BLESSED IS HE THAT'S NOT SCANDALIZED IN ME
or
THE KINGDOM AND DEATH CONQUERED
Maurice M Johnson
Los Angeles
May 8, 1957Open your Bibles please to Revelation the 1st chapter. The book of the Revelation that is sometimes referred to, erroneously of course, as Revelations, plural. For were told in the book itself it's the Revelation of Jesus Christ, Revelation the 1st chapter, the 1st verse,
The revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto him to show unto his servants things which Must shortly come to pass, and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.
To me that's about the same as the apparent immanency, the possible soon realization of the coming of Christ that is unmistakably given us in Peter's second sermon recorded in Acts the 3rd chapter, when he said to the Jews there, "Repent that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord, whom the heavens. must receive until the restitution of all things spoken by the mouth of the prophets".
I think pre-millennial Bible teachers who comment, far as I know all of them, that is all that I've ever heard speak on it and read after on the subject say that they believe Peter by inspiration was holding out to the believing Jews there, Pentecost, and of course to the unbelieving to tell them about it, holding out to the Christian Jews the hope of the imminent return of the Messiah to earth, not the coming Of Christ in the clouds to catch away the church. That was a mystery not known at this time, and first revealed to and through Paul I believe, I Corinthians 15:51.
I believe that unless we fail to see ... and if this chart were loose I would double it up, this jagged part here and this jagged part would be together and the church would be hidden then, and we would have this program with Israel winding up, God dealing with ... letting the Jews ... well beginning with here when the Jews are broken off and scattered among the Gentiles, in fact beginning with the times of the Gentiles in the days of Nebuchadnezzar. Christ. said while on earth Jerusalem shall be trodden down under the feet of the Gentiles the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. And we would then, if we had that chart folded that way, we would not have the church pictured here at all because at that time it was a hidden mystery, hidden in God, not known in other ages. Then we would see that what was revealed in the early days of the church dispensation before it ... the truth of the church was revealed yet as to its character and course of ... for this age and consummation of it and the second coming of Christ to catch ... in clouds and the coming of Christ to catch the Christians away, we would have only God's dealing with Israel, the Messiah, and the immanency of His return so far as God's Word was concerned that Christ might come back. The Jews at that time, the Christian Jews at that time were showing forth Christ's death till No.? come, the coming being of course His coming to earth. And we would have the thought then, as Christian Jews that Christ the firstfruits of them that slept, going back to the exposition of that or rather the feast that God gave Israel and the Feast of firstfruits and Tabernacles and so forth, that the First of firstfruits and wave offering we would find, we who believe that since Christ as in His resurrection was the firstfruit of them that slept, Since Christ was the firstfruit of that glorious harvest so far as Old Testament prophecy is concerned, the rest of the harvest may take place any minute. And so this whole dispensation which has now gone about over 1900 years, this wouldn't be in the picture at all, the thought wouldn't be in our thought at all. We would be saying, "Our glorious Redeemer has already gone back as a firstfruit of them that slept and we don’t know, He "may come back" Peter says Acts 3, "may come back any minute and that' it be the full harvest so far as-prophecy is concerned, so far as Israel is concerned, so far as Christ's reign on earth is concerned." And this people here are not considered at all, in that at all, not known yet in that, so far as the Old Testament prophecies are concerned.
So let's think of the immediacy, immediacy, the uncertainty as to when Christ might come back to restore the kingdom to Israel.' dust like those apostles asked the Lord Jesus the risen Christ, Acts 1, 1:5, and ... when Christ said to the apostles before His ascension, Acts 1. 1:5, "John truly baptized with water, you shalt be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days, hence". And they said, "Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore the kingdom?" This green tine here represents God's earthly people, and here's the part on this chart that represents the kingdom when it's restored to Israel; kingdom restored to Israel this green line. And here's the ... welt the judgment of nation&, but here's the kingdom with the King on earth, King restored to Israel, King's come back to earth. So the Jewish apostles, Peter, Jame3, and John, Philip, Bartholomew, Nathaniel, Matthew, said, "Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? Is this event that You're referring to not going to happen ... not many days hence, to happen not many days hence, wilt it be Your second coming to earth to restore the kingdom to Israel ?"
Over in (what is it, Luke 19:12) He said, "The kingdom is likened to a nobleman that went into a far country to get it" didn't He. Now that puzzled me for years and years and years. In fact, it's not so very Long ago that I began to think that I really saw light on that particular passage. "like unto a ... kingdom of heaven likened unto a nobleman that went into a far country to receive a kingdom." well who is the nobleman and where did he go from where? well where was the King them? He was on earth, He was talking to Him. Volt this is what bothered me for years: well how ... if the kingdom was at hand (and I know it was) and the King was there, if the kingdom had come unto Israel (and I know it had, Matthew 12.-27, 28, and 29), the kingdom was there, the King was there, and the heralds to the kingdom had kingdom credentials and kingdom Power, physical miracles in the name of the King and the message of the gospel of the kingdom, welt then in what sense could Christ be the nobleman who went-from here into a far country to receive a kingdom and come back with it and establish it and find certain of His servants that He left with responsibility, find that they have failed and Judge them? That's the events spoken of there, part of it in Luke.
But when I began to see clearly that the Lord was going to take the kingdom from Israel after He had reigned over all enemies and was going to restore the king ...deliver the kingdom back to the Father and come back to the earth to talk about it for forty days to His apostles, as we read in Acts 1, Luke 24 and Acts 1. The risen Christ spoke to the apostles for forty days we're told speaking to them of things pertaining to the kingdom of God, and of course feature not the church which is Christ's body, but speaking of .. speaking to them of things pertaining to the kingdom of God. And He said, "'John truly baptized with writer, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence". And when they were assembled together they said, "Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" Nell did they think that it had already been taken from Israel? why of course! Or they wouldn't talked about it restored.
Remember that in Matthew the 3rd chapter John the Baptist said "The kingdom of heaven's at hand", Matthew 3:2. After His temptation in the wilderness the devil, Christ came back and began to preach :saying, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand", Matthew 4:17. And He proved it by the miracles He performed, They were miracles in fulfillment of the prophecies. regarding what the King, Messiah. Redeemer of Israel's going to do.
As He proved you remember, when John the Baptist's in jail, sent two of his disciples to Christ to ask, "Art Thou He that should come or took we for another? Have we been footed, disappointed in believing you were the King?" Among other things at least the question arises, "What am I doing' in jail then?" John the Baptist, "What am I doing in jail? I preached the kingdom of heaven's at hand, and so forth. Now I'm inclined ... strongly inclined to think that John the Baptist knew but his disciples were bewildered. Maybe they went to visit him and said, "John what in the world? Brother John, what in the world is the meaning of all this? you told us that this was the true Messiah, and took at you in jail. The King, and you announced the kingdom of heaven's at hand, and here you are in jail. Here a Little stuffed-shirt king (they didn't say that maybe) Herod under the Roman emperor, he's put you in jail (little later had his head cut off you know) ." But anyway John the Baptist we're told in Matthew 11 sent two of his disciples to Christ to say, "Master, art Thou He that should come or look we for another?" And Christ said, "you go and tell John what you see". And Christ performed some miracles in the presence of John's disciples, heating the blind and the deaf and the lame. And He said, "you go back and tell John that the lame walk, the deaf hear, the blind see, and blessed is he that is not scandalized in Me".
Now I wondered when I saw that with a little attention off and on for years, why did He throw that in right here? Held just performed miracles. And why did He say, "Blessed is he that is not scandalized in Me?" If I would a been deaf and He’d a just healed me, I wouldn't a been scandalized, I would a been delighted. If I would a been lame or my brother, sister, mother, wife 'd been lame, and He'd just healed, I wouldn't been scandalized. But now I think I see: if He’s the King and the kingdom of God's at hand, why didn't He take John out of jail and put the Roman governor, king in jail and so on? "you go and felt John what you see. I'm doing what Isaiah 35 the prophet said I would do. "Well why don't you do it on a broad scale?" "Blessed is he that's not scandalized in Me." '?you must rightly divide the Word. you just witness to the fact that everywhere I wanted to I reigned obviously, majestically."
Now I don't want to take time to go over all of that, maybe touch it. Did He reign over all manner of diseases? Yes. Did He give His apostles, even Judas, power to cast out demons and raise the dead, and heat all manner of sicknesses and all manner of diseases, Matthew 10? Yes. But He told them, "Don't you go over to the British Isles", where the Anglo-Israelites say the ten tribes were, "Don't you go to China". He did say, "Go to just the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Just go and prove to the kingdom people that the Jewish Messiah, the King of the Jews, born in the city of David, from David's time, is here. And therefore the kingdom is here, the King is here. Now because. I am not yet extending My kingdom over, the whole earth to include letting John out of jail, 4 that's My business. I'M the true King, I'm the Messiah. you go tell John what you see. Blessed is he that is not scandalized in Me."
Some of you have heard me bring out, think that that's a beautiful parallel to God's dealing with Abraham. I mustn't take time to but more than touch it because that's a wonderful subject in itself. When God Promised Abraham when he had no children, name was Abraham, he had no children, God said, "You're going to be" ... He said, "I'm your sure reward" (what's the other word there in Genesis 15) and Abraham says," What are you going to give me? I have no children. My wife's too old to be a mother naturally. One born in my house will be my heir. What're you going to give me?" God said, "Come out and look up at the heavens. If you can count the stars you can count your children", and so forth. And Abraham believed God when he had no children and his wife was too old to be a mother naturally. He believed God that He was going to ... that God was going to let Abraham be the father of innumerable children. And his belief in God was counted unto him for righteousness.
Years later you remember God Let him ... quicken Sarah's womb and a baby was born. Now Abraham has something besides faith, in addition to faith rather. He has faith and sight now, because he can hold that Little boy Isaac, the son of promise, and he can visualize that through this son grown-up he another, a grandson, and a great-grandson, and on down to somewhere down the line the Messiah, the Redeemer, the great Blesser will come, Abraham's seed.
But after Isaac became a young fellow old enough to talk and kind of reason with his father (we don't know how old, some Bible teachers say twelve, some say twenty years of age), God said, Genesis 22, "I'm going to prove Abraham. I'm going to prove him." Now mind you, the only way Abraham can have a son that'll be the Savior and 'will be the Blesser of all nations, make Abraham a great nation, and be a Blesser of all nations, Abraham Must have a son from his wife Sarah, and then a grandson and on down the fine. Now God says, "I'm going to prove Abraham. I'm going to prove him. The Campbellites and the Roman Catholics and the Mormons and the Seventh Day Adventists need to know that God didn't say, "I'm going to save him". He said, "I'm going to prove him", Genesis 22, "going to test him".
And God said, "Abraham, get up and take your son, thine only son Isaac whom thou lovest, take thy son, thine only son Isaac whom thou lovest and go up on a mountain and offer him up". Now I'm going to put in this passage here, "And blessed is he that's not scandalized with that command. Blessed is he that is not scandalized". "Wait a minute, that's a scandal! Why you told me that you were going to quicken my wife after I ... accepted her advice and went into her handmaid Hagar in order to help you out and Hagar conceived and brought forth a son to me, his name was Ishmael, but you rejected him, and then promised me again to have my name changed from Abram to Abraham, "the father if many nations", and then you quickened my wife's womb and she conceived and brought forth a son, and now I can see your promise being realized through this flesh and blood boy, and now You're scandalizing the whole thing by telling me to kill him!" but Abraham didn't argue. "He staggered not at the promises of God.,' He said, "Both are true. God said both," We read in the ... 11th chapter of Gen... of Hebrews that "Abraham by faith offered up Isaac". He believed that God was able to raise him from the dead. And we're told that he received him in a figure that way. He said, ?'Well that's God's business. God told me that through this son I'm going to have the Savior and the Blesser of all the nations,, and now He tells me to take the son out if the way, take his life, so he can never be a father himself. Well God said both. Amen." And we're told in James 2 that Abraham's faith was made perfect when he did that. He had proved that he was Willing to have nothing but the Word of God.
Oh how I love James 2 now. I used to feet almost like Martin Luther. They say that Martin Luther threw the book of James at the wait one time, and said it ",wasn't of God". said "wasn't of God". That Roman Catholic theologian didn't ever seem to be able to clearly see how James fit in with Rome. He was saved you know walking on his steps ... on his knees rather, up the steps in a big temple doing' Penance you know, and the scripture, "the just shall live by fifth" ramp in to his soul and he was saved. Threw over Romanism except the essence of it in some cases.
But now watch. I'm ... I'm going to get too far in some of these precious lines of truth, get off the line I want to stay on. So the Lord said, recorded in the 10th chapter of....I mean 11th chapter of.... maybe we better all read that, because s there probably is no more important passage probably on the subject of the kingdom and death conquered as a preliminary and fundamental beginning. Matthew the 11th chapter, Matthew the 11th chapter.
If Earle Grove had seen this truth he never would have left us in a huff and confusion. If Homer Ruyle had seen this truth he'd have never left in a huff and stubborn confusion and carried away ... carried others ... or rather drawn others to him who were already miffed and who already had sore toes. That thing has ha opened many, many times. Had they both seen this truth ... John Owen says in his study, the, original copy of which, I kept a copy hut it's the original one he gave me here, John Owen closes his study trying to prove that' death has not yet been conquered, that -Christ must come back to earth and reign in order to defeat the last enemy. He uses these sweet words about me.. for instance, I have no desire to create discord as is your unjust accusation, for you must realize from the statements in the foregoing objections that I, along with many other Christians believe that you're absolutely wrong in many of your interpretations on this subject. Don't you care that you're considered wrong by so many believers? Do you feel that there is no other source that could be true in this matter? you certainty have taken a solid know-it-all position with the matters discussed in this pamphlet, and so far as your attitude toward my understanding is concerned is connected".
And then he says ... I want to find the passage where he says "a whole bunch of verbiage, garbled verbiage, he says, "you have here". I may yet bring out if I think it's wise, necessary, directly in here where he makes three different and distinct times of argument as to when and how death will he destroyed; he's got three definite and distinct methods by which Christ is going to destroy death. But he referred to a whole lot about what (I had it marked easily here), a whole tot of ... I forget what he said, "senseless verbiage or something like that. One of those gentle expressions ... now mind you that could be true. And if it were true, it maybe wasn't wrong unless he said the wrong spirit to say it.
One thing while I have it open here, he says, "Death shall have no more dominion. He says, "well it doesn't have any dominion ... any more dominion over Christ but it certainty does over Christians Now that's enough to render the whole thing false. that's-enough. He doesn't need to give a lot of beautiful truth somewhere else. He does give some of course. Put to say that death still is dominion over Christians is so utterly false and spiritually ignorant that it shows that his whole argument on the subject of death destroyed cannot be right. Because even if most of it were right, he would certainty have seen that death hasn't dominion over a Christian! And as I brought out in his hearing over and over again, more joyfully and more surety than I ever did in the same length of time off and on for several weeks that Paul in I Corinthians 3 in rebuking those overgrown babies at 'Corinth, he said, 'Why all-l-l-l things are yours whether things present or things to come, Paul or Apollos, Life or death, they're all yours". Well if I own death, if death is mine, it doesn't have dominion over me does it? And it's not my enemy.
Well Let's come back please to Matthew 17. Then we'll go back to Revelation 1. Matthew 11.
And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples,
He sent them out to preach the gospel of the kingdom and perform physical miracles you remember, only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Remember He sent them out to preach the kingdom of heaven is at hand and to lo something about it, to prove it by their miracles. Well was that reigning or not? Unless you see that and see that the Word of God teaches that, you cant t be c tear on other things that we'll go into. When they were given Power by the King against aft manner of sicknesses, Matthew 10, all manner of diseases, to cast out demons, and raise the dead, would that suggest that they having received such commission and Power from the King as to do those things in connection with the proclamation 59 "the kingdom of heaven's at hand"? "Rise, in the name of the King. "Come out you demons" of that demon Possessed person, "in the name Of Jesus of Nazareth, King, Son of David." Were they reigning? What were they doing if they weren't reigning? What were they doing if they weren't reigning?!
And in the 10th chapter of Luke we read of the seventy who were sent out two by two with the same commission to go into every city, the Scripture says, "whither He Himself would come"; in other words, they were forerunners. And they were to preach "the kingdom of heaven's at hand". And they ... and heat the sick and cast out demons and 30 forth. And they came back, we're told in Luke 10, rejoicing that even the demons they. said, "why Lord, even the demons were subject to us in Thy name". And He said. "Don't rejoice over that, rejoice rather that your names are written in heaven". He said, I have given you power over all the power of the enemy". Where did any of us get the idea that Jesus of Nazareth should be thought of only as the meek and lowly, gentle Jesus that heated little sick babies? Now He was all of that, but He was more. Where'd we get the idea that He should be regarded as a ... sort of an effeminate, harmless teacher of beautiful ethics when He was on earth? Just took at these twelve and seventy going out to sick people and with authority and all heaven backing them up: healing all manner Of sicknesses, all manner of diseases, casting out demons, raising the dead. So Christ said to the two... seventy who came back rejoicing that even the demons, the devil's generals, were subject to them in His name ... He said they said ... He said, " I've given you power over all the enemy that you should tread on serpents and on scorpions and that nothing by any wise shall hurt you". Now how d' you like that? We just visualize that.
My friends,, the fact that the Lord Jesus didn't go out of Palestine and have His apostles go out, the fact that He didn't in any other way prove His superiority over the devil (I mean at this time) and over Caesar and Rome, doesn't destroy nor minimize the magnificence and spiritual significance of these things. "The King is here! The kingdom is here!" And look at the reigning that's going on.
Now John the Baptist. Back again to Matthew 11.
And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities. Now when John had heard in prison, remember that John had introduced the King, Matthew 3, "the kingdom of heaven's at hand",
when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples. And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we took for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John again those things which you . ye do hear and see, the blind receive their sight,
you see that; read the other accounts of this and get some added detail, I won't take time to do it now, in Luke and so forth,
and the lame walk, and the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up,
you remember Luke 9 when He was calling His disciples to come and follow Him, one of them said, "Let me go bury my father". He said, "Let the dead bury their dead, but go thou and preach the kingdom of God". Some of you heard me bring out how what a Joy it was to me when after stumbling around and fumbling and trying to get some understanding about that passage for years, Luke 9:59 and 60, I thought, " I never heard a Preacher in my life tell me that Christians shouldn't attend a (60) funeral, certainty the funeral of their father. And yet Christ specifically said, "Let the dead bury their dead"." And no amount of trying to explain it as comparatively important, it didn't do it ... didn't explain the fact He said, "Let the dead bury their dead. you go and Preach the kingdom. Don't you go to help conduct your fathers funeral. Don't go to your fathers funeral. I mean to go and bury ... let the dead bury their dead, but go and preach the kingdom of God,".
And it wasn't until I compared scripture to scripture with other passages on that kingdom message to be preached by these apostles and I saw that instead of going and attending funerals, these kingdom heralds were to go and break them up. "Let the dead bury their dead, but go thou and preach, "The King is here, the death conqueror is here, the kingdom that's going to be characterized by the dead raised all the enemy defeated, the kingdom of God's here. you go and preach the kingdom of God".. It And we know that part of that ministry was to raise the dead, we just read about it. What a difference then it is in let ... in going to the funeral of your father to attend and mourn and, you know, be sorrowful or to go ... or to go, "Just a minute here. The kingdom of God's at hand. Undertaker, you've done all the work you're going to get to do in this particular Case. Rise!' in the name of the King." And the corpse was alive Just imagine Judas being able to do that. Why even Jaggers can't do that you know, and A A Allen. They don't try to counterfeit these raisings of the dead. They don't do that.
Oh-h my friend, these truths are so surely true and they're so clarifying. If you catch yourself getting sleepy, just get up and turn around rapidly about five or six times, sit down again. I don't want to have to throw something at you because these truths should be not only arousing but awakening and enlightening and thrilling. Oh-h they make the difference between Christendom with all of its various ramifications and counterfeits.. Christianity: we're not trying to do today in the dispensation of grace, we're not trying to do today what God had His Christ, the Lord Jesus, the Son of God, Emmanuel and His apostles do including Judas back yonder and what they're going to do in the future. trying to straighten the world, straighten out politics, and being concerned the church ... the Roman ... the Modernists in session last session, formerly Federal Council, now they call it the National council of Churches, in session in St Louis they issued resolutions condemning hydrogen bomb tests and blah-blah-blah-blah and now the church ... those miserable stuffed-shirts taking the name of Christ and sprinkling their diluted rose water on communism and the devil in general you know. What've they been able to do in the last 1900 years to outlaw war effectively and establish the kingdom of God on earth? They're missing His program.
Now back again please, "Go and tell John what you see: the lame..."
The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the Lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever
shall not be offended in me.It seems to me He must be saying this in my words, "you go and tell John that you have seen miracles that are exactly what was prophesied in Isaiah 35 and so forth. In other words, that undoubtedly the One's that's to come. And I'm in charge. I'll take care to do exactly what I want to do. But I'm the One." Now watch. "Just wait on Me," just like God had Abraham, "Abraham you 7o right on ahead and offer up your only son." "Well. . . well ... well ... well ... well what will happen to those promises you made me? What about my great, great grandson being Savior and King and ... ?" "Abraham, offer your only son. Take everything out of the way so you'll just have My Word, you'll just have My Word." And Abraham didn't stagger at the promises of God. He went ahead and offered up Isaac, got ready to you remember, and when his arm was ready to come down with the sacrificial knife to the heart if his son, God stooped him, showed him a ram there. But now watch here, Matthew 11..
And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what wont ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear
soft clothing are in Kings' houses.Now John was brought up in the wilderness and he just came to announce the kingdom was at hand.
But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shalt prepare thy way before thee,
Now here's John the Baptist. you know where this is quoted from? Person who finds it, soon as YOU find it, tell me.
(comment from audience)
Malachi! Go back and see of who Malachi's writing. Person who finds that read it please. Malachi 3:1.
(Russell Ross from audience)
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.
Now it's in Malachi the 4th chapter where we have other words on that, 4:5. Read it please, Malachi 4:5.1
(read from audience)
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
( MMJ reads.)
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
That's when the Messiah comes back in great power. And now listen to this. Where did I stop in this?
(comment from audience) Eighth verse.
Tenth verse, 10th verse, Matthew 71:10,
receive what? The kingdom, the kingdom,For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shalt prepare thy way before thee. Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of God ... of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it,
And if ye wilt receive it,
this is Elias, this is Elias,
which was for to come. "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."
Well better be sure that our ears are unstopped, attuned to the Word of God rightly divided.
Now this is one of those amazing things. This couldn't be true at all except God was able to perform a miracle, and He said, "So far as I'm concerned,", Christ said, "as far I'm concerned, I'm ready to accept the kingdom". Now Earle Grove and Homer Ruyle just snorted at the very idea, "Why the very idea the way you're saying it ... of course they both taught it for years, and we were together for years teaching it. But finally when they got in a condition to take up some carnal doctrines and all, why they began to hatch other ideas separately and then they got together. But their argument was, "The very idea to say that the kingdom, the Messianic, Davidic, Palestinian kingdom was offered by the Lord Jesus to Israel. Suppose they would've accepted Him, then there wouldn't been any cross; nobody could have been saved spiritually, there wouldn't been any church, and there really couldn't been any kingdom. Why that's ridiculous.,"
But some of you remember that I came back with things like this: I said, "Did God make a bona fide offer to Israel at the foot of Mt Sinai to keep the Ten Commandments?" He said, "If you'll keep the Ten Commandments", Moses said Deuteronomy 6:25, "If you keep the Ten Commandments, it'll be our righteousness, will be our righteousness". "Did God give them the Ten Commandments?" "Yes." "Did He think they were going to do it?" He knew they wouldn't, He knew they couldn't. Why did He give them? To show them that they couldn't. That's exactly what we read in Genesis ... Romans 3:19. But did He make a bona fide offer to this, "It'll be your righteousness"? Certainly He did.
Just exactly like the Lord Jesus on earth. Rich young ruler came to Him, "Good ,master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "why callest thou Me good? There's none good but one even God. you don't realize that I'm Emmanuel, God, you shouldn't call Me good young fellow. Keep the commandments "I've kept them all my life." you know the commandments, Christ began with your relationship to your fellow man. He didn't begin with commandment number one, then number two, number three; He began with a commandments relationship to your fellow man. Young fellow said, I've kept them all my life".,' Now when Christ said, "Keep the commandments", why did He say that to that young fellow? Herbert Armstrong preaches that that's the plan of salvation. He said, "These preachers that are telling you they're preaching the gospel about Christ, but my dear friends what we need, we need (Blow the dust off your Bibles!), what we need is the gospel of Christ". He said the gospel that Christ preached, he said, "What gospel did Christ preach? Christ said to the young man that said "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" and Christ said, "Keep the commandment's". "And I hear Herb's boy really beating his dad. He is a good speaker that young chap is. And he Is just echoing his dad "keep the commandments". I would like to hear Earle Grove or Homer Ruyle try to deal with that consistently with their other tragically false doctrine - about the not being offered. Did Christ say Keep the commandments" when the young follow said, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"? Christ "Keep the commandments". Did He think they could keep them? He knew they... that that young fellow couldn't. So when He applied commandment number one to him, ''Sell all you got and give to the poor and come and follow Me, "the true God" what would the young fellow do? He broke commandment number one and commandment two, and broke all the rest of them He went away from God, Emmanuel, Jesus Christ, sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Broke commandment number one and two. Put Christ made a bona fide offer to the young fellow, " you keep the commandments you' It have eternal life". Didn't He?
Paul says the same in ... Romans the 2nd chapter. He said, "Not the hearers of the Law are just before God but the doers of the law are justified". Why he said, "Circumcision doesn't profit you Jews a bit unless you keep the law. But if you keep the law circumcision verily profiteth". Herbert Armstrong likes to come out, the Seventh Day Adventists, I read ... you say ... the preachers say the Ten Commandments are only for the Jew, not for the Gentile. all right, let's turn to the writings of the apostle to the Gentiles", I've heard Herbert Armstrong say and have a record of it, more than one of them I guess, he said, "Let's listen to what Paul the great apostle to the Gentiles said. Romans the 2nd chapter, "you that say to your brother, you Jews, thou shalt not kill. Dost thou kill? And not commit adultery. Dost thou commit adultery? Not the hearers of the taw are just before God but the doers of the law, doers of the law, are just before God"." But does Paul stop there when ... in the 3rd chapter does he stop with the subject or does he o on, say "But there's not anybody like that"? "There are none that are doers of the law. "There are none righteous, no, not one. They've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them that are under the law that every mouth may be stopped and all the world become guilty before God, because by the Law is the knowledge of sin." They didn't know they were such sinners until God said, "Do this perfectly and you'll be all right".
Jack, you just keep the ... Jack says, "'Well I think if I just keep the Ten Commandments. Imagine going to this Texan years ago when he just Loved to get mad and show how strong he was and fight and other ungodly things you know. Suppose I walked up to him there in Sweetwater, Texas, and I'm preaching on the street, "What must I do to be saved?" "Jesus said, "Keep the commandments"." Jack turned around, "all right, I'm beginning today". How far from the beginning would you get Jack? you wouldn't a got very far.
But Christ said to a bunch of self-righteousness ... to that self-righteous young fellow, He gave him a bona fide offer on the basis of works if you could do it. You'd he all right, acceptable to God. So when I asked Earle Grove, ''Did ... did Christ make, a bona fide offer to Israel about how to be right with him by keeping the commandments?" I forgot what he gave there.
And I came back to Genesis. I said, "When God created Adam and Eve, did He make a bona fide offer? He said to Adam and Eve, He created gem and put gem in a garden, and said, "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat except of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Thou shall not eat it. The day that thou eat it, thou shalt surety die'"." I said, "Did God make Adam and Eve a bona fide offer of life in the garden?" Earle came back in a written Letter that I have. He says. "Now as to God making a bona fide offer to Adam and Eve as to how to time without disobeying Him, God simply created Adam and Eve, put them in the garden, told them what they could eat and what not to eat, and left them there to do what they were foreordained to do". you talk about the hardest foreordination, predestination, hard-shell Baptist, what-is-to-be-will-be-whether-it-happens-or-not doctrine you ever heard in your life. That's making God directly the author of sin. if God didn't create Adam and Eve with the ability to obey Him, or the ability to disobey, then He made them with no more volition than a blade of grass, not even as much as an animal; at least nothing more than a brute creation.
ALL of that stems my friend from the unwillingness to receive revelation from God. I can no more understand how Christ could have said, "If you'll receive the kingdom, John the Baptist is Elijah". But doesn't He say it? He positively says it. Put He knew they were not going to receive the kingdom on His terms. He knew... He knew they were not going to receive Him as the King. They were glad to make Him bread king after He performed that miracle referred to in John the 6th chapter. But He wasn't going to let any of them make Him who was already born King in the Bethlehem, house of bread already, born King you know, in the house of bread, and He wasn't going around asking anybody to make Him King; He was already the King of course.
But now let's continue a little bit in Matthew 11, Matthew 11, the 12th verse again, And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
Which is a positive suggestion that the prophetic office stopped in a sense now with those men because what they'd been prophesying about was here. That's the only explanation of this, "The the law and the prophets prophesied until John".
And if you will receive it what would John say? '"The kingdom of heavens at hand! And if you'll receive it, this is Elias." And He'd just been quoting from the 3rd and 4th chapters of Malachi that referred to Elijah's coming. He didn't quote from the 40th of Isaiah that referred to John's coming; that's given us in the 3rd chapter of Matthew where we're told that John the Baptist and his ministry, "This is he of whom it is spoken of in the prophets: A voice crying in the wilderness". And in Matthew 3 is the quotation from the 40th of Isaiah that is specifically applicable we're told prophetic of John. But He ... He quotes here prophecies of Elijah. And my friend, Elijah's yet going to come in fulfillment of Malachi 3. Malachi 4, because that generation rejected the Messiah, rejected the kingdom, and in turn He rejected them, took the kingdom from them. "If you'll receive this kingdom by this John the Baptist... Elijah wouldn't have to come, Elijah wouldn't have to come."
Now watch again. Instead of getting our carnal reasoning and saying, "Now wait a minute. If they had received it and if John the Baptist could have been somehow or other been made Elijah by the Lord, then He wouldn't have died." Now that's an if, if, if, if, if, you see. dust exactly like Abraham (and I gave this with Earle Grove and Homer Ruyle in the audience), suppose Abraham had said, "Now wait a minute, if I offer Up My son, if I offer my son then he can't be the father and the grandfather, so forth, of the Messiah." If, if, if, if, if. God told him, "Go". And the humble heart said "Amen."
you tell me how God could make His dear Son sin. you should have heard that J.W. woman Monday night who was born ... who was a Baptist for years. you should have heard her up in San Luis Obispo when I quoted, she just hooted at the idea, and the son-in-law too, that when I said I'm already saved. "Why you're not a ... I said, "I've been born again, born of the Spirit". She said, "Are you spirit? Why you're just flesh, you're not spirit." And I said, " I do not profess to comprehend divine revelation but I receive it." I said, I can't comprehend how God made Him who knew no sin to be sin." she said . . . she said, "Christ wasn't a sinner!" She broke in before I finished the verse. The spirit that was in her recognized quickly that magnificent verse, 2 Corinthians 5:21, God has made Him to who knew no sin to be sin for us". "Jesus Christ wasn't a sinner! He was the Lamb of God without spot and blemish. He committed no sin!" said, "I'm not a bit surprised that you take ... that you have that reaction. you don't believe of course that Jesus Christ was actually made sin" "He wasn't" I said, "I'm referring to what God said, 2 Corinthians 5:21, "God has Him who knew no sin to be sin for us". NOW you don't believe that because you !only believe the second either. "that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him"." She's trying' to make her own by pulling on her bootstraps and peddling literature, see. you got to believe both, you can' lea... if got to be can you believe the first, you can believe the second, thank God. "God made Him who knew no sin. " My friends, Christianity’s a revelation.
So I believe that Jesus Christ the King was on earth. I believe He had all power ... look please, little bit farther. We'll get to that; I would forgotten this right down here a Little hit farther. Skipping for the want of time to the 27th verse, no, the 25th verse.
At that time Jesus answered and said, I think thee, 0 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered unto me of my Father.
How many? "All things." Now if you don't believe it, if you don't see it and let the truth grip you, you cannot believe that Christ could have reigned over all things. If you don't believe this, you can't believe this other,
All things are delivered unto me of my Father.
Who was He? King of the Jews, on earth as that; King of the Jews. What was His mess ... heralds supposed to preach? "The kingdom of God's at hand the reign of heaven, "'kingdom of heaven's at hand'? we have in Matthew over and over again. ''The reign of heaven on earth is here," its here.
I said to Homer Ruyle one time ... he said, "Why how in the world," just like John Owen in his two hours talk at Wilbur's house that Sunday afternoon, a tape recording of which Mike you still have don't you?
(answer from audience) Yes.
John has some of it in his paper here. He said, "Maurice knows these things that the devil is going to give the antichrist the power to make the people worship him and so forth unless they have his mark and so forth or they'll be killed and all. He knows that these things are yet ... are going to be rulers and authority in the future that are going to have to be put down when Christ comes back, and yet he argues that alt things have already been out down.," Well that seemed to he fairly logical didn't it? Seemed to be fairly honest.
Are we told anywhere in the Bible that there'll never be a scrap in hell fire, or the take of fire, between any of the occupants down there? We are told, "Let him that's unjust be unjust still". We're told, "Let him that's filthy be filthy still". And we're not told in any detail that I know of just what the occupants of the lake of fire are going to do except there's going to be no rest day or might forever, And God help me to hive a holy hush as I talk about that. There'll be no rest day nor might forever, there'll he weeping, waiting, and gnashing of teeth. I don't know why we shouldn't think they won't have some fights between each other .And they'll be awful rebellious down in that realm, but they'll all be under Him, the Lord; they'll all be under Him. And they won't be more surely under Him than they are now, my friend. Because the daddy of that kingdom has already been defeated as we'll read directly, and is you know we're told in Hebrews the 2nd chapter. He’s already conquered, Just as surely as he'll ever be in a billion years from tonight. He's conquered, and he knows he's conquered, though he's allowed (shall I say.) certain privileges, he's allowed certain so-called "liberties" in a limited sphere, but right in the middle of that sphere the humblest child of God armed with Jesus Christ the death-conqueror is more than a match for the devil All because he's been defeated. God help you to see that and rejoice over it. Now back again to Matthew 11:26 (sic),
All things are delivered unto me of my Father and no man knoweth the son but the Father...
Let's not forget that. you want to know Jesus Christ in the capacity which we’re reading now when He was on earth, there. Why to so many people, "He's a glutton. He’s a wine-bibber. He’s a Pharisee", "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?" one who later became His disciple even said you remember.
All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Come unto me, get the context,
Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,
because all things are in His hand. But now we're going to find Him directly surrendering Himself into the hands of the devil. For what purpose?! That He might personally meet and defeat the devil in the devil's most ... with the devil's most powerful weapon, which is death. Turn to the 2nd chapter of Hebrews. Second chapter of Hebrews,
Now I'm presuming that some of you have heard these things, even heard me ..go over them a good many times, or several times. 1'm presuming that you may not be any quicker getting these glorious truths than I was. I hope you are. I sure let a good many years go by before I ever gave enough attention to them, humble, to let them grip my own heart and soul. And John Owen's accusation that I'm preaching truth that other Christians haven't preached is of course a miserable and contemptible lie. If I believed that, I would certainly he deeply concerned. These truths that I'm preaching my friend are truths that every Christian believes. you couldn't be a Christian if you didn't believe that Christ met the devil and met the devil and met him in the grave and hell and defeated him and came out with the keys of hell and death! At least you couldn't be a Christian if you ever heard that and rejected it. you might be a Christian. I was converted when I was a boy and I think I was converted to God through Christ, and I didn't know any of these revealed truths about these wonderful points in Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. I knew I was a sinner and been convicted of that, and I called on the name of the Lord to forgive me and save me and so forth. But you couldn't hear these things and reject them, I mean deliberately in your heart and be a Christian, if I understand the Scriptures. you got to believe in the death-conquering Christ to be a Christian.
Hebrews 2,1 ... for want of time, begin at the 5th verse,
For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come.
Well, has the Father put the world to come under subjection to anybody? Yes He has. What's that going to do with a future reign in order to put things in subjection? God has already put the world to come in subjection to His Son.
But one in a certain Place testified, saying, What is man,
8th Psalm,
What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angles thou crownest Him with glory and honor, and didst set him over the works of thy hands.
That's a perfect parallel, almost quotation, from this we read in the 1st and 2nd chapters of Genesis. God told Adam to have dominion over the fish of the sea, the fowl of the air, the reptiles, creeping things. But it wasn't very long, Look.
Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that's not-out under him. But now we see not yet all things.
We see the great men of the earth ... Pharaoh just being in a awful fit because of lice getting in his palace, and he called Moses, "Ask God to take these lice away". Poor old Pharaoh didn't have dominion over a pack of lice. The Lice are running the king ragged, pardon my slang, but it's a lousy thing I'm talking about. (I said that partly to wake some of you up maybe,) But anyway, took now. Pharaoh, took at that big fetter down there in Egypt in a magnificent empire and kingdom Moses by faith said I don't want any of this junk". He said, "I esteemed the reproaches of Christ greater riches than these treasures down here". But anyway, earths big king Pharaoh, he just got awfully messed up with lice and frogs-, you remember. He sure didn't have dominion did he over lice? That's an awful thing.
Of course, I've gotten in a fit over one chigger, mosquito. I've ... I've just lost my joy over it. Len, did you ever almost lose your joy in Oklahoma a long about in June?
(comment from audience)
He did, huh, over a chigger. You know that beautiful little poem written by Shake-fellow or Scratch-sphere or something,
Here's to the chigger
That's not any bigger
Than the tiniest point of a pin.
But the bump he raises
Burns like blazes
And that's where the rub comes in.But anyway, that's a beautiful poem. I'm using this to talk about ... talk about Adam the first man having lost his dominion, having lost his dominion. That's sublime, maybe ridiculous; that's why I gave a ridiculous verse you see. But now watch.
But we see Jesus.
Ah-h, the scene changes from the first man to the second man The scene's changed think God from the first man to the second man. You know most of the religious scenery today is to pick out the first man and have him in some
other characters, and dress him up like Jesus, dress him up like Santa Claus, and there're various acts put on by the first man still. Oh-h-h, let's follow this leadership, "we see Jesus", let's took at Him. One place we read in the Bible, "We would see Jesus", you remember, "We would see Jesus". I've seen Dr) the platform, rostrum, or whatever you call it of more than one meeting house that statement, "We would see Jesus", "We would see Jesus". Well that's very fine as far as it goes.
But we see Jesus,
Hebrews 2:9,
who was made a little tower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned
now watch carefully, watch carefully. Now don't you answer me unless you're sure you see the truth here because it can embarrass you when the truth's brought out because I believe I can bring out the truth if you don't.
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that,
When did that take place? When did that take place, according to this passage?
(Jack Potter from audience)
Resurrection. At what time, before what, in what relationship to His resurrection?
(Adair Grove from audience)
We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that,
look at it now,
that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
"My Father loveth Me because I lay down My life for the brethren. No man can take it from Me. I have power to lay it down and take it up again."
The vast majority of Bible teachers, expositors that I ever read after on this particular point say that it's the same as Matthew 28, the risen Christ now has received all power and authority in heaven and earth. Well He had that before He ever died. Matthew 11, "All-l-l- things have been delivered into My hands". Maybe I better give you two other Passages on that, not that this one isn't enough; it isn't enough because God gave more, but then I mean enough to be ... accepted as truth.
Turn to Luke, hold this place in Hebrews 2 and turn to Luke 10. Please, Luke 10. I referred to part of it awhile ago hut not this particular statement. Luke 10:22, let's go back to where ... 17th verse, I quoted this awhile ago, Luke 10:17.
And the seventy,
Adair you were right of course in what you gave there. just went on to give the verse of Scripture that proved it. Luke 10:17,
And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even y the devils are subject to us through thy name.
And it was through His name as the Messiah, it was through His name as the King of the Jews. Don't forget that. It was through His name as the King, "the kingdom of heaven's at hand". The kingdom of heaven's at hand, and in the name of the King demons are subject to us." well, was some reigning going on (now listen to me please), was some reigning going on at that time? why of course some reigning was going on, the demons knew it. You go to some of these demons and say, "Do you think the kingdom of God's anywhere around here?" "Wish it wasn't. "I imagine they'd say, "I wish it was not, wish it hadn't come, you see what these fellows representing the King have been doing with us. Whenever they come and tell us to get out, you know what we do? We get. We just have to get. They have authority. We .can call on our daddy, the devil, Diablo and it won't help us a bit. These fellows have power, they make us move."
Oh see this, it thrill your heart. "Why...the Lord even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
Skipping for want of time to the 21st verse,
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, 0 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and Prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered to me of my Father.
In what capacity? As the second man, the King of the Jews, the Messiah. Here’s the second man with all the power that the first one lost, and we're going to see Him exercise it. Here's the second man as King with all authority given Him from God the Father in heaven. Here He's on earth as King.
ALL things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom; soever He reveal him.
One other passage please, John 3:35. That of course that we read is Luke's inspired record of what we read awhile ago in Matthew 11. John 3, John 3:35,
The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
Now when did the Lord Jesus Christ relinquish those "all things" back to the Father? That's the crux of this whole subject: Christ's reign and death being destroyed as the last enemy. When did the Lord Jesus deliver back to the. Father these "all things" that have been put in His kingly hands? That's the crux of this whole matter. When you realty see that as God reveals it then you will be sure that Christ has already reigned over the last enemy.
Back to Hebrews 2 now, 2:9 again,
But we see Jesus; we see the first man’s lost his dominion.; we see Pharaoh run bug house by some louse; we see ah .., we see, ah, this head of gold, this most magnificent king, ruler, the world's ever known in Gentile world government, Nebuchadnezzar, we see him out eating grass and his fingernails are grown Long like what? (eagles did he say?) and what else did we read about him? He’s eating grass, his hair's real long, and ...
(comment from audience)
Yea-a-ah. That .. there's this fellow out there you know eating grass, and his ... I guess he couldn't trim his fingernails like a smart eagle could, you know, There he was, that's the greatest ruler the world's ever known, Nebuchadnezzar. Because the world didn't know Christ you know, and Adam never ruled that we know of.
He sold out through his wife to the seed of the serpent right away, problems. But the greatest ruler, we see him out there under God's Judgment. He Sure lost dominion hasn't he.
And we read that Herod you remember back over in Acts, Herod, some of his crowd said, "You're great fellow, why you're a god" And he says, "Come to think about it, that's what I am". And then directly worms begin to eat the poor guy. Yeah, worms begin to eat him up. He didn’t have dominion over worms. Oh, let's not forget the world ... where are the great rulers of this world? My friend, worms have eaten them up. They've been ...where, where's Stalin? Just a little while after the big fellow died, his own buddy said, "He was awful'. And Mussolini (no, the right hand), going to reestablish the Roman Empire. He said, "If God gets in my way," so forth. And the next time I saw a picture of Mussolini was his poor carcass lying out in the street somewhere and some people had .been kicking him; he was dead you know. Where's Hitter, where's Hitter? ''where are the wise and the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish?"
And let's come back to this. So we don't see Adam and any of his crowd in authority anywhere that's worth the name authority. President Eisenhower the paper headlines say was indignant or angered or something like that, dependent on who's written it up when he heard that that Sputnik only sputtered down in Florida you know. Oh-h the rulers of this world, it's awful. "Our scientists are not equal to the Russian scientists. They're awful." And Russia close a little bit you know. The Japanese were dying, Lot of them dying gladly for their emperor god and that poor Japanese god was just knocked out by one little old atom, all dressed up, busted up and dressed up you know into a bomb and dropped down over there, couple of them. God permitted that.
Back to Hebrews 2,
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering if death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
"No man can take My life. I have power to lay it down and take it up again." "Destroy this temple and in three days I'll raise it up again",
Read in John the 2nd chapter. I just quoted from John the 10th chapter, "Except a grain of wheat fall in the ground and die" ... some of you heard me say over and over again a few months ago that, that passage has begun to really mean something to me compared to what it has before. Since I've been studying more and more on the subject of death and Christ's earthly reign already past, and reign in hell, and up through the principalities and powers, might and dominion that Christ has already conquered. "Except a grain of wheat fill in the ground and die, it abideth alone", we read in the 12th chapter of John (what verse?).
(answer from audience)
Twenty-four, 12.-24,
"Except a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. But if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." He spoke of His death.
The picture here is, that He is the firstfruit with I Corinthians 15, and then, in God's own good time, out of that stalk, came out of death, comes a lot of other grain. I'll be one of them, you'll be one of them. He's the firstfruits and the rest of the harvest will be when He comes back in glory. Put there's no spiritual disconnection between His resurrection and our ... my mother's resurrection, her being from the grave, and Paul's resurrection, see. No, there's no vital connection because they were vitally united to Him spiritually, and their going, to get their bodies back, changed into His glorified body, Just as surely as He said, "Destroy this temple, in three days I'll raise it up again". And we’re going, to get a body, like unto His glorified body. "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, but it doesn’t yet appear what we shall be, but we know that, when He appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is," I John the 3rd chapter.
Back to this again.
Christ crowned with glory and honor; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
In other words, He's the Savior of all men, potentially. He saved all of Adam’s family from the Adamic sin. That’s why it's only those who disbelieve on ... who do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ that are damned. As Christ said, the Holy Spirit would make very plain, "When He comes in the world He'll convict ... convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and judgment: of sin, because I go to My Father". No, of sin, because they believe not on Me, of righteousness, because I go to My Father". Oh, how beautiful that is to me now compared to the vague ideas I had about it not too tong ago. The Holy Spirit when He comes in the world", Christ said the night He was betrayed looking beyond His resurrection and ascension to the descent of the Holy Spirit, "when the Holy Spirit is come in the world,", He came to indwell the believers you know, Christ ascended and several days later the Holy Spirit descended into the believers life.
Christ said,
" He’ll convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and judgment: of sin, because they believe not on Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father",
He didn't deserve to die. And having died, death couldn't hold Him, because He didn't deserve to die. Death had no claim on Him. There was no cause of death in Him, and there's no cause for the grave to hold Him, thank God. And so the Holy Spirit came to convict the world of ..."of judgment, because I", Christ, go to My Father; and of righteousness, because the prince of this world's cast out", the devil. John 16th chapter,
verse a 12, 13, 14.(comment from audience)
Beg your pardon.
(Wilbur Johnson from audience)
Oh, did I mix them there? Well I know better. Thank you. "The Holy Spirit came in the world to convince the world of sin, of righteousness, and Judgment: of sin, of sin, because they believe not on Me; of righteousness, because I go to my Father; and of judgment, because the Prince of this world" .. yes, righteousness, because He didn't deserve to die. That's what I was proving but giving the wrong verse. Thank you. In other words, Jesus Christ, the righteousness didn’t deserve to die. And when He had suffered enough and met the enemy in the Principal hold of his headquarters, and death for ... somehow, we don't understand, somehow God gave the devil the power of death, God gave the devil the power of death, and he exercised it over the first Adam. "In the day that thou eatest, thou shall surely die, or that was God's penalty. Physical death was the enemy's penalty, the enemy's penalty, or the enemy's weapon. And ... he does all he can do to keep people from ever coming to Christ for new life. But Christ came given the...
crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it behooved ... became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation Perfect through sufferings.
That is perfect in the .. capacity. Just as the baby Jesus we're told ... the little boy, after He went home to be with His father, His legal father and physical mother, from that Passover when He was twelve years of age you remember, we’re told He went home and was subject to His father and mother, legal father, and He grew in stature and wisdom and favor with all men. That’s one of the mysteries of the incarnation. We can’t understand it. "Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Sprit, seem of angles, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory", we read in I Timothy 3:16. Now watch.
For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one,
thank God for that,
for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name into my brethren, in the midst of the church wilt I sing praise unto thee And again, I’ll put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath. given me. Forasmuch then is the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death,
that through death, that through death, not through a future reign, not because of His return and glorious reign in the Millennium, but that He
through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; that he through death might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.
And did He do it? He took upon Himself a form of flesh and blood like unto His brethren,
that he through death might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage, and so forth.
Turn to the first chapter of Revelation, please. Some of this may seem to he over the heads of some of you folks. I'm not meaning to belittle you young people at all, hut to the degree that you haven't studied as much and meditated much, we may think that it ... some of this seems to be likely to he over your head. But listen, don't forget, we're studying things that present your Savior and ours as being the wonderful conqueror. Ask God to fasten in your subconscious mind all the truth along this line that you'll need tomorrow and day after tomorrow and next day to make you more than conqueror, to make you glad to be ridiculed for Christ's sake, for not having any part in the mad scramble of Christmas, that you know the death-conquering Savior, "You shalt know the truth", these truths, "and the truth shall make you free".
Eighth verse, 1:8, Revelation 1:8,
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
I believe that "which is, and which was" refers to His death, that expression, "which is, which was, and which is to come". I won't take time now to go into that but let's go further to the 18th verse, no the 17th verse. John the beloved said
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead.
How long has it been since you've had any heart awe as you thought of the Lord Jesus? I read last as I retired, the room they assigned me at the LaForce's house, I read a letter from brother Dalford Todd brother LaForce picked up the office, the post office. And he was rejoicing. He said, "I went out of my room. the other night and looked up into God's wonderful heavens". He said, " It was one of those clear, cool, winter nights we have in Texas sometimes. I looked at those stars and that full moon". And he -went on just glorying in the Creator's power and wisdom and beauty. you have time to do that? You better take time, better take time. I get to stop sometimes when I'm driving by the ocean, sometimes when I’m driving I don’t need to stop, I stop and just stop my motor and stand and look out over there. Sometimes I see a beautiful sunset. And I remember when I was a boy I used to lie down on the back of a wagon Loaded with corn, had the sideboards up ... you know what the sideboards are?
(comment from audience)
I see, all right. Had the sideboards up, and the horses or the mules knew it was the Last load, we were going home, the last load, and they were anxious to get home. I had to whip ‘em with a black snake at the end of the line, getup there!"" when they were going away. But on the last trip going home, they were just like a lot of us are not, you know, when we get to singing about, (sings) "I'm going home, I'm going home, I'm going home". Those old mules just about knew that, soon as I’d turned in the gate, the last gate . I was there. the other month, exactly fifty years since I’ve been there on that 160 acre farm in Oklahoma. And I could just see those mules, had a different gate up there you know, but I could just see those mutes, and I saw the place where the gate was off the section Line, and I opened that gate and let those mutes start in toward the barn that was a quarter of a mile away. Father didn't want to build a half dugout and half tent close to the highway cause we were only two and a half miles from the Last liquor joint, and the people from Indian territory used to come into Oklahoma territory to get drunk. And they were driving... be driving back down the road drunk and shouting and shooting and all, and Father didn't want the house close to the road. So when I would pull in the gate you know, the last load, cord of wood sometime or sometimes corn, just as soon as I would open the gate ... one time my brother forgot and had some high-spirited horses, and he thought they’d do like they did going out when he’d drive ‘em out and stop and holler ... whoa" I mean when he got to open the gate or fasten it, holler "Whoa" and they’d stop, and he tried the same thing one evening when they were coming in tired, and they didn't want to stop, then wanted to start toward the barn, and so he thought it'd be all right, and when they ... he hollered "whoa" directly and hollered in excited tone and got scared, and one of the most terrifying times I ever remember. I was about eight years of age when I saw those horses come barreling into the barnyard and they were, so frightened they ran through a barbed wire fence and one of the finest horses we ever had was slashed ... well that’s another story. But You’re listening now better than some of you did awhile ago to tell about how the devil ... well anyway, back to this now. Well those horse’s starting toward the barn you know, mule, those old ears of mules you know, "Aghh-hic-agh,agh", heading toward the barn now ...
(comment from audience)
... heading toward the ... biting with their teeth, not pulling with the reins, not pulling anymore with the tugs anymore, the chains, pulling by the reins (yes-sir, if I had a hold of the reins), heading in the barn now, anxious to go home.
"The ox knoweth his owner", I read in Isaiah, "the ass his master's crib, but My people doth not know." Isn’t it awful, "Christ was in the world and the world was made by Him. He came unto His, own and His own received Him not." They didn’t even know the Redeemer. Do you know Him? You who believe that you were to get killed on the way home directly, automobile accident or something, You believe it would be only your body, only your body, and your spirit and soul go to be with the Lord? You believe that? Only because Christ has conquered our last enemy. The only reason I wouldn't be wouldn’t be afraid when I’m in my right spiritual mind, afraid of physical death is because I know my Lord has gone ahead that has the keys of hell and death. Revelation 1:17,
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me.
this is the angel you know that before whom John fell, saying unto me, Fear not, I’m no, no, it's not, his Lord, I am the first and the last: I am he that loveth, and was dead, I am he that loveth, and was dead.
Well that’s the same as the 8th verse. Let's show this to the so-called "Jehovah's Witnesses" that the Jesus Christ we know and love is Almighty, that He’s Jehovah.
I'm the first and the last: I'm he that loveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.
Can you conceive of how death could be an enemy from a Christian's standpoint or from Christ's standpoint anymore? Wilt you please tell me in the eyes of whom is death an enemy? Our Savior has the keys of hell and of death. Now think about that, my friend. That's enough on this subject! If this glorious subject won't fit your scheme of last things, then you'd better give up your scheme. Because this is so plain, it's so true, and it fits all the Scriptures, rightly divided. How can death he an enemy to anybody that believes in the death conquering One who has the keys of hell and death? From whose standpoint could death be an enemy?
Only those who are against the death conqueror. But it's never called an enemy by God or GOD’S Servants anymore because now it’s in the keys of it in the hands of the Savior and the Judge.
And as I brought out over and over again in John Owens hearing for instance, I said over and over again, "Is the death penalty, the death cell and the electric chair in the state of California to the criminal judge, the judge in the state who's tried the criminal, who’s confessed to guilt and the penalty is unmistaken," he deserves the penalty all the law could give and the jury says Guilty" and recommends the electric chair, and the judge says, "You're guilty, and I sentence you to the electric chair", is the electric chair an enemy? Not to the State of California. Not to the state of California. It’s the instrument of this law were supposed to in the state of California is perfectly lawful and executes a just penalty for breaking it ...it’s good law. So instead of being an enemy to the state of California, this death chair is the state's friend, the state's instrument for enforcing law in a given case, don't you see.
No my friend, this thing is very far reaching, the ramifications. That's one reason John Owen became more and more frustrated. He never would have lost his peace and joy, and find become wild and restless and ... I don't believe, I don't want to be a Job’s comforter, but I don’t believe God would allowed his wife at just that time to become all upset mentally and be ...sent to an institution. My heart has wept over that as I've thought about it.
God knows my friends, instead of having anything like, It "He-he, yes-yes, served, him right". I’ve thought, "Oh, God, help me to be careful, help me to walk softly before Thee". I’ve searched my heart many a time in these studies and in other cases where we’ve dealt with discipline with different people among us . See how ... what does it do to me? Am I stirred up to where I get all fretful, and am I hard to get along with at home, and what about my bible study time and prayer life, and when I’m out alone and leave meeting, am I all upset? John speaks in here about when I tried to protect myself, when I tried to protect myself. He just puts it down in cold type here, "and he tried to protect himself" so-and-so. He didn’t realize that that was awful to talk about protecting himself, I hope I didn’t try to protect myself one single time because I wasn’t the issue. And I’m not the issue anytime here.
Revelation 1:18,
the keys of death and hell, I’m the One that was dead". I am he that loveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore, and have the keys of hell and of death.
Does that suggest there was a time in the future when He’d lose the key? Does that suggest when He comes back to reign He might be thieved, and He might somebody might get the keys again, the old devil might get the keys from Him? You think that’s a possibility there? He said, "I’m alive for evermore." For evermore!
Look at the 5th chapter, 5th chapter and the 5th verse.
And one of the elders said unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah,
the Root of David,ah-h, that has to do with His future reign as the Lion of the tribe of Judah,
the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seats thereof. And I behold, and in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, or living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb.
Is that what you have in your Bible? Lamb, "stood a Lamb". This is a good one to use with the so-called "Jehovah Witnesses" because they teach that the Lamb, they don’t put it in that word but they teach that the One who died remained forever dead.
Now don’t forget ... look up all the references, I’ve done it recently, in the book of Revelation with the word 'lamb' in it. It's a very thrilling and significant study as to who died and who was raised, who the unbelievers are going to have to face. You’ve heard me bring out "the wrath of the Lamb" of which we read in the book of the Revelation. I think that’s one of the most vividly awful and awfully vivid passages in all the Bible because of the combination of thoughts. The wrath of the lamb? Well, who would be afraid of a lamb getting mad? Well the very fact that the eternal One came down, down, down, down, down, and took a form like a servant and became like a lamb before His sheerer is dumb and let them maltreat Him and lie about Him and spit on Him, call Him a bastard and let them crown Him with thorns and all that sort of thing, revile and wag their heads when He's dying. The fact that the Creator of the universe thus humbled Himself is going to make His return as the Lamb indescribably horrible to those who've rejected His work back here as the Lamb. Because it's going to be the Lamb they’d going to meet. If He were to come back only as the Lion, they’d say that’s what were looking for, not a Lamb". You’re going to meet the Lamb yet, you’re going to meet Him yet. If you didn't receive Him in His voluntary humility, as "the Lamb of "God that taketh away the sin of the world", you will meet Him and know "the wrath of the Lamb". Isn’t that vivid? Not the way I'm giving it, but the way God gives.
Look now. "And behold",
And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
This still has to do with the same period of time referred to you know when we read about the seven Spirits in the earlier part of this book here in one of the assemblies in Asia Minor; seven Spirits in connection with Christ's second coming, the day of the Lord of course. It’s very, very plain when we read it humbly, not without preaching cute ideas.
And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne. And when he had taken the book, the four living creatures or beasts and four and twenty elders felt down before the Lamb,
before the Lamb. Isn't that what we read, or why we read in other words in Philippians 2: that the Lord Jesus took upon ... equal with God the Father, laid aside His equality, came down to be found in fashion as a man, and then humbled Himself, made Himself of no reputation, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, even the death of a cross -- the accursed death?', wherefore God hath highly exalted Him giving Him a name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus! at the name of Jesus every knee shalt bow and every tongue shall confess He’s Lord, Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God. That the Lamb is alive in His right, in His regal right, that it was this eternal One, Creator voluntarily humbled, "the Lamb."
Oh-h, I realize I’m going to have to stop and you can’t stay when you're tired on Sunday afternoon and listen attentively to long ... but my, my, my, I Just ... I guess I'll try to finish this. I can’t in the Millennium can I? It’ll be too tame and stale.
Well the same general truth wont be tame and stale.
(comment from audience)
All right, brother Lee says those of you tired can go to sleep. Don’t snore please. All right now please, back a little bit to this.
And when he had taken the book, the four beasts,
Living creatures,
and four and twenty elders felt down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of the saints.
Read on down in the 10th verse about "And Thou hast made unto us",
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on earth.
Lots of people don’t believe that but I do.
And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne, and the beasts, and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.
I’ve asked the Universal Reconciliationists who say, why if forever and ever" in the Greek meant "age without end", an endless time, eternity. then it wouldn't be a Greek word which means age, anon, an anon, which is another Limited period". And I like to ask them, "Will you tell me how long this is? I mean how many People these are? Look now, "ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands", how many? How many?
(Wilbur Johnson from audience) Innumerable.
Innumerable. It just starts this one, "thousands to ten thousands times ten thousands and thousands of thousands, just piling on each other on into eternity, into eternity. That's the thought. When the Lord said, '"Verily", well that meant 'without a doubt'. And then He said "Verily" again. Why would He say that? Because the first "verily" Wasn’t verily? I just think He wanted us to know there's just no possibility that this isn't true. "Verily, verily", the same as, "Amen, amen, I say unto you".
And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels,
(I read that) saying to these thousands of thousands,
Saying with a Loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. And every creature, and every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the heaven, and such as are in the sea,
that covers the three that we have in Philippians 2,
and all that are in them, heard I saving, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, he unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. And the four...
living creatures. fell down and worshipped.
You know what we're told, and I'm just going to touch it hurriedly, what we’re told in the horrible Tribulation period when the devil's christ will be on the throne in the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, and be saying he's very god, his name will be the number of man, six hundred three scare and six or 666, and he's going to pass Laws if you don't have his mark in your forehead or right hand, you can’t buy or sell. That's one of the reasons of course that I’m sure that all lining up and lining up today', in every realm where they say you've got to join is brainwashing people, getting ready for this antichrist. "Well you got to do it. You got to do it." We just have to do one thing: meet God and answer Him. It’s the only thing we got to do with absolute finality and certainty. "You got to live!" Oh no, no, no, we don't have to live; no, no, we may all die physically. But we have to meet God. And he’s going to give orders if he Lets you have his mark in your right hand or "our forehead, you can’t buy or sell. And he’s going to have diabolical assistants too. And you know how the humblest Jewish believers in those days are going to meet Him successfully? They’re ...they're going to overcome by saying, "You Just wait till the Lion of the tribe of Judah comes back in flaming fire and puts you where you belong in the lake of fire".. Is that what were told? We’re told, that they’ll overcome by "the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony". They’re going to go back and quote, the truth in anyway, of Hebrews 2:14. They’re going to say can deliver you out of that". They said, "O King we're not careful to answer thee. Our God’s able to deliver us, If not, we won’t be scandalized, we won’t be all messed up if he doesn’t deliver us. It won’t be because He isn’t able to. The God we know can put out your fires with just a little puff or a little word. We’re not going to bow down and worship you. We don’t know whether God’s going to keep us out of the fire or not, but we know He’s God, we know He's God of gods." Oh get that thought: "Blessed is he that’s not scandalized in Me." "Say, well if you were ... if you’ve got such a wonderful Savior..."
Pardon me Bill, Let me say this with a proper godly concern. "Bill Hagan, if you've got such a wonderful Savior, why doesn't He bring your mother out of her tragic condition?" Most of you know that I'm speaking words that are sacred concern at least. I don’t want to knife my beloved brother. Bill’s heart talking about his dear mother and Barbara, sister, when I say that. But I'm sure the devil twists with that needle, still do it in his gang. "If you’ve got such a wonderful Savior, Barbara, you’ve got, such a wonderful Savior, why doesn’t He bring your mother out of her awful darkness of despair?" I hope both of you say, I’m not scandalized Blessed Lord. I know you can do it. But why you don't do it and let my mother go on listening to the devil in her carnality, I don’t know. But I don’t blame Thee."
Job arose after that God had let the devil come and beset him with those things you remember and his possessions, physical material possessions were taken and his seven sons killed by a storm brought on by the devil and when Job hears the last of it he arose ... the devil had told God, "He’ll curse you to your face if you "Go ahead, but just put forth your hand and take his possessions, and God said, Go ahead, but don't take his; life"... and when that fourth messenger of calamity came to Job telling, "Your seven sons were having a banquet in the home of the eldest and a storm came, hit the four corners of the house and they were all seven killed", I imagine the devil ... I like to visualize the devil doing this: I like to visualize him sitting back or hiding behind or maybe in the invisible realm looking at Job saying, "Now big boy, when you hear the fourth messenger, you’re going to get up and do, what I told God you're going to do. If He just lets me take ... touch your material wealth. And you're like everybody else! working for the god of your belly! And if God hadn't blessed You materially, you wouldn’t love Him. He bought your affection. Now prove that I'm true and that He's a liar."
I think maybe the Lord's going to let me look back and see the devil as he watched Job, and see the look on that him ... that father of lies' face. When Job arose, laid aside his mantle, put dust on his head, fell on the ground, he said, "The Lord gave, the Lord hath taken away. Blessed by the name of the Lord". What do you think the devil did about that time I can't think of a better illustration than to me cause when I was a boy it was very big: a suck-egg dog when you get after him. You get after a suck-egg dog. That rascal knows he's got no business going in the hen house and breaking up nests, sucking up eggs.
I mean a dog that’s been trained at all. You get after a suck-egg dog. I've seen one of them, an ol' yeller neighborhood hound, when I got after him his tail between his Legs and he was, yelping as far as I could see him, going down the road, suck-egg dog. I like to think of the devil when Job proved God was worthy to be served.
Oh my friend, let’s believe in the Lord Jesus Christ ... they overcome, they're going to overcome in the Tribulation period, they're going to overcome the devil, Anti-Christ, and all the diabolical demon fiends out of the pit, there’ going to overcome them by the "word of their testimony and the blood of the Lamb"! Because the victory is already, past. They're simply, going to be using some of the results of the victory. like you and I today when we come in the name of the death conquering risen Christ we're more than conquerors.
Turn to I Corinthians 15 for a moment. May I ... I’ll just have time now to hurriedly call your attention to a few things. Some of you remember that several, several months ago (was it two years ago nearly?) I read from the late R.A. Torrey, "Founder, doctrinal founder of the Bible Institute and president for many years and Pastor of the Church of the Open Door, "Death Defeated and Defied". And Torrey in this booklet brings out beautifully, "Death is in itself an enemy. A mighty dark and terrible enemy. He has stalked for centuries through the world staying his thousands, millions, and billions. No man was able to stand before him. He was desolated countless homes and broken billions of hearts. But for the Christian he’s a completely defeated enemy. He’s an utterly conquered, destroyed, and abolished enemy; conquered, abolished, and destroyed by Jesus Christ the mighty Son of God in His atoning death on the cross. He despoiled the principalities and powers, that is, the principalities and powers of darkness, and made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it (Colossians 2:12), and through death brought to naught, or rendered inoperative, him that had the power of death, that is, the devil (Hebrews 2:74). By His resurrection ...By His resurrection, death was swallowed up in victory (I Corinthians 15:54). And now, every believer in Jesus Christ and the Bible can look this hideous monster right in the eye and say, "Oh death, where is thy victory? Oh death, where is thy sting?" If He puts death in both these cases here.
I read to you, the same crowd, from the late Arthur T. Pierson of whom the late Lewis Sperry Chafer said in my hearing one time, or to me privately, he said, I consider the late Arthur T Pierson", rector for many years of the Moody Tabernacle in Chicago, then for nine years up till his death of the Spurgeon Tabernacle, London, "I consider the Late Arthur T. Pierson the most gigantic spiritual brain of the 19th century". Now I don’t know whether Chafer's right about that, but, I have some of Pierson’s books,. and to me he's an astounding student, or was, his books, on the Bible and spiritual Life, one or two others. How any one man could have the brains that he had in ... in going out ... going through the Bible and bringing out figures of speech and numerical values, oh my, my, my. Pierson said, "Death has been defeated". That's his subject here, and he goes down the line. I’ll read one or two excerpts only." A climax, a miracle, it crowns all miracles. Christ's resurrection is His first step upward in His glorification, and it is always seen in the New Testament as connected with His ascension to the right hand of God.? "That Christ took upon Himself a form tike unto the brethren that through death He might destroy Him who had the power of death, that is, the devil. It is a promise and pattern of the believer's rising", the believer’s rising. The resurrection of Christ is treated by Paul as the basis of the whole Christian system. Faith preaching in life. In I Corinthians 15:19 we are taught that if Christ is not risen, preaching is vain, faith's vain, and there’s no future life for the believer. And so the resurrection of Christ is the pivotal point of the ages."
Now some of you heard me say that I saw that truth for the first time when I was meeting, getting ready to meet, that Universal Reconciliationists. John Owen quotes me having said that 25 years ago I first saw certain truth. I have here the original notes I made 25 years ago on contrasting 'consummation’. And I bring out that the word `end’ in Hebrews 9:26 .. the person who finds it, read it please, Hebrews 9:26, Hebrews 9:26. I’m going to have to stop soon of course, it’s late. I hope you won't feel that you’ve been worn out. Not if you listen carefully and are a Christian. Hebrews 9:26, Glenn.
(Glenn Lewis reeds from audience )
For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice if himself.
But now once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself." Now we know by comparing scripture with scripture that Christ’s death on the cross wasn't the end of the world in a point of time, because we’re living 1900-odd years Later. And other scriptures tell us of other conditions yet to come on this earth, as well as for this earth and with this earth. So when we come to James we read of "the end of the Lord" In dealing with Job. Well we know it wasn’t the end of the Lord in the sense of a terminus, that God came to an end. But "the and of the Lord"; "Say, what end do you have? What end do you have in view in making these recordings?" ?? would say, "Well I’m going to pass ‘em on to somebody else, and let ‘em hear these messages. Well I say, "May God bless that end that you have in view, that purpose". What end do you have, what’s the end of this. ..of the wages of sin is death, the end of your life. "There's a way that seemeth right unto man, but the end thereof are,
(chorus from audience) "The ways of death."
Well it didn’t come to a stop then did it? But [?] came to a horrible fruition. "There is a way that seemeth right unto man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." Didn't mean terminus at all. It meant the consummation. And so we read here ... and I read first in A.E. Knoch's translation, mistranslation ...I begin to say, "Well his doctrine about the ends of the ages couldn’t possibly be that Christ appeared in the end of the world, end of the ages. Why since then time and everything else would have stopped so far as man on earth is concerned when Christ died". So I began to compare scripture with scripture and became delightedly convinced, and then read a lot of other translations. And I found, as some of you heard me read here several months ago, that in many translations and some who have marginal references we have, "now once in the ends", plural, they say the literal Greek, but I don’t build any doctrine on the Greek mind you; by comparing scripture with scripture, that's the way I first got it.
"Now once in the ends of the ages He appeared", "Now once in the ends of the ages hath He appeared To put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself."
What does that mean? Why as A.T. Pierson brought out, and as I have over ... I thought might get to read some of these books, quote from them, from Plymouth Brethren I want to ... I said with John Owen here more than one time, "Why I have read for literally hundreds of hours writings from other men on Hebrews 2, on 2 Timothy on I Corinthians 15, on Colossians 2, on Ephesians 1, an I Peter 3:22, all of which pass ... references have to do with Christ's glorious consummation dealing with sin and the death and the devil, and all that’s in the future having to do with sin, death, the devil, and judgment will be nothing but the fruition of His work here". I’m told here, look, as "Pierson brings out and as I read and found out in those various translations in the original Greek, "Now once in the ends of these ages and the ends of these ages'?, the consummation of what all these ages were looking forward to and what all these ages looked back to and result from is what Jesus Christ did when God Almighty, the Son, the Creator, came down in human form was crowned with glory and honor that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man and meet the devil the god of this world who brought sin into the world through the first man and destroy him, abolish him. The same word in the Greek ‘Destroy’ for destroying death. And I brought out over and over again, to ... look again now, A.T. Pierson said Christ’s work on the cross and coming out of the grave and ascension is the pivotal, R.A. Torrey said, it's the pivotal work. The ages back here look forward to it, the ages here look back, and all of them pivot on the work of Christ. Adam’s saved looking forward I believe to the promise, the telescope of ... Genesis 3:15, "the seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent’s head", Hebrews 2:14. Abel by faith offered a lamb that represented this One over here, what He's going to do with Abel’s deceiver the devil and Abel's sins, And ah, here, the ark, Noah. And Abraham looked forward and saw Jesus the Lamb down here. The real believers looked forward. And Moses knew that the Lord was going to be the prophet that would really put into effect salvation and so forth. And all of them looked forward. Peter said recorded in Acts 10:43 Preaching the first gospel sermon to the first group of Gentiles after the cross, he said, "To Christ give all the prophets witness that through His name". the crucified, buried, risen Christ, he’d just told about that Acts 10:34-42, "To Christ give all the prophets witness that through His name whosoever believeth in Him shall receive forgiveness of sins". That's the crux of all the ages.
And the outworking in the future? Why my friend, as I read awhile ago, we read from Revelation, in the judgment scene it’s going to be the Lamb, the Lamb, and the coronation, the four living creatures and the elders and all are going to fall down and worship the Lamb whose worthy because of what He did. God help you to see the beauty.
Yes I wrote over 25 years ago, studied in these notes here on the end of Christ rejecters. It's not going to be the cessation of their being, but it's going to be the finality, the finality. I like the statement I read years ago from somebody in meeting the argument that God is Love, Love, love, and that to punish people in Conscious punishment would be the work of a vindictive despot. And this writer, this godly writer said, "God is not vindictive, but He's indicative". You think of that, that's really beautiful. That's why the Lamb is going to appear again as a Lamb, brother Earl. Then God’s going to say that, "I want you to know that the One that you thought was nothing but a weak, defeated Lamb, the One you thought you could successfully spit on and say, " away with this man from this earth!?", face Him now. Face the same One, the Lamb, the Lamb. That’s going to be God vindicated! The humiliation of His dear Son. It’ll be indicative, not vindictive. It won't be that mean, little, nasty purpose of a angry dictator. It'll be the majestic work of God.
Well I must close. You know ... Ephesians 1, Let’s read some of that. And I said I would let you ask questions. I didn't mean to in any sense to freeze you out by taking so long, but I’ll stay as long as any of you want me to stay, that is ... maybe, quite awhile. And ah ... well almost as long as you want me to stay. Though I'm tired, maybe I can stay as Long as you can.
I Corinthians ... I mean, Ephesians the 1st chapter.
(comment from audience) You mentioned I Corinthians.
All right, in I Corinthians 15, "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his ... Christ the firstfruits and those that are Christ's at His Coming, those that are Christ’s at His coming. The scope of 1 Corinthians 15 about the resurrection, "in Adam all die, in Christ all be-made alive. But every man in his own order, Christ the firstfruits, afterward they that are Christ's at His coming, they that are. Christ’s at His Coming, they that are Christ’s at His coming". Is there any hint there about something that's going to happen to death at the end of a future reign? There isn't the faintest hint in all the 15th chapter of I Corinthians about the end of a future reign. Give me a verse or a reference if you think there is one in the whole 15th chapter of the end of a future reign. Any hint of in the 15th chapter of I Corinthians about the end of the Millennium. We’ll read about the resurrection of those that’ll he raised, I Corinthians 15, the resurrection when Christ comes.
Now since Paul is writing to the church at Corinth and after the truth of the mystery coming I Corinthians 15, I believe the Old Testament saints; they probably are included in those other passages. But he's talking there specifically to the church, writing to the church. I repeat, we’re told in the 15th chapter, "Behold, I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump". That's the catching away of the Christians who’ll be alive when Christ comes in this mystery coming for the church.
Most of you have heard me bring out some of the reasons, and let just give one here. Brother Thomas Ham said to me the other day that it was the one thing that helped him more surely I believe he said than anything else, to believe in the rapture of the church which is Christ's body. He said, "I battled with it, and I couldn’t bring myself to believe it". Armstrong of course ridicules it, and many others do, that the church which is Christ’s body is going to be caught away secretly or at least before Christ comes. visibly hack to earth. Thomas said this was the thing that convinced him more surely: that the church which is Christ’s Body came in as a mystery, never known before, never prophesied, never promised in the Old Testament Scriptures, it was a mystery hid in God, not known in other ages. Now since the church which is Christ's body came in a mystery, how could it go out as a subject of Prophecy? If the church itself was not known in ... as a subject of prophecy, then its beginning couldn't been prophesied, and its exit couldn't been prophesied either, could it. Do you see that? Well now you wrestle with that with the Scripture, and see if you don’t have, to believe that the church which is Christ's body is a mystery, never known in other ages. It shouldn’t be a mystery now. Its still a mystery or misty thing to most people.
Now Paul said, "...let me say this, just here (I need an hour or two): how does I Corinthians ... the subject of 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, where does that subject matter really began, so far as Paul's epistle to the Corinthians is concerned?
(comment from audience)
Well really chapter one verse one, yeah. But as to the immediate subject of and resurrection?
(comments from audience)
I Corinthians 15th chapter first five verses. "What’s the matter with you Corinthians?" well he's already told us in the 1st chapter, and 3rd chapter, and 5th chapter, lots of things are the matter with ‘em. They’re carnal, walking like men, they're scrapping, and they haven't judged horrible immorality in their- midst. Now in the 15th chapter he shows ’em a mystery ... I mean the 11th chapter ... 15th chapter lots earlier ... I mean later. So the 15th chapter, he said, "What's the matter with .you? Why you’re doubting the resurrection of Christians. I preached unto you the gospel: how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. Now if Christ be raised from the dead, how are some of you saying there isn’t any resurrection? If Christ isn't raised then we are yet in our sins, and now we're false witnesses, and our preaching is vain. But Christ is raised, and they that are fallen asleep in Christ, they perished. Why if in this life only we have hope in Christ, were of all men most miserable." - I'm not quoting it in the exact order. "But now is Christ raised, hut now is Christ raised from the dead and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward they that are Christ's at His coming. Why He must reign tilt He has put down all enemies".
What’s the subject so far in that context? The resurrection of the body of believers. "Death's an enemy, Oh, our Corinthian brethren that have died, we’ll never see them again. At least, raised body, never see them again. I don't know what the future holds. Never see them again, they've died. 10 They're saying at Corinth. Paul said, "Listen, listen, Christ must reign till He hath put down all enemies".
Now John Owen and others say that's future. Christ must reign till He’s put down all enemies. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. When I faced John over and over again, I said, "John, will you stand by this?" now watch, you’re now saying that that death that’s going to be destroyed as an enemy will be the result of Christ reigning in the future to put down all rule and authority and might and dominion and power and name not only in this age and that which is to come and the last enemy that’ll be destroyed is death. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. The very last thing of His future reign will be to destroy death. Well then don’t think there's any victory for the believers at Corinth by Christ coming in the clouds because He has not yet reigned on earth putting down rule and authority, might and dominion, and the last enemy death." And John would no more face that than any frustrated, stubborn mule will face a thing. He wouldn't face it. His doctrine is hopelessly confused and contradictory.
I said, "Now watch. If Christ’s going to come in the clouds and catch away the bodies ... raise the bodies of the Christian dead reuniting after quickening ‘em, making ‘em immortal, incorruptible, reunite the spirit and soul with ‘em, and then catch us who are living when Christ comes without our dying, is that going to come as a result of Christ destroying death?" Now watch. Is my father, and Lyman, your father, Ruth, your father, and mother, Paul the apostle, are they going to be raised bodily when Christ comes in the clouds as a result of Christ’s past work, coming out of the grave? Will He? Do you think so, Brian? That your Christian Loved ones who’ve died are going to be raised at the second coming of Christ because of His resurrection? You believe that? Good, I do too.
So then the resurrection in the close of the church period will be the result of His death. Well that's before Christ comes back to start His reign. Now watch. So the resurrection referred to in 1 Corinthians 15 so far as Christians then, the resurrection that'll be the result of destroying death. And certainty in every sense of the term when brother B.D. and sister R.D. hear the call of the Lord, "Arise", their bodies and all, and they're given immortal bodies, I want to hear them sing, (sings) "His yoke is easy, His burden is Light, I found it so", and maybe "The Royal Road to the Cross Leads to Heaven".? ", want to hear them sing that too maybe in the glory, "The Royal Road", I want them to sing that. They’ll sing with immortal bodies, immortal bodies. And Adair, I'm glad to believe, solidly, that your and Ruth's precious Little boy will meet you at that event with a glorified body. No writhing in pain and weird sounds that broke Ruth’s heart and bewildered and sorrowed Adair for years till the Lord took him away, that little physically and mentally ill formed boy of theirs.
And all of that resurrection at the end of the church dispensation will be when Christ comes in the clouds and before He has set foot on earth and started His future reign. Now get that straight and don’t give it up,!, if you believe it's the truth. And then don’t accept the truth in a minute that’ll knock it skyway and crooked. It ...
(comment from audience) It won’t be truth, would it?
...no, that's right. Good. Thank you, I stand corrected. When Christ comes in the clouds, if every Christian that has lived will be with Him then that has died first, dead in Christ first, we will all be raised, immortal, incorruptible, as a result of His resurrection. Amen. all right, so then so far as this resurrection is concerned, this resurrection will be as the result of His having already destroyed death.
Well please tell me what He’s going to do to destroy death at the end of the Millennium? It’s some past reign Earl that causes to destroy the death that my mother isn’t going to ... isn't going to hold her in the grave when the Resurrection comes in the clouds. He said, "I’m the resurrection". And it's a past reigning that Christ has done when He met the devil and destroyed him, reigned over him, and came Out of the hell and death with the keys of hell and death. It's the result of the past reign that's going to cause Paul to get His immortal body. You believe that Brian?
All right. Then as a result of what reign is some enemy death going to be destroyed over here? I said in John Owen’s presence, I said "Listen, if Christ is going to destroy some death as the result of His Millennial reign it'll he like the Universal Reconciliationists, it’ll be the second death". That’s the only enemy death from any standpoint it could possibly be, and it's not an enemy from God's standpoint anyway.
I won’t read, I'll just refer to and stop, read Colossians 2, read Ephesians 1 verses 15 through the ... 23rd verse, read Colossians 2:10 through 17, read I Peter 3:22, 3:22, and read 2 Timothy 1:10, where Paul said by the gospel the Lord has brought to light and the body's dead and brought to light life and immortality by the gospel. If you have 2 Timothy 1:10 read it please, 9 and 10.
(Wilbur Johnson reads from audience) Who hath saved us, and called us with a holy calling.
... Now Christ "has saved us and called us with a holy calling....
(Wilbur Johnson reads from audience)
not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began; but is now made manifest ...
...."But is now made manifest", wait a minute now, by the second coming of Christ at the end of His reign on the earth? Let’s see if that's what he says. Go ahead, "!s now made manifest.... ...
(Wilbur Johnson reads from audience) by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ ...
Some think that’s already happened, "By the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ".
(Wilbur Johnson reads from audience) Who hath abolished death ...
... "Who hath abolished death". That's the same word in the Greek you know for the word `destroy’ in 1 Corinthians 15 "He must destroy death" the last enemy, and He's destroyed the devil, Hebrews 2.-14, same word exactly, same word. "He hath abolished," or destroyed "death", go ahead.
(Wilbur Johnson reads from audience) and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel....
..."And hath brought life and immortality to light through the, gospel", not through the prophecies of a future work, but the gospel or the good news as to what He's done. And that's why I Corinthians 15 before he gets on the subject of Christ's reigning to the o f [?] in it, he says, "Why, I gave you the gospel. I gave you the gospel. I gave you the gospel, Brian, you’ve got no gospel to preach to people in your barber chair, you got no gospel to Preach to them. if Christ hasn’t the keys of hell and death; you got no gospel to preach to them. You better go back with Simon Peter, except you don't heal folks, and say, Oh no Lord, You don’t have to die. We're enjoying this reigning on earth, Casting Out demons and all". He didn't have any gospel of salvation. They just tell the, sick, "In the name of the King of the Jews, I’ll...heal you, get up." They didn’t have any saving gospel. When Christ begin to give the facts Of the saving gospel, "I must go to Jerusalem and die", Peter says, Oh no Lord, be it far from Thee." None of us have any gospel to give to a burdened, sin-enslaved soul, devil ... devil-deceived soul unless we have the gospel, the story that Christ has conquered the Last enemy, death.
Well you been patient. I'm sure you realize that ...
(comment from audience)
1 Corinthians 15 verse I to verse 51, and then we could go on to the rest of them: I Corinthians 15, Hebrews 2 the whole chapter. Were told that; "He hath put the world in ... to come in subjection to His dear Son" And in ... Ephesians the 1st chapter wee told that Christ has already been raised far above all principalities, power, might, dominion, rule, and authority, and every name that’s named. I was going to bring it out here, but I'll just let you look at it and then stop.
I studied very carefully every one of those words in 1 Corinthians in the English and then Looked them up in the Greek and showed how they're translated elsewhere. 1 Corinthians 15, He was ... Christ ... last ... raised when He put down all enemies, the last enemy to be destroyed death. He must put down all rule, I Corinthians 15: 24, rule, authority, power, death. Here it is. The Greek word that's translated in 1 Corinthians 15 'rule' and the one `authority’, the one `power’. It’s the same word, same truth over here, same truth over here. You can't read that humbly my friend, if you're a God-fearing soul without having a shout in your heart and I’d have ... advise you to open your mouth and let it out. Say, "Hallelujah, what a Savior. Man of Sorrows", and then go on to "what a Savior".
We sing, we’ve sung it for years some of us (sings), "Lo in the grave He lay," and that He came out (what's the language there?).
(comment from audience)
"With a mighty triumph over His foes? The victor over the dark domain" Have we been singing a lie? I been singing what I know is true now. I know now, not on the testimony of a songwriter, but I know ... oh, I had so many beautiful poems I thought ... why did I think I could write ... read them. Why did I think I would have time to read them to you this afternoon. Want a copy that; stay after the meeting and copy that. My friend, there isn’t a man on the top side of this earth s that can refute, can refute that.
Now, lest any of you think that I have tried to brow beat or out talk somebody or refused to give them a hearing, let me say this quietly. If God wills it I will he delighted to meet in free public discussion, each agreeing ... John Owen couldn't do it in the past, he had to bust in. I had to ask others to please keep quiet' while he Was talking two hours. I said, "Let’s hear him and not interfere at all, please". But when I started, I hadn't gone very Long before he butted in. He couldn’t keep it, because he’s frustrated. He doesn’t have common self-control, much less spiritual, because he doesn't know Jesus Christ with the keys of hell and of death! in a practical way. He’s a bewildered, defeated, proud, stubborn soul. my heart goes out to him in sorrow. I pray God that he wakes up before the infinitely holy heavenly Father has to visit him with more discipline and more things to break his stubborn will. Be careful, don't follow his carnality.
But don't forget, I said I would be delighted, if God wills, I’d be glad to share equal time with anybody that wants to try to refute the truth that I’ve been giving this afternoon about death having already been destroyed in every sense it ever will be! Christ is not going to destroy any death in the future. Not any at all. At the resurrection we're going to get personally and experimentally the fruit Of that firstfruit. "Except a grain of wheat fail in the ground and die it abideth alone, but if it die, if it die", look now, "if it die", think up here on the cross, "if it die" (I'll turn this back after we close) "if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit; if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit", think of it that way.
Yes, the glorious work of the Lord Jesus called the gospel of Christ. It’s the story my friends of what He came, the second man, down into man's defeated, victimized, devil-controlled empire, world. The second man came down to reign until He had put down all enemies, the last one being death.
I wish I could hear Russ in the Millennium getting around you a few million redeemed sinners if the Lord will let you and get the original of what Gounod tried to write in his "Unfold Ye Portals Everlasting", based on the 24th Psalm. (Sings) "Unfold, unfold, unfold, ye portals everlasting", somebody’s coming up. Who is it? The King of glory. Who is the King of glory? The 24th Psalm is based on the 22nd, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" Now took at Him! Look at Him.
One verse of a song and I’ll stop, let you ask a question or two. Those of you need to go, go; those of you who want to stay and ask me questions, do that. And I don’t mean to he unfair, God forbid. Oh where is that passage, "See Him now, the Man of sorrows"? Oh I thought it's here. I’ll find it in just a moment. Help me to find it in the subject ... subjects listed "the resurrection", "the resurrection". You found it? No, it isn't "Hallelujah". Look, ye saints! The sight is glorious". What? That it? Eighteen. That’s one verse of that. Oh-h, that Is beautiful. He sang it last night at Brian's. (Reads) "Look, ye saints!' The sight is glorious: See the Man of Sorrows now; From the fight returned victorious, Every knee to Him shalt bow: Crown Him! Crown Him! Crown Him! Crowns become the Victor’s brow" Where’s Jean? Will you come and play one verse of this. Let’s sing one verse and close, number 18, one verse. Let’s think of it as you sing.
Would you been doing anything more profitable if I’d let you leave an hour ago. Probably not. I really don't want to he intemperate, because if you go to sleep and break your neck, I can’t raise you up like Paul did, as we read in Acts. Paul preached to midnight and a fellow fell out of the window and broke his neck and Paul said, "Don’t worry, I’ll raise him", and went down and raised him up. I can’t do that.
Number 18, one verse. Stand shall we. (Leads in Singing),
Look ye saints!, The sight is glorious:
See the Man of Sorrows now;
From the fight returned victorious,
Every knee to Him Shall bow:
Crown Him! Crown Him!
Crown Him! Crown Him!Crowns become the, Victor’s brow,
Crowns become the Victor’ s brow.
He taught me how to watch and pray,
And live rejoicing every day,
happy day, happy day,
When Jesus washed my sins awayTed, could you paint this chart again with a little more personal appreciation than when you painted it, as a result of hearing some of these things this afternoon?
Welt I hope you could. Copy the subject matter and read it up carefully for yourself again. You're dismissed. Anybody wants to stay now and ask some questions, and I'm doing that only because I'm sure some have stayed patiently rather than appear to not be interested in it because you didn't want us all disturbed. But please, give me opportunity if you think I should try this afternoon, or this early evening, I’ll be glad to do it. Stay here.