesus in the swearing content you would have thought it was a religious organization. About twenty years ago, I would hear somebody talk about Nostradamus future predictions and everyone's attention is perked up and ready to receive. This will be this way when the anti-christ is worshipped and adored.
Then I would interject during the conversation and explained to them, "Did you know that the apostle John has written about the same thing in the book of Revelations and that Nostradamus quoted bits and pieces from the word of God and that he was also Jewish"? The guy looked at me and screamed out at the top of his voice and said, "Who is talking about Jesus or the Bible"!
Have you ever experienced an "outrage" from someone when you talked about the Lord Jesus Christ indirectly? I have! It's not pleasant in the least.
This guys face was beaten red with fury and a lot of anger at just the mentioning of the book of Revelations or reverently talking about Jesus Christ! Once I stop talking about revelations he went back to his normal conversation about this so called, prophet to the world. It was strange, it was like he was in a trance like state of mind. I knew this was a demon talking through him to me! Like the demon who spoke through the Apostle Peter before he was endowed with the Holy Spirit after the resurrection of Jesus Christ!
The very mention of revelations, which is the revealing of the Lord Jesus Christ was enough testimony to convict this heavy laden hearted sinner! Causing him to go into utter outrage! His face and bald head was beaten red and he screamed on top of his lungs! Yelling saying, "Who is even talking about Jesus! " The demon who owned his soul was quite settled in and didn't want me to tip the boat. Jesus had to rebuke satan, when Peter told the Lord he would protect him from being crucified!
The above individual's heart and mind and soul were veiled by sin and Almighty God is waiting patiently for him and each sinner to humble themselves and pray and he will forgive them. Some of these (sinners) never get to this point and die in their sins. Satan has blinded the minds of the proud and lofty and of the poor and of the rich or anyone in any stage of life he can, to keep them from the salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ! Almighty God is the one who leads those to come to Christ.
Salvation is a gift from God! It can't be forced on anyone! "Free Will" is the moral agent and must be adhered too! The only thing we can do is "witness" the Love of Christ in our lives and live the life, so they can see your light and give glory to God!
Not everyone who gets saved is called to be an evangelist or pasture or workers of miracles or teachers etc. "Many are called
but few are chosen". Jesus states, "I stand at the door and knock and if any one opens up to me, I will come in and I will sup with them". You can't force anyone to be "saved" this is a personal choice between the sinner and Almighty God!
It is only God who leads those who are lost to his son because the Lord said, "Flesh and blood doesn't seek after God; it is evil continually. The tongue of man sets its course on the fires of hell! Such a little member of the body but boasts great and mighty things"!
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