have sinned (Deuteronomy 23:21): "When thou shalt vow
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"For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all" (James 2:lO).
How do you balance? Today you are being weighed in the balance of God. On one side is God's holiness, summed up in the Ten Commandments. On the other side are you, a lawbreaker, condemned and guilty.
These commandments were summarized by Jesus in Matthew 22: 3740.
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Commands to do are simply particular details of the one great command to love. Obedience to God's commandments which doesn't flow simply and naturally out of a heart of love for God and all mankind is not genuine fulfillment of the law. Outwardly you may be perfectly blameless concerning the Ten Commandments, yet you may have violated every one of them in your heart.
2. If you have neglected a known duty, you have sinned (James 4:17): "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin." Every time you abstain from what you ought to do, you sin. "And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin" (Romans 14: 23). If you fret or worry, that is sin. Faith is the highest virtue a man can have. Unbelief is the worst sin.
3. Even the thought of foolishness is sin (Proverbs 24:9): "The thought of foolishness is sin: and the scorner is an abomination to men."
4. If you have made a vow to God and not kept it, you have sinned (Deuteronomy 23:21): "When thou shalt vow a vow unto the Lord thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the Lord thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee." Have you kept all the resolutions
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you have made? God's standard is His own standard of perfection and righteousness. You cannot give the excuse "Others are doing it" or "There are hypocrites in the Church."
A Fleeting Shadow
Regularly we read in our newspapers about the budget of this or that nation. We now are used to the term billions. I wonder how many of us really ever stop to think what a billion is. Someone suggested to me, "Before you use the term again, consider what an exaggeration 'Thanks a billion' really is. Just over one billion seconds ago we were in World War I1 and the atomic bomb had not yet been exploded. Over one billion minutes ago Christ was still on earth. Just over one billion hours ago we were still in the caveman era."
However, in terms of government spending, one billion dollars ago is only a few hours ago because the American government's budget will be about one trillion dollars soon at the present rate of escalation.
Or have you ever stopped to compute how many days you have left? You can do it easily on your small calculator. If you live to be seventy you have lived approximately 25,000 days of life. If you are now thirty-five you have little more than 12,000 days left.
The Bible also teaches that life is like a shadow, like a fleeting cloud moving across the face of the sun. The Psalmist says, "For I dwell with you as an alien, a stranger, as all my fathers were" (Psalm 39:12). The world is not a permanent home, it is only a temporary dwelling. "We are aliens and strangers in your sight, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope" (1 Chronicles 29:15).
For every one of us time is slipping away. The late President Kennedy never dreamed on that Friday morning
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in 1963 as he ate breakfast that by two o'clock in the afternoon he would be in eternity. We never know when our moment is coming. Tragedies such as his death and that of his brother, Bobby, should help us realize the uncertainty of life, the brevity of time, and our need to be ready to meet God at any moment.
The Scripture teaches that God knows the exact moment when each person is to die (Job 14:5). There are appointed bounds beyond which we cannot pass.
I am convinced that when a person is prepared to die, he is also prepared to live. Again, if we knew all that there is to know, we would choose to die at the time God has planned for us to die.
One of the primary goals in life therefore should be to prepare for death. Everything else should be secondary.
Two Kind of Happiness
Inside us a little voice keeps saying, "We were not meant to be this way-we were meant for better things." We have a mysterious feeling that there is a fountain somewhere that contains the happiness which makes life worthwhile. We keep saying to ourselves that somewhere, sometime we will stumble onto the secret. Sometimes we feel that we have obtained it-only to find it illusive, leaving us disillusioned, bewildered, unhappy, and still searching.
There are, we need to realize, two kinds of happiness. One kind of happiness comes to us when our circumstances are pleasant and we are relatively free from troubles. The problem, however, is that this kind of happiness is fleeting and superficial. When circumstances changeas they inevitably do-then this kind of happiness evaporates like the early morning fog in the heat of the sun. In addition, even when our outward circumstances are seemingly ideal, we still may be troubled inside by a nagging hunger or longing for something we cannot identify. We say we are "happyu-but down inside we know it is only temporary and shallow at best. Yes, from time to time we may think we have found a degree of happiness, but sooner or later it will vanish. Our search for happiness remains
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unfulfilled. But there is another kind of happiness-the kind for which we all long.
This second kind of happiness is a lasting, inner joy and peace which survives in any circumstances. It is a happiness which endures no matter what comes our way-and even may grow stronger in adversity. This is the kind of happiness to which Jesus summons us in the Beatitudes. It is happiness which can only come from God. He alone has the answer to our search for lasting happiness.
The happiness which brings enduring worth to life is not the superficial happiness that is dependent on circumstances. It is the happiness and contentment that fills the soul even in the midst of the most distressing of circumstances and the most adverse environment. It is the kind of happiness that survives when things go wrong and smiles through the tears. The happiness for which our souls ache is one undisturbed by success or failure, one which dwells deep within us and gives inward relaxation, peace, and contentment, no matter what the surface problems may be. That kind of happiness stands in need of no outward stimulus.
Sermon on the Mount 1 invite you to go with me on a thrilling, adventuresome journey. The object of our search? The secret of happiness. The place? Galilee! Let us roll back the pages of time almost two thousand years.
It's a hot, sultry day with the sweltering wind spinning little dust whirls and carrying them swiftly down the winding road by the Sea of Galilee. There is an air of expectancy in the atmosphere we breathe. The wind skips happily across the surface of the ancient sea. We hear voices raised in an excited, feverish pitch as friend calls a greeting to friend. Along every trail leading to Galilee little groups of people begin to gather. The word has spread abroad that Jesus is returning to Galilee.
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Suddenly He and His little band of followers emerge over the brow of a hill on the road to Capernaum, and immediately in their wake follows a vast multitude of people from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan River.
Quickly the word spreads from mouth to mouth: "Jesus is coming!" Other multitudes from Tiberias, Bethsaida, and Capernaum soon appear and join the others. Together they follow thirteen robed men. As they reach the summit of the hill where the gentle winds from the plains sweep over them, affording relief from the sun, Jesus stops and motions for them to sit down and rest.
The air is tense. It is a moment to be captured and held for eternity. The crowd hushes as Jesus climbs atop a large rock and is seated. In the valley on the deserted road, a lone camel rider wends his way along the trail toward Tiberias. A quiet falls upon the multitude as their faces gaze expectantly at Jesus. Then He begins to speak.
What He said there on that Mount of Beatitudes in far away Palestine was to go down in history as the most profound, sublime words ever spoken! There in reverent, measured, simple words He revealed the secret of happiness-not a superficial happiness of time and space, but a happiness which would last forever.
His first word was "happy." Immediately His listeners must have pricked up their ears, as we are prone to do. In the pages to follow it is my prayer that you will do even more: prick up your ears. . . open your heart. . . surrender your will. Then you will begin living life with a capital L, find a contentment and joy that crowd the futility and vanity out of the daily walk, and discover the secret of happiness!
There is nothing inherently wrong with being rich. I have been privileged to know some very wealthy people
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across the years who were humble and generous, seeing their wealth as a God-given means to help others. The Bible, however, warns that riches easily overwhelm a person, distorting his values, making him proud and arrogant, and making him think he does not need God. "But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil" (I Timothy 6:9-10).
For others, wealth only leads to boredom. King Solomon was unquestionably one of the wealthiest men who ever lived. In his search for happiness he tried everything-possessions, music, sex, great building projects, knowledge-but in the end he declared about them, "I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit" (Ecclesiastes
1:14). Only God could satisfy his deepest longings and give him true happiness.
On the other hand, many great people stay poor all their lives, either through choice (such as a missionary or a person who chooses to live modestly and give away money to help others) or through unavoidable circumstances. There are others, however, who go through life filled with resentment, jealousy, and bitterness because they want "just a little bit more." They may have enough to satisfy their legitimate needs, but instead of being thankful for what they have-which would make them unimaginably wealthy in the eyes of those in poorer nations-they are consumed by a desire for riches. They believe the key to happiness would be found in greater wealth.
But Jesus made it plain that happiness and contentment are not found in possessions or money. He stated that material things and riches do not in themselves bring happiness and peace to the soul.
Happy is that person who has learned the secret of being content with whatever life brings him, and has learned to rejoice in the simple and beautiful things around him.
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What did Jesus mean when He said: "Happy are they that mourn"? Certainly He did not mean to imply that a special blessing is promised to "crybabies," "weeping Willies," or the emotionally upset. This verse was not intended to be a comfort for abnormal psychopathic cases, which have somehow become mentally warped and take a morbid view of life. No, it was addressed to normal, average people for the purpose of showing them how to live happier, fuller, richer lives.
Let us begin with the word "mourning" itself. It means "to feel deep sorrow, to show great concern, or to deplore some existing wrong." It implies that if we are to live life on the higher plane then we are to be sensitive, sympathetic, tenderhearted, and alert to the needs of others and the world.
When I mourn it is because my heart has been touched by the suffering and heartache of others-or even by my own heartache. When I do not care and am indifferent, then I do not mourn. The person who mourns is a person with a tender and sensitive heart.
Let's list just six kinds of mourning which I believe were implied in this most significant saying of our Lord. The word here employed by Jesus covers such a wide range of attitudes that five shades of meaning are implied. We should ponder each one of them prayerfully.
First, there is the mourning of inadequacy. Jeremiah, the weeping prophet who mourned not in self-pity but for a wayward, lost world, said: "0 Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps" (10:23).
Another kind of mourning is the mourning of repentance. Following the consciousness that we are inadequate comes the awareness of the reason for our insufficiencysin. As individuals, we have no control over the fact of sin in the universe, but as creatures of choice we are responsible
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for its presence in our lives. Because "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23), all need to mourn the fact of sin in their lives.
There is, third, the mourning of love. . . .If I would know the measure of my love for God, I must simply observe my love for people around me. My compassion for others is an accurate gauge of my devotion to God. The Bible puts it this way: "Let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. . . .And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also" (1 John 4:7,21).
Another kind of mourning which brings comfort is, fourth, the mourning of soul travail.
This may seem cryptic, but it represents a very real and a profitable kind of mourning. The Bible says: "As soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children" (Isaiah 66:8).
We don't use this phrase "soul travail" very often, not as much as our spiritual forefathers a generation or so ago. "Travail" means "toil, painful effort, labor." "Travail of soul" therefore means spiritual toil-not necessarily outward labor which others will see, but that which takes place within the secret recesses of our souls. It refers to the continual flow of prayer which rises out of the Christian heart for a world which is spiritually unborn. And don't be under any illusions: this kind of soul travail is difficult and costly, because we are involved in spiritual warfare against Satan, the Enemy of Souls. "Pray without ceasing," the Bible says (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
Another kind of mourning we shall deal with is, fifth, the mourning of bereavement. Nowhere has God promised anyone, even His children, immunity from sorrow, suffering, and pain. This world is a "vale of tears," and disappointment and heartache are as inevitable as clouds and shadows. Suffering is often the crucible in which our faith is tested. Those who successfully come through the "furnace of affliction" are the ones who
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emerge "like gold tried in the fire." The Bible teaches unmistakably that we can triumph over bereavement. The Psalmist said: "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (Psalm 30:5).
Lastly, there is the mourning of blank despair. "I could not think about my own death," says one young AIDS patient. "I wanted to live forever." The tragedy of AIDS is obvious. But as C. S. Lewis said of war, "War does not increase death. Death is total in every generation." So it could be said of AIDS; it does not increase death; death is total in every generation. However, in this present grim situation, a merciful God has given people time. A short time perhaps, torn with frustration, anger, bitterness and fear-but still time. Time to think of God, His love for a world gone wrong, the sending of His Son to bear in His own body on the cross, all the sins of mankind. Time to come to Him in childlike repentance and to discover the love of Jesus, His transforming power, and the life everlasting that He promises and has gone to prepare for us.
To most people today, the word "meek" brings to mind a picture of someone who is a weak personality, someone who allows everyone to walk over him. Meekness, in fact, in the popular mind is not seen as a desirable personality trait. Our society says, "Get ahead by intimidation" or
"Look out for Number One." In the eyes of many people the only way to get ahead is to disregard other people and shove them out of the way. "I want to climb the ladder of SUCC~SS,'~ one woman was quoted as saying, "and I don't care whose fingers I step on as I climb up the rungs."
But what does Jesus mean when He speaks of meekness? Does He, for example, mean that we are to be cringing before God, fearful of Him and slavishly yielding to His will because of fear of what He might do to us if we fail?
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Could it be that Christ wanted His followers to be like the subdued puppy that comes crawling into its master's presence whipped and beaten? Is happiness the result of forced submission? Certainly not!
Jesus is not trying to convey the thought that God is an autocrat whose ego can be satisfied only by coerced yielding. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is no happiness in being compelled to do what you do not wish to do. No employees are more miserable than those who constantly resent their position in life. It would be against God's nature, as well as against man's free moral agency, to demand an allegiance which is not freely offered.
God conducts Himself in keeping with His righteousness. He will never violate our freedom to choose between eternal life and spiritual death, good and evil, right and wrong. His ultimate goal is not only to glorify Himself but also to make a happy relationship with His crowning creation-man. Never will He make any demands which encroach upon our freedom to choose.
A hungry person is a normal person. Those who are sick and abnormally upset refuse nourishment, but the normal person craves food. In that sense there is a blessedness in hunger. It is a natural reaction.
The normal person also possesses a spiritual hungeralthough he may not label it as such. He may think he has filled it, but apart from God there is no lasting quenching of his spiritual hunger and thirst. David said: "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, 0 God" (Psalm 42:l). Isaiah said: "With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the earth will learn righteousness" (Isaiah 26:9).
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To paraphrase this Beatitude we might say, "They which have obtained mercy from God are so happy that they are merciful to others." Our attitude toward our fellow men is a more accurate gauge of our religion than all of our religious rantings.
Alexander Pope prayed:
Teach me to feel another's woe, To hide the fault I see; That mercy I to others show, That mercy show to me.
Emerson must have been reading the gauge of human mercy when he said: "What you are speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say." Jesus summed up the whole matter of genuine Christianity when He said: "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth in me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his inmost soul flow rivers of living water" (John 7:37,38).
Purity of heart has both a negative and a positive side. On one hand, our hearts are to be emptied of sin and its dominion over us. On the other hand, we are to be pure in our actions and filled with all that is pure. The Bible illustrates these negative and positive sides to purity: "Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness. . . .put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk. . . .Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience. . . .And above all these, put on love" (Colossians 3:5,8,12,14, RSV).
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There are many areas of our lives where we can be peacemakers. There is no part of our lives which is not affected by this peace of God which we are to share with others. . . .
We can be peacemakers in the home. . . .With the continual clash of personalities in a domestic pattern, there must be an integrating force, and the Living God is that Force! He can give love where there has been hate or indifference. He can make a husband sensitive to the needs of his wife, and the wife sensitive to the needs of her husband instead of two people constantly clamoring and demanding only to have their own needs met. True selfgiving love-the kind God has for us, and the kind He can give us for others-is like a beautiful diamond which sends out flashes of light from its many facets. The Bible gives the most profound and concise summary of love's facets in all of literature: "Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Loves bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things" (1 Corinthians 13:4-7, RSV).
Jesus Christ spoke frankly to His disciples concerning the future. He hid nothing from them. No one could ever accuse Him of deception. No one could accuse Him of securing allegiance by making false promises.
In unmistakable language He told them that discipleship meant a life of self-denial, and the bearing of a cross. He asked them to count the cost carefully, lest they should turn back when they met with suffering and privation.
Jesus told His followers that the world would hate them. They would be "as sheep in the midst of wolves."
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They would be arrested, scourged, and brought before governors and kings. Even their loved ones would persecute them. As the world hated and persecuted Him, so they would treat His servants. He warned further, "They will put you out of the synagogue: indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God" (John 16:2, RSV).
Many of Christ's followers were disappointed in Him, for in spite of His warning they expected Him to subdue their enemies and to set up a world political kingdom. When they came face-to-face with reality, they "drew back and no longer went about with him" (John 6:66, RSV). But the true disciples of Jesus all suffered for their faith.
Tacitus, a Roman historian, writing of the early Christian martyrs, said, "Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as nightly illumination, when daylight had expired. Nero offered his gardens for the spectacle." How true were the words of Paul to the early Christians. "Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:22, RSV).
Power of Prayer
I n our modern age we have learned to harness the power of the mighty Niagara and turn its force to beneficial use. We have learned to hold steam captive in boilers and release its tremendous energy to turn our machines and pull our trains. We have learned to contain gasoline vapors in a cylinder and explode them at the appointed second to move our automobiles and trucks along our highways. We have even discovered the secret of releasing energy in the atom, which is capable of lighting cities, operating great industries, or of destroying entire cities and civilizations.
But very few of us have learned how to fully develop the power of prayer.
Effectual prayer is offered in faith. Jesus said, "I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours" (Mark 11:24). James wrote: "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind" (James 1:5, 6). If our prayers are aimless, meaningless, and mingled with
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doubt, they will be unanswered. Prayer is more than a wish turned heavenward: it is the voice of faith directed Godward.
What a privilege is yours-the privilege of prayer! In the light of coming events, examine your heart, re-consecrate your life, yield yourself to God unreservedly, for only those who pray through a clean heart will be heard of Him. The Bible says, "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective" (James 5:16).
We are to pray not only for our own needs but for the needs of others. We are to pray in times of adversity, lest we become faithless and unbelieving. We are to pray in times of prosperity, lest we become boastful and proud. We are to pray in times of danger, lest we become fearful and doubting. We need to pray in times of security, lest we become careless and self-sufficient.
"More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of." Tennyson's well-known words are no mere cliche. They state a sober truth. Bible teaching, church history, Christian experience, all confirm that prayer does work. But as we relate this matter of prayer specifically to the subject of suffering, we need to keep in mind several things which we have already stated and which we now summarize.
For one thing, we must always remember that prayer does not work automatically, nor is it a piece of spiritual magic. It's not like pressing an electric button and expecting an immediate response. We can't manipulate God or dictate to Him. He is sovereign, and we must recognize His sovereign rights.
This means, as we have stressed all along, that our prayers are subject to His will. And we should be glad of that. It takes the burden off ourselves and places it on the Lord. To say "Thy will be done" is not a sigh, but a song because His will is always what is best-both for us and those for whom we pray. As Dante said, "in His will is our peace." As believers we cannot find true peace out-
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side the will of God.
Again, we may be sure that God is true to His Word and answers all sincere prayer offered in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. But His answer is not always the same. As is so often pointed out, His answer may not necessarily be "Yes." It may be "Nou-or it may be "Wait." If it is "No" or "Wait," we have no right to say that God has not answered our prayer. It simply means that the answer is different from what we expected. We must get rid of the idea that if only we pray hard and long enough, God will always give us what we ask for in the end.
As we have seen, when we pray for help in trouble or for healing in sickness or for deliverance in persecution, God may not give us what we ask for, for that may not be His wise and loving will for us. But He will answer our prayer in His own way. He will not let us down in our hour of need. He will give us the patience, courage and strength to endure our suffering, the ability to rise above it, and the assurance of His presence in all that we are called to pass through.
In any case, let us never forget that prayer is not just asking God for things. It's far bigger and better than that. At its deepest level, prayer is fellowship with God: enjoying His company, waiting upon His will, thanking Him for His mercies, committing our lives to Him, talking to Him about other people as well as ourselves, and listening in the silence for what He has to say to us.
This is what makes prayer so real and precious a thing, especially in times of stress and strain. When we come to the end of ourselves, we come to the beginning of God. As it has been said, our little things are all big to God's love; our big things are all small to His power.
You are denying yourself a marvelous privilege if you don't pray. The path of prayer is always open, whatever your need. Take it to the Lord in prayer!
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More than Wish
Few of us have learned how to develop the power of prayer. We have not yet learned that a man has more strength when he is at prayer than when he is in control of the most powerful military weapons ever developed. . . . Effective prayer is offered in faith. From one end of the Bible to the other, we find the record of people whose prayers have been answered-people who turned the tide of history by prayer, men who prayed fervently and whom God answered.
David gave some powerful prayer patterns in his Psalms for those who are going through difficult times.
When you are distressed: "Answer me when I call to you, 0 my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer" (Psalm 4:l).
When you need mercy: "The Lord has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord accepts my prayer" (Psalm 6:9).
When you need help: "0 Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me!" (Psalm 30:2).
Prayer is powerful, but if our prayers are aimless, meaningless, and mingled with doubt, they will be of little hope to us. Prayer is more than a wish; it is the voice of faith directed to God. One of my favorite verses is: "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind" (James 1:5-6).
The Bible says, "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective" (James 5:16). Jesus said, "I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours" (Mark 11:24).
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Are Prayers Answered?
Christians in desperate situations search the Scriptures for the many wonderful promises of God. One of our favorites is the statement made by Jesus that "You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it" (John 14:14). We claim that promise and ask the Lord to heal our loved one. But what happens if healing doesn't come? It's easy for Christians to feel guilty or believe our faith is weak if we pray for healing, and it doesn't take place.
Believers throughout the ages have had to face the fact that God does not heal everyone who prays for healing. But our lack of faith does not determine God's decision on healing. If that were so, He would have to apologize to all of His great servants in the Hebrews 11 Hall of Fame. Look at that cast of characters: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephtah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets! All of these received great deliverance from God and endured incredible hardships through faith. What happened to them? "Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated" (Hebrews 11:36-37). Even though God was pleased because of their faith, they didn't receive much of the world's pleasures. Why? Because God had a better destination, a heavenly city, waiting for them. It was not because of lack of faith or as a punishment for sin that these men and women of God were not delivered from suffering and death. We have the faith to believe that God has a special glory for those who suffer and die for the sake of Christ.
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Answered Prayers
From one end of the Bible to the other there is the record of those whose prayers have been answered-people who turned the tide of history by prayer, men who prayed fervently and God answered.
Elijah prayed when challenged by his enemies, and fire was sent from heaven to consume the offering on the altar he had built in the presence of God's enemies.
Elisha prayed, and the son of the Shunammite woman was raised from the dead.
David prayed, and some of his psalms could serve as "pattern prayers" for others who are going through difficulty or as examples of how to praise the Lord in the midst of trouble: "Answer me when I call to you, 0 my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer" (Psalm 4:1).
"The Lord has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord accepts my prayer" (Psalm 6:9).
"In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears" (Psalm 18:6).
"0 Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me" (Psalm 30:2).
"In you, 0 Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness. Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me" (Psalm 31:1,2).
Daniel prayed, and the secret of God was made known to him for the saving of his and his companions' lives, and the changing of the course of history.
Jesus prayed at the tomb of Lazarus, and the one who had been dead for four days came forth. He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane and found strength to endure His suffering.
The thief prayed on a cross, and Jesus assured him that on that same day he would be with Him in paradise.
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The early church prayed, and Peter was miraculously released from prison.
Peter prayed, and Dorcas was raised to life to have added years of service for Jesus Christ.
When the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, teach us to pray," the Savior answered their request by giving them "The Lord's Prayer" as a model petition. The Lord's Prayer, however, was only the beginning of His teaching on this subject. In scores of passages Christ offered further guidance, and because He practiced what He preached, His whole life was a series of lessons on how prayer prevails in every aspect of life.
Will Be Done
A s we face problems and personal suffering, we must not forget that our prayers are subject to His will. This takes the burden off of us and gives it to the Lord. His will is always best. The difficulty most of us face is knowing the will of God. As believers, we cannot find true peace outside the will of God.
In our computerized society, many people have learned the value of using these amazing machines. A computer, however, has no worth unless it is programmed. When the proper data is put into it, it will do more work accurately than many people. The believer has tremendous potential, but that potential cannot be used until he is programmed with the Word of God.
J. Grant Howard said: "God has given every believer a handbook with many of the basic rules and regulations for life. If and when a believer follows these rules, he is in the will of God. When he consciously violates them, he is out of the will of God. Therefore, I must know the precepts taught in the Word if I am going to do the will of God."
Prayers that are selfish, vengeful, or mean are not in the will of God. However, we may be sure that God is true to
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His word and answers all sincere prayers offered in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. His answer may be yes, or it may be no, or it may be "Wait." If it is no or "Wait," we cannot say that God has not answered our prayer. It simply means that the answer is different from what we expected.
When we pray for help in trouble, or for healing in sickness, or for deliverance in persecution, God may not give us what we ask for because that may not be His wise and loving will for us. He will answer our prayer in His own way, and He will not let us down in our hour of need.
True prayer is a way of life, not just for use in cases of emergency. Make it a habit, and when the need arises, you will be in practice.
Praying Through the Pain
Jesus is the supreme model of a person devoted to prayer He was constantly in an attitude of prayer, and never more urgently than in the face of suffering. One of the most amazing things in all the Scriptures is how much time Jesus spent in prayer. He had only three years of public ministry, but He was never too hurried to spend hours in prayer. He prayed before every difficult task and at every crisis in His ministry. No day began or closed in which He was not in communion with His Father.
When He was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, He was praying. He had taken the disciples with Him, and sensing the magnitude of what was ahead, He asked Peter, James, and John to stay with Him and keep watch. He went into the garden and fell with His face to the ground, praying, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will"
(Matthew 26:39).
We pray so haphazardly. Snatches of memorized verses are hastily spoken in the morning. Then we say goodbye
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to God for the rest of the day, until we sleepily push through a few closing petitions at night, like leaving a wake-up call at the hotel switchboard. That is not the example of prayer that Jesus gave. He prayed long and repeatedly. He spent at least one entire night in prayer (Luke 6:12).
He prayed briefly when He was in a crowd; He prayed a little longer when He was with His disciples; and He prayed all night when He was alone. Today, many in the ministry tend to reverse that process.
The Scriptures say, "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17 KJV). This should be the motto of every true follower of Jesus. No matter how dark and hopeless a situation might seem, never stop praying. It's not only to resolve our problems that we should pray, but to share in the strength of God's friendship. For us, prayer should be not merely an act, but an attitude of life.
Pattern for Prayer
Jesus frequently prayed alone, separating Himself from
every earthly distraction. I would strongly urge you to select a place, a room or corner in your home, place of work, or in your yard or garden-where you can regularly meet God alone. This does not contradict "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17), but expands it.
Jesus prayed with great earnestness. At Gethsemane, in the earnestness of His praying, He fell to the ground and agonized with God until His sweat became "like drops of blood" (Luke 22:44). The force of His prayers was
increased during times of extreme suffering.
When we see the need of someone else, pray. When we know someone is in pain, pray. Let someone know you have prayed for them, and ask others to pray for you.
We are to plead for our enemies, asking God to lead them to Christ and for His sake to forgive them.
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Persecution, whether it is physical, social, or mental, is one of the worst types of pain, but those who persecute us are to be the objects of our prayers.
In His first words uttered from the cross after the nails had been hammered through His hands and feet, Jesus said "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34). I have often thought that because of His prayer we will see the men who nailed Jesus to the cross in Heaven. No prayer that Jesus ever prayed to the Father went unanswered.
Christian teachers through the ages have urged the importance of prayer in the lives of believers. One wise man said, "If Christians spent as much time praying as they do grumbling, they would soon have nothing to grumble about."
Someone said, "If there are any tears in Heaven, they will be over the fact that we prayed so little." Cameron Thompson said, "Heaven must be full of answers for which no one ever bothered to ask."
Angels
Isn't talking about angels merely adding to the speculation about supernatural phenomena? What possible value is there in such a discussion? Didn't the fascination with angels vanish with the Middle Ages?
Because all the powers of the evil world system seem to be preying on the minds of people already disturbed and frustrated in our generation, I believe the time has come to focus on the positives of the Christian faith. John the Apostle said, "greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world" (1 John 4:4). Satan is indeed capable of doing supernatural things-but he acts only by the permissive will of God; he is on a leash. It is God who is all-powerful. It is God who is omnipotent. God has provided Christians with both offensive and defensive weapons. We are not to be fearful; we are not to be distressed; we are not to be deceived; nor are we to be intimidated. Rather, we are to be on our guard, calm and alert "lest Satan should get an advantage of us, for we are not ignorant of his devices" (2 Corinthians 2:ll).
One of Satan's sly devices is to divert our minds from the help God offers us in our struggles against the forces of evil. However, the Bible testifies that God has provided
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assistance for us in our spiritual conflicts. We are not alone in this world! The Bible teaches us that God's Holy Spirit has been given to empower us and guide us. In addition, the Bible-in nearly three hundred different places-also teaches that God has countless angels at His command. Furthermore, God has commissioned these angels to aid His children in their struggles against Satan. The Bible does not give as much information about them as we might like, but what it does say should be a source of comfort and strength for us in every circumstance.
I am convinced that these heavenly beings exist and that they provide unseen aid on our behalf. I do not believe in angels because someone has told me about a dramatic visitation from an angel, impressive as such rare testimonies may be. I do not believe in angels because UFOs are astonishingly angel-like in some of their reported appearances. I do not believe in angels because ESP experts are making the realm of the spirit world seem more and more plausible. I do not believe in angels because of the sudden worldwide emphasis on the reality of Satan and demons. I do not believe in angels because I have ever seen one-because I haven't. I believe in angels because the Bible says there are angels; and I believe the Bible to be the true Word of God.
I also believe in angels because I have sensed their presence in my life on special occasions.
The Bible states that angels, like men, were created by God. At one time no angels existed; indeed there was nothing but the Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Paul, in Colossians 1:16, says, "For by him were all things created, that are in Heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible." Angels indeed are among the invisible things made by God, for "all things were created by him, and for him." This Creator, Jesus, "is before all things, and
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by him all things consist" (Colossians 1:17), so that even angels would cease to exist if Jesus, who is Almighty God, did not sustain them by His power.
It seems that angels have the ability to change their appearance and shuttle in a flash from the capital glory of Heaven to earth and back again. Although some interpreters have said that the phrase "sons of God" in Genesis 6:2 refers to angels, the Bible frequently makes it clear that angels are non-material; Hebrews 1:14 calls them ministering "spirits." Intrinsically, they do not possess physical bodies, although they may take on physical bodies when God appoints them to special tasks. Further, God has given them no ability to reproduce, and they neither marry nor are given in marriage (Mark 12:25).
In Daniel 6:22 we read, "My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths." In the den, Daniel's sight evidently perceived the angelic presence, and the lions' strength more than met its match in the power of the angel. In most instances, angels, when appearing visibly, are so glorious and impressively beautiful as to stun and amaze men who witness their presence.
Can you imagine a being, white and dazzling as lightning? General William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, describes a vision of angelic beings, stating that every angel was surrounded with an aurora of rainbow light so brilliant that were it not withheld, no human being could stand the sight of it.
Who can measure the brilliance of the lightning flash that illuminates the countryside for miles around? The angel who rolled away the stone from the tomb of Jesus was not only dressed in white, but shone as a flash of lightning with dazzling brilliance (Matthew 28:3). The keepers of the tomb shook and became as dead men. Incidentally, that stone weighed several times more than a
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single man could move, yet the physical power of the angel was not taxed in rolling it aside.
Abraham, Lot, Jacob and others had no difficulty recognizing angels when God allowed them to manifest themselves in physical form. Note, for example, Jacob's instant recognition of angels in Genesis 32:1, 2. "And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim." Further, both Daniel and John described the glories of the angels (Daniel 10:6 and Revelation 10:l) visibly descending from Heaven with unmeasurable beauty and brilliance, shining like the sun. Who has not thrilled to read the account of the three Hebrew children, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego? They refused to fall in tune with the music of obeisance and worship to the king of Babylon. They learned that the angel presence can be observed on occasion by people in the unbelieving world on the outside. After they had refused to bow, the angel preserved them from being burned alive or even having the smell of smoke on their garments from the seven-times-hotter fire. The angel came to them in the midst of the flame without harm and was seen by the king who said, "I see four men. . .in the midst of the fire" (Daniel 3:25).
On the other hand, the Bible indicates angels are more often invisible to human eyes. Whether visible or invisible, however, God causes His angels to go before us, to be with us, and to follow after us. All of this can be fully understood only by believers who know that angelic presences are in control of the battlefield about us, so that we may stand (Isaiah 26:3) with complete confidence in the midst of the fight. "If God be for us who can be against us?"
Unquestionably, angels ascribe honor and glory to the Lamb of God. But angels do not spend all their time in
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Heaven. They are not omnipresent (everywhere present at the same time), so they can be in only one place at a given time. Yet as God's messengers, they are busy around the world carrying out God's orders. Is it not, therefore, obvious that when they are engaged in their ministry here, they cannot stand before God's throne? But when angels do stand before the throne of God, indeed they worship and adore their creator.
We can look for that future day when angels will have finished their earthly ministry. Then they will gather with all the redeemed before the throne of God in Heaven. There they will offer their praise and sing their songs. In that day the angels who veiled their faces and stood mute when Jesus hung on the cross will then ascribe glory to the Lamb whose work is finished and whose kingdom has come. The angels may also stop to listen as the redeemed children of God express their own thanksgiving for salvation. It may well be true as the hymn writer has said in verse 3 of the song, "Holy, Holy Is What the Angels Sing,"
Then the angels stand and listen, For they cannot join that song, Like the sound of many waters, By that happy, blood-washed throng.
But the children of God will also stop to listen to the angels. They have their own reasons for singing, ones that differ from ours. They have given themselves to the service of God Almighty. They have had a part in bringing in the kingdom of God. They have helped the children of God in difficult circumstances. So theirs shall be a shout and a song of victory. The cause they represent has been victorious; the fight they fought is finished; the enemy they met has been conquered; their wicked companion angels who fell shall vex them no more. The angels sing a different song. But they sing; my, how they sing! And I believe that angels and those of us who have been
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redeemed will compete with each other for the endless ages of eternity to see who can best ascribe glory and praise to our wonderful God!
The Angelic War
The greatest catastrophe in the history of the universal creation was Lucifer's defiance of God and the conseauent I fall of perhaps one third of the angels who joined him in his wickedness.
When did it happen? Sometime between the dawn of creation and the intrusion of Satan into the Garden of Eden. The poet Dante reckoned that the fall of the rebel angels took place within twenty seconds of their creation and originated in the pride that made Lucifer unwilling to await the time when he would have perfect knowledge. Others, like Milton, put the angelic creation and fall immediately prior to the temptation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.
But the important question is not, "When were angels created?" but, "When did they fall?" It is difficult to suppose that their fall occurred before God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden. We know for a fact that God rested on the seventh day, or at the end of all creation, and pronounced everything to be good. By implication, up to this time even the angelic creation was good. We might then ask, "How long were Adam and Eve in the Garden before the angels fell and before Satan tempted the first man and woman?" This question must remain unanswered. All we can say positively is that Satan, who had fallen before he tempted Adam and Eve, was the agent and bears a greater guilt because there was no one to tempt him when he sinned; on the other hand Adam and Eve were faced with a tempter.
Thus, we pick up the story where it began. It all started mysteriously with Lucifer. He was the most brilliant and
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most beautiful of all created beings in Heaven. He was probably the ruling prince of the universe under God, against whom he rebelled. The result was insurrection and war in heaven! He began a war that has been raging in heaven from the moment he sinned and was brought to earth shortly after the dawn of human history. It sounds like a modern world crisis!
Isaiah 14:12-14 records the conflict's origin. Prior to his rebellion, Lucifer, an angel of light, is described in scintillating terms in Ezekiel 28:12-17 (NASB): "You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.. . . You were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God. You walked in the midst of the stones of fire. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, until unrighteousness was found in you. . . .Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor." When the angel Lucifer rebelled against God and His works, some have estimated that as many as one third of the angelic hosts of the universe may have joined him in his rebellion. Thus, the war that started in Heaven continues on earth and will see its climax at Armageddon with Christ and His angelic army victorious.
Lucifer i Rebellion
Lucifer, the son of the morning, was created, as were all angels, for the purpose of glorifying God. However, instead of serving God and praising Him forever, Satan desired to rule over Heaven and creation in the place of God. He wanted supreme authority! Lucifer said (Isaiah 14),
"I will ascend into Heaven. "I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. "I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation. "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. "I will be like the most high."
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I . . . I . . . I . . . I . . .I. Lucifer was not satisfied with being subordinated to his creator. He wanted to usurp God's throne. He exulted at the thought of being the center of power throughout the universe-he wanted to be the Caesar, the Napoleon, the Hitler of the entire universe. The "I will" spirit is the spirit of rebellion. His was a bold act to dethrone the Lord Most High. Here was a wicked schemer who saw himself occupying the superlative position of power and glory. He wanted to be worshiped, not to worship.
Satan's desire to replace God as ruler of the universe may have been rooted in a basic sin that leads to the sin of pride I have already mentioned. Underneath Satan's pride lurked the deadliest of all sins, the sin of covetousness. He wanted what did not belong to him. Virtually every war ever fought began because of covetousness. The warfare in Heaven and on earth between God and the devil certainly sprang from the same desire-the lust for what belonged to God alone.
Where Sin Began
The puzzling question is where did evil and sin originate, and why did God allow it? The Bible teaches that sin did not originate with man, but with the angel whom we have come to know as Satan. Yet exactly how sin originated is not fully known. It is one of those mysteries the Bible does not fully reveal. We catch glimpses now and again in the Bible of the answer to this riddle.
For example, in the twenty-eighth chapter of Ezekiel there is a description of a great and glorious being of whom the prophet said: "Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God. . . thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee" (Ezekiel 28:14,15).
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Here we find a glimpse of where it all started. In some unknown past, iniquity was found in the heart of one of the most magnificent creatures of heaven. How this iniquity got there we are not told. For some reason it has not pleased God to reveal the full answer to the mystery of where iniquity began. It is enough for us to know that it is in the world and that man has fallen under its power.
In the book of Isaiah we have another hint of the origin of evil: "How art thou fallen from heaven, 0 Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into Heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to Hell, to the sides of the pit" (Isaiah. 14:12-15). Here we have a picture of Lucifer's sin. It is a description of the iniquity that was found in his heart, but there is no explanation as to how it got there.
From these references we learn that he fell and became Satan because of his undue ambition. The New Testament gives us a glimpse concerning the sin of pride: "Lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil" (1 Timothy 3:6). Here the Apostle Paul affirms that the basic sin of Lucifer was pride.
Crafty and Clever Camozrflage
T h e underlying principle of all Satan's tactics is deception. He is a crafty and clever camouflager. For Satan's deceptions to be successful they must be so cunningly devised that his real purpose is concealed by wiles. Therefore, he works subtly and secretly. No Christian, however spiritual, is beyond the seductive assaults of Satan. His deception began in the Garden of Eden. "The
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woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat" (Genesis 3:13). From that time to this, Satan has been seducing and beguiling. "But evil men and seducers," Paul warned Timothy, "shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived" (2 Timothy 3:13). He also warned the church at Ephesus: "Let no man deceive you with vain words" (Ephesians 5:6); and again: "That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive" (Ephesians 4:14). Yes, there will be more and more false teachers and preachers, as the age draws toward its end. As the Apostle Peter said: "There shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that brought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not" (2 Peter 2:l-3).
Satan does not build a church and call it The First Church of Satan. He is far too clever for that. He invades the Sunday school, the Bible class, and even the pulpit. He even invades the church under cover of an orthodox vocabulary, emptying sacred terms of their biblical sense. Paul warned that many will follow false teachers, not knowing that in gulping down and feeding upon what these apostates say, they are taking the devil's poison into their own lives. Thousands of uninstructed Christians are being deceived today. False teachers use high-sounding words that seem like the epitome of scholarship and culture. They are intellectually clever and crafty in their sophistry. They are adept at beguiling thoughtless, untaught men and women. Of them the Apostle Paul wrote: "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter
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times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy" (1 Timothy 4:1, 2). These false teachers have departed from the faith God revealed in the Scriptures. The Bible states plainly that the reason for their turning away is that they gave heed to Satan's lies and deliberately chose to accept the doctrines of devils rather than the truth of God. So they themselves became the mouthpiece of Satan, speaking lies.
Angels as Messengers
W h i l e God has delegated angels to make special pronouncements for Him, He has not given them the privilege of proclaiming the Gospel message. Why this is so, Scripture does not say. Perhaps spirit-beings who have never experienced the effects of separation from fellowship with God because of sin would be unable to preach with understanding.
But notice what the writer says in "Holy, Holy Is What the Angels Sing":
Holy, Holy is what the angels sing, And I expect to help them make the courts of heaven ring. And when I sing redemption's story, They will fold their wings, For angels never felt the joy that our salvation brings.
Down through the ages man's heart has remained unchanged. Whatever the color of his skin, whatever his cultural or ethnic background, he needs the Gospel of Christ. But who has God ordained to bring that Gospel to fallen men? Fallen angels cannot do it; they cannot even be saved from their own sins. Yet unfallen angels cannot
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preach the Gospel either. Presumably they do not hear the Gospel the way we do; in their purity they have escaped the effects of sin and are unable to comprehend what it means to be lost.
Rather, God has commanded the Church to preach. This great task is reserved to believers. God has no other means. Only man can speak salvation's experience to man.
God has, however, assigned angels to assist those who preach. Their assistance includes the use of miraculous and corroborating signs. Missionaries of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries have reported many wonderful incidents where angels seemed to help them proclaim the gospel. My wife, whose parents were missionaries to China, can remember many instances in her life where angels must have intervened in the ministry of her father and his fellow missionaries.
At any rate, you and I have the privilege of conveying a message to men from God in Heaven, a message that angels cannot speak. Think of that! The story is told of a question asked of God: "In the event that men fail to preach the gospel as you have commanded, what other plan have you in mind?" "I have no other plan," He said.
No angel can be an evangelist. No angel can pastor a church, although angels watch over particular churches. No angel can do counseling. No angel can enjoy sonship in Jesus or be partaker of the divine nature or become a joint heir with Jesus in His kingdom. You and I are a unique and royal priesthood in the universe, and we have privileges that even angels cannot experience.
Shadowed by Angels
Every true believer in Christ should be encouraged and strengthened! Angels are watching; they mark your path. They superintend the events of your life and protect the
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interest of the Lord God, always working to promote His plans and to bring about His highest will for you. Angels are interested spectators and mark all you do, "for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men" (1 Corinthians 4:9). God assigns angelic powers to watch over you.
Hagar, Sarah's maid, had fled from the tents of Abraham. It is ironic that Abraham, after having scaled such glorious heights of faith, should have capitulated to his wife's conniving and scolding, and to the custom of that day, to father a child by Hagar. And it is ironic that Sarah his wife should have been so jealous that when their own son, Isaac, was born years later, she wanted to get rid of both Hagar and the earlier child, Ishmael. So Abraham's self-indulgence led to sorrow and he thrust Hagar out of his home.
Nonetheless, God sent His angel to minister to Hagar. "And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur" (Genesis 16:7). The angel spoke as an oracle of God, turning her mind away from the injury of the past with a promise of what she might expect if she placed her faith in God. This God is the God not only of Israel but the God of the Arab as well (for the Arabs come from the stock of Ishmael). The very name of her son, Ishmael, meaning ''God hears," was a sustaining one. God promised that the seed of Ishmael would multiply, and that his destiny would be great on the earth as he now undertook the restless pilgrimage that was to characterize his descendants. The angel of the Lord revealed himself as the protector of Hagar and Ishmael. Hagar in awe exclaimed, "Thou God seest me" (Genesis 16:13), or as may be better translated,
"I have seen Thou who seest all and who sees me."
Psalm 34:7 underscores the teaching that angels protect and deliver us, "The angel of the Lord encampeth round about those who fear him, and delivereth them." We also find this idea reflected in one of Charles Wesley's songs:
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Angels, where ere we go, Attend our steps whate'er betide. With watchful care their charge attend, And evil turn aside.
The great majority of Christians can recall some incident in which their lives, in times of critical danger, have been miraculously preserved-an almost plane crash, a near car wreck, a fierce temptation. Though they may have seen no angels, their presence could explain why tragedy was averted. We should always be grateful for the goodness of God, who uses these wonderful friends called angels to protect us. Evidence from Scripture as well as personal experience confirms to us that individual guardian, guiding angels attend at least some of our ways and hover protectively over our lives.
The Scriptures are full of dramatic evidences of the protective care of angels in their earthly service to the people of God. Paul admonished Christians to put on all the armor of God that they may stand firmly in the face of evil (Ephesians 6:10-12). Our struggle is not against flesh and blood (physical powers alone), but against the spiritual
(superhuman) forces of wickedness in heavenly spheres. Satan, the prince of the power of the air, promotes a "religion" but not true faith; he promotes false prophets. So the powers of light and darkness are locked in intense conflict. Thank God for the angelic forces that fight off the works of darkness. Angels never minister selfishly; they serve so that all glory may be given to God as believers are strengthened.
Angels in Jesus' Life
It would take an entire book to spell out in detail how the life of Jesus was intertwined with the attending ministry
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of angels. Before He was here, they followed His orders. And since He ascended into Heaven, they have worshiped Him before the throne of God as the Lamb slain for our salvation.
To prepare for the coming of Jesus an angel appeared to Zacharias to inform him that his wife would be the mother of John the Baptist (Luke 1:13). Gabriel, one of the mighty angels of God, announced to Mary that she would give birth to the Messiah. An angel and a multitude of the heavenly host spread the good news of Jesus' coming to the shepherds in the field (Luke 2:9). These angelic incidents preceded and accompanied His birth, but when Jesus began His public ministry angels were intimately involved in His life as well.
Angels in the Wilderness
Perhaps the most difficult period in the life of Jesus before His crucifixion was His temptation by the devil in the wilderness. After He had fasted forty days and nights, Satan tried to break Him down. In Christ's weakened human condition, Satan began his attack, seeing this as his greatest opportunity to defeat the program of God in the world since his victory in the Garden of Eden. He was out to shipwreck the hope of the human race. Wishing to prevent the salvation of sinners, he struck at the moment when Christ's physical weakness made Him most susceptible to temptation. Satan always directs his sharpest attack at his victim's weakest point. He knows where the Achillesf heel may be, and he does not fail to strike at the opportune time.
Three times Satan attempted to defeat Jesus. Three times Jesus quoted Scripture, and three times Satan went down to defeat. Then the Bible declares that "he [Satan] departed from him [Jesus] for a season" (Luke 4:13). It
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was at this point that angels came to His assistance-not to help Him resist Satan as they help us, for He did that by Himself, but to help Him after the battle was won. The angels "ministered" to Jesus.. . . "Behold, angels came and ministered unto him" (Matthew 4:ll). Angelic ambassadors supported, strengthened and sustained Him in that trying hour. From that moment on our Lord Jesus Christ, who was in all points tempted as we are, could sympathize and help Christian believers for the ages to come, and lead them to victory in their hour of temptation.
Angels in the Garden
The night before His crucifixion Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane. Only a short time later He was to be seized by the soldiers, betrayed by Judas Iscariot, set before the rulers, beaten and at last crucified. Before He was hung on the cross He went through the terrible agony in the Garden which made Him sweat, as it were, drops of blood. It was in this situation that the Son of man needed inner strength to face what no other being in Heaven, Hell or earth had ever known. In fact, He was to face what no created being could have faced and gone through in victory. He was about to take upon Himself the sins of men. He was to become sin for us.
Jesus had taken Peter, James, and John with Him to the Garden. They could have provided Him with reinforcement and encouragement, but instead they fell asleep. The Son of man was all alone. He prayed, "Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:42). Then it was at that crucial moment that the angel came to assist Him,
"strengthening Him". . . .Where the disciples of the Lord Jesus had failed to share His agony, as they slept the angel came to help.
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Angels at the Cross
T h e tragedy of sin reached its crescendo when God in Christ became sin. At this point He was offering Himself as the sacrifice required by the justice of God if man was to be redeemed. At this moment Satan was ready to try his master stroke. If he could get Christ to come down from the cross, and if Christ allowed the mockery of the crowd to shame or anger Him, then the plan of salvation would be jeopardized. Again and again they shouted, "If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross" (Matthew 27:40). He knew He could come down if He chose; He knew He could get help from more than twelve legions of angels who hovered about with drawn swords.
Yet for our salvation He stayed there. The angels would have come to the cross to rescue the King of kings, but because of His love for the human race and because He knew it was only through His death that they could be saved, He refused to call for their help. The angels were under orders not to intervene at this terrible, holy moment. Even the angels could not minister to the Son of God at Calvary. He died alone in order to take the full death penalty you and I deserved.
We can never plumb the depths of sin, or sense how terrible human sin is, until we go to the cross and see that it was "sin" that caused the Son of God to be crucified. The ravages of war, the tragedy of suicide, the agony of the poverty-stricken, the suffering and irony of the rejected of our society, the blood of the accident victim, the terror of rape and mug victims of our generation-these all speak as with a single voice of the degradation that besets the human race at this hour. But no sin has been committed in past history, nor is any being committed in the world today that can compare with the full cup of the universe's sin that brought Jesus to the cross. The question hurled toward Heaven throughout the ages has been, "Who is He
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and why does He die?" The answer comes back, This is my only begotten Son, dying not only for your sins but for the sins of the whole world. To you sin may be a small thing; to God it is a great and awful thing. It is the second largest thing in the world; only the love of God is greater.
When we comprehend the great price God was willing to pay for the redemption of man, we only then begin to see that something is horribly wrong with the human race. It must have a Savior, or it is doomed! Sin cost God His very best. Is it any wonder that the angels veiled their faces, that they were silent in their consternation as they witnessed the outworking of God's plan? How inconceivable it must have seemed to them, when they considered the fearful depravity of sin, that Jesus should shoulder it all. But they were soon to unveil their faces and offer their praises again. A light was kindled that day at Calvary. The cross blazed with the glory of God as the most terrible darkness was shattered by the light of salvation. Satan's depraved legions were defeated and they could no longer keep all men in darkness and defeat.
Angels as Executors
The writer of Hebrews speaks of angelic forces as executors of God's judgments: "Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire" (Hebrews 1:7). The flaming fire suggests how awful are the judgments of God and how burning is the power of the angels who carry out God's decisions. Angels administer judgment in accord with God's principles of righteousness.
Unknown to men they have undoubtedly in the past helped destroy evil systems like Nazism, because those governments came to the place where God could no longer withhold His hand. These same angels will carry out fearful judgments in the future, some of which the
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book of Revelation vividly describes.
We often get false notions about angels from plays given by Sunday school children at Christmas. It is true that angels are ministering spirits sent to help the heirs of salvation. But just as they fulfill God's will in salvation for believers in Jesus Christ, so they are also "avengers" who use their great power to fulfill God's will in judgment. God has empowered them to separate the sheep from the goats, the wheat from the chaff, and one of them will blow the trumpet that announces impending judgment when God summons the nations to stand before Him in the last great judgment.
Know Your Enemy
K n o w your enemy-Satan. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 523). Military personnel soon learn that one of the most serious errors that a military leader can make is to underestimate the ability and the power of the enemy. To underrate the skill of an opposing team is to lose the game.
When in doubt about what to do in any given circumstance, ask yourself these questions. "Does it glorify the Lord Jesus Christ? Will it make me a stronger Christian? Will it offend someone else?" You may think that something is "all right," but if there are other Christians around you who feel it is questionable, you should not "put a stumbling block or an occasion to fall" (Romans 14:13) in your brother's way. Paul said that if eating meat were to make his brother to offend, he would "eat no flesh while the world standeth" (1 Corinthians 8:13) lest he should make his brother to offend.
Form the habit of bringing everything to the Lord Jesus. Make victory even more habitual than were your defeats.
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Never go any place where you cannot take Christ with you. "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him" (Colossians 3:17).
God and a Christian are always a majority. Paul said, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Philippians 4:13). Notice that it is through Christ that he could do all things, not within himself. Here is where many fail. They have the desire to do right and to resist temptation, but they are not fully surrendered to Christ. Consequently, they are not able to do what they know is God's will for them. If only we would fully surrender to Christ, we could do the "all things" which are within His blessed will. The deeper our separation from the world and unto Christ is, the more powerful and fruitful are we in our appeal to those who are dead in sin. Human endurance in divine things and in extraordinary trials will not suffice. We cannot endure in our own strength. "The arm of flesh will fail you, ye dare not trust your own." Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).
We can endure every fiery trial, every persecution, every temptation and every attempt of Satan to hurt us only if we stay close to the Lord Jesus Christ. You were saved by faith, simply by trusting Christ. Live the same way! Trust Him for deliverance in times of temptation. Don't wait until you sin and then turn to God for forgiveness, even though He will forgive, but turn to Him at the moment of temptation. "Lord Jesus, help me now," can mean the difference between victory and defeat in your life. It can mean the difference between joy and unhappiness, between peace and unrest.
But if you do fail, if you do sin-don't give up! Don't brood over the sin. Confess it immediately; forget it and pass on. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).
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Three Enemies
W e have already seen that the Devil is a mighty being who opposes God and tempts God's people. We have found that even though he was beaten at the cross by Christ he still has power to influence men for evil. The Bible calls him "the wicked one," "the devil," "a murderer," "a liar, and the father of lies," "an adversary" who seeks to devour, "that old serpent" and "accuser of our brethren" (Matthew 13:19; Luke 4:33; John 8:44; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelation 12:9-10).
The moment you made your decision for Christ, Satan suffered a tremendous defeat. He is angry now. From now on he is going to tempt you and try to lead you into sin. Don't be alarmed. He cannot rob you of your salvation, and he need not rob you of your assurance and victory. He will do everything in his power to sow seeds of doubt in your mind as to whether your conversion is a reality or not. You cannot argue with him for he is the greatest debater of all time.
Your second enemy is the world. The world means the cosmos, this world system. The world has a tendency to lead us into sin, evil companions, pleasures, fashions, opinions, and aims.
You will find in your born-again experience that your pleasures have been lifted into an entirely new and glorious realm. Many non-Christians have accused the Christian life as being a set of rules, taboos, vetoes, and prohibitions. This is another lie of the devil. It is not a series of "don'ts," but a series of "dos." You become so busy in the work of Christ and so completely satisfied with the things of Christ that you do not have time for the things of the world.
The Bible says, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world" (1 John 2:15). The Bible also warns that the world and the "lust thereof' shall pass away, "but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever" (1 John 2:17).
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The third enemy that you will face immediately is the lust of the flesh. The flesh is that evil tendency of your inward self. Even after you are converted, sometimes your old, sinful cravings will return. You become startled and wonder where they come from. The Bible teaches that the old nature, with all its corruption, is still there and that these evil temptations come from nowhere else. In other words, "a traitor is living within." "That wretched bent toward sin is ever present to drag you down." War has been declared! You now have two natures in conflict, and each one is striving for dominance.
The Bible teaches "the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh (Galatians 5:17). It is the battle of the self-life and the Christ-life. This old nature cannot please God. It cannot be converted, or even patched up. Thank God, when Jesus died He took you with Him, and the old nature can be made inoperative and you can "reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin" (Romans 6:ll). This is done by faith.
HEAVEN AND HELL
Whatever Happened to Heaven?
W h a t about Heaven? In the Gallup survey, 66 percent of the general population said they believe in "a Heaven where people who have led good lives are eternally rewarded." More people are confident that there is a Heaven than are concerned about Hell. I was especially interested that those who believed in Heaven were asked a further question, "How would you describe your own chances of going to Heaven-excellent, good, fair, or poor?"
Among the Protestant denominations, only 26 percent of the Baptists, 20 percent of the Lutherans, and 16 percent of the Methodists thought their chances of attaining heaven were excellent. The survey further revealed that while only 24 percent of the Protestants said they were sure of a place in Heaven, 41 percent of the Catholics had this assurance.
Why did members of organized churches, or those professing to be either Protestant or Catholic, have such a low assurance of Heaven? Could it be that in our descriptions of Heaven we have failed to mention the horrors of its alternative? Have we overreacted to the old "hellfire and brimstone" preaching by discarding or at least watering down the clear teaching of the Bible? Jesus spoke of Hell as "darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing
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of teeth" (Matthew 8:12). Or have we even neglected the whole question of life after death by emphasizing only this life?
Heaven, u Home
N o t only is Heaven a place, but the Bible teaches that Heaven is going to be Home. The Bible says that those of us who know Christ-the moment you accept Christ, you become a citizen of Heaven. Now we are citizens of two worlds. I am a citizen of this earth, but I'm a citizen of another world. I am a citizen of Heaven because of what Christ did on the Cross. And in this world with its secularism and its materialism and all of its hostile forces, I'm living for God, I'm a stranger and a pilgrim.
The Bible refers to that in several places. We are strangers and we are pilgrims. "They were strangers and pilgrims on the earth," says Hebrews 11. 1 Peter 2 says, "I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims." Our citizenship is in Heaven.
Now as good citizens of this earth we ought to vote. As good citizens we ought to be interested in our community. As good citizens we ought to help every good project in our community. As good citizens we ought to be interested in all the social problems that we face. As good citizens we ought to do what we can to make this a better place in which to live. But we are citizens of two worlds. . .this world and the future world. We are citizens of Heaven.
Now in Heaven there is not going to be any racial discrimination. There is not going to be any poverty. There is not going to be any war. The policemen won't have anything to do. Oh, what a glorious world it is going to beHeaven! Everything that word means, everything that you ever dreamed of-the Utopia that we dreamed of and thought that maybe we could build on this earth, and have failed, is going to be in Heaven.
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And then Heaven is going to be a place of service. Now you're not just going to go there and sit under a palm tree and have a pretty girl waving a palm branch over you. Lots of people have the idea that is what Heaven is like. One of the great religions of the world teaches that. It says, "You're going to have a thousand girls to wait on you." No, that's not what the Bible says. It says we are going to work. I imagine that is going to be hard on some. But we are going to work, because it says in Revelation 22:3, "His servants shall serve him." And Heaven is going to be a place where all mysteries are going to be cleared up. Why did we have a certain amount of suffering down here? Why were loved ones taken at a particular moment when they were? We are going to understand something of the enormity of sin. We are going to understand the problem of evil. We are going to understand what the devil was all about, and why God allowed him to exist as long as he did. We'll know something of the price that Christ paid on the Cross that we cannot know now. When He said, "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?"-none of us can understand what went on at that moment, but on that Day, we will understand.
We will know why there is a Hell. We will understand why God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform. You know there are ten thousand questions I want to ask the Lord as soon as I get there. . .because they are just mysteries in the Bible that we don't know all the answers to. We must take them by faith.
And you know Heaven is going to be the place of the final coronation of the King of Kings. What a day that is going to be! The Bible says, "There will be written on Him, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords." You and I are going to be present at the coronation of Jesus Christ when He is crowned King of the Universe. I am looking forward to that day. My seat is reserved. It was bought not with my silver and gold. It was bought with the blood of Christ on the Cross. What a time that is going to be!
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Citizens of Heaven
N o exemption is granted the Christian from the common lot of the human race. We are born to trouble even as others and have tribulation like the rest. When depression comes, we may be out of work. When war rages, we are in danger. We are exposed to the same diseases and many of the same psychological problems as others. Thus we must take an interest in the present world. We must do all we can to help our neighbors with whom we dwell, be they believers or not.
However, it is true that even in this world the Christian has certain privileges as he anticipates Heaven. As Charles Spurgeon used to say: "All the legions of Hell cannot compel us to do the devil's work." The prince of this world may make his servants serve him, but he cannot raise a conscription among us "aliens." The true child of God claims an immunity from all the commands of Satan. In actuality, we are the only ones who are completely free. There are those today who say that we must do as others do, that we must conform to our world, that we must swim with the tide, that we must move with the crowd. But the believer says: "No, do not expect me to fall in with the evil customs and ways of this world. I am in Rome, but I will not do as Rome does. I am an alien, a stranger, and a foreigner. My citizenship is in Heaven."
We are tuned to a different world. The Scripture says: "If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15). Be willing rather to be sneered at than to be approved, counting the cross of Christ greater riches than all the treasures of Washington, London, Paris, or Moscow.
To aliens, the treasures of this world will not be attractive. Our treasure is in Heaven "where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal" (Matthew 6:20). Neither the American dollar, the British pound, nor the German mark can be spent in
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Heaven. When we get to Heaven we shall wish that we had laid up more treasure in its banks. I would far rather be rich toward God than before men.
As citizens of Heaven, we also share in Heaven's glory. The Bible teaches that even the angels are our servants. The great saints of the past are our companions. Christ is our Brother. God is our Father. And we will receive immortality. "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is" (1 John 3:2).
Speakingffom Heaven
H o w does God speak from Heaven?
First, He speaks through the Bible, His written Word. This is why I use the phrase "the Bible says." I would not have the authority to say what I do during crusades or in sermons unless it was based upon the Word of God. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16). The authors of the Old Testament, for example, make it clear that God was speaking to them and through them. More than 3,000 times they said, "Thus saith the Lord," or the equivalent. And that's good enough for me!
God also speaks in nature. When He created the heavens and the earth, He gave us the most incredible, complex, beautiful, orderly universe. He has spoken in such a way that men and women are without excuse if they do not hear and understand the Psalmist's praise in saying, "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork (Psalm 19:l KJV). Because of the clarity of the message, we can also agree with his statement that "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God"' (Psalm 14:l). As the Bible declares, "For since the creation
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of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse" (Romans 1:20).
God speaks most clearly and completely through His Son, Jesus Christ, who is revealed for us in the pages of the Bible and is the Word of God incarnate. When God, the Son, stepped out of Heaven onto earth in the form of man, He accomplished what God intended Him to do from eternity past. "In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe" (Hebrews 1:l-2).
God also speaks to us through our consciences. This may be a "still, small voice" that will not let us go until we do what we know is right, or it may be a loud, clear indication that God wants us on the path. We might even think of it as a searchlight revealing the way in which we should go, beamed from Heaven itself. Proverbs says, "The lamp of the Lord searches the spirit of a man; it searches out his inmost being" (Proverbs 20:27). We must never silence that inner voice-although we must check what we think it is saying against the Scriptures, to be sure that inner voice is not simply our self-will or our emotions.
When God speaks through His Word, we may receive it clearly, or because of our human frailty it may be distorted, something like a scrambled TV signal coming in over the satellite. Sometimes our receivers are tuned. At other times we may have to wait until we can more clearly hear or "receive" the picture. . . .
God speaks to us from Heaven when we pray. Sometimes the answers are clear; sometimes they are vague; sometimes they say "wait." However, we know that someday we will be with Him in His home, and communications will be crystal clear, because we will be with
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Him. "Now we see but a poor reflection; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).
Paid Ticket to Heaven
W h y do some people believe they have a paid ticket to Heaven? They give many answers, but most can be classified within three basic attitudes.
The first is, "Just look at what I've done on earth. My record is pretty good, compared to some. I'll be in Heaven because I lived such a good life."
That person is in trouble. The Bible says "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). So if we're placing our good deeds on a scale of 1 to 10, even a perfect 10 wouldn't make it. No one can ever live a life that is "good enough." The Bible says, "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it" (James 2:lO).
The second answer might be, "I really don't know, and I'm not sure that I care. I gave it some thought for a while, but there were so many other things that seemed more important."
As mothers say, "Excuses will get you nowhere." The Bible says, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine naturehave been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse" (Romans 1:20).
Only one answer will give a person the certain privilege, the joy, of entering Heaven. "Because I have believed in Jesus Christ and accepted Him as my Savior. He is the One sitting at the right hand of God and interceding for me." No one can deny that Christian his entrance into Heaven.
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What Won't Be in Heaven
In Heaven there will be no sectarian worship, no denominational differences, no church creeds. There will be no temple worship, for God and His Son, Jesus Christ, will be the centers of worship (Revelation 21:22). . . .God did not invent denominations, man did. When we go to His home, He will invite us in, but will not ask us for our church or Sunday school credentials. Only one question will be asked: "What did you do on earth with My Son, Jesus?"
In Heaven we won't get secondhand knowledge. On earth we listen to pastors, teachers, philosophers, parents, and writers, and sometimes we don't know whom to believe. . . .
In Heaven there will be no fear. We won't need locks on the doors, bars at the windows, or alarm systems. Everything that causes fear will be eliminated. We will walk the golden streets with no concern for danger lurking in doorways.
In Heaven there will be no night. On earth we equate night with darkness and ignorance; we say, "I was really left in the dark." Light is a symbol of understanding; we may nod our heads as a problem is clarified and say,
"Now I see the light!" "The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear?" (Psalm 27:l).
Finally, in Heaven there will be no more suffering or death. Think of it! "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.' He who was seated on the throne said, 'I am making everything new!' Then he said, 'Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true"' (Revelation 21 :3-5).
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Whatever Happened to Hell?
A s attitudes toward death and dying changed, another significant shift began to take place within the human family. The reality of Satan was ignored increasingly or discarded as a myth. Even many who believed in a personal devil were not allowed to acknowledge his power in this world, nor did they believe in Hell.
Hell, in the eyes of unbelievers and even some believers, was abandoned. Or it was relegated to some vague concept of "evil in the world." Even some theologians chose to reject the Bible's clear teaching on Hell.
Certainly war, hunger, terrorism, greed, and hatred are Hell on earth, but, except for the Bible believer, a future Hell became part of the ash heap of ancient history. As Hell was becoming for many no more than a swear word, sin was also an accepted way of life. People began to look to science, education, and social and moral programs as possible solutions to the growing chaos of an insane world. If people can ignore what the Bible calls sin, then they can quite logically discount what it says about the reality of Hell.
Whoever chooses to deny that there is a Hell must then face certain questions. "Where do I go when I die?"
"Who goes to Heaven and who doesn't?" And, "If I don't go to Heaven, what is the alternative?"
In contemporary society Hell is not a popular subject. George Gallup made a survey on Hell, and there were some interesting results. In his national poll 53 percent of the general population of the United States said they believe in Hell. The percentage goes down dramatically among people with a college education and those with high incomes. Simply stated, the Gallup poll showed that the more education and money people had, the less likely they were to believe in Hell.
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The Reality of Hell
Hell has been cloaked in folklore and disguised in fiction for so long, many people deny the realitybf such a place. Some think it is merely a myth. This is understandable. Our minds revolt against ugliness and suffering. However, the concept of Hell is not exclusive to the Christian faith.
Centuries before Christ, the Babylonians believed in "The Land of No-Return." The Hebrews wrote about going down to the realm of Sheol, or the place of corruption; the Greeks spoke of the "Unseen Land." Classical Buddhism recognizes seven "hot hells," and the Hindu Rig Veda speaks of the deep abyss reserved for false men and faithless women. Islam recognizes seven hells.
Jesus specifically states that nonbelievers will not be able to escape the condemnation of Hell (Matthew 23:33). He told His disciples, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell" (Luke 12:4,5).
Bible i Description of Hell
Let's consider the Bible's description of Hell. Let's find out how God's Holy Word describes this awful place.
Revelation 20:15-The lake of fire. Psalm 11:6-A horrible tempest. Psalm 18:5-A place of sorrows. Matthew 13:42-A place of wailing. Matthew 8:12-A place of weeping. Matthew 13:41-42-A furnace of fire. Luke 16:23-A place of torment. Revelation 20:ll-12-A place of filthiness. Revelation 16:ll-A place of cursing. Matthew 8:12-A place of outer darkness.
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Revelation 14:ll-A place of unrest. Luke 16:27-A place where people pray. Luke 16:24-A place where people scream for mercy. Matthew 25:46-A place of everlasting punishment. Matthew 25:41-A place prepared for the devil and his angels.
Luke 16:2-A place where one begs for a drop of water. Isaiah 33: 11-A place where one's breath is flame. Luke 16:2-A place where one is tormented with fire. Revelation 2123-A place where one is tormented with brimstone.
Luke 16:25-A place of memory. We need not add to or take away from this description.
The Bells of He22
I n World War I, British soldiers had a popular song that went like this:
Oh Death, where is thy sting-a-ling-a-ling, Oh Grave, thy victoree? The bells of Hell go ting-a-ling-a-ling For you but not for me.
A lot of people talk about Hell, use it to tell others where to go, but do not want to be confronted with the thought that it might be their destination. Hell, for them, is only where the Hitlers and Stalins should end up, along with murderers, rapists, or child pornographers. But most think that "Good People" who mind their own business, pay their taxes, and put a few dollars in the collection plate will have some "eternal rewards."
However, if the Bible is true, we know there is abundant life after death for the followers of Christ. Those who have accepted His grace and been saved will be with Him in Heaven. And what about the others? "Surely a loving
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God would not punish good people!" says the humanitarian or the religious person who wants to ignore the uncomfortable and unpopular descriptions of Hell in the Bible. Yes, they are right in some ways, for a loving God does not want anyone to perish. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. "He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).
However, the Scriptures are very clear. Jesus told His disciples not to fear the killers of men, because they only cause physical death. He did not mean, of course, that we are not to be concerned about murderers, but His point was a warning of something more serious than the death of our bodies. Jesus said, "But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into Hell" (Luke 12:5).
Paradise Lost
Hell is probably the hardest of all Christian teachings to accept.
Some teach "universalism"-that eventually everybody will be saved and the God of love will never send anyone to Hell. They believe the words "eternal" or "everlasting" do not actually mean forever. However, the same word which speaks of eternal banishment from God is also used for the eternity of Heaven.
Others teach that those who refuse to accept Jesus Christ as Savior are simply annihilated, they no longer exist. I've searched the Bible and have never found convincing evidence to support this view. The Bible teaches, whether we are saved or lost, there is an everlasting existence of the soul.
Some believe God gives a second chance. But the Bible says, "Now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2). At our crusades I invite people to accept Christ right then, for
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we do not know when we will pass into eternity.
The Bible teaches there is Hell for every person who willingly and knowingly rejects Christ as Lord and Savior. Many passages could be quoted to support that fact.
"But anyone who says, 'you fool!' will be in danger of the fire of Hell" (Matthew 5:22).
"The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 13:41,42).
"Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:14,15).
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, "It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your body to be thrown into Hell" (Matthew 5:29).
Will a loving God send a man to hell? The answer from Jesus and the teachings of the Bible is, clearly, "Yes!" He does not send man willingly, but man condemns himself to eternal Hell because in his blindness, stubbornness, egotism, and love of sinful pleasure, he refuses God's way of salvation and the hope of eternal life with Him.
Suppose a person is sick and goes to a doctor. The doctor diagnoses the problem and prescribes medicine. However, the advice is ignored and in a few days the person stumbles back into the doctor's office and says, "It's your fault that I'm worse. Do something."
God has prescribed the remedy for the spiritual sickness of the human race. The solution is personal faith and commitment to Jesus Christ. Since the remedy is to be born again, if we deliberately refuse it, we must suffer the horrible consequences.
Yes, there is an alternative to Heaven. No matter what your conception of it may be, we know it will be separation from God and all that is holy and good. John Milton
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described it in Paradise Lost:
A dungeon horrible on all sides round, As one great furnace, flamed; yet from those flames No light, but rather darkness visible Serv'd only to discover sights of woe, Regions of sorrow, doleful shades, where peace And rest can never dwell, hope never comes That comes to all; but torture without end.
The Many Faces of Pain
Pain has many faces. One can suffer physically, mentally, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually. Our difficulties are rarely confined to only one of these areas; they tend to overlap in human experiences. Some of the most intensive suffering can be psychologically induced and frequently lead to complications in the physical realm.
There are as many invisible hurts as there are visible hurts, and there can be difficulty in diagnosing them. We know that the unseen part of man is often the victim of the most debilitating of pains. In certain circumstances, a man can endure excruciating physical pain; and yet he can be felled by one unkind word. When we hear the story of the torture inflicted upon a P.O.W., we are astounded by his personal fortitude and the resiliency of the human body. But that same man's life can be devastated by a single viciously perpetrated act or word.
Scripture has much to say about the power of the tongue to inflict cruelty. The Psalmist says that bitter words are like deadly arrows. James wrote: "The tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of
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the body" (James 3:5,6).
Man is capable of great victories and susceptible to great defeats. Man is both strong and sensitive. As the Psalmist exclaimed, "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14).
In earnest we must endeavor to apply this sensitivity when dealing with the matter of suffering, especially as we consider the sufferings of others. We cannot feel someone else's pain. We can see the anguish in his face and try to empathize. But we do not have his nerve endings. We cannot fully know the magnitude of his anguish. We must never minimize the suffering of another. Scripture's mandate to us is, "Weep with them that weep" (Romans 12:15, KJV).
Our physical sufferings express a great truth. As C. S. Lewis cogently penned, "Pain. . . plants the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul." The truth is thisman's body is mortal, temporal. Man must look beyond himself to find immortality.
Suffering is one of God's ways of speaking to us, of awakening us to our need of Him, and calling us to Himself. To quote C. S. Lewis again: "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world." If our suffering leads us to God, it has become a blessed and precious friend.
of Suffering
w e must bear in mind that God has acted on our behalf to rid the world of suffering. And the astounding fact is that He did it by suffering Himself. He is a Father who witnessed the torture and death of His own Son. God, who loves His Son, allowed Him to suffer so that you and I might be released from suffering. By virtue of Christ's passion and death, those who have accepted Him as their
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Savior will be freed from the most intense suffering imaginable-eternal separation from God. It is in God's own suffering that we see His great love. We must not try to evaluate God's character and judge whether or not He is a loving God by looking at our own sufferings. It is by looking at the Cross that we come to know and experience the depth of God's love for us.
Thus we see that God has a plan for the elimination of suffering.
But why doesn't God remove all suffering from our world now? He has the power; why doesn't He use it for the good of mankind now?
First, if God were to eradicate all evil from this planet, He would have to eradicate all evil men. Who would be exempt? "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). God would rather transform the evil man than eradicate him.
Second, if God were to remove all evil from our world (but somehow leave man on the planet), it would mean that the essence of "humanness" would be destroyed. Man would become a robot.
Let me explain what I mean by this. If God eliminated evil by programming man to perform only good acts, man would lose his distinguishing mark-the ability to make choices. He would no longer be a free moral agent. He would be reduced to the status of a robot.
Let's take this a step further. Robots do not love. God created man with the capacity to love. Love is based upon one's right to choose to love. We cannot force others to love us. We can make them serve us or obey us. But true love is founded upon one's freedom to choose to respond. Man could be programmed to do good, but the element of love would be lost. If man were forced to do good, suffering would be eliminated-and so would love. What would it be like to live in a world without love?
Thus we can see that God's use of His power to eliminate evil would not prove to be a positive solution to the
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problem of suffering. The results of such action would create greater dilemmas. Either man would be reduced to the status of a robot in a loveless world or he would be annihilated.
It is really God's love for man which restrains Him from removing evil from our world by a display of His power. God's plan is to remove evil by a display of His love-the love that He demonstrated at Calvary.
It is in God's love that we find the key to the ultimate solution of the problem of suffering. The answer to the age-old question of suffering rests in an understanding and appreciation of the character of God.
The Supreme Sufferer
D o we look at ourselves, our trials, our problems, when we are suffering? Do we live under the circumstances, instead of above the circumstances? Or do we look at the One who knew more suffering than we are able to conceive?
In Table Talk Martin Luther said, "Our suffering is not worthy the name of suffering. When I consider my crosses, tribulations, and temptations, I shame myself almost to death, thinking what are they in comparison of the sufferings of my blessed Savior Jesus Christ."
There are several things about the life of Christ that reveal His role as the "suffering servant" Messiah. We cannot begin to trace every aspect of this search through His life, but consider these truths.
In Isaiah 53 the sufferings of the Savior are so minutely pictured that one might well read it as the record of an eyewitness, rather than the prediction of a man who wrote eight hundred years before the event.
Observe that Jesus' life began in the midst of persecution and peril. He came on a mission of love and mercy, sent by the Father. An angel announced His conception and gave Him His name. The heavenly host sang a glorious
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anthem at His birth. By the extraordinary "star" or meteor, the very heavens indicated His coming. In Himself He was the most illustrious child ever born-the holy child of Mary, the divine Son of God. Yet no sooner did He enter our world than Herod decreed His death and labored to accomplish it.
Notice, too, that He assumed a role of deep abasement. The Son of the eternal Father, He became the infant of days and was made in the likeness of man. He assumed our human nature with all its infirmities, and weakness, and capacity for suffering. He came as a child of the poorest parents. His entire life was one voluntary humiliation. He came to be a servant and to minister rather than to be ministered unto.
Another aspect of His suffering is the vile suspicions and bitter misrepresentations He had to bear. "He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him" (John 1:ll). Rather they scorned Him and treated Him with contempt. He was "despised and rejected" by most of them. They treated Him as a transgressor of God's law, a Sabbath breaker, an unholy person-a winebibber and drunkard, one who associated with outcasts and notorious sinners.
Notice also that He was constantly exposed to personal violence. At the beginning of His ministry, His own townsfolk at Nazareth tried to hurl Him down from the brow of the hill (Luke 4:29). The religious and political leaders often conspired to seize Him and kill Him. At length He was arrested and brought to trial before Pilate and Herod. Even though He was guiltless of the accusations, He was denounced as an enemy of God and man, and not worthy to live.
The sufferings of Jesus also included the fierce temptations of the devil. The account of this transaction is given in graphic form in Matthew 4:1, "Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil."
Remember, too, that He knew in advance what was
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coming, and this enhanced His suffering. He knew the contents of the cup He had to drink; He knew the path of suffering He should tread. He could distinctly foresee the baptism of blood that awaited Him. He spoke plainly to His disciples of His coming death by crucifixion.
Jesus, the supreme sufferer, came to suffer for our sins. As a result of His sufferings, our redemption was secured.
What does the divine sufferer demand from us? Only our faith, our love, our grateful praise, our consecrated hearts and lives. Is that too much to ask?
Christ living in us will enable us to live above our circumstances, however painful they are. Perhaps you who read these words find yourself almost crushed by the circumstances which you are now facing. You wonder how much more you can stand. But don't despair! God's grace is sufficient for you and will enable you to rise above your trials. Let this be your confidence: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?. . . No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us" (Romans 8:35-37).
Grief Happens
Grief comes with many losses. It may be the loss of a job or a friend, a pet or a possession. The loss of a marriage relationship may cause grief as wrenching as death. Whatever its cause, grief will come to all of us.
Grief which is not dealt with properly can cause us to lose our perspective on life. A friend told me about his mother who mourned the death of her husband so keenly that seventeen years after he died, she would cry every time he was mentioned. My friend's wife told her husband, "Honey, I love you very much, but I will never grieve for you for seventeen years!"
Edna St. Vincent Millay expressed the type of hopeless-
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ness that many feel in facing a loss. In her poem
"Lament," she wrote:
Life must go on, and the dead be forgotten; Life must go on, Though good men die; Anne, eat your breakfast; Dan, take your medicine; Life must go on; I forget just why.
Jesus was no stranger to grief. Isaiah 53:3, 4 foretold that Christ would be "despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief" (NASB).
Happiness is a choice, but grief is a certainty. When Jacob thought that Joseph had been torn apart by wild beasts, the Bible says he "tore his clothes and mourned for his son many days." When King David heard that his son had been killed, he expressed his grief in words which have echoed throughout the ages: "0 my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would God I had died for thee, 0 Absalom, my son, my son!" (2 Samuel 18:33 KJV). When death separates us from someone we love, there is a time when we think no one has suffered as we have. But grief is universal. The method of handling grief is personal and vital.
The Threefild Death
Because all men have sinned, all are under the penalty of death. Not only does man suffer as a result of Bin in ;his life, but he must face the judgment to come. As it was with Adam, so it is with all people. God punishes sin with a threefold death-physical, spiritual, and eternal.
First, there is physical death. The Bible says: "It is appointed unto men once to die" (Hebrews 9:27). The Bible teaches that there is "a time to be born and a time to die" (Ecclesiastes 3:2). As Psalm 89:48 asks: "What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death?" Thus the Bible states clearly that God has already made an appointment for each person with death. There is for each man a day, an hour, a minute. The Bible talks in many places about the brevity of life. We are told that our physical lives are "a tale that is told1'-"a weaver's shuttlen-a "flower that fadesu-"grass that withers." One generation passes and another comes. If God had not given the judgment of physical death on the human race, men would have continued in their sins until the earth would have become hell itself. Each generation has a fresh new start. Thus although death is a penalty for sin, divinely imposed on individuals, when it comes to successive generations of
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mankind, death is a blessing.
Because of the brevity of life, the Bible warns that we should be prepared to meet God at all times. "Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with thee, thou has appointed his bounds that he cannot pass" (Job 14:5).
The Bible exhorts us: "Prepare to meet thy God" (Amos 4:12). Caesar Borgia said in his last moments: "I have provided in the course of my life for everything except death; and now alas! I am to die entirely unprepared."
Second, there is spiritual death. There are millions of persons here and now who are suffering spiritual death. Almost any day you can pick up a newspaper and read of those whose lives testify that they are empty or lost. They were made for fellowship with God, and they are separated from their Maker. This is spiritual death. It is the separation of the soul from God, the separation of man from the One who said: "I am. . .the life." It is spoken of in Scripture as being "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:l).
Third, there is eternal death. The Bible has a great deal to say about Hell. No one spoke more about Hell than Jesus did, and the Hell He came to save men from was not only a Hell on earth. It was not only some condition in which men are now living. It was something to come. Jesus never once taught that anyone on earth was living in Hell now. He always warned of a Hell to come. Whatever He meant by Hell, essentially it is the separation of the soul from God as the culmination of man's spiritual death. There are many mysteries here, and we dare not go beyond the teaching of Scripture. It is enough to warn men that Jesus said: "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment" (Matthew 25:46). Jesus also said:
"The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 13:41-42).
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Before W e Die
Before we die, two basic issues must be resolved.
The first is, "Am I ready?" Have you confessed your sins and asked Jesus Christ to come into your heart, to take possession of your life? Millions of Christians throughout the world are assured "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).
But the Christian life doesn't end there! The next basic issue is "How then do I live?" This is to say, before you die, what service will you render to God and man? Are you investing your life in those things that will last for eternity? "So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5:9-10).
The Bible says we will all have to give account to Jesus someday (1 Peter 4:5). We will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ (Romans 14:10). On that day, what we have done on earth will be past. Our chances to speak to the neighbor about the love of Christ, to give to missions, to help evangelism, will be over. Opportunities to share our earthly goods with the starving will be gone. Whatever gifts we were given will be worthless if we hoarded them on earth.
Death is Perennial
Death tolls in wars and epidemics, and the news we read of famine in foreign lands, draw our attention to the fatal aspects of the world around us. Reports from Africa and South America tell of millions of affected citizens, thousands of casualties, miles of affected territory, months and
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years of suffering, and all the tragedy that can be summed up in statistical fashion. But statistics, and the ways they are fed to us by the media, can be misleading. Death is perennial. During World War 11, C. S. Lewis pointed out that war does not increase death; death is total in every generation. It takes every one of us. George Bernard Shaw wryly wrote, "The statistics on death are quite impressive. One out of one people die."
Death, Enemy of God
// But, Lord. I don't want to die." And the Lord, as it were, answers: I didn't plan the world that way, but some day, even this enemy will be destroyed. God reminds us of that through the apostle Paul. "For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:25,26).
Why is death an enemy of God? Because it destroys life, in contrast to God, the creator and author of life. In fact, the Bible tells us that neither sin nor pain, disease nor death were part of God's original plan for man. Death was the penalty for sin, and Adam and Eve made the choice of their own free wills. When they did not obey God, He told the first man and woman if they ate from the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would die. But Satan scoffed at God's warning and told them they surely would not die. Adam and Eve chose to ignore God's warning and to believe Satan's lie. "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23).
Death is the common lot of every human being and of every other living thing-both plants and animals. Sin and death, the Bible tells us, have afflicted the whole of God's creation, including the natural world, and only when Christ comes in His glory at the end of the present era will sin be eradicated and creation be restored to God's
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original plan. "The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God" (Romans 8:l-21).
Death, Our Mortal Enemy
T h e Bible stresses that death is an enemy, not a friendboth of God and of us.
Why is death our enemy? I'm not thinking of the death which is a release from pain, debilitating disease, or advanced age, but death the enemy who snatches a child before he learns to play in the sunshine. It is the enemy who takes the young couple before they can be married, stops the youth who wants to be a pilot, or kills the young father and leaves orphaned children and a destitute wife. As you read this sentence, one person will die. Death, like an unfinished symphony, leaves fragments of many promising careers and lives.
Death for the Christian
M o s t of us know what it means to be stunned by the sudden passing of a dedicated friend, a godly pastor, a devout missionary, or a saintly mother. We have stood at the open grave with hot tears coursing down our cheeks and have asked in utter bewilderment, "Why, 0 God, why?"
The death of the righteous is no accident. Do you think that the God whose watchful vigil notes the sparrow's fall and who knows the number of hairs on our heads would turn His back on one of His children in the hour of peril? With Him there are no accidents, no tragedies, and no catastrophes as far as His children are concerned.
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Paul, who lived most of his Christian life on the brink of death, expressed triumphant certainty about life. He testified, "To me, to live is Christ and to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21). His strong, unshakable faith took trouble, persecution, pain, thwarted plans, and broken dreams
in stride.
He never bristled in questioning cynicism and asked, "Why, Lord?" He knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that his life was being fashioned into the image and likeness of his Savior; and despite the discomfort, he never flinched in the process.
Death of a Child
W h e n a child or young person dies, parents sometimes elevate him or her to a pedestal never attained in life. The one who is gone may become the most perfect son or daughter who ever lived, at least in the memory of mother and father. One woman told me of resenting her dead sister all her life, because her mother always talked about
"little Lucille" as if she had been a saint.
It is unfair to attribute virtues beyond a person's true character. On the other hand, it can be healing to blot out the bitter memories and grasp the happy ones.
A family either comes closer together as a result of death, or is driven farther apart. Nothing ever seems to remain the same. The death of a child, especially a firstborn or an only child, can place severe strains on a marriage.
But there is help. C. S. Lewis says, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."
No one likes to be shouted at, and yet God loves us so much that when troubles come, He is there to call us closer to Him.
Children may be the little trumpet players who bring us to our senses, and to our knees. "Jesus said, 'Let the little
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children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these"' (Matthew 19:14).
Preparation for the Journey
But how do we prepare for that last day? What if the old childhood bedtime prayer, "If I should die before I wake," becomes a reality? Before we embark on our final trip, have we left an earthly home in a state of chaos or a condition of order?
The first step in preparation is to accept the fact that we are going to die. Unless we are willing to talk openly about this fact, we will never be motivated to follow through on any of the remaining steps.
It has been said that someone found St. Francis working in his garden and asked him, "What would you do if you knew that you would die in ten minutes?" St. Francis replied, "I'd try to finish this row."
Most of us are not that ready. We might need ten days instead of ten minutes!
After accepting our mortality, the next step is to put our material affairs in order. Dr. Bell taught me a great lesson about that. When I was a very young man, he urged me to make a will. When he died, his papers were found to be perfectly categorized and numbered in file folders, and there was no confusion about how he wanted his earthly estate to be dispersed.
From that I learned the value of writing down instructions and leaving vital information where it could be found. This includes providing information about where bank books are kept, how insurance papers are filed, and where the key is to your safe deposit box. Our treasures may be laid up in Heaven, but those things we leave on earth will mean a great deal more to those we leave behind. Many Christians today seek to include their church and other ministries in their will.
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[Third,] plan your own funeral. Did you make plans for your own wedding? Did you ever have a special party, an anniversary or birthday celebration, where you planned in advance what you would do? Then what's so strange about planning your own funeral?
Why give instructions for your own funeral? Certainly not because you will be concerned about them. You won't attend your own funeral. However, your spouse, your children, your friends and business associates may all be there. The survivors would want to know your wishes. Where will you be buried? Have you left instructions about cremation or a burial plot? What hymns would you want to be sung? Are there any words of assurance you would want to be said to your loved ones and friends? Are there any requests about an open or closed casket?
How often the survivors of the deceased have to struggle with those decisions when they are in no condition to be making such plans, and when it would have been so much easier to have the plans already made and settled.
If we plan our own funeral, we should keep in mind family traditions or customs in the part of the country where we live. For instance, in many places viewing the body is an important part of the grief process, which allows the survivors to say farewell to the physical part of the person they loved. It gives a certain finality to the death process.
Comforting His People My wife says that the ones who comforted her mother the most after her father died, were the widows who came to the house, put their arms around Mother Bell, and wept with her. They didn't need to say a thing.
But how can we have a ministry of comfort if we have never experienced deep sorrow ourselves? What could we say to the girl whose mother, father, brother, and
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grandmother were all killed in an automobile accident? What comfort could we offer the parents who have spent two years with a dying child? How could we understand the emotions of a mother and father whose only daughter was a victim of rape-murder by the Hillside Strangler? They are beyond our ability to understand. And yet God does not suggest, He commands us to "Comfort my people" (Isaiah 40:l). However, allow me to make some general observations and suggestions for those who want to obey that command and be a source of support and comfort for the grief-stricken.
The first suggestion is to ask God to give us a tender heart. David asked the Lord, "Create in me a pure heart" (Psalm 51:lO). We could add, an understanding heart, an aching heart, a considerate heart. "Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble" (1 Peter 3:8).
Second, use the gift of listening. Somehow this is very difficult for all of us. We talk, many times, because we think we need to say something. Listening is hard. The sound of our own voices may be therapy for us, but it is not necessarily healing for the wounded griever. During a time of shock, people need to repeat their story over and over again. You may think they would grow weary of giving details, or telling what happened, but that isn't the case at all.
Third, we shouldn't be shocked by whatever the griefstricken person may say. Death can be a nightmare, and while visitors are there, life and reality may be distorted. A perfectly rational person may say irrational things. One man returned to his home from the hospital where his daughter had died, and saw his best friend sitting in his kitchen, wearing a worn sweater the friend had taken from the closet. The distraught father snapped at his friend, "Why are you wearing that? It's my fishing sweater."
The understanding friend took off the sweater without
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a word. Did the father make an issue over a trivial matter? Of course he did, but in later years he remembered every detail of that night and thanked his friend for being there when he needed him.
Fourth, let the bereaved one decide if he or she wants Bible reading or prayer. "Would you like to have me pray with you?" is a simple request. But keep it simple and short, for a mind in agony cannot grasp lengthy prayers that circle the globe.
Fifth, anticipate needs without being told. Be the one who asks, "May I answer the phone for you?" Or "I would like to drive you to the funeral home to make the arrangements." Or, "Don't worry about anything in the kitchen, I'll handle it."
One of the worst things to say is, "Call me if you need anything."
Finally, don't stop being a comforter when the wounds seem to be healed. A wedding anniversary, a birthday, holidays, the anniversary of a death, these are hard times to grope through. Remembering those times with an invitation to dinner, a phone call, or a little note, will provide thoughtful comfort.
The FindlJudgment
Consider what happened in John's vision. It is a picture of the absolute horror of the final judgment. Carefully, the Lamb opened the sixth seal (Revelation 6:12-17). Suddenly, chaos gripped the universe. An earthquake that no Richter scale could measure shakes the entire world. The sun is eclipsed completely. In fact, reports John, "the sun turned black. . .the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind" (Revelation 6:12-13). Here is a storm of apocalyptic proportions. The world trembles with terror. The great cities collapse. John sees kings, princes, generals, the rich, the mighty, slaves, the free, every human being left on the earth running to escape the horror of God's final judgment. They flee to mountain caves. They cower behind rocks and boulders. But there is no escape. Desperately they cry out, "Hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?" (Revelation 6:16-17).
There will be a day of reckoning when God closes His books on time and judges every creature, living and dead.
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This vision of the judgments leading to the final judgment permeates the sixty-six books of the Holy Scripture. Before John's vision it was called the "day of wrath" (Zephaniah 1:15; Romans 2:5). Amos called it "the day of the Lord" (Amos 5:18), as did Jesus' own disciple, Peter (2 Peter 3:lO). Paul, again and again, called it "the day of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 1:8; Philippians 1:6). It is often referred to as the Great Tribulation.
All through history there have been days of judgment. The first judgment of God fell on Adam and Eve at the beginning of time (Genesis 3:16-19). Their original sin brought God's day of wrath and a permanent curse on all who followed. God judged Cain. God judged the descendants of Cain with the flood that Noah escaped. Other judgments include the confusing of tongues at Babel, the fiery destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the captivity and dispersion of the Israelites.
A Compassionate Warning
Before the storm of judgment comes, however, God always warns the people. He warned the people of Noah's day before destruction came. He warned the people of Sodom before destruction came. He warned the people of Nineveh before judgment came. He warned the people of Jerusalem before destruction came.
What happened in Noah's day will be repeated at the end of history. We have the word of Jesus who said, "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man" (Matthew 24:37). The two experiences will run parallel in many important aspects, not only in the vast extent of lawlessness and the universality of catastrophe, but also in the earnestness of warning and the provision of a way of escape. At God's bidding, Noah preached for 120 years. During that time he warned the people to repent of their sins and turn to God, but the people
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laughed and sneered. Then, as time ran out, astonishing things began to happen. Clouds appeared in the sky for the first time. Animals began to gather. The rain came. Jesus said, "The flood came and destroyed them all" (Luke 17:27).
The apostle Peter wrote, "In the last days mockers will undoubtedly come-men whose only guide in life is what they want for themselves-and they will say: 'What has happened to his promised coming? Since the first Christians fell asleep, everything remains exactly as it was since the beginning of creation!"' (2 Peter 3:34 PHIL).
But Peter warned, "The day of the Lord will come as suddenly and unexpectedly as a thief. In that day the heavens will disappear in a terrific tearing blast; the very elements will disintegrate in heat and the earth and all that is in it will be burned up to nothing" (verse 10).
Before all of these terrifying things take place, the Bible indicates there will be a turning away from the true faith on the part of many who profess Christ, and much social and political unrest all over the world.
Time's Findl Drama
Imagine that the time has come when the Judge is speaking. The angels and archangels are in attendance. Time's final drama is about to take place. Skyscrapers have fallen and the wheels of industry have ceased turning; the places of amusement are empty; the cocktail bars are vacant; the theaters have no one in them-all the places of the world are deserted. Motor cars are at a standstill, and the beaches are empty.
Then God calls for the dead to be brought forth. From the ocean depths where ships were sunk long ago, from graveyards long since forgotten, from the battlefields of the world they come-millions and millions and millions of people. They are crying for the rocks to fall on them, they are crying for the caves to open up and give them a
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place to hide, but there is no hiding from Him Who sits on the throne. They come before the Lord and they say, "But, Lord, we cast out demons in Your name."
"Depart from Me, ye cursed, I never knew you." "But, Lord, we were members of the First Church." "Depart from me, ye cursed, I never knew you." "But, Lord, I lived a good life." "Depart from me, ye cursed, I never knew you." "But, Lord, I paid my debts and led a good, respectable life."
"Depart from me, ye cursed, I never knew you." The Bible says there will be only one question in that day-what did you do with Jesus? You don't go to Hell for drinking liquor, you don't go to Hell for using profanity-you go to Hell for rejecting Christ! Are you certain that you are saved? If there is the slightest doubt in you mind, you can make sure.
God says, "Prepare to meet God." How do you prepare? "If we confess with our mouths the Lord Jesus and believe in our hearts that God hath raised him from the dead, we shall be saved," the Bible tell us. "But as many as received him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name" (John 1:12). God says, "Believe on My Son and you will live; and when you die, you will go to Heaven."
Certainty of Punishment
T h e Bible says so.
"I am tormented in this flame" (Luke 16:24). "Whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire" (Matthew 5:22).
"The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 13: 4142).
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All peoples have believed in it. Throughout my college days I emphasized the subject of scientific anthropology. We studied the history, the culture, the physical characteristics and the religions of peoples the world over. We did not find one group of people who did not believe that somehow, somewhere, they would pay for their sins and errors against their God. Innate in the heart and mind of man is the belief that when he breaks the moral laws of the universe he must suffer. I make bold to say further that man believes innately that after death there will be some form of punishment for the wicked, wayward life he led in his sojourn here.
Resurrection us Histo y
There is a basis of historical fact for our belief in the bodily resurrection of Christ. It rests on more evidence than any event that took the place in that time.
There are those who say that Jesus did not actually die, but that He only fainted. A resurrection presupposes a death. In order to be raised from the dead, Jesus had to die. This is a self-evident fact deduced from the crucifixion. The soldiers were certain that Jesus was dead and that they did not need to induce death by shock by breaking His legs, as in the cases of the two thieves. It was the enemies, not the friends of Jesus, who attested his death, and they made certain when they thrust a spear into His heart.
The body of Jesus was wrapped in fine linen with spices, according to the local custom. An actual tomb was involved, which required the placing of a body. Moreover, a stone was rolled against the face of the tomb, a seal was
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placed upon it, and a Roman guard set before it. This burial of the body of Jesus presupposes the impossibility of burying a spirit. Spirits are immaterial and cannot be buried. The body of Jesus was physical and material.
It was not only buried so that it occupied space in a tomb, but it was buried for three days. This could not have been true of a spirit, for spirits occupy neither time nor space.
When the disciples saw the tomb in which they had previously buried the body of Jesus, it was empty. The burial garments were in such shape and place to indicate their abandonment by the orderly departure of the body of Jesus. When Jesus later appeared to His disciples, it was in a body, for He said: "A spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have" (Luke 24:39). His resurrection body occupied spatial conditions and performed the functions of movement, appearance, and the eating of food. He talked and heard. He occupied a room but did not need a door for access. It was the same body in its glorified spiritual form that Jesus took from the tomb, leaving it empty and without occupant.
There were thirteen different appearances of Jesus under every conceivable condition and circumstance. Unlike hallucinations, which can continue to deceive, the appearances of Jesus ceased, for they ended with His ascension.
Any notion that seeks to disprove the bodily resurrection of Jesus is confronted with these appearances of Jesus in His own body. It was a body both similar and dissimilar to that which was nailed to the tree. It was so similar that Mary mistook Him for the caretaker of the garden. It
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was so similar that it could receive food, engage in conversation, and occupy a room.
The dissimilarity was in its properties. It combined both material and immaterial properties. It could pass through closed doors or vanish. When viewed scientifically, this would not seem to be incredible.
Who Hdsn't Risen
Turn back in history for a few moments. I want you to see several leaders who have lived and played their part in life. They died, never to rise again.
Remember for a moment Pharaoh Shishak who lived two thousand, eight hundred years ago. He was mentioned in the Old Testament; the lord of two Egypts, the founder of a new dynasty, a very boastful and arrogant man. His tomb was opened a few months ago [1950], verifying the Scriptures. They found only a dried and shriveled mummy, for he died and never rose again. Go to the Great Pyramid built thousands of years ago. It has more than two million three hundred thousand blocks of limestone, and took a hundred thousand workers twenty years to build. But it marks nothing except the failure of a selfish Pharaoh. Today that Pharaoh is still there, never rising from the grave.
Charlemagne, who controlled the far-flung Holy Roman Empire, who was crowned king of the Holy Roman Empire on Christmas day 800, is today only a jumble of moldy bones, buried in the dust of his tomb, for he never rose again from the grave.
Go to the Taj Mahal in India, the most beautiful tomb in all the world, but all that remains of the Mongol emperor and his wife are moldy bones. They died and never rose again.
Go to Mt. Vernon and see the grave of the father of our country, George Washington. Stand there at attention,
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with your hat off, and the tears streaming down your cheeks, honor his memory, but know that George Washington lies in the grave.-George Washington, though a great man and father of his country, lies buried in a tomb and has never risen from the grave.
Or go to Russia to see the body of Lenin. They say that he was embalmed with a fluid that would never let his body decay, and they say that he looks as though he were breathing. There are many people who think that Lenin is the Antichrist and is going to be raised up and will be Satan incarnate. I do not know, but this one thing I do know-Lenin is still in the grave and he has never been raised from the grave.
Go to India and see Mahatma Gandhi's burial place. He was one of the greatest men that ever lived, a leader to the masses of India. When Gandhi was shot. . .he died and has never risen from the grave.
Every tomb, every burial place of man, whether it be massive as the pyramid or simple as your family plot, speaks of death. Every burial place, every cemetery, every gravestone, every casket, every hearse, are all testimonies of human failure-all prove the Scriptural fact that it "is appointed unto man once to die."
The Truth of the Resurrection
W h a t does the resurrection of Jesus Christ mean to you and me?
First of all, it means that Jesus Christ is what He claimed to be. That Jesus Christ was deity. That Jesus Christ was God incarnate. That Jesus Christ spoke the truth when He said, "I and my father are one" (John 10:30). And then the Lord Jesus Christ said He came to save us from sin. If we believe on Christ, we shall be saved. He meant what He said, and there is no other way of salvation except through Him.
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Secondly, the resurrection means that God has accepted Christ's atoning work. Listen to this: "Who was delivered for our offenses and raised again for our justification." God accepted Abel's sacrifice, but He rejected Cain's sacrifice. What would He do with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the cross of Calvary? Would He accept it? Can we be saved through the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross of Calvary? How can we know? God said, "This is my Son in whom I am well pleased."
God turned His back and the Lord Jesus was separated from God for a space of time on the cross of Calvary, going to Hell for our sins, suffering spiritually and physically, yet on the third day the Father loved the Son and because the Father also loved you and me, He accepted the finished work on the cross of Calvary. He raised up the Lord Jesus. When Jesus rose from the dead, it was a living proof that anyone can be saved by the blood of Jesus Christ; by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, accepting Him as your Lord and Savior. Scripture says that you can be born again by accepting Christ as your Savior.
The Bible tells us that if we confess with our mouths the Lord Jesus and believe in our hearts that God has raised Him from the dead, we shall be saved. But you cannot be saved without believing in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Unless He rose again, His death would mean no more than the death of any human martyr.
You know why the apostles and the early Christians were persecuted and beaten, stoned and thrown into the lion's den? Not for preaching the teaching of Jesus, nor the virgin birth. It was not for preaching His coming again, but for preaching the resurrection. Unbelievers couldn't stand the truth of the resurrection because if Satan can win the battle of the resurrection, he's won everything. Thanks be unto God, Satan never won the battle. It was won by the Lord Jesus when He died and was raised up by God from the grave.
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Meaning of the Resurrection
T h e presence of the living Christ. Christ is the living companion of every person who puts his trust in Him. He said: "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:20). He is the guarantee that life has a new meaning. After the crucifixion, the beleaguered disciples despaired and said: "We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel" (Luke 24:21, RSV). There was anguish, despair, and tragedy in their midst. Life had lost its meaning and purpose. But when the resurrection became apparent, life took on a new meaning. It had purpose and reason. . . .
The prayers of the living Christ. The Scripture says: "It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us" (Romans 8:34). In other words, there is a Man at the right hand of God the Father. He is living in a body that still has the nail prints in His hands. He is interceding for us with God the Father as our great High Priest.
The power of the living Christ. The resurrection made it possible for Christ to be identified with all Christians in all ages and to give them power to serve Him. "Verily, verily, I szy unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father" (John 14:12). Paul even prayed: "That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection" (Philippians 3:lO). His resurrection presence gives us strength and power for each day's task.
The pattern of our new bodies. The resurrected body of Jesus Christ is the pattern of what our bodies will be when we too are raised from the dead. "For our conversation is in Heaven; from whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue things unto himself" (Philippians 3:20,21).
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The promise of a returning Redeemer. The entire plan for the future has its key in the resurrection. Unless Christ is raised from the dead, there can be no kingdom and no returning King. When the disciples stood at the place of the ascension, they were given angelic assurance that the Christ of resurrection would be the Christ of returning glory. "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into Heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into Heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven" (Acts 1:ll). Thus the resurrection is an event that was both preparatory for and confirmative of a future event even of His second coming.
Yes, our leader Jesus Christ is alive.
Signs of the Times
W e sometimes wonder where God is during the storms of life, in all the troubles of the world. Where is God? Why doesn't He stop the evil? The Bible assures us that God will abolish evil when Christ returns. Someday Christ will come with the shout of acclamation, and there will be a dramatic reunion of all those who have trusted in Him.
No wonder Scripture tells us that at that time "every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" (Philippians 2:lO-11). If you do not receive Christ as Savior and bow to Him now as Lord of your life, the day is coming when you will bow before Him as Judge.
Jesus did not tell us when He is coming back. He said we were not to speculate. "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in Heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Matthew 24:36). The sixth chapter of Revelation gives a strikingly detailed portrait of the end times, but no one knows when these things will be except the Father in Heaven. Not even the angels know. But Jesus also said that there would be certain signs that we could watch for. They are called the "signs of the times," and they are given in detail in chapters 24 and 25 of the
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Gospel of Matthew-the first book of the New Testament.
Both passages from Matthew and Revelation, taken together, give us a graphic storm warning of events yet to come and provide clearly identifiable signs of the end times. Jesus' own narrative reveals specific details of the fall of Jerusalem and the persecution that would follow. Then in the chapters that follow, Matthew records His triumphal entry into Jerusalem when the crowds hailed Him with palm branches and hosannahs as Messiah. Matthew relates the heartbreaking events of the trials before the Sanhedrin and Pilate, the beatings, the crucifixion, and the thrilling account of Christ's rising from the grave. He provides intimate details of the forty days Jesus spent with the disciples in His glorified body, teaching and challenging them before returning to the throne of Heaven.
But one portion of this story deserves to be examined in greater detail. For when Jesus came up to Jeiusalem for that final Passover, He wept over the ancient city. He cried, "0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem! The one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!" (Matthew 23:37 NKJV).
Jesus tried to prepare the disciples for the humiliation He was about to endure-the floggings, the cursings, the mockery, and the shameful death on a cross among thieves-but they did not understand. When He told them He must die and rise again in three days, they were mystified. Surely He was speaking in parables; no man could die and rise again by his own command-unless he were God.
As they passed through the city walls, the people with Him marveled at the size and grandeur of the temple buildings. But Jesus told them that soon these walls, this temple, and all the grand palaces and structures in Jerusalem would be flattened, and "not one stone here will be left on another" (Matthew 24:2). They were astonished
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that Jesus would even suggest such a thing. These were just simple fishermen, tax collectors, and tradesmen from the remote northern region of Galilee, but they could see that Jerusalem was a beautiful, grand city. It was the city hailed by the prophets. How could such towering buildings ever be flattened? What army, what force, could do such a thing? So a group of disciples came to Jesus privately and asked Him, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"
The Ve y Headlines of Our Day
Jesus warned that the price of believing in Him would be
high. Mockery, laughter, persecution, even death would be common, but many would refuse to pay such prices. "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you," He said, "and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved."
I believe this is a realistic portrait of our times. Our confidence has been shocked by scandals in the church, in government, in education, and at every level of authority. We have seen graphic images of police officers beating citizens; we have seen top officials of government and business convicted of cheating, lying, and fraud.
We have seen moral and religious leaders, men who claim to be followers of Jesus, fall into disgrace in the eyes of God and man. And worst of all, we have seen the gospel of Jesus Christ twisted and distorted by false teachers to accommodate the destructive morals and secular behavior of these times. These warnings from the Book of Matthew are not parables or myths; they are the very
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headlines of our day. They are the evidence of Christ's prophecy fulfilled before our eyes.
The World's Last War
There is coming a time in the future-whether near or far I do not know (especially since Jesus warned us not to speculate on dates)-when a counterfeit world system or ruler will establish a false utopia for an extremely short time. The economic and political problems of the world will seem to be solved. But after a brief rule the whole thing will come apart. During this demonic reign tensions will mount, and once again the world will begin to explode with a ferocity involving conflict on an unparalleled scale. Even the grip of the world leaders will be unable to prevent it. This massive upheaval will be the world's last war, the battle of Armageddon. According to secular and scientific writers, there is an inevitability to humanity's date with Armageddon.
Two Mighty Trinities
W e know that the Antichrist will appear and try to ensnare the minds and hearts of men. The time draws close, the stage is set; confusion, panic, and fear are abroad. The signs of the False Prophet are everywhere at hand, and many may be the living witnesses of the awesome moment when the final act of this age-old drama begins. It may well come in our time, for the tempo is speeding up, events move more swiftly, and on every side we see men and women consciously or unconsciously choosing up sidesaligning themselves with the devil or with God.
It will be a battle to the death, in the truest meaning of that word-a battle that will give no quarter, that will make no allowances or exceptions. The human phase of
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this battle started in the Garden of Eden when the devil seduced mankind from God, making it possible for there to be billions of warring wills, every man turning to his own way. "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him [Christ] the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6). It will continue until the end of time, until one or the other of these two mighty forces-the force of good or evil-triumphs and places the True King or the false king on the throne.
At this moment in history, two mighty trinities stand face to face: the Trinity of God (the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost) and the false trinity that Satan would have us worship in its place. The trinity of evil (the Devil, Antichrist, and False Prophet) is described in the Book of Revelation: "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet" (Revelation 16:13).
Never for a second of your waking or sleeping life are you without the influence of these two powerful forces, never is there a moment when you cannot deliberately choose to go with one or the other. Always the devil is standing at your side tempting, coaxing, threatening, cajoling. And always on your other side stands Jesus, the all-loving, the all-forgiving, waiting for you to turn to Him and ask His aid, waiting to give you supernatural power to resist the Evil one. You belong to one or the other. There isn't a no-man's land in between where you can hide.
In moments of your greatest fear and anxiety, in moments when you feel yourself helpless in the grip of events you cannot control, when despair and disappointment overwhelm you-in these moments many times it is the devil who is trying to catch you at your weakest point and push you further along the path that Adam took.
In these perilous moments remember that Christ has not deserted you. He has not left you defenseless. As He triumphed over Satan in His hour of temptation and trial, so He has promised that you, too, can have daily victory
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over the Tempter. Remember: "Ye are of God. . .and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world" (1 John 4:4).
The Four Horsemen
Picture John somewhere above Patmos caught up in his vision to the very throne of God. The ~ a m b is about to open God's book. The four creatures bow in silence. The twenty-four elders tremble in anticipation. The choir of ten thousand times ten thousand angels stops its singing and stands on tiptoe waiting to see what happens next. Then, as John, an eyewitness on the scene, reports in Revelation, "the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals" (Revelation 6:l).
What should happen then is obvious. A page of writing should appear peeled back from the leather scroll, and John and the creatures and the elders should all crowd around to read that page. But this is no ordinary book! This is an illustrated, God-inspired volume whose pictures leap full-blown from the pages and thunder across their vision. Apparently, there is a brief moment between that time when the Lamb breaks open the seal and the time when the four horsemen of the Apocalypse can ride. In that instant they await God's command like racehorses poised at the gate. The four horsemen cannot ride at their own command because of God's sovereign control; they pause for God's order to begin their journey.
In that pause, as the riders await God's command to ride, we learn several great lessons about these judgments.
First, we learn that the judgment of the four horsemen is in part conditional.
As I have written. . . I have pondered repeatedly a very basic question about these judgments. It is this. Are these judgments which John foresees inevitable? Will they definitely happen? Or can these judgments somehow be
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delayed or even completely averted? In other words, are they unconditional-definitely going to take place no matter what happens? Or are they conditional-able to be diverted if certain conditions are met, such as our repentance and faith?
This is not an easy question to answer, and I am aware sincere students of the Bible may not all agree. However, after careful study I have come to the conclusion that the answer is-both! At some time in the future-a time unknown to us-the terrible hooves of the four horsemen will finally trample across the stage of human history with an unprecedented intensity, bringing in their wake deception, war, hunger, and death on a scale which staggers the imagination. God will use those four horsemen in an awesome act of judgment on the earth, and like a tremendous tidal wave smashing on the shore, nothing will be able to prevent it. Some day, the Bible says, judgment is certainly coming. "For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed" (Acts 17:31).
Until this time that God has appointed, however, there are many occasions when God seemingly delays or averts His hand of judgment for a period of time because men have repented and turned to Him in faith and obedience. Throughout the centuries the hoofbeats of the four horsemen have echoed and re-echoed across the pages of history: deception, war, hunger and death have haunted the human race to one degree or another since the day Adam and Eve chose to rebel against God. At times those hoofbeats have hammered loudly, bringing suffering and death on a massive scale. At times they have become much fainter. Why? I believe it is because there are times when God delays His judgments, possibly even for several generations, because many have listened to His message of warning and turned to Him in repentance and faith.
Second, we learn that the judgment of the four horsemen is correctional.
God's judgment in some ways is similar to pain in our
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physical bodies. Some of you reading this have had the experience of realizing one day that you had a vague pain some place in your body. Perhaps you ignored it at first, but as time went by it became more and more intense until at last you could dismiss its insistent voice no longer. You realized that the only intelligent thing to do was to go to a doctor and find out the reason for your pain. For some of you the doctor's examination revealed a potentially deadly cancer eating away at your body. Only surgery could remove it-but once it was removed, your health returned, and you were well again. The pain had been like an alarm clanging in the night, warning of impending disaster. The purpose of that pain was collective-to let you know something was wrong so you would take action to correct the underlying problem.
In the same way, God's judgments are meant to be corrective. They are meant to remind us forcefully of our need of God and the demand to follow His principles for living. God can use trials and difficulties (even if they sometimes are not His direct judgments on us) to teach us and make us into better persons for His glory. "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves.. . .No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it" (Hebrews 12:5, 6, 11). The four horsemen of the Apocalypse point inevitably to deeper moral and spiritual problems which affect our lives. May God use their warning to make us face these problems and turn to God, who alone can bring us forgiveness and the strength of the Holy Spirit to live a new life.
Who is this rider on the white horse? Is this rider on the white horse Christ, as some have suggested? For centuries
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biblical scholars and commentators have argued about the identity of this rider. You will note that he is wearing a crown of victory and carrying a bow of great destruction in his hand. In Revelation 19 Christ is pictured on a white horse wearing many crowns, and this has led some to believe that the rider on the white horse here in Revelation 6 is also Christ. However, after careful study I do not believe this to be the case. In the Greek language the crown worn by the rider of Revelation 6 is called stephanos, which was the crown of victory worn by a conqueror. The crowns Christ wears in Revelation 19, on the other hand, are diadema, or the crowns of royalty. Furthermore, although the rider on the white horse bears a resemblance to Christ, the appearance is actually deceptive because a deeper look reveals his true nature. He is "a conqueror bent on conquest," greedily riding roughshod over all who stand in his way in his lust for power.
Who, therefore, is the rider on the white horse? He is not Christ, but a deceiver who seeks to capture the hearts and souls of men and women. He is one who seeks to have people acknowledge him as Lord instead of the true Christ.
The rider who deceives has been at work in the world since the dawn of human history. He was at work in the Garden of Eden when Satan accosted Adam and Eve and by his diabolical power of deception convinced them to turn their backs on God and disobey His clear command. As a result of that action the human race fell from its sinless glory, bringing death and despair in its wake.
Again, somewhere above Patmos, John stands trembling before God's eternal throne. The white horse bearing the rider who deceives has galloped from the scroll and down the parapets of Heaven to wreak havoc on the
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earth. Again the celestial servant of God shouts the command of the Almighty: "Come!" Immediately a second horseman charges from the scroll and reins in before the throne. Does God speak to the rider? All John reports is this: The second rider "was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other" (Revelation 6:4). Does God Himself hand the rider a Roman sword? John states simply, "To him was given a large sword" (Revelation 6:4). Does the rider lift the sword in salute or simply spur the great heaving flanks of the horse red as blood and plunge from their sight toward the world below?
Remember, God is not the cause of war. God had a far greater plan for His creation-and at first that plan was a reality, with no hint of war or conflict to stain His perfect creation. But man, created free, chose not to obey God, and his resulting fallen nature turned to making war, not peace. This heavenly vision is God's way of showing us our folly and warning us of its consequences. Mankind throughout history has refused to listen to the warnings of God. I have often wondered, while the hoofbeats of that fiery red horse still rang in John's ear, whether he heard other sounds-the clanking of sword against sword, the sound of heavy iron spears piercing flesh and crunching bone, the sound of women screaming and children crying, the groans of the wounded and the gasps of the dying?
Listen! The distant sounds of those same hoofbeats can be heard closing in on the place you now sit reading. Above those noisy hoofbeats arise other sounds-the metallic thud of machine guns, the whistle of flamethrowers and mortar rounds, the crackle of burning schools, homes and churches, the high-pitched shriek of missiles zeroing in with their nuclear warheads, the explosion of fifty-megaton bombs over our cities, the scream of terror and death. . . and the silence of a scorched and desolate earth.
The two scenes I've described above, one ancient and one modern, are no exaggeration. For John the Apostle
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was well aware of the roar and horror of warfare. Just before John's life and ministry, from 67 to 37 B.c., Palestine had been besieged and bloodied by revolution. Without the aid of news teams and television body counts, ancient historians reckoned 100,000 deaths from the conflict. And just before John's exile, in A.D. 61, the Romans crushed another rebellion by Queen Boadicea in the northern empire, with a loss of over 150,000 soldiers and civilians. In the long year between A.D. 68 and 69, Rome had been ruled by four different Caesars. Each brought with him his own unique bloodbath.
War, anarchy, brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor-the complete breakdown of sane human relationships has characterized human history. The rider on the red horse has ridden from the beginning of time, and John's vision was sent as a harbinger of that final holocaust when the Messiah Himself will intervene and crush the allies of evil at Armageddon. Jesus forecast that worst of woes and wars as "unequaled from the beginning of the world until now-and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive" (Matthew 24:21,22).
The Lamb carefully pries open the third seal. The leather scroll gently unrolls. At the same moment, the third of God's servant creatures steps to the center stage of John's vision and gives out God's command, "Come!"
(Revelation 6:5). Again into the presence of the Lamb of God, the twenty-four elders and the host of angelic witnesses emerge a horse and rider. This black horse and rider bear yet a third warning to the peoples of our planet-a warning of massive hunger and starvation. "Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, 'A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and
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three quarts of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!"' (Revelation 6:5,6).
In New York City's Museum of Modern Art, Umberto Boccioni's "The City Rises" depicts the four horsemen of the Apocalypse in a contemporary, urban setting. This huge six-by-nine-foot oil on canvas captures the horror of the third horse and its rider. Boccioni's black horse rises like a tornado, whirling above the other horsemen.
We read in Lamentations 4:8 and 9 where the blackness of famine haunts the land and kills its victims.
For an instant the black horse and rider stand on parade before John and, through John, before all of us. Just before the rider whirls away on his destructive journey to the earth, we see him in all his prophetic terror. It is easy to picture the horse-black as tar, hooves pounding, flanks heaving, eyes flashing. The rider holds up a balance scale in his hand. Then, John reports, a voice comes from amidst the four apocalyptical beings, announcing: "A quart of wheat for a day's wages" (Revelation 6:6).
Holding up his scale to weigh the tiny amount of grain that will be available to the average working man, the rider on the black horse is a symbol of the desperate plight of the world after the first two horsemen have ridden.
With the advent of this third rider, Jesus is indicating that deception and false religion lead to war, and that war in turn leads to famine and pestilence. Following the white and red horses, famine will prevail upon the earth. Millions will die of hunger. Millions more will suffer malnutrition, and with inadequate diet comes disease, mental and emotional illness, despair and death. The black horse and rider are God's warning of the human suffering that lies ahead if man refuses to obey His commands.
The voice calls out one more instruction to the third horseman, who rides the black horse and carries the scale of judgment. "Do not damage the oil and the wine!" he says (Revelation 6:6). This is a picture of famine coexisting with luxury. Jesus told Peter, Andrew, James and John that,
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prior to His return, famine would stalk the earth and starve whole peoples in various parts of the world (Matthew 24:7; Mark 1323; Luke 21:ll). But He characterized those in other parts of the world as eating and drinking, apparently to gross excess, implying they could coexist in the same country. He said, "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark" (Matthew 24:37, 38). These two disparate conditions would be parallel and simultaneous. John the Apostle later prophesied that there would be societies leading a Babylonian existence-living in the lap of luxury. These are pictures of people surfeiting themselves to the hilt.
The rider of the black horse carries a pair of scales that say a worker will work an entire day just to keep himself alive. He will have nothing left to divide with his family. He will watch his children die. (The average parent passing through such an experience would rather be dead himself.)
Then the writer in Revelation adds, don't hurt the oil and the wine. He is stating that alongside the faminestricken poor, there would be the rich who do not suffer famine and pestilence. One of the great problems in our world today is that too often the poor become poorer and the rich become richer. This is one of the basic causes of social unrest in Central America and other parts of the world. And in the future the rich will become fewer in number and the numbers of the poor will increase. The disparity between starvation and riches side by side in the world today will be dwarfed in comparison to that which has been predicted for the future. There is an incomparably blacker day coming.
Three horses had galloped into John's vision and, bearing their riders of judgment, had ridden toward the earth.
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Again, the Lamb moved to break a fourth seal holding the pages of God's great scroll in place. As before, one of God's appointed emissaries stepped forward to command.
"Come!" he exclaimed. And another page was thrown back to reveal a fourth horse and rider.
What did John see in that flashing moment? And what did it mean to him and through him to all of us? In the biblical text John writes, "I looked, and there before me was a pale horse!" (Revelation 623). The word in Greek is chloros. The horse trembling there, rearing high in anger, was the yellow-green color of sickly grass. Goodspeed translates chloros as the "color of ashes." Barclay calls it the color of a face "blanched with terror." Moffatt paints the horse as livid, the bloodless color of a corpse. We use the root of that ancient Greek word when we describe the color of chlorine gas that seeps from a wrecked tanker car and mists its poisonous way across the landscape, lethally levelling all life-plants and people alike-in its wake. At that moment John's eyes were confronted with a consummately terrifying sight. Seated on the pale horse was a rider "named Death, and Hades was following close behind him" (Revelation 6:8). In the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, there is a painted reproduction of a series of seven tapestries woven in the fourteenth century. Some 472 feet long, it depicts John's vision of the Apocalypse. Six hundred years ago the artists-weavers read the sixth chapter of Revelation and artistically interpreted the rider as a skull wrapped in graveclothes sitting upon the pale horse and carrying the Roman broadsword in preparation for the carnage he would inflict.
In the fifteenth century, Albrecht Durer depicted John's vision in fifteen large, carefully cut wood blocks. Death rides the pale horse in the more traditional form of Father Time, an emaciated, bearded harbinger of judgment carrying a three-pronged spear and riding at full gallop toward men whose faces are upturned in defenseless horror.
Of all the dozens of artistic interpretations of the four
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horsemen the most graphic for me is the nightmare vision of a modern Japanese artist, Fujita, who painted the fourth horseman as a full skeleton grinning fiendishly, riding on the full skeleton of a horse across a battlefield strewn with skeletons. The entire charnel scene is framed in a chlorine green cloud of death. With Hiroshima and Nagasaki being etched into the Japanese psyche, who could better portray the pale horse than a Fujita?
The little phrase, "and Hades was following close behind him," has puzzled scholars over the centuries. Was there a second rider on the pale horse riding tandem with Death? Or was there a fifth horseman of the Apocalypse? Hades is the place where departed spirits reside between death and the resurrection, the transitional abode of the dead. This is the place that for a time swallows up the spirits of those who die outside of Christ. In the vision, John sees Death and Hades in all too ordinary terms of a man cleaning up refuse along a public road, spearing a bit of trash and dumping it into the trash bag he lugs along.
Two Judgments
T h e first is the judgment of sin that took place on the cross of Calvary more than 1900 years ago. Now when Christ died on the cross of Calvary, you as a Christian in God's reckoning, and in God's sight, died with Christ. Paul said, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live." And Paul also said to reckon ourselves dead indeed unto sin. On the cross of Calvary, the Lord Jesus Christ died in our stead as a substitute for our sins. Scripture says about the one who had his sins judged at Calvary, "hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is
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passed from death unto life" (John 5:24). I believe that Scripture teaches that Christians will not appear at the great White Throne Judgment.
I shall never be there, thanks be unto God. There is therefore now no judgment to them that are in Christ Jesus, because the Lord Jesus Christ was judged, of His own will, sin in our stead. My sins were borne by Christ at Calvary, and I'll never have to face them again. Satan may point his finger at me and say, "There's Billy Graham. Why, Billy Graham is a sinner! Look at the kind of life he leads. Look at all the lies he's told. Look at all the things he did when he was a boy."
But God says, "But the blood of Jesus Christ has cleansed Billy from every sin." You'll never be able to work your way into that position before God. You can't buy it. It's a free gift from God, the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ.
When the Lord Jesus Christ said, "It is finished," that guaranteed to every believing child of God that the plan of salvation was completed. I can never work for it, I can never buy it, but I can receive it through belief in Christ.
The most awful, horrible, terrible judgment of all time took place at Calvary. The Lord Jesus suffered more when God turned away from Him than all the people in the world can ever suffer. When God judged the Lord Jesus Christ in your stead and in my stead, that judgment was so awful that Jesus said, "My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?"
Then the second judgment is the judgment of self. I just want to mention it in passing. Unless we judge ourselves, God has to chasten us. Now notice in Scripture that God has two weapons, the first is the rod and the second is a sword. The Christian will never suffer the judgment of the sword. That is to be for the unrepentant sinner alone. God used the sword on Cain. That is the sword that He is going to use on the unbeliever. But God does use the rod on Christians. Do you know why God has to use the rod
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on us and spank us? Because we don't judge ourselves. We don't confess our sins; we go on backsliding and grieving the Holy Spirit. Then God has to take the rod and paddle us, and when God punishes us, it's not just a little light stroke, it hurts. Sometimes He leaves a bruise by His hand.
White Throne Judgment 1 want you to see that awful scene. The angels and archangels stand in attendance. At a place designated by Almighty God, Jesus Christ sits upon the throne. The angels are standing at attention. The heralds blow their horns and as the horns and the trumpets sound, the gates open and Hades releases all of the sinners who had been there. Here they come crying for the rocks to fall on them. Crying for the caves to open up and give them a place of hiding, for the mountains to shelter them, but there is no shelter, there is no hiding from Him that sits on the throne. From battlefields long since forgotten they come. Graveyards have given up the dead which lay there for hundreds of years. From the ocean depths where ships were sunken long ago they come. Millions and millions of them, the earth's great and little who played their parts upon the stage of life. They all come to stand before God at the great White Throne Judgment. If you are outside of Christ, if you've never taken Him as your Savior, you'll be in that group. You'll be there and this is God's description and God's Word. Who's going to be the judge?
"The Father judgeth no man, [God is not going to judge] but hath committed all judgment unto the Son" (John 5:22).
Look at Him, as He sits on the throne. That can't be Jesus. Look at the fire coming from His eyes. Look at the sword coming from His mouth. That can't be my Lord Jesus, but I look closer and I see the scars in His hands and I see the place where they put the spear in His side and I
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see the scars in His feet, and I say, "That's Jesus! I knew Him as Savior down yonder, but now He is judge and He sits on the judicial throne of the universe-not in mercy nor love, but in judgment. His holiness is flaming against the sins of the world."
Inside the Apocalypse
During my study of the Scripture spanning more than fifty years now, I have often been intrigued, inspired, and informed by the words of this dramatic book written under divine inspiration by John on the island of Patmos. Sitting in my study at home in North Carolina, I have read literally thousands of pages from articles and scholarly works on the book. In my personal devotions I have thoroughly immersed myself in the sound and fury of John's language, listening to the voice of God speaking through the apostle. But as I consider all that I have learned about this work, its sinister images, and the actual structure of the Revelation, I am constantly humbled by it. Many great minds have grappled with the meaning of John's visions over the centuries, but in light of the storm I am convinced is coming, I feel compelled to take another look into it to discover its meaning for our age. Perhaps it is because I, like John, am growing older and have a longer perspective on the events of our time. There is something ominous in the air, and I am intrigued by both the horror and hope of what lies just ahead. Of course, John wrote nearly two thousand years ago. His culture and ours are light years apart, but his message has a signal importance for our time. His visions, dreams, and nightmares were not meant to confound or confuse us. The very word, apocalypse, is a Greek word combining the verb calypto ("to veil," "to cover," or "to conceal") and the preposition apo ("from"). Thus, apocalypse means "to remove the veil," "to uncover," "to reveal," and "to make clear." John's storm warn-
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ings were clear to Christians in the first century, and they should be even clearer in the climate of today.
Understanding John i Vision
T o understand John and the Book of Revelation we need to remember several important things about this remarkable man.
First, John was an apocalyptist. That is, he wrote Revelation in a certain type of poetic language known as apocalyptic language. An apocalyptic writer such as John was one who used vivid imagery and symbolism to speak about God's judgment and the end of the world. Among the Jewish people in biblical times writers often used an apocalyptic style. Some parts of the Old Testament (such as portions of Daniel and Ezekiel) make use of apocalyptic language.
The difficulty, of course, is that this style of writing, using vivid word pictures and symbols, is quite foreign to us today. Undoubtedly most of John's first readers had little difficulty understanding what his symbols stood for and which of them were symbols and which were not. It takes careful study for us today to understand some of the more obscure parts of his message (much of it quoted from the Old Testament), and some of them we may never understand fully.
As an apocalyptist John concentrated on one overpowering theme: the end of human history as we know it and the dawn of the glorious messianic age. As such, his message is always one of both warning and hope-warning of the coming judgment and hope of Christ's inevitable triumph over evil and the establishment of His eternal kingdom.
Second, John was also a prophet. The apocalyptists despaired of the present and looked to the future expectantly. The prophets, on the other hand, often held out hope for the present-hope that God's judgment could be
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delayed if people would repent and turn to God in faith and obedience. That does not mean that the prophets offered an easy way out of all difficulties, as if somehow all problems would vanish if people would just profess their faith in God. Instead, like Winston Churchill standing amidst the bombed ruins of London, the prophets offered "blood, sweat, and tears" for those who would follow God. It would not be easy to serve God and fight against the evil of this present dark and sinful world, and yet the prophets knew that God would be victorious in the end and His people would share in that victory.
Third, John was also an evangelist. John's concern was not with a sterile message having no power to influence lives. John was concerned about people. He was concerned with the daily problems they faced as they sought to be faithful to God. He was concerned with the pressures and persecutions many of them encountered as Christians. He was concerned about people because he knew God loved them and had sent His Son to die for them.
The word "evangelist" comes from a Greek word meaning "one who announces good newsu-in this case, the good news of the Gospel. To some, John's message of the future may have sounded gloomy and depressing. John knew, however, that the worst thing he could do would be to assure people that everything was all right and that there was no need to be concerned about the evil in the world or God's judgment. But John's message is ultimately a message of the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.
The Price We Must Pay
O u r chaotic, confused world has no greater need than to hear the Gospel of Jesus. John's message in Revelation focuses not just on events that will happen in the future, but on what can happen now when Jesus Christ becomes Lord and Savior of our individual lives. John's message
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focuses supremely on Jesus, the Son of God, who died for our sins and rose again from the dead to give us eternal life. What John declared at the end of his Gospel could also have been applied with equal force to his words in Revelation: "But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name" (John 20:31).
John was also a pastor. Revelation was the apostle's last letter to the people he knew and loved best. He began the letter with seven personal notes, one to each of the seven groups of Christians scattered across Asia Minor. As you read through the personal notes, see how well John knew his people and how deeply he loved them. Try to feel his fear for them and for us as well. It is easy to picture how those first-century Christians began their life in Christ. I have preached in more than eighty nations of the world. I have seen thousands of people listening to the good news of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. I have watched many literally run to accept Christ as Savior and Lord of their lives. I have witnessed their enthusiasm and been thrilled by their early and rapid growth. Then, just as John did, I have watched first love die. I have seen men and women eagerly embrace the faith, then slowly abandon it, giving in again to immorality, idolatry, and selfdestruction. I have witnessed others who accepted Christ and remained faithful to the end but found terrible suffering and sacrifice along the way.
I look back on my many years as an evangelist, and I wonder, Have I made the Christian faith look too easy? Even before I heard the expression, I have constantly borne in mind what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called "cheap grace." Of course it is "by grace you have been saved, through faith. . .not by works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). Of course our salvation was a result of what Christ has done for us in His life, death, and resurrection, not what we must do for ourselves. Of course we can trust Him to complete in us what He has begun. But
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in my eagerness to give away God's great gift, have I been honest about the price He paid in His war with evil? Have I adequately explained the price we must pay in our own war against the evil at work in and around our lives?
That Distant Thunder
John worried about his flock as he wrote out his vision of this world (where evil reigns) and of the world to come (where God will restore righteousness and peace again). He wrote of the war between the worlds and of the men and women who fight and die on the battlefield in that war. At the center of his vision, he wrote of Jesus, the Lord of the world to come, who has entered this world to rescue humankind (wherever they find themselves on the battlefield), to guide them through enemy lines, and to deliver them safely home again.
Revelation is not an academic paper produced for some scholarly professional meeting. It is not a poem created by a gifted genius to entertain and divert. It is not the diary of a senile old man driven to wild hallucinations by his isolation and loneliness. Revelation is a pastor's letter to his floundering flock, an urgent telegram bearing a brilliant battle plan for a people at war. It reflects all the realistic horror and heartbreak of a battlefield strewn with the dead. It is frank and it is frightening, but it is a plan for victory-if not for every battle, certainly for the war. Like John, I have heard that distant thunder. I have seen lightning striking in many places of our world; thus, I know that the coming storm could engulf the whole world. I have seen the storm clouds mounting in the lowering sky. I am still an evangelist whose one goal is to proclaim new life in Christ, but there is serious trouble ahead for our world and for all of us who live in it. In the images of the Apocalypse there is both a storm warning and message of hope for the troubled times yet to come.
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Jesus or Caesar
M o s t citizens of the empire were glad to pay tribute to the emperor and to the empire that had brought them this period of peace. But for Christians, another loyalty oath was at the center of their faith: "Jesus is Lord," not Caesar. In spite of their gratitude to the empire and to the emperor, in spite of the admonitions of Paul and Peter to worship God and honor the emperor, this act of Caesar worship was impossible. Because of their refusal to put Caesar before Christ, Christians began to be persecuted.
William Barclay writes, "This worship [of Caesar] was never intended to. . .wipe out other religions. Rome was essentially tolerant. A man might worship Caesar and his own god. But more and more Caesar worship became a test of political loyalty; it became. . .the recognition of the dominion of Caesar over a man's life, and. . . soul" (The Revelation of John, 1:21-22). Imagine a village in the suburbs of Ephesus or Laodicea. Christian believers are at work tanning leather, dyeing cloth, harvesting crops, raising families, studying math and history-at worship, at work, or at play. Then, suddenly, hoofbeats are heard clattering up the nearby cobbled streets. The horses are reined in by a Roman centurion and his honor guard. A leather camp table is unfolded. An incense burner is placed upon the table. A flame is lit. Heralds sound the trumpets. There is no place to hide, no time to decide.
Believers must join their neighbors in that line. Just ahead the village mayor tosses his incense into the flames and exclaims proudly, "Caesar is Lord." Others follow. The line ahead grows shorter. The moment of decision draws near. Will the Christians avoid the conflict and protect their lives and security with the simple act of obedience? Will they mutter "Caesar is Lord" and sneak back home to safety? Or will they recognize that act as a symbol of a wider disobedience, refuse the incense, proclaim "Jesus is Lord" and pay the price for their disloyalty to the state?
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Did John wander up and down the beach at Patmos that Sabbath remembering the centurion, the incense, and the terrible decision of ultimate loyalty each believer had to make? Who knows? Perhaps it was in just such a line, surrounded by his neighbors and friends, that John himself failed the emperor's test and, as punishment, was exiled to the island prison. We don't know the charges leveled against the apostle that led to his exile, but we do know why John said he was there: "I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus" (Revelation 1:9).
It was not easy to be a Christian then. It is not easy now. Late in the first century, during the time of John's exile, the persecutions of the Christian church by the Roman Empire had begun in earnest. It was difficult to keep the faith then. It is now. There are grand and awful moments before a centurion's blazing fire. There are little, awful moments almost daily when one longs to give in to the values of this world, to give up the high standards of our Lord, to give way to the various temptations that pressure every man, woman, or young person who believes. Even Christians are tempted to surrender to the passions or the pleasures that pursue us all.
Seer of the Unseen World
W h e n the Spirit of the risen Christ came to John in his barren cell, the aging apostle must have been in awe, for the unseen world burst upon him with fearsome reality. As a Roman prisoner, half-starved, sometimes beaten, constantly harassed and abused, his life on that barren, rockstrewn island in the Aegean Sea was as real and unmysterious as the cold ground upon which he slept, as real as bread and water. The life he lived was as physical and tan-
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gible as the pain in his aching joints and the burns and blisters on his hands and feet.
Tradition tells us that John's face was wrinkled and blackened by the sun. His arms were lean and muscular, and his hands were rough with calluses. As a political prisoner, exiled to a rock off the coast of what is now modern Turkey, John was forced to carry stones chipped from granite cliffs above the sea to a cargo dock below the Roman citadel. The fortress guarded the narrow isthmus between the Bay of Scala and the Bay of Merika. The gravel John carried on his back was used to build the foundations for the temples and palaces of the Emperor Domitian and to pave Roman roads, which always led to Rome.
We can imagine that John, stumbling under the loaded straw basket strapped to his forehead, used both hands to grasp his staff and pick his way painfully down the treacherous path. Even the Roman guards must have wondered at the determination of this gray-bearded Christian Jew who worked alongside the other prisoners by day and then spent his evenings writing stories no one could understand.
But John was not doing what he wanted to do; he was under the compulsion of a mystery. He was writing at the direction of the Holy Spirit of God, who came to him in waking dreams and vision. At the beginning of his book, John wrote, "On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: 'Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea"' (Revelation 1 :lo-11).
So, in his cavelike prison cell, John, the seer of the unseen world, spent every free moment recording the seismographic warnings of a world bulging and buckling just beneath the surface. I often have the feeling that in many ways John's ancient world was much like our own.
The Promise of Peace
T h e world we live in is like a hurricane-ever-changing, ever changeable, always unpredictable, and frequently destructive-but there are some things that never change: The love of God. His matchless grace and mercy. His boundless forgiveness. Until that day when Christ shall come "with shout of acclamation," there is still hope for the human race. While there is yet time, we must earnestly seek Him.
The more I learn of the realities of the Book of Revelation, the more I realize there are still many mysteries, ambiguities, and complex uncertainties which cannot yet be fully understood. But we are not without under-
standing. From the truth we have already learned of God, we have proof of His love and provision for humanity. From the unfailing accuracy of biblical prophecy, we have evidence of the faithfulness of Scripture and its often stunning relevance to the circumstances and events of our lives. Thus we know His Word is true.
Paul wrote to Timothy, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for
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every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17 NKJV). With that assurance, we study this Word and discover how its truth can be applied to our individual lives and needs.
Paul also understood the implications of his message. He writes: "I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching" (2 Timothy 4:l-2 NKJV). I do not fully understand everything that will happen. . . but I also realize we do not have the complete picture yet. God reveals to each age what His children are able to understand. I am prepared to rest in that knowledge until God opens up the next chapter in this incredible adventure.
Three Kinds of Peace
There are three kinds of peace described in the Bible.
First, peace with God. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:l). "Having made peace through the blood of his cross. . . " (Colossians 1:20). There is a peace that you can have immediately-peace with God. The second peace spoken of in the Bible is the peace of God. Everyone who knows the Lord Jesus Christ can go through any problem, and face death, ~ n d still have the peace of God in his heart. When your spouse dies, or your children get sick, or you lose your job, you can have a peace that you don't understand. You may have tears at a graveside, but you can have an abiding peace, a quietness.
The third peace the Scriptures mention is future peace. The Bible promises that there will be a time when the whole world is going to have peace. It seems that the world is heading toward Armageddon. In Revelation 6:4
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John the beloved apostle says there's a red horse, "and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth." We're not going to have peace-permanent peace-until the Prince of Peace comes.
A Word for the World
Jesus, however, also said another interesting thing that I have already elaborated on: "This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14). Today, for the first time in history, we are witnessing the preaching of the gospel on a global scale such as the world has never known, using radio, the printed page, and television. It's one of the signs that we are to look for as we approach the end of history. The Bible teaches that there is deliverance from the things that are about to come upon the world for those who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Not by chemicals, but by Christ. Not by smoking crack cocaine or injecting heroin, but by bringing minds and hearts into harmony with God through submission to His will and accepting His forgiveness as offered from the cross. In Christ alone there is deliverance from the world's tortured thoughts, healing for weakened minds and bodies, and freedom from the sordid, destructive, and immoral habits that are destroying so many today.
But more important, there is hope for the future. The Bible teaches that God has planned utopia. There is a glorious new social order coming, but it is going to be brought by Jesus Christ Himself when He returns. I believe the time is short; we must each tell that good news however we can. Listen for the voice of Jesus above the storm, saying, "So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him" (Matthew 24:44). Are you ready?
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The Secret of Joy
W h e n Jesus Christ is the source of joy, there are no words that can describe it. It is a joy "inexpressible and glorious" (1 Peter 1:8). Christ is the answer to the sadness and discouragement, the discord and division in our world.
Christ can take discouragement and despondency out of our lives. Optimism and cheerfulness are products of knowing Him.
The Bible says, "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones" (Proverbs 17:22).
If the heart has been attuned to God through faith in Christ, then its overflow will be joyous optimism and good cheer.
Out West an old sheepherder had a violin, but it was out of tune. He had no way of tuning it, so in desperation he wrote to one of the radio stations and asked them at a certain hour on a certain day to strike the tone "A." The officials of the station decided they would accommodate the old fellow, and on that particular day the true tone of
"A" was broadcast. His fiddle was thus tuned, and once more his cabin echoed with joyful music.
We have to be tuned to God. We will never be free from discouragement and despondency until we know and walk with the very fountainhead of joy.
Christ Himself is the Christian's secret of joy: "Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy" (1 Peter 123).
Promise of the Future
Whenever you look closely at the prophecies of the end times, you will inevitably raise dark specters and enigmas that trouble the soul. That is as it should be, and that is why God has given us such pronounced warnings of this
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coming storm. But let me also remind you of God's promise. For in the midst of the pessimism, gloom, and frustration, there is a marvelous hope, and in this present hour of concern there is still the overarching hope, the promise made by Christ: "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back (John 14:3). He died on the cross for our sins. He was raised again. He ascended to Heaven. The Bible says that He's going to return in triumph.
One day after His resurrection, He was talking to His disciples. "They asked him, 'Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?' He said to them: 'It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth' (Acts 1:6-8). After He had said that, He was taken up from them. They watched His ascent and a cloud enveloped Him beyond their sight.
The faith of the disciples was still small, and some of them probably had nagging doubts that they would ever see Him again in spite of His promises. They must have been looking intently into the sky, with a sense of loss and sadness as He was ascending. Then there appeared beside them two men dressed in white. "'Men of Galilee,' they said, 'why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into Heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into Heaven"' (Acts 1:ll).
The time of His return, Jesus had assured them, was a secret known only to His Father. However, indications as to when it will happen are foretold in various books of the Bible. In the ninth chapter of Daniel we are told that an angel brought the word to the prophet that God had appointed seventy weeks to His people and their holy city. There have been scores of books written about these seventy weeks, and I do not intend to spend time here discussing
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what they mean. I can only meditate, think, and interpret as best I can. There are some things I believe we can know for certain about this and other prophetic passages; there are other passages where we must be more cautious, and sincere Bible scholars may disagree on some details where God has chosen not to speak as clearly concerning the future. But virtually everything has been fulfilled that was prophesied in the Scriptures leading up to the coming of Christ. We know His coming is near!
What needs to be noted here is that the angel did say something to Daniel that relates to the four horsemen: "War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed" (Daniel 9:26). This gives us a clear clue to the whole history not only of the Middle East, but of the past several thousand years of the human race. It has been a great battleground and a scene of unfulfilled dreams, dashed hopes, broken hearts, mutilated bodies across thousands of battlefields on which hundreds of millions have died.
The Hope of His Coming
The great creeds of the church teach that Christ is coming back. The Nicene Creed states, "He shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead." Charles Wesley wrote seven thousand hymns, and in five thousand he mentioned the Second Coming of Christ. When Queen Elizabeth I1 was crowned by the Archbishop of Canterbury, he laid the crown on her head with the sure pronouncement, "I give thee, 0 sovereign lady, this crown to wear until He who reserves the right to wear it shall return."
But till that time, one of America's best-known columnists summed it up when he said, "For us all, the world is disorderly and dangerous; ungoverned, and apparently ungovernable." The question arises: Who will restore
THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN
order? Who can counter the danger of the nuclear holocaust? Who can bring an end to AIDS and the other epidemics of our time? Who alone can govern the world? The answer is Jesus Christ!
The Psalmist asked centuries earlier: "Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One. 'Let us break their chains,' they say, 'and throw off their fetters.' The One enthroned in Heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 'I have installed my King"' (Psalm 2:l-6). He promises the Anointed One, "I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter. . . . Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling" (Psalm 2:ll). Then He advises the whole earth, "Blessed are all who take refuge in him" (verse 12).
Yes, God has promised this planet to His Son, Jesus Christ, and someday it will be His. He will bring an end to all the injustice, the oppression, the wars, the crime, the terrorism that dominates our newspapers and television screens today. But before that time comes, the four horsemen are going to vent their storm of fury across the pages of history.
For the Christian believer, the return of Christ is comforting, for at last men and women of faith will be exonerated. They will be avenged. The nonbeliever will see and understand why true Christians marched to the sound of another drum. But for the sinful unbeliever, the triumphant return of Christ will prove disastrous, because Christ's return ensures final judgment.
Seven Final Questions
Let's see if you can pass the examination God gives in First John.
The Gospel of John speaks of eternal life as manifested in the Son of God: "But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name" (John 20:31).
The Gospel of John was written in order that we might believe that Jesus is the Christ. The First Epistle of John was written to people who believe that Jesus is the Christ but who have never come into full assurance of their present position or of the possession of eternal life. "These thir.gs have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God" (1 John 5:13). If you have any doubt concerning the atoning death of Christ or about His deity, read the Gospel of John, but if you have believed the message of the Gospel and you are still perplexed as to the question of assurance, read the Epistle of John.
So let us take the test. Let us examine ourselves. Let us check and see how we stand in the light of God's Word. Are you ready? Here goes!
THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN
DO YOU BELIEVE ON THE SON?
"And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment," and His commandment is that we should believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ. "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and everyone that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him" (1 John 5:l). Have you really, truly and definitely accepted Christ as your Savior? Has there come a period in your life when yo2 were convicted of the Holy Spirit and you confessed Christ, not only as Savior, but as Lord? The word "believe" means to have trust in and to lean upon Christ, to confess Him as the Lord of your life and the Savior of your soul.
"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us" (1 John 1:8-10).
Do you hate sin as God hates it? Do you detest it? Is it loathsome, filthy, ugly to you? When you stumble and fall or yield to Satan's temptation in a moment of weakness, do you immediately confess?
"And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments" (1 John 2:3). The next verse says, "He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." Do we say that we are Christians? Do we maintain that we are
READINGS FROM BILLY GRAHAM 25 1
God's children? Then we must prove it by our lives! The law had said concerning the man who keeps His commandments, "Which if a man do, he shall live in them." But under Christ the man who lives by faith will do His commandments. The person who is born of the Spirit will delight in obedience to the will of God. This doesn't mean that you are obedient in everything all the time! You should be, but in reality there is only one who can say, "I do always those things that please him." The one who knows Christ as Savior will find springing up within him a glorious love to do the will of God.
ARE YOU SEPARATED FROM THE WORLD?
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever" (1 John 2:15-17).
God calls us to be a separate people. "Come out from among them, and be ye separate." We are a peculiar people-not, however, in the sense that we dress strangely or are eccentric. We are a chosen group. The moment you came to Christ you were adopted into the family of God. The old things you used to love you now hate. Things you used to hate you now love.
ARE YOU ANTICIPATING THE COMING OF CHRIST?
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
THE FAITHFUL CHRISTIAN
And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure" (1 John 3:l-3).
The first coming of Christ is the greatest event in world history. At once it becomes the center of the two eternities. The mainspring in the clock of prophecy, the pivot around which revolves all the purposes of God.
Today the world faces another crisis: Christ's second coming. This time He is coming not in humiliation but in glorification to receive from this scene His own bloodbought children. Evidences abound that the time is almost here. Since "Ascension Day" when the heavenly witnesses said "This same Jesus. . . shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go," the eyes of Christians have been turning heavenward. They look for Him and perhaps as never before expect Him at any moment.
DO YOU LOVE THE BRETHREN?
"We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death (1 John 3:14).
The greatest need among professing Christians today is love. The one great command that is laid upon us by Jesus Christ is that we love one another; not that we should love one another as a husband loves his wife or as a mother loves her child; oh, no, far deeper than that. Our love for each other should be comparable to God's love for us. Is your love like sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal? You may know Greek and Hebrew. You may know church history, physiology and philosophy, but if you have not love, it profiteth you nothing. The kind of love that suffers, that is kind, that never envies, that does not puff itself up, that never seeks its own, that is not easily provoked, that never does evil, that never takes joy in sin, that is always happy and thrilled when the truth is presented, that endures everything-is this the kind of love you have?
READINGS FROM BILLY GRAHAM 253
Do You PRACTICE SIN?
"We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not" (1 John 5:18).
Now don't get alarmed! This verse should never have been translated as it is in the King James Version. Look at the words "sinneth not." The verse should read: "Whosoever is born of God doth not practice sin." In other words, if I see a man going on in sin after he has professed conversion, I have a right to doubt that man's salvation. He may stumble and fall. He may even yield to Satan and commit a sin in a moment of weakness, but he will immediately right himself and ask God for strength to be an overcomer.
Calling Youth to Christ. Introduction by Torrey M. Johnson. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.
Revival in Our Time. Wheaton, IL: Van Kampen Press. "The Story of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Campaigns, Including Six of His Sermons."
The Chance of a Lifetime: Helps for Servicemen. Fourth edition. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.
The Seven Deadly Sins. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.
Peace with God. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc..
The Secret of Happiness: Jesus's Teaching on Happiness as Expressed in the Beatitudes. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
My Answer. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
Answers to Life's Problems. Dallas: Word Publishing.
World Aflame. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
The Quotable Billy Graham. Compiled and edited by Cort R. Flint and the Staff of Quote. Anderson, NC: Droke House Publishers.
256 Bibliography
The Wit and Wisdom of Billy Graham. Edited and compiled by Bill Adler. New York: Random House.
The Challenge: Sermons from Madison Square Garden. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
The Jesus Generation. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.
Angels: God's Secret Agents. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
Day-by-Day with Billy Graham: A Devotional Book. Compiled and edited by Joan Winmill Brown. Minneapolis: World Wide Publications.
How to Be Born Again. Waco: Word Books.
The Holy Spirit: Activating God's Power in Your Life. Waco: Word Books.
Till Armageddon: A Perspective on Suffering. Waco: Word Books.
The Evangelist and a Torn World: Messages by Billy Graham. Delivered at the International Congress for Itinerant Evangelists, July 12-21, 1983. Minneapolis: World Wide Publications.
Approaching Hoofbeats: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Waco: Word, Inc.
A Biblical Standard for Evangelists. Minneapolis: World Wide Publications.
Peace with God. Revised and expanded edition. Dallas: Word Publishing.
The Secret of Happiness: Jesus's Teaching on Happiness as Expressed in the Beatitudes. Revised and expanded edition. Dallas: Word Publishing.
Angels: God's Secret Agents. Reissue. Dallas: Word Inc.
Bibliography
Unto the Hills. Waco: Word Books.
Angels. Dallas: Word Publishing.
Facing Death--and the Life After. Waco: Word Books.
The Holy Spirit: Activating God's Power in Your Life. Dallas: Word Publishing.
Answers to Life's Problems. Dallas: Word Publishing.
How to Be Born Again. Waco: Word Publishing.
Hope for the Troubled Heart. Dallas: Word, Inc.
Storm Warning. Dallas: Word Publishing.
Scripture quotations in the following readings are taken from the Bibles listed in brackets, unless cited otherwise in the text:
Angels [KJV] Approaching Hoofbeats [NIVI Biblical Standard [KJV] Calling Youth to Christ [KJV] Challenge [KJV] Chance of a Lifetime [KJV] Facing Death [NIVI Holy Spirit [NASBI Hope [NIV] Peace with God [KJV] Revival in Our Time [KJV] Secret of Happiness [KJV] 7 Deadly Sins [KJV] Storm Warning [NIV] Till Armageddon [NIVI World Aflame [KJV]
The page numbers cited below refer to the first editions of the works, whether hardcover or paperback, unless otherwise indicated.
Actual Death of Jesus: World Aflame, 128-129 Adopted: World Aflame, 163 All of These Kids: Facing Death, 22-23 Angelic War: Angels, 60-62 Angels: Angels, 13-15 Angels as Executors: Angels, 99-100 Angels as Messengers: Angels, 11 1-13 Angels at the Cross: Angels, 128-129
Sources
Angels in Jesus' Life: Angels, 125-126 Angels in the Garden: Angels, 127 Angels in the Wilderness: Angels, 126-127 Anger: Seven Deadly Sins, 27-29 Answered Prayers: Till Armageddon, 149-150 Are Prayers Answered?: Flicing Dea th, 112-1 13 Are You an Obedient Servant: Calling Youth, 67 Are You Anticipating.. . ?: Calling Youth, 72 Are You Separated from the World?: Calling Youth, 69 Avarice: Seven Deadly Sins, 103-106 Avoiding Temptation: Chance of a Lifetime, 21-22
Babylon: Calling Youth, 50-56 Balancing the Scales: Calling Youth, 56-59 Before We Die: Facing Death, 262-263 Beginning of Sorrows: Storm Warning, 35 Bells of Hell: Facing Death, 37-38 Bible in Hand, Hill of Beans: Revival in Our Time, 110-1 11 Bible's Description of Hell: Calling Youth, 128 Black Horseman: Approaching Hoofbeats, 149-152 Bodily Resurrection: World Aflame, 129
Certainty of Punishment: Calling Youth, 121-123 Challenge & Thrill: Calling Youth, 33 Christianity for Skeptics: World Aflame, 83-84 Citizens of Heaven: World Aflarne, 260-262 Citizens of Two Worlds: Challenge, 113 Comforting His People: Facing Death, 174-176 Compassionate Warning: Storm Warning, 285-286 Conflict, Not Coziness: Till Armageddon, 134-135 Crafty & Clever Camouflage: World Aflame, 84-86 Created Beings: Angels, 18-19
Death of a Child: Facing Death, 89-90 Death for the Christian: Till Armageddon, 198-199 Death, Enemy of God: Facing Death, 23-24 Death Is Perennial: Facing Death, 17 Death, Our Mortal Enemy: Facing Death, 21-22 Do You Believe on the Son?: Calling Youth, 65
Do You Love the Brethren?: Calling Youth, 73-74 Do You Practice Sin?: Calling Youth, 74 Dynamics of the New Man: World Aflame, 161
Elimination of Suffering: Till Armageddon, 51-52 Empty Tomb: World Aflame, 129 Envy: Seven Deadly Sins, 41-43 Evil Imaginations: Secret of Happiness, 140-141
Faithfulness: Holy Spirit, re, 202 False Religions: Approaching Hoofbeats, 88-90 Feet First, Not Head First: World Aflame, 72 Fifth Horseman: Approaching Hoofbeats, 180 Final Judgment: Storm Warning, 278-279 Fleeting Shadow: Till Armageddon, 196-197 Forgiven & Justified: World Aflame, 161-162 Form of Insanity: Challenge, 64 Four Horsemen: Approaching Hoofbeats, 75-77 Fruits of the Spirit: Holy Spirit, re, 187 Full Armor: Till Armageddon, 173 Gentleness: Holy Spirit, re, 205-206 Gethsemane: Facing Death, 60-64 Getting Involved: Storm Warning, 256 Gift of the Evangelist: Biblical Standard, 31-32 Gift of Healing: Holy Spirit, re, 158 Gluttony: Seven Deadly Sins, 73-77 God the Father: Hope, 20-23 Good Spiritual Health: Peace with God, re, 168-177 Good Shepherd: Till Armageddon, 164-165 Goodness: Holy Spirit, re, 200 Great Commission: Biblical Standard, 23-25 Great Quest: Peace with God, re 13-14 Grief Happens: Facing Death, 163-163
Happiness in Purity: Secret of Happiness, 128-129 Happiness in Spite of Persecution: Secret of Happiness, 170-171 Happiness Though Hungry: Secret of Happiness, 85-86 Happiness Through Meekness: Secret of Happiness, 65-66 Happiness Through Mercy: Secret of Happiness, 109
Sources
Happiness Through Peacemaking: Secret of Happiness, 160-161 Happiness Through Poverty: Secret of Happiness, 28-29 Happiness While Mourning: Secret of Happiness, 49-62 Head, Heart, Will: Peace with God, re, 112-114 Heaven, A Home: Challenge, 79-83 Holy Spirit, A Person: Holy Spirit, re, 17-18 Holy Spirit, God Himself: Holy Spirit, re, 18-20 Hope of His Coming: Storm Warning, 277-278 How To Become Born Again: Holy Spirit, re, 59
Impurity: Seven Deadly Sins, 59-63 Inside the Apocalypse: Storm Warning, 66-67 Intellectual Pride: Seven Deadly Sins, 19-21 Investing in a Bible: Peace with God, re, 30-31 Invitation & Urgency: Biblical Standard, 57-59 Invitation to Do Wrong: Chance of a Lifetime, 20-21 Inward Journey: Approaching Hoofbeats, 98-99
Jesus and the Intellectual: World Aflame, 57-58 Jesus or Caesar: Storm Warning, 83-84 Joy: Holy Spirit, re, 187-188 Just Enough Natural Religion: World Aflame, 81-83
Kindness: Holy Spirit, re, 198 Know Your Enemy: Chance of a Lifetime, 24-25
Lips vs. Lives: Biblical Standard, 73-74 Loneliness: Peace with God, re, 65-71 Look Godward: Till Armageddon, 173 Love: Holy Spirit, re, 187-188 Lucifer's Rebellion: Angels, 63-64
Man vs. God: Till Armageddon, 70-71 Man the Searcher: World Aflame, 51-52 Many Faces of Pain: Till Armageddon, 27-28 Meaning of the Resurrection: World Aflame, 135-137 Miracles: Holy Spirit, re, 165 More than Great Literature: Peace with God, re, 24-25 More Than a Wish: Hope, 151-154
New Man, Not Perfect: World Aflame, 167-168
Outward Journey: Approaching Hoofbeats, 100-101
Paid Ticket to Heaven: Facing Death, 215-216 Pale Horseman: Approaching Hoofbeats, 179-180 Paradise Lost: Facing Death, 219-220 Patience: Holy Spirit, re 195-196 Pattern for Prayer: Hope, 151-153 Peace: Holy Spirit, re, 193 Physical Burial of Jesus: World Aflame, 129 Power of Prayer: Till Armageddon, 153-155 Practice the Presence of Christ: Till Armageddon, 177 Practice with Prayer: Till Armageddon, 175 Praying through the Pain: Hope, 148-149 Preparation for the Journey: Facing Death, 194-201 Price We Must Pay: Sform Warning, 74-75 Pride: Seven Deadly Sins, 15-17 Promise of the Future: Storm Warning, 275-277 Promise of Peace: Sform Warning, 289-290
Rationalizing God: World Aflame, 90-91 Reality of Hell: Facing Death, 217-218 Red Horseman: Approaching Hoofbeats, 121-123 Results of the Atonement: Calling Youth, 112 Resurrection as History: World Aflame, 128 Revelation: World Aflame, 95-96 Revelation in Conscience: World Aflame, 98-99 Revelation in Jesus Christ: World Aflame, 101-102 Revelation in Nature: World Aflame, 96-97 Revelation in Scripture: World Aflame, 99-100 Rich Man and Lazarus: Facing Death, 218 Rich Young Man: Storm Warning, 260
Scarlet Thread: Calling Youth, 100-104 Science Doesn't Satisfy: World Aflame, 45-46 Searching in the Wrong Places: Secret of Happiness, 15-16 Secret of Joy: Till Armageddon, 141-142 Seer of the Unseen World: Storm Warning, 91-93
Self-Control: Holy Spirit, re, 208 Sermon on the Mount: Secret of Happiness, 24-25 Seven Deadly Sins: Seven Deadly Sins, 9-10 Seven Final Questions: Calling Youth, 64-65 Sexual Sin: Hope, 75-79 Shadowed by Angels: Angels, 92-94 Signs of the Times: Storm Warning, 33-35 Sin in Every Sickness: Hope, 69-70 Sinners by Choice: World Aflame, 71 Slothfulness: Seven Deadly Sins, 89-92 Speaking from Heaven: Facing Death, 227-229 Speaking in Tongues: Holy Spirit, re, 168-169 Spirit of God: World Aflame, 163-164 Spiritual Pride: Seven Deadly Sins, 17-19 Strength to Resist Temptation: World Aflame, 165 Supreme Sufferer: Till Armageddon, 130-131
That Distant Thunder: Storm Warning, 75-76 Three Kinds of Peace: Peace with God, re, 215-219 Three Enemies: Peace with God, re, 156-161 Threefold Death: World Aflame, 74-75 Thy Will Be Done: Hope, 157-159 Time's Final Drama: Revival in Our Time, 105 Tiny Blades of Opportunity: Till Armageddon, 197-198 To Adapt or Not To Adapt: Biblical Standard, 12-13 Trinity: Holy Spirit, re, 20-23 True & False Religions: World Aflame, 87-88 Truth of the Resurrection: Revival in Our Time, 119-120 Two Kinds of Happiness: Secret of Happiness, 16-17 Two Judgments: Revival in Our Time, 126-127 Two Mighty Trinities: Peace with God, re, 58-59 Two Sets of Eyes: Challenge, 122-123
Understanding John's Vision: Storm Warning, 71-73
Very Headlines of Our Day: Storm Warning, 36 Visible or Invisible: Angels, 30-32 Vulnerability: Approaching Hoofbeats, 108-1 11
Sources
Walk with God: Angels, 173-174 Walking & Talking with God: World Aflame, 62-63 Wet Blanket vs. Dry Christian: Chance of a Lifetime, 23-24 What Is God Like?: Till Armageddon, 41-43 What Is Your Attitude Toward Sin?: Calling Youth, 67 What Won't Be in Heaven: Facing Death, 230-231 Whatever Happened to Heaven?: Facing Death, 36 Whatever Happened to Hell?: Facing Death, 34-35 Where Did Pain Begin?: Hope, 49-53 Where Sin Began: World Aflame, 66-67 White Horseman: Approaching Hoofbeats, 78-79 White Throne Judgment: Revival in Our Time, 134-135 Who Hasn't Risen: Revival in Our Time, 109-110 Who Said Life Was Fair?: Hope, 35-38 Who's on Trial?: Hope, 65-66 Word for the World: Storm Warning, 286-287 Work with the Word: Till Armageddon, 174 Works of the Flesh: Holy Spirit, re, 90-93 World Upside Down: Secret of Happiness, 22-23 World's Last War: Storm Warning, 293 Worshiping or Not Worshiping: Angels, 45-47 Wreckage of Sin: World Aflame, 72-73
Scripture quotations are taken from the following:
American Standard Version [ASV], 1901, published by Thomas Nelson & Sons;
The Amplified Bible [AMP], copyright O 1965 by Zondervan Publishing House;
The Holy Bible [RK], translated by Ronald Knox, copyright 1944,1948,1950 by Sheed and Ward, Inc.; King James Version [KJV]; The Living Bible [TLB], O 1971 Tyndale House Publishers; New American Standard Bible [NASB], copyright O 1960,1962, 1963,1968,1971 by the Lockrnan Foundation; The New English Bible [NEB], O The Delegates of The Oxford University Press and The Syndics of The Cambridge University Press, 1961,1970;
The New International Version [NIV], published by the Zondervan Corporation, copyright O 1973, 1978, 1984 by the New York International Bible Society;
The New King James Version [NKJV], copyright O 1979, 1980,1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publisher; The New Testament in Modern English [PHI] by J. B. Phillips, published by The Macmillan Company, copyrighted O 1958,1960, 1972 by J. B. Phillips; Revised Standard Version of the Bible [RSV], copyrighted 1946, 1951 O 1971, 1973 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.
WILLIAM GRIFFIN has had long editorial associations with Harcourt Brace and Macmillan in both text books and trade books. He has reviewed books for the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and Christianity Today. For a dozen years he covered religious publishing in the United States for Publishers Weekly. His previous anthologies include The Joyful Christian: C. S. Lewis and The Newborn Christian: J. B. Phillips. And he is the author of C. S. Lewis: A Dramatic Life.
RUTH GRAHAM DIENERT is the youngest daughter of Ruth and Billy Graham, and a single mother of three children. She has published First Steps in The Bible (Word, 1980)' a children's Bible storybook, and articles in the Saturday Evening Post, Moody Monthly and Decision magazine. For nine years she was acquisitions editor for Harper Collins, San Francisco.
She lives near her parents in the mountains of North Carolina.