God's Purpose

Posted by triumphantloveinchrist.blogspot.com Labels: Saturday, June 14, 2014


God’s Purpose  

It is a sad fact that the vast majority of Christians are ignorant of God’s ultimate purpose for His creation. This is due mainly to Christendom’s leaders’ false teaching concerning the present evil in the world, and the future punishment of the lost. It is the failure to recognize God’s complete control over ALL circumstances in His universe that has led to a belief in “dualism”. This was the belief of an ancient Iranian religion founded in the 6th century BC, Zoroastrianism. Its founder, Zoroaster, imagined a universe in which an all good Spirit created the pleasant things in the world, while another powerful, all evil Spirit, created destructive counterparts, such as snakes, flies, and other noxious things to combat the good Spirit’s creation.
 
It is the concept of two “Gods” battling for control and victory over the created universe that Christian leaders have unwittingly portrayed to those in varied denominational assemblies worldwide. According to their dogmas, Satan is the evil god that has successfully overthrown the true God’s purpose of perfection for His creation. By ruining His original pristine universe, Satan has forced God to resort to a “Plan B”. In this scenario, an impotent creator, frustrated by the “free will” of mankind that follows Satan in his rebellion, is feverishly working to counteract Satan’s devices in order to convince mankind to follow Him. 

However, because Satan’s widespread Evil is more desirable than God’s Good, God will lose the vast majority of mankind to Satan, and must placate Himself with the rescue of a small minority of the billions of men and women created in His image. By Satan’s subtle intrigue, God, because He is holy, will be forced to banish most of mankind to eternal torture in Hell and then the Lake of Fire. God will ultimately neutralize Satan by imprisoning him for 1000 years, and finally confine him to the fiery Lake, at which time He will declare victory. But what a costly and hollow victory that will be! Satan will have claimed the lion’s share of souls that will remain forever hostile to their Creator. Evil will not only continue to exist, but will thrive and multiply as the realm of the damned is filled with curses for God eternally!
Thankfully, although the above scenario is the popular religious teaching today, it is completely contradicted by Scripture. A view of all world events gives the impression that the creation is a giant, slow-motion train wreck, having veered off the tracks of God’s purpose and headed for certain and final destruction. 

However, Satan is a created being, and as such, his power is limited to that invested to him by his Creator. The Adversary does not make policy for the universe, nor does he devise any plan of his own in order to thwart God’s purpose. He is merely God’s agent of evil, a pawn in the hands of the all-wise Creator. Although he certainly thinks he is free and autonomous, (just as men believe themselves to be free moral agents), all of his ways were known beforehand, and ordained by God to accomplish His mysterious purpose.

But, doesn’t this make God the Author of sin? No. God is the Author of evil. Evil is not sin. Sin is a mistake, an error, something God is incapable of. Evil is the counterpart of Good. God created Evil in order to reveal Good. Good would have no meaning without Evil, just as Darkness is essential to understand Light. Evil is a temporary tool of contrast being used by The Master Craftsman of the universe to reveal Himself to all His creatures. At the consummation, after God’s purpose is realized, evil will be discarded forever. 

The purpose for God planting the Tree of The Knowledge of Good and Evil in Eden’s Garden is puzzling to many students of Scripture. Why would God deliberately place it centrally in His garden of perfection? Why would He not place cherubim to guard it from Adam as He did afterward for The Tree Of Life? Why was Satan given free access to God’s Garden to spread his rebellion and infect humanity? Why were there not two trees, one of Good and another of Evil, but conflicting things in one tree. 

The answer is that Adam did not know Evil before he ate of its fruit, but NEITHER DID HE KNOW GOOD! The Garden with all its wondrous delights, the delicious fruit, the perfect climate, the harmless animals, the daily walks with his Creator-Father was to Adam just “another day in Paradise”. He knew no other scenario. All these wonders were taken mundanely as a matter of normal life. The only way he could really appreciate Good, and therefore his Creator, was to be shown its opposite, Evil. The contents of the fruit did not infect Adam & Eve with sin; that came from their disobedience to the commandment to abstain from eating it. 

It is surprising to many that God knew Evil before Adam. He confirmed this fact after Adam sinned: “And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil.” {Gen. 3:22}

Man’s first sin, which Christendom teaches began the eternal doom of most of Adam’s progeny, was in fact the first essential lesson for an immature creature that his Creator was teaching him. This painful lesson was given in order to enlighten him to God’s essential Goodness. Adam now had the ability to compare Good with Evil, and therefore could enter the gateway of appreciation for his Father’s Goodness and Love. If this was not God’s purpose for Adam; if He created him with the determination of perpetual perfection, then God failed, He missed His mark, God sinned. This is our only recourse if we believe that God’s plans for Adam failed. If The Creator is reacting to man’s free will, and constantly adjusting His Plan in order to accomplish His purpose, then who is really in control? Free will makes man into God, and God into less than omnipotent.

But the Scriptures assure us that God is not adjusting to man’s decisions, and is in complete control. Neither are there two “Gods” battling for control of events.
“That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else.I form the light, and create darkness: I MAKE PEACE, AND CREATE EVIL: I THE LORD, DO ALL THESE THINGS.” {Isa. 45:6,7}

God has a reason for all events in His universe, a definite purpose toward accomplishment of His ultimate goal. This goal is the revelation of Himself, and afterward, taking up residence in ALL His creatures. He will realize that goal in due course, and cannot be thwarted. He is The Almighty!
“Remember this, keep it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels.
  Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
  I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say, ‘MY PURPOSE WILL STAND,
AND I WILL DO ALL THAT I PLEASE.’ {Isa. 46:8-10}

In order for man to exercise his “free will”, he would have to be totally free. But the Scriptures declare that man is not free at all, but is completely enslaved to sin, as is Satan. Satan and mankind make choices according to their limited knowledge and ability. They choose to do one thing or another only from what has been decreed concerning them or revealed to them.

 We have no “free will” options concerning our time or place of birth, our genetic make up, our family, our aging, inherited diseases, our involuntary bodily functions, etc. I cannot jump over my house or lift 10,000 pounds even if I freely choose to do so. Our choices are also limited by our lack of knowledge of the future. I cannot confidently “will” to be a millionaire or a professional athlete, for even if I have an iron will and determination to accomplish these goals, tomorrow may bring an unforeseen bankruptcy or a debilitating injury making such things impossible.

Only God has “free will”, for He alone is omnipotent. He alone is able to accomplish any and all goals He has determined. The creature not only does not fathom his Creator, he does not understand himself! A careful assessment of all known factors in a situation does not insure a man of the desired outcome of any decisive action. He cannot contemplate or make choices in things that he does not even comprehend! Scientific discovery is constantly amazing man about himself and his surroundings, things which his Creator determined and ordained to be there and function as He designed them according to His Free Will and Purpose.

Men are responsible only for God’s REVEALED WILL. Adam erred in his failure to obey his Father’s revealed will. This is the determining factor in God’s judgment of any person’s works. How faithful were we to the light we received? However, God had a SECRET WILL known only to Himself. His Secret Will determined that Adam’s disobedience would, instead of derailing God’s Plan for perfection, act as an essential step in revealing Himself to man. This is how God wields His tool of Evil in order to bring about His Good purpose. 

Take the example of Joseph in his trials. After his own brothers, because of their jealous hatred of him, sold him into slavery, we can only imagine the pain and despair of his broken spirit. However, through this great family tragedy, Joseph was eventually to rise to the position of ruler over all Egypt, under Pharaoh alone. God had a Secret Will concerning Joseph known only to Him. God ordained these circumstances in order to accomplish His purpose. Listen to Joseph’s assessment of all that befell him:
“His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. “We are your slaves,” they said. But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? YOU INTENDED IT FOR EVIL, BUT GOD INTENDED IT FOR GOOD to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.” {Gen. 50:18-21}

The greatest Evil ever to occur was perpetrated on God’s own Son. When Satan entered Judas to betray The Savior, did he not think he was acting autonomously in devising this plan of evil? When the Jewish leaders had Jesus arrested and brought to trial, did they not think they were acting on their own? When the crowd, worked into a frenzy, screamed “Crucify Him!”, or Pilate condemned Him to an excruciating death on a cross, or the soldiers cast lots for His robe and mocked Him, and the scourging, and crucifixion. 

Did not all these individuals believe they were doing exactly as they determined to do? And yet, they were only acting out what The Father had predetermined concerning His Son. The prophet Isaiah had foretold these things hundreds of years before any of these actors were born:
“Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After he has suffered,
he will see the light of life and be satisfied;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities (sins).” {Isa. 53:10,11}

A glaring error of men is to confuse God’s process with His goal. There used to be an artist that painted nature scenes on canvas on a weekly television program. With broad strokes of his brush he would spread paint on his blank canvas in a seemingly haphazard manner. Mixing colors on his hand held block, he continued smearing and blending colors without any apparent order or sense of urgency to finish his work. Just when I began to see some order, he would partially cover a recognizable object with more broad strokes of his brush. Only when the program was near its end, did the awe-inspiring scene emerge from the seeming chaos of colors. The master painter knew exactly what he was painting, I did not. In the end, I could appreciate the perfectly placed brush strokes and the beautiful scene they produced. 

It is this way with God. Although there seems to be raging chaos at work in our world, the universe’s Master is methodically bringing order out of the seeming disorder. In the end, He will reveal a masterpiece produced by His marvelous Love and Grace, made possible by Calvary’s Cross.
God’s purpose was to use man’s Evil hatred of His Son to pay the sin guilt of all creation! The Father’s love for all His creatures drove Him to it. Pure love knows no other way but self-giving sacrifice for the beloved. Jesus willingly yielded to His Father’s Will, knowing that man’s supreme Evil would result in The Father’s supreme Good, salvation and deliverance of His lost possession. Contrary to religion’s doctrines concerning damnation and eternal torment, The Cross of Christ accomplished God’s purpose and goal, to save each and every one of God’s beloved creatures. His suffering assured the ultimate rescue of all the lost. 

Although limited future punishment awaits much of mankind, it is for the purpose of discipline and restoration, not perpetual torment. Mankind’s alienation from his Creator was necessary for him to appreciate his reconciliation to Him. God’s message for mankind today is one of reconciliation. He implores us to accept His Son’s sacrifice on our behalf, and to abandon any prideful attempts to gain His acceptance through our own religious works. A gift cannot be earned, it can only be accepted. Any attempt to earn it nullifies it as a gift. Christ alone earned it for humanity. When God reveals Himself to His creatures, all will humbly worship Him and ultimately respond to His love that conquers even the hardest heart. Then God will take His place in each of His creatures and become ALL in All! 
“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.  And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy.  For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him,  and through Him TO RECONCILE TO HIMSELF ALL THINGS, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross.” {Col. 1:15-20}


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Posted by triumphantloveinchrist.blogspot.com Friday, February 28, 2014



BIBLICAL "DESTRUCTION"

Many readers of the Bible are willing to admit that the scriptures present the teaching of mankind’s ultimate reconciliation to his Creator, but are disheartened to find so many seemingly contradictory statements concerning the "destruction" of all unbelievers by God.

That these verses exist cannot be denied. The pertinent question being: What is meant by the term "destruction", and how can men be both "destroyed" AND reconciled? To put it bluntly, does the Scripture contradict itself concerning the lost of mankind?

Plainly, both outcomes for unbelievers cannot be true, if we rely on the common English understanding of the words "Destroy" and "Destruction".

However, the "New Testament" was not penned in English, but in Greek. So what is the meaning of these original Greek words, translated consistently to give the reader the idea of a horrible outcome? It appears from these verses that the unbeliever will be subjected to an end from which there is no possibility of recovery, but of a perpetual hopeless condition. Let’s take some verses that employ these words to see if we can gain a better understanding of the original meaning and intent of these texts.

The best way to determine the meaning of a Greek word is to trace its use throughout the rest of the Scriptures. By far, the most common word rendered "destroy" is the Greek word ‘apollymi’. It is often translated by the old English word "perish". The most famous verse employing it, being {John 3:16};

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting ( Gk. aionios, age-pertaining) life."

We understand "perish" to mean something that will decay and rot, such as food that is "perishable". Here, as in other passages, "perish" is perceived by the reader to indicate a state from which no return is possible; a permanent, irretrievable condition of destruction and separation from God. This deduction is due in large part to the teaching of "eternal punishment" which all of us have been exposed to in our varied church experiences.

However, when we see that "apollymi" is used in other passages that also clearly indicate the RESTORATION of the person or thing, it forces us to rethink our previous conclusions concerning the intent of the use of this word. For example, from Luke chapter 15, Jesus’ parable of the woman’s "lost" (‘apollymi’) coin, we know that after a thorough search of her house, her previously lost or perished coin is found, and restored to her possession.

The same is true in the companion parables of the "lost" (‘apollymi’) sheep, retrieved from it’s lost condition, and restored to safety within the shepherd’s fold. And most notably, the "lost" (‘apollymi’) son, who, after living a foolish, self- indulgent life, and reaping its harvest, is ultimately restored to his rejoicing father, even after his father considered him dead, and lost to him permanently.

"For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost (‘apollymi’), and is found. And they began to be merry." {Luke 15:24}

In Paul’s writings, we find "apollymi" being employed in the case of a believer’s behavior toward another believer with a weak conscience. Paul exhorts believers in Corinth not to "sin against your brothers" and "wound their weak consciences", and asks:

"And through thy knowledge, shall the weak brother perish (‘apollymi’), for whom Christ died?" Similarly, Paul addresses the Roman assembly with this same issue; "For if because of meat thy brother is grieved, thou walkest no longer in love. destroy (apollymi) not with thy meat him for whom Christ died." {Rom. 14:15}

Are we willing to believe that a brother in Christ can cause another brother to become eternally lost or destroyed? Can a believer "undo" the work of God in another believer’s life, and put him in danger of eternal punishment? Of course not! The "destruction" is in callously offending a brother weak in his faith, so as to send him "off course" in his walk with Christ and setting back his spiritual progress toward maturity.

'Apollymi' sometimes gives the idea of being marred or ruined. 

"And no man putteth new wine into old wine-skins; else the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will perish (‘apollymi’)." {Luke 5:37} 

The danger in this verse is the loss of the wine through the ruination of the wine containers. The containers are not lost, destroyed, or annihilated, but simply flawed, marred to the point of no longer being suitable to function for which they were designed. It may be possible for them to be repaired so that they again could contain wine, but in their present condition, they are unfit for their intended purpose, they are useless to their owner.

Similarly, the idea of being ruined or useless is in the account of Jesus’ miraculous feeding of the multitude with only a boy’s lunch. We read: "When they were filled, he said unto his disciples:

 "Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost (‘apollymi’)." 

If the leftover food was not gathered, it would spoil, therefore being ruined and being of use to no one. Only by collecting the leftovers could they be rescued from certain "destruction".

In many passages, ‘apollymi’ clearly refers to the death of an individual. An example is found in {Luke 13: 2-5}

"And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish(‘apollymi’).  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish (‘apollymi’)."

However, it is unwarranted to project these or any other "perished" persons into a state from which it is impossible for them to be recalled. They may be temporarily "ruined" by physical death, but this does not mean that they are irreparably destroyed or lost to God.

Would there be anyone who believes that Jesus Christ perished upon His death? Yet, that is exactly what the Scriptures aver:

"Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.’  Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish (‘apollymi’) outside of Jerusalem." {Luke 13:32,33}

Does the death of any person create an insurmountable difficulty for their Creator? Does not the Scripture plainly state that ALL persons will be resurrected at some point in God’s future timetable? Far from being God’s purpose for never ending torment, each resurrected person will receive a just sentence which will conclude in his repentence and reconciliation to God.

Another Greek word always translated "destruction" is ‘olethros’. A passage that some point to, which seemingly supports their concept of eternal punishment is     {2 Thes. 1:7-9} which says:

"Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; and to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels. In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting (Gk. 'aionios') destruction (‘olethros’) from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power."

It is clear that these who will experience "destruction" at the 2nd advent of the Lord will be shut out from Christ’s presence when He returns in glory to establish His earthly righteous kingdom. Two words must be defined for the truth of this passage to become clear. The first is "everlasting". As many will recognize from our previous studies, this is the Greek word ‘aionios’. Although mis-translated consistently by the KJV translators as "eternal" and "everlasting", this is a TIME RELATED word meaning "age pertaining", which has both a beginning and an end, which is not the case for something truly eternal or everlasting.

The second word which we must define in this passage is "destruction". Once again, we will get a clearer meaning of this Greek word by tracing its use in other passages. This word ‘olethros’ is used only 3 other times in the Bible. The first is in reference to a believer refusing to turn away from a disgraceful, public sin in the assembly at Corinth. Paul admonishes them:

"For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction (Gk.‘olethros’) of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." {1 Cor. 5: 3-5}

Whatever this "destruction" is, Paul is not threatening this believer with a bodily destruction that cannot be reversed, for we know from this same letter to the Corinthians, that all believers will receive a resurrected, vivified body at the Rapture {15: 50-55}. This fleshly "destruction" being threatened is therefore temporary, not permanent. It has no lasting effects on his future state of perfection or presence with Christ.

The next occurrence of ‘olethros’ is in Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonian assembly. 
"For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction (‘olethros’) cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." {1 Thes. 5:2, 3}

It is interesting that Paul likens this "destruction" of unbelievers, to the labor of a pregnant woman. Once begun, there is no deliverance from the fear and pain until the child is born, then the woman finds relief for her mind and body. This gives us a strong indication that this "destruction" of these unprepared people is also of a temporal nature. Their destruction comes suddenly, without warning, and with no present escape to be found until God’s purpose for them has been accomplished.

The last occurrence of ‘olethros’ is found in {1 Tim. 6: 9}:

"But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction (‘olethros’) and perdition (‘apoleia’)."

It should be noted that the word ‘perdition’ in this verse, is the noun form of ‘apollymi’, which we discussed previously. We learn from this verse that it is due to the desire to become rich in material things, that leads a believer into this "destruction" and "perdition". We refer to certain individuals that partake in "destructive behavior". We are not intimating that they are being annihilated, or destroyed beyond the realm of hope, but only that their actions are ruining their lives!

Is it not plain to see, after our consideration of these passages with ‘olethros’, that Paul is speaking of ruin, marring, and a general chaos enveloping foolish individuals to their harm? But in none of these cases must we deduce that their condition is beyond remedy. Even the passage which seems so ominous, translated as "everlasting destruction" by the KJV translators, it is simply "age-related ruin".

Does not Paul clearly teach that every knee will bow before Christ, and every tongue give praise to Him {Phil. 2: 10, 11}? Does Paul not teach by the Spirit of God that it pleased The Father to unite all beings in heaven and earth in His Son, and to reconcile all to Himself through Christ’s Cross sacrifice? Are we not told specifically that although, at present, God has taken up residence in the hearts of only believers; a time is coming at the consummation of His Plan when He will become All in all His creatures? {1 Cor. 15: 22-28} 

Yes, He is able to elicit the heart-felt devotion of every one of His creatures, so that none remains ruined, useless, and lost, but all are restored, blessed, and found, by the omnipotent Lover of souls, and Seeker of the destroyed.

It is high time that church leaders put an end to the false teaching of eternal torment. Letting go of vain tradition is difficult for all of us. However, we must allow the pure sunlight of God’s truth to illuminate our hearts to the true character of our Creator and Savior. 

Let us rejoice together in His overwhelming and perpetual Love for ALL His creatures. Then, we will be enabled to jettison man’s false and devilish doctrines of hate, and to grow in the grace of our Lord of Love, and be conformed to His image.

　


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Being raised in a Christian home, I heard the Bible read in our family devotion after dinner each day. My heart was stirred to accept Jesus as my Lord at an early age. I have always had a thirst for spiritual truths and a greater understanding of God's future plans for His creatures. Since coming to recognize Apostle Paul's teaching concerning God's secret goal of universal reconciliation made known to The Body of Christ, I have had an unquenchable desire to make these truths known to fellow believers and those disillusioned by Christendom's false dogma of eternal torment in hell. I pray God will use me to be His instrument to reveal these long neglected truths from Paul's epistles to seekers of higher scriptural understanding..

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