Did Christ Succeed .... Or Fail?
At first glance, this seems to be a ridiculous question. Of course Christ succeeded! He is The Son of God! He was and is incapable of failure! He asked the question of His accusers while on earth, “Who of you convicts Me of sin?” And we have the steadfast testimony of Christ Himself, “I always do that which pleases The Father.”
At the beginning of His ministry, we hear The Savior say, “My food, is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work." At the close of His earthly ministry, Jesus triumphantly declared, “I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.”
So, if Christ never missed the mark of perfection, but always accomplished the task for which He was sent, why does Christendom claim that He failed in His objective to SAVE HUMANITY? This was THE WORK for which He was sent. Jesus testified, “For the Son of Man came to SEEK and to SAVE the lost.” And who are “The Lost”? Is it not every descendant of Adam’s race? And what was the means by which Christ was to save the Lost? Was it not THE CROSS?
So, if Christ never missed the mark of perfection, but always accomplished the task for which He was sent, why does Christendom claim that He failed in His objective to SAVE HUMANITY? This was THE WORK for which He was sent. Jesus testified, “For the Son of Man came to SEEK and to SAVE the lost.” And who are “The Lost”? Is it not every descendant of Adam’s race? And what was the means by which Christ was to save the Lost? Was it not THE CROSS?
The Son Of God, called "The Second Man" came into the world to undo the disastrous results that the first man, Adam imposed on humanity, SIN & DEATH. The testimony of Scripture as to The Son of God’s success is overwhelming. He accomplished His goal by way of His suffering, death, and resurrection. Mankind's deliverance was only possible through the suffering of a sinless sacrifice. Here are a few passages proclaiming this glorious victory of Jesus Christ:
“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, WHO TAKES AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD!” {John 1: 29}
“They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD.” {John 4:42}
“I (Jesus) will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I WILL REACH MY GOAL” (Crucifixion). {Luke 13:32}
“When He had received the drink, Jesus said, “IT IS FINISHED!” With that, He bowed his head and gave up His spirit.” {John 19:30}
“And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD” {1 John 4:14}
“That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, WHO IS THE SAVIOR OF ALL PEOPLE, and especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things.” {1 Tim 4:10,11}
“His purpose was to create in Himself one new humanity out of the two (Jews & Gentiles), thus making peace, and in one body to RECONCILE BOTH OF THEM TO GOD THROUGH THE CROSS.. {Eph. 2:15,16}
Consequently, just as one trespass (Adam’s disobedience) resulted in condemnation FOR ALL PEOPLE, so also one righteous act (Christ’s obedience) resulted in JUSTIFICATION AND LIFE FOR ALL PEOPLE. {Rom. 5:18}
“For as IN ADAM ALL DIE, so IN CHRIST ALL WILL BE MADE ALIVE.” {1Cor. 15:22}
“For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him (Christ), and through Him to RECONCILE TO HIMSELF ALL , whether on earth or in heaven, BY MAKING PEACE THROUGH HIS BLOOD, SHED ON THE CROSS.” {Col. 1:19,20}
Dare we say with apostate Christendom that Jesus failed in His objective? Are we to honestly believe that it is orthodox to hold to the idea that He was unable to rescue the vast majority of humanity? What of the Hindus, Muslims, and apostate Christianity? This vast group is composed of BILLIONS UPON BILLIONS of humans for whom Christ died and was resurrected. Will they all be lost to the flames of “hell”?
Such a dogmatic creed of religion reveals the blindness and unbelief of those that claim to wear the mantle of the Church’s “clergy”, and are eager to damn all other fellow sinners, in total disregard of the contrary message of the Scripture’s “Good News” for all. They confidently affirm that man has the final say in the matter, whether to believe or not. Some sects of Christendom even teach that God elected this unbelieving group for eternal torment before He created them!!
As a teacher of scripture, I was once guilty of blindly swallowing this poison pill of religious pride, believing this destructive doctrine of eternal punishment. The sheer multitude of trained theologians attesting to the reality of “hell” and “eternal damnation”, suppressed the testimony of my heart and conscience. I somehow was able to ignore the evidence of the scriptures concerning our Lord's total and complete triumph over sin and death. I foolishly and arrogantly declared that man’s iron will would prevail over God’s divine will, and that in spite of The Savior’s work of redemption, Christ would ultimately fail in His unequivocally stated goal to save ALL HUMANITY.
A real danger in believing Christendom’s common creed concerning “eternal punishment” is the necessity of the existence of sin and death FOREVER. For, if unredeemed men remain forever lost to the fires of The Second Death, then their sins will remain upon them, and indeed multiply exponentially through their hatred and cursing of God. Their hatred of their would - be "savior" turned eternal "torturer" would make SIN an ETERNAL blight! Instead of the elimination of sin, THE LAKE OF FIRE would only serve as a nursery for more sin, multiplying its growth and strengthening its grip on those desperately needing release from it's unrelenting stranglehold on them.
As a teacher of scripture, I was once guilty of blindly swallowing this poison pill of religious pride, believing this destructive doctrine of eternal punishment. The sheer multitude of trained theologians attesting to the reality of “hell” and “eternal damnation”, suppressed the testimony of my heart and conscience. I somehow was able to ignore the evidence of the scriptures concerning our Lord's total and complete triumph over sin and death. I foolishly and arrogantly declared that man’s iron will would prevail over God’s divine will, and that in spite of The Savior’s work of redemption, Christ would ultimately fail in His unequivocally stated goal to save ALL HUMANITY.
A real danger in believing Christendom’s common creed concerning “eternal punishment” is the necessity of the existence of sin and death FOREVER. For, if unredeemed men remain forever lost to the fires of The Second Death, then their sins will remain upon them, and indeed multiply exponentially through their hatred and cursing of God. Their hatred of their would - be "savior" turned eternal "torturer" would make SIN an ETERNAL blight! Instead of the elimination of sin, THE LAKE OF FIRE would only serve as a nursery for more sin, multiplying its growth and strengthening its grip on those desperately needing release from it's unrelenting stranglehold on them.
Thus, Christ would be found to have fallen woefully short of His goal to save mankind. His title “Savior Of The World” would prove to be ridiculous, and would be a legitimate cause for Satan's mockery, a false title of shame that Jesus would be forced to bear throughout all eternity. Christendom has declared that Jesus is merely a "wanna-be savior", unable to attain His title, stymied by man's unbelief, never to reach His goal as THE VICTORIOUS SAVIOR OF ALL of Adam's lost race. The First Adam's power to doom the race would prove to be more potent than The Second Adam's ability to undo the results! (It brings me pain to even write such rubbish that Christendom has espoused!)
Therefore, when the Scriptures declare that Christ indeed came to earth to eliminate sin from His creation, and not just transfer sin to another location, namely, “hell”, and The Lake Of Fire, we have a very real conflict with Christendom's dogma of eternal torture. But if the accepted tenets of Christendom are true, then the following verses MUST be false, and we should burn our bibles, and instead cling to the accepted religious creeds of men!
Look, the Lamb of God, WHO TAKES AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD!” {John 1: 29}
“But He has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages TO DO AWAY WITH SIN BY THE SACRIFICE OF HIMSELF. {Heb. 9:26}
“He (Jesus) is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for THE SINS OF THE WHOLE WORLD.” {1 John 2:2}
The Church's hierarchy have made this blunder in their doctrine of an impotent "savior". Multitudes have suffered unbearable emotional torment at the thoughts of their lost loved ones experiencing unspeakable, endless torture in “hell” at the hands of “The Savior”, for remember, Jesus is The One Who stated: “I have the keys of death and hell.” (Gk. 'Hades' = Grave). Instead of giving our Lord His rightful title of ‘Victor’ over the grave and Savior of His creatures, they have portrayed The Lover of mankind as “Hell’s Gatekeeper”, having the keys, but callously refusing the inmates ultimate release and relief from their unspeakable torment!!
Our leaders have mistakenly taught that all opportunities for salvation end at the grave, a teaching NOWHERE FOUND in Scripture. On the contrary, we have direct, clear statements assuring us that God will reconcile ALL HIS CREATURES unto Himself. They believe the spiritual enlightenment of believers before death to be the only ones delivered. They mistakenly think that they are members of an eternally exclusive “Salvation Club”, where members are ONLY admitted BEFORE death, and that only they will enjoy the benefits of the accomplishments of The Savior’s victory over sin and death.
Therefore, when the Scriptures declare that Christ indeed came to earth to eliminate sin from His creation, and not just transfer sin to another location, namely, “hell”, and The Lake Of Fire, we have a very real conflict with Christendom's dogma of eternal torture. But if the accepted tenets of Christendom are true, then the following verses MUST be false, and we should burn our bibles, and instead cling to the accepted religious creeds of men!
Look, the Lamb of God, WHO TAKES AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD!” {John 1: 29}
“But He has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages TO DO AWAY WITH SIN BY THE SACRIFICE OF HIMSELF. {Heb. 9:26}
“He (Jesus) is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for THE SINS OF THE WHOLE WORLD.” {1 John 2:2}
The Church's hierarchy have made this blunder in their doctrine of an impotent "savior". Multitudes have suffered unbearable emotional torment at the thoughts of their lost loved ones experiencing unspeakable, endless torture in “hell” at the hands of “The Savior”, for remember, Jesus is The One Who stated: “I have the keys of death and hell.” (Gk. 'Hades' = Grave). Instead of giving our Lord His rightful title of ‘Victor’ over the grave and Savior of His creatures, they have portrayed The Lover of mankind as “Hell’s Gatekeeper”, having the keys, but callously refusing the inmates ultimate release and relief from their unspeakable torment!!
Our leaders have mistakenly taught that all opportunities for salvation end at the grave, a teaching NOWHERE FOUND in Scripture. On the contrary, we have direct, clear statements assuring us that God will reconcile ALL HIS CREATURES unto Himself. They believe the spiritual enlightenment of believers before death to be the only ones delivered. They mistakenly think that they are members of an eternally exclusive “Salvation Club”, where members are ONLY admitted BEFORE death, and that only they will enjoy the benefits of the accomplishments of The Savior’s victory over sin and death.
Christendom's leaders confidently state that believers ALONE will receive The Creator's love and mercy, all others being repudiated and tortured by God for eternity. They mistake the gathering of God’s FIRSTFRUITS with His full harvest of humanity. They fail to see the significance of the FIRSTBORN in scripture, viewing them instead as the ONLY BORN! The unbeliever will indeed be chastised for his unbelief and wicked deeds, which will prepare him to be illuminated to God's truth and righteousness.
God's judgments are for the PURPOSE of producing illumination, humility and repentance from the disobedient sons of stubborness, not endless torture. That would serve no purpose and would be inconsistent with God's Plan for reconciliation. God is The Just Judge, He will not exact limitless agony on the lost of mankind, for a life of limited disobedience and unbelief. Eternal damnation is an evil, narrow, self-serving doctrine that must be repudiated by believers if we are to make any progress in the understanding of how LOVE behaves and in humble service for our Lord, Who is indeed....... The Savior of The World.
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