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Recently the Christian Media has reported that notable ministers are embracing a doctrine known as Universalism or Ultimate Reconciliation. These are making statements that justifiably alarm most Evangelical and Charismatic believers. The verbiage that is being spewed upon the Body of Christ aptly fits the description of another Gospel (2Co 11:14); i.e., everybody is saved - they just don’t know it yet! Judas Iscariot, Hitler, and other infamous criminals, without pre-death conversions to Christ, will share heaven with the redeemed of the Lord. Satan and his fallen angels will be restored to their pre-rebellion ministries in God’s Kingdom.
Our Focus
The purpose of this article is three-fold: to expose the deceptions inherit in the doctrine of Ultimate Reconciliation; to explore the reasons that Christians are susceptible to erroneous concepts; and to provide a scriptural perspective on the after-this-life status of the redeemed, the wicked, and those that have never heard the Gospel.
Universalism’s literature is beguilingly clever in its appeal. An abundance of Scripture texts are cited (out of context). Hell is espoused as being a pagan word and concept that does not appear in the most accurate renderings of the Old and New Testaments or in Orthodox Judaism. Words and phrases like eternal, everlasting, and forever and ever are dismissed as irrelevant. It is asserted that the King James Version and New KJV translations of these words are inaccurate substitutes for the meaning of the original words. As proof, texts are highlighted in which forever was used and subsequent events indicated that it was not actually forever but rather forever until or from the present time until. (i.e., Solomon’s temple was to be God’s dwelling place forever until it was destroyed.) It is further claimed that since the Bible states that Jesus loved and died for the whole world, then everyone that has ever inhabited the planet is exempt from punishment in endless duration (Joh 3:16-17). They rationalize that if one man’s sin passed the sentence of death upon all men, regardless of their actions while living, one Man’s obedience equally brings universal salvation to all men, regardless of their lives and actions (Rom 5:18). In short, this doctrine blurs the values of the fear of the Lord, the goodness and severity of God, and that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God (Psa 111:10, Act 9:31, Rom 11:22, Heb 10:30-31). It does so by minimizing the potential for anyone to experience the horrors of after-life punishment. The claim is that the worst-case scenario is the remote possibility that some might experience merely a brief chastisement that will be followed by a welcomed entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven.
God is Not a Communist
Their interpretation of the Lord’s promise of the restoration of all things is tragically skewed (Act 3:19-21). The presumption is that the lifestyle of individuals bears no lasting consequence on what they will experience in the hereafter. All will eventually enjoy the blessings of God’s glory without consideration of being saints, sinners, anti-Christ ambassadors, or the Devil himself. They reason that the Love of God obligates Him to promote everyone to equal standing. This devalues the rewards of God to a communistic level. Everybody gets the same thing regardless of the quality of individual labors. They fail to discern that God is not a communist and His Kingdom does not have an equal rights administration.
The restoration that the Bible foretells pertains solely to God’s ultimate plans for the redeemed among mankind to become His eternal companion. The planet earth, its vegetation, and its living creatures of land and sea will derive glorious benefits from this restoration (Rom 8:19-22). In the age-less past the divine council of the Godhead conceived a plan to extend the family of God (Eph 1:4-6,11, 2Ti 1:9). To facilitate this, the six-day renovation of the heavens and the earth was initiated. Satan, whose animosity against God predated the six-day creation, stepped in and Adam fell into sin. As a result God’s ultimate intention was temporarily thwarted and the whole creation fell into a lesser glory. This gives us the reason that there is a need for things to be restored. The word, restore means to put back in place the things that have been out of place. The coming restoration will put back into place all that was chaotically dislodged by the fall of Adam. It is in the matter of the extent of this promised restoration that the Ultimate Reconcilists go far astray.
Satan is Unqualified
Satan and his fallen angels do not qualify for this restoration for several reasons. The creation of angels and their ministry to and for God pre-dated the earth’s creation (Isa 14:12-14, Eze 28:12-19). Therefore, they do not fall within the framework of the things that will be restored for the sake of man and the earth. Salvation by the blood of Jesus pertains to the human species (Heb 1:4). Angels cannot be saved/born-again because they are of an entirely different species from that of mankind (1Co 15:40, Heb 2:16,2Pe 2:11). Good angels minister to those who will inherit salvation, but they do not have the capacity to understand the revelation of salvation through grace (Heb 1:14, 1Pe 1:12). Satan was initially demoted when he led an angelic rebellion against God prior to man’s creation. As punishment God created a place of torment for him and his angels that the Bible refers to as the lake of fire (Mat 25:41). It was their sure doom prior to the Garden of Eden event. Subsequent to the temptation of the Adamic couple, the list of charges in the indictment against Satan and his evil cohorts has not diminished. They have increased. The depraved debaucheries and sicknesses that they have brought upon God’s masterpiece have radically intensified the surety of their everlasting fate.
God isn’t Swayed by Emotion
Somehow, Almighty God feels no pressure to comply with the finite sensitivities of men. The order of the coming restoration will not nullify various aspects of His ever-the-same nature (Mal 3:6, Heb 13:8). When all things are restored, it will reflect His severity as well as His goodness. Glimpses of the depth of His goodness will be seen by what He bestows upon faithful Christians. These become His bridal company. From the beginning of Christ’s future millennial reign and on into the creation of the new heavens and the new earth, His bride will rule with him over the inhabitants of His Kingdom. His severity will be seen as Satan and the unrepentant wicked are consigned to the lake of fire.
Most are Susceptible to Error
One of the major reasons that Christians are susceptible to erroneous concepts is because most, including pastors with seminary training, have never been established in the six foundational doctrines of the Christian faith. The Scriptures describe such persons as those that are dull of hearing, unable to distinguish that which is good from that which is evil (Heb 5:12-14). The neglected teachings are listed in the first three verses of the sixth chapter of Hebrews: repentance from dead works; faith toward God; baptisms (note that it is in the plural indicating immersion in water and the Spirit); laying on of hands; the resurrection from the dead; and the eternal judgment. In over thirty years of experience as a pastor of pastors and travels to dozens of nations, I’ve not encountered more than five ministers that could recite these doctrines from memory. It is a small wonder that congregations are so easily swayed by every wind of doctrine.
To unravel the error of the assertion that “everybody is saved - they just don’t know it yet”, we must first present an overview of the doctrine of the eternal judgment. As you read, the Holy Spirit will give you insights as to why those that have rejected the revelation of Christ will indeed suffer torment in the hereafter. You will also see how our Just and Loving God has made provisions for certain individuals that were never privileged to hear the Gospel.
The Eternal Judgment: There are three judgment seats at which different categories of people and the nations will be judged. One judgment offers verdicts on Christian service and its eternal rewards. Another evaluates the qualifications of nations, and their inhabitants, to be part of the Millennial Kingdom. The final one determines the eternal destinies of those that have not previously been confronted with judgment.
- The Judgment Seat of Christ – First, a cursory look at the doctrine of the resurrection from the dead. There are two distinct resurrections. The first resurrection is unique in that it has three successive phases that span over the millennia since Christ’s ascension (Mat 27:52-53, 1Th 4:13-17, Rev 20:4-6). These are the three phases of the first resurrection: the resurrection of Jesus and the Old Testament saints; the rapture at the Second Advent of Christ; and the resurrection subsequent to the tribulation. The first resurrection will be completed before the millennial reign of Christ. Anyone that was a participant in any phase of it will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ. Each will give an account for the manner in which he spent his life and the service that was rendered for the cause of the Kingdom (2Co 5:10). The purpose will not be to determine the eternal destinies of individuals. That matter was settled when they accepted Christ. Every man’s works will be subjected to the fiery penetrating gaze of Jesus the righteous Judge (Rev 1:14). Works of the flesh will be consumed as useless wood, hay, and stubble by the fire from Jesus’ eyes.. Nonetheless, the workers will be saved. Works of the Spirit will glisten as gold, silver, and precious stones in His sight (1Co 3:12-15). The laborers will be commended by the measure of their rewards (Mat 25:24-30). The second resurrection will occur at the close of the 1000 years reign. It is the summons for appearance at God’s third and final judgment (Heb 9:27). Any person that has ever lived, that was not resurrected in the various phases of the first resurrection, will be assembled for judgment.
- The Throne of Christ’s Glory - Nations and their inhabitants will be assessed as to how they treated the Lord’s ethnic brothers, the Jews. And possibly His spiritual kinsmen, Christians. Those that blessed them will be citizens, but not rulers, of the millennial kingdom (Mat 25:31-46). Believers that have been part of any phase of the first resurrection will participate in the evaluations as to whether the respective nations were “goat or sheep” societies. (Luk 11:31-32, Rev 20:4).
- The Great White Throne Judgment - This final judgment takes place after the millennium as the Almighty is seated on a great white throne. All that were disqualified for participation in the first resurrection will be raised from the dead (Rev 20:5-15). This will be the largest group to stand at judgment. It will include Christians that reveled in carnality; individuals, like the men of Nineveh, that heard the Hebrew prophets and repented; people of other religions; those that never heard the Gospel; unrepentant sodomites, liars, occultists, and unbelieving sinners (Rev 21:8). The Book of Life will be opened and each will be evaluated on the extent to which they responded to the light of God that was available in their respective generations. Those whose names are not found in the Book of Life will be consigned to the lake of fire. Satan and the evil archangels denoted as Death and Hades will accompany them. Death is not simply the absence of life; it is also a living entity. Hades is also an entity, not merely a geographic location in the nether regions of the earth. Consignment to the lake of fire is called the second death (Rev 21:8). The Reconcilists claim that death is solely the cessation of life. This is untrue. Scripture alludes to three different forms of death. One is the cessation of physical life. Jesus said, “Let the dead bury their dead.” (Mat 8:22). Here He was saying, “let those that are physically dead be buried by those that are spiritually dead.” Spiritual death is another form of death. Every living person is in its grasp prior to salvation through Christ. Though alive physically, they are spiritually dead in their trespasses (Eph 2:1). When a person is born-again they are saved from the final form of death, which is called the second death (Jam 5:20). This is death in the sense that is the hopeless eternal separation from God that will be experienced by most of those that will be raised from physical death for the purpose of the Great White Throne Judgment. Those sentenced to the second death will experience the pangs of burning torment in spirit, soul, and body as living individuals.
Hope for the Heathen
Ultimate Reconciliation is appealing because it relieves concerns about the eternal state of loved ones and the heathen. The relief it offers is grossly exaggerated, as many will indeed experience eternal punishment. However, contrary to conservative Christianity, the Bible provides hope for many, though definitely not all, of those about whom we might have concern. At the Great White Throne Judgment all the dead that were not resurrected in previous resurrections will be resurrected. It says that each person's works will be assessed and those whose names are not found in the Book of Life will be thrown into the lake of fire. Logic strongly suggests that if there are those present whose names will not be found in the Book of Life, there must be others whose names will be found inscribed therein. Some of these will likely be carnal Christians that did not qualify for any phase of the first resurrection. The remainder likely pertains to other categories of persons. The implications are that these are people of other persuasions that had lives that met certain biblical specifications: they obeyed the dictates of conscience by heeding the law in their hearts that either accused or excused them about certain behavior; they walked circumspectly in regard to the measure of God’s light available to their generations and cultures; and through their understanding of what goodness entailed they pursued eternal life (Rom 2:4-7, 14-16).
None of the aforementioned could be perceived as calloused sinners that had no regard for social propriety. The Scriptures indicate that the Queen of the South that visited Solomon, and the people of Nineveh that responded to Jonah’s cries for repentance will be among these (Luk 11:31-32). Subsequent to the White Throne Judgment we will be rejoicing. Due to God’s magnanimous grace, we will see many that conservative Christianity counted lost welcomed into heaven. This company will not be members of the ruling Bride of Christ. But, they will have an eternal home in heaven rather than hell.
Misconceptions About the Goal of the Christian Life
Unlike most contemporary believers, the focus of Paul’s life and ministry was not simply getting into heaven. He knew that heaven is a given for every faithful born-again Christian. He defined that his goal, and that of those to whom he preached, was to attain to the first resurrection of the dead and to apprehend its rewards (Phi 3:10-15). He foresaw that the rewards for Christian service would be missed by anyone whose resurrection was put off until the general/final/second resurrection after the millennium. To this end he exhorted all to live soberly, knowing that one can be disqualified from receiving the highest rewards (1Co 9:24-10:6). He wanted all to receive the crown of righteousness and to become participants in the millennial reign of Christ (2Ti 4:7-8). Remarkably, though he was an apostle, he did not presume that he was assured of anything beyond entrance into heaven. He understood that the grand prize and its highest rewards are reserved for believers that exercise faith in overcoming life’s obstacles (Rev 2:11, 17). The misconception that entrance into heaven automatically endows everyone with all of the rewards of the Christian life is a misrepresentation of God’s purposes and economy.
Problem Areas
Proponents of Universal Salvation go to great lengths to nullify words that indicate eternal damnation. It is problematic to take broad exceptions to the translations of numerous words found in the Bible. The written Word of God expresses His plan, will, and the spirit of His intentions in the languages of men. Human language is limited in its capacity to express these elements fully. This is why those that read the Word need to be assisted by a spirit of revelation from the Comforter. Nonetheless, all scripture is given by the inspiration of God, and it is profitable for instruction in doctrine (2Ti 3:16). It is a fact that God moved on the holy men as they penned the Scriptures. Only the misguided could presume that He abandoned those of a later era that translated and compiled the version of the Bible that was destined to become the best-selling book in the history of publishing (2Pe 1:20-21). This would indicate a series of counterproductive acts by the One that is by no means the author of confusion (1Co 14:33). It is inconsistent to assert that God would allow men to present gross mistranslations of words relating to the essential issues of salvation and His eternal judgments. Furthermore, it is rather arrogant for theologians of this century to assert that they have a more accurate grasp on the meanings of words from antiquity than those of antiquity that translated the original texts from the earliest and most reliable manuscripts. It is hard to imagine that the Holy Spirit has anointed contemporary ministers with a superior unction for a commitment to exactness than those of former generations.
The Things People Say
In relation to the translations of words, the Reconcilists major on providing only the portions of definitions that support their perspectives. They say that hell is a pagan word and concept. Correctly they claim that the New Testament Greek word for it is Geenna/Gehenna. Rightly they assert that Gehenna was an area outside of the walls of ancient Jerusalem where trash was burned. They are accurate in stating that today it is not a garbage dump, but rather a lush garden between the city and the Mount of Olives. From there, their commitment to truth abates. Mockingly their literature pictures the present-day garden as the destiny of anyone sentenced to the King James Bible’s interpretation of gehenna/hell. The conscientious men that wrote the New American Standard Bible Dictionary include all that the Reconcilists state about the etymological history of the word Gehenna. They add that it is a biblical symbolic term for Hell, a place of punishment for the ungodly. The full definition complies with the words of Jesus. He referred to a fiery hell (Mat 18:9). In one instance the Greek word used for His words describing the fires of hell indicates that they are unquenchable and inextinguishable (Mar 9:43). Yes, there is an earthly garden outside of the gates of Jerusalem. That is a minor issue that has no relation to fate of sinner’s when passing from life into death. The critical issue is that there is also a spiritual place of burning torment that is called gehenna in Greek and hell in English. If this is untrue, the Lord that said that men would be judged for idle words was Himself guilty of making idle threats (Mat 12:36). He spoke of the unrighteous being thrown into the lake of fire prepared for the Devil and his angels (Mat 25:41). It is described as burning with brimstone (Rev 19:20, 20:10, 14). In every Greek lexicon lake, fire, burning, and brimstone all mean exactly what they imply.
It’s Far Worse Than Imagined
Jesus did not identify the story of the rich man and Lazarus the beggar as a parable (Luk 16:19-28). The things He said about the rich man’s fate tell us much about the nature of punishment in the hereafter. The man’s physical body was in his tomb. It will not be reunited with his soul and spirit until the aforementioned second resurrection. Jesus said that the rich man’s spirit man, comprised of his soul and spirit, was experiencing agonizing pain. At minimum, he has been feeling that torment for the last 2000 years ever since the Lord initially spoke of him. All of this has been taking place in gehenna/hell. This was just the beginning of his sorrows, as he has a transfer coming. Gehenna/hell and the lake of fire are not synonymous. Gehenna/hell is a place of torment for the spirits and souls (spirit man) of the unrighteous that are separated from their physical bodies at death. The lake of fire is the final abode of torment for the spirits, souls, and bodies of the ungodly. After the Great White Throne Judgment, the rich man’s scorched spirit and soul will be translated from gehenna/hell and rejoined with his newly resurrected physical body. His entire person will be cast into the lake of fire. Then he will feel pain internally in his spirit man and externally in his resurrected physical body. This is the fate of all whose names are not found in the Book of Life at the final judgment. Unlike that which the Reconcilists claim, it goes far beyond simply being a brief chastisement for the purpose of correction and restoration. The rich man, along with millions of others, will wail and gnash his teeth (Mat 13:42).
Dysfunctional Reasoning
Of course, Universalism attempts to neutralize the concept that the story of the rich man and Lazarus has anything to do with the realities of the hereafter. It espouses that it is merely a figurative illustration. It’s alleged that the rich man represents the royal covenant son, Israel. Supposedly, Lazarus represents the saved Gentile Church. They add that it would be uncomfortable for believers to spend eternity within hearing range of the piteous cries of the unrighteous for release. This reasoning is biblically dysfunctional for an abundance of reasons. The Old Testament saints were well aware of God’s goodness and severity. They would not be disturbed by the knowledge that others were suffering torment while they were experiencing joy. The context does not specify that the righteous could hear the cries of the damned. It solely infers that the unrighteous were chagrined by the bliss they were missing. In addition, prior to Jesus’ resurrection Sheol/Hades had two separate compartments with an impassable chasm between them. The upper chamber was Paradise/Abraham’s bosom and the lower, a chamber of fire. The Paradise/Abraham’s bosom chamber was emptied by the initial phase of the first resurrection when Jesus was raised from the dead (Mat 27:52-53). Subsequently, its former citizens, and all of the righteous that have died since, have resided with the Lord in the heavenly realm (2Co 5:8, Phi 1:21-23).
Hitler in Heaven - Get Real
They state that God is much too loving to commit even the most notorious reprobate to everlasting punishment. Hitler is specifically mentioned in their literature. If this is the case, they could include other aberrant leaders that also tortured and slaughtered Jews and Christians. The communist Soviet and Chinese dictators, Stalin and Mao, targeted millions of Christians for agonizing deaths. These men lived long and comfortable lives physically. There is no data that indicates that they experienced health problems significantly above the norm for those of their era. The Bible says that God will repay those that have troubled Christians with retribution. It states that He will take vengeance upon them with flaming fire and eternal separation from the glory and power of His presence (2Th 1:6-9). Where then is God’s promised retribution on these men that lived in wanton cruelty? They certainly did not experience it while alive. Upon death, we know that the spirit man of Christians immediately ascends to the indescribable blessing of the Lord’s presence (2Co 5:6-8). This was not the fate of the dictators. It was the same as that of the rich man, beginning at the moment of their deaths. The rich man’s only sin was that he ignored the beggar’s plight. Yet at death, his spirit and soul descended into a place of torment. Since his body has not yet been raised, we know that he has been there in spirit for a minimum of 2000 years. The dictators’ spirits descended into precisely the same hopeless abyss. Only impaired reasoning would conclude that those who purposely tortured millions were welcomed into heaven, while the insensitivity of the rich man earned him gehenna/hell.
Near-death Experiences
There is a portion of Scripture that mentions the existence of a silver cord that is severed at death when the human spirit departs from this life (Ecc 12:5-7). This cord fits the description of the tunnel of light that people allegedly travel during near-death experiences. It might be described as a type of spiritual umbilical cord that sustains our lives from above while we are living here on earth and provides even the unconverted with the potential for communication from the eternal realm (Job 32:8; 33:4; 34:14). At death, this cord is severed, and the spirit travels up to the eternal realm. When the spirit reaches this realm, it is given directives to go to an abode of bliss or torment (2Co 5:8, Luk 16:23). It is possible that God, in His mercy, might give some individuals an event in which their spirits make a partial journey up this cord before it is severed at death. Doctors and nurses have confirmed the accuracy of activities that the near-death travelers reported seeing in separate locations of the hospitals as their spirits came back into their bodies. For our purposes it important to note, that many report viewing hell, as well as heaven. Normally those who have gone through the near-death phenomena report that they subsequently viewed their lives and eternity more soberly. It could easily be that God, in His graciousness, is forewarning many of the realities of life in the hereafter.
Other Peeve Words
As stated in the introduction, Reconcilists take great exception to words such as eternal, everlasting, and forever. It is insisted that these merely indicate a limited period of time for events and are never indicative of events being endless in duration. Another hot word is judgment. It is reduced to simply a verdict or a decision. For the sake of space I will use a single example to refute this ludicrous position. One of the doctrines that we previously examined was that of the eternal judgment. Therein the provocative words of eternal and judgment are connected. Strong’s concordance is widely accepted as among the most authoritative of lexicons. It renders the definition of eternal as perpetual. Every lexicon relates that the word for judgment in Heb 6 is derived from the Greek word krima. The kri of krima refers to the words verdict, decision, and judge. Its suffix ma indicates that the preceding verdict or decision has been made evident. This would define the Christian faith’s doctrine of eternal judgment as God’s verdicts made evident perpetually. This explicitly dictates that those that are committed to the lake of fire in the final judgment will reside there perpetually. The Bible offers no of methods of litigation to secure reprieves from the lake of fire for Satan, Death, Hades, and unrepentant sinners (Rev 20:10, 21:8).
God’s Eternal Attributes Challenged
If the clever manipulations of the wishes of men can undermine eternal and forever in relation to God’s judgments, it stands to reason that His attributes described by the same words will not be exempt for long. The Word of God attributes every member of the Godhead with righteousness, justice, loving kindness, mercy, goodness, authority, grace, and ever-existent immortality that will abide forever. If we allow biased theologians to rob us of the eternal nature of His judgments, others might be able to convince us that His attributes are also only temporary. Many of these theologians can undoubtedly read the New Testament directly from the Greek. They have read the 20 texts that use the phrase: eis [tous] aionas ton aionon , that is, unto [the] ages of ages. It is normally translated forever and ever (Rev 14:7-11, 20:10). Both of the cited references deal with the ongoing duration of the fires of the lake of fire and the consignment of the wicked therein. The Greek language cannot produce any phrase that more strongly expresses that which endures for all ages, absolutely without end. If we question the premise that these fires and their torments are ever lasting, we chance nullifying people’s continuing understanding that Jesus is also the King eternal and immortal forever and ever (1Ti. 1:17)
In Ephesians, post the resurrection of Jesus, but prior to their conversion, Paul described the Gentiles’ condition as being separate from Christ, with no hope, and without God (Eph 2:11-13). If the acceptance or rejection of the Good News has no consequences, the lives of those that have suffered for beseeching men to be reconciled to God were squandered (2Co 5:20). Ministers, of all men, are to be pitied if all will share in His Glory regardless of their acceptance or rejection of the Lordship of Christ.
Antiseptic for Foolishness
Those that espouse Universal Salvation attempt to eliminate any visage of the fear of wrath from our perceptions of the Loving God. They present the two as though they were mutually exclusive. The fear of the Lord infers reverential caution. The absence of elements of fear from both earthly and spiritual relationships adulterates the purity of love. I have loved the woman that is my wife for 41 years. Yet, at the same time I walk with an element of fear in my relationship with her. It cautions me from doing anything that would hurt, disappoint, or anger her. My vows to love her would be empty if I did not have fear for her feelings cautioning me.
The Psalmist described the fear of the Lord as clean, enduring forever (Psa. 19:9). A good friend that is fluent in Hebrew once told me that the word for clean in this verse is the root of the modern Hebrew word, antiseptic. Divine, as well as human relationships, need the purifying antiseptic of fear. God, in His goodness, makes it available to us to spare us from His severity. His goodness cautions us that our lifestyles carry consequences about how we will spend eternity. This is our antiseptic; it will keep us in the love of the truth. His severity is made manifest in a correlating gravity. If our love of the truth becomes contaminated, God will send us a delusion to believe lies about His nature, the Kingdom, and the hereafter (2Th 2:9-12).
Conclusion
Authentic New Testament evangelism is incomplete without the presentation of the impending wrath of God upon the wicked. When Paul spoke to Felix and Drusilla about faith in Christ, he exhorted them to exercise self-control in light of the coming judgment of God (Act 24;24-25). The Universalists complain that talk about hell and eternal judgment distorts people’s potential to perceive God as a Loving Heavenly Father. They warn that such will drive people away. The evidence is contrary. Church growth statisticians report that the fastest-growing segment of the Church and the fastest-growing religion in the world is Pentecostalism. It eclipses exaggerated reports of conversions to Islam. Evangelicals of Pentecostal-Charismatic persuasion speak freely of God’s eternal judgments right along with their proclamations of His love. When the gravity of the torment awaiting all whose names are not found in the Book of Life is properly understood, no one could bear the thought of any friend or foe being subjected to it for even a moment. It compels believers to concur with one of Paul’s primary motivations for preaching the Gospel: Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men (2Co 5:11). Peter concurred with Paul’s sentiments: If the righteous men are scarcely saved, what will become of sinners? (1Pe 4:18)
Personally, I fear for those that teach the heresy of Ultimate Reconciliation and for those that embrace their teachings. Those that teach will be judged by a stricter standard than others (Jam 3:1). The Bible clearly warns that false teachers will come espousing destructive doctrines that will sound appealing to people, as they teach what people want to hear (2Ti 4:3-4, 2Pe 2:1). There is only one antidote for those that have been involved: repentance. Repentance should never be taken lightly. The writer of Hebrews warned Christians not to be like Esau. To satisfy his own desires he gave up his birthright. Later he tearfully tried to repent and get it back. Regardless of his sincerity, he found no place of repentance (Heb 12:15-17). Any believer who does not cultivate a love for the truth of God’s Word is in danger of invoking the severity of God. It is possible for one to be sent a delusion that becomes indelibly seated in one’s belief system (2Th 2:9-12). In this matter do not reject conscience and chance making shipwreck of your faith (1Ti 1:19). Do not oppose what is best for you by holding to unsound doctrines (2Ti 2:25-26). Seek the Lord to give you the spirit of repentance so that you might retain your birthright as a child of God.
Dr. Derek Prince has been my friend and mentor for over 35 years. In October of 2001 he published a teaching letter entitled "Will Satan Ever Be Reconciled to God?" Therein he fully covers the Greek words that the Reconcilists twist. He is qualified to teach Greek at the university level and his logic in presentation is irrefutable. It may be obtained by contacting Derek Prince Ministries. 1-704-357-3556 or the website www.derekprince.com
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