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THE GOSPEL OBSERVER
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"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching
them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you
always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20).
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October 12, 2008
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Contents:
1) Does the New Testament Teach That the Wicked Will Be
Punished Eternally in the Lake of Fire? (Irvin Himmel)
2) A Beautiful Life (Gilbert Alexander)
3) News & Notes
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Does the New Testament Teach That the Wicked
Will Be Punished Eternally in the Lake of Fire?
by Irvin Himmel
It is asserted sometimes that God punished the wicked in
Old Testament days, but that He is shown to be loving. and
compassionate in the New Testament; therefore, the Old
Testament concept of punishment for sin is thought to differ
from the New Testament concept.
What Jesus Said:
Let us begin by noting what Jesus Christ said on this
important subject."And fear not them which kill the body, but
are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is
able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matt. 10:28). The
word for "destroy" that Jesus used here means "to devote or
give over to eternal misery" (Thayer's Greek English Lexicon).
"Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the
damnation of hell?" (Matt. 23: 33). This was the question which
our Lord put to the Pharisees and scribes. Depicting the final
judgment of the wicked, Jesus said, "Then shall he say also
unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into
everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels...And
these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the
righteous into life eternal" (Matt. 25:46). Our Lord made
three points clear in this passage: (1) The wicked will be
given "punishment." (2) It will be "everlasting" punishment.
(3) It will be in the "fire" prepared for the devil and his
angels.
What Peter Taught:
Now notice what the apostle Peter had to say on this
subject. "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but
cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of
darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old
world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of
righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the
ungodly; And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into
ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample
unto those that after should live ungodly . . . The Lord
knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and
reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished" (2
Pet. 2:4-9). Peter here gave three arguments to show that God
will reserve the unjust to be punished. First, God did not
allow sinful angels to escape judgment. Second, He spared not
the wicked world of Noah's day. Third, God condemned Sodom and
Gomorrah.
What Paul Wrote:
No writer in the New Testament spoke more clearly on the
subject at hand than Paul. "...The Lord Jesus shall be revealed
from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking
vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with
everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from
the glory of his power" (2 These. 1:7-9). Paul taught that in
the judgment God will render to every man according to his
deeds. "To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek
for glory and honor and immortality," God will render "eternal
life." "But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the
truth, but obey unrighteousness," God will render "indignation
and wrath, Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that
doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile" (Rom.
2:6-9).
What John Stated:
We often think of John as the apostle of love because he
had so much to say about love, but John, like the Lord and the
other apostles, understood that the wicked will be punished in
the lake of fire. Hear John's testimony. "And the devil that
deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone,
where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be
tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Rev. 20:10). "And
whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast
into the lake of fire" (Rev. 20:15). "But the fearful, and
unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and
whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars,
shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and
brimstone: Which is the second death" (Rev. 21:8).
Conclusion
All that any of us can know about the punishment which the
wicked will receive is what God has disclosed in the
Scriptures. If we cannot believe what the Bible says about
hell, why believe what it says about heaven, or anything else?
God is loving and kind; but at the same time, His divine
law demands that there be some penalty for violation. Justice
could not be served in the absence of punishment for the
wicked: It is for God, not man, to decide on the penalty for
sin. Let us not presume to be wiser than God.
-- Via Truth Magazine XIX: 11, p. 162, January 23, 1975
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A Beautiful Life
by Gilbert Alexander
The finest adorning in life is not an outward adorning of
the body, but rather dressing oneself in the beauty of holiness
and righteousness. While the outward adorning of the body is
pleasing to the eye and physically appealing, the inward
adorning of a meek and quiet spirit appeals to the heart and
soul and makes one's life rich indeed.
David speaks of "the beauties of holiness" (Psalm 110:3);
and Paul, quoting from Isaiah 52:7, says, "How beautiful are
the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring
glad tidings of good things!" Again, the Psalmist says, "For
the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the
humble with salvation." Isaiah says, "I will greatly rejoice in
the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed
me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the
robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with
ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels"
(Isaiah 61:10). How shallow and hollow indeed is a beautiful
countenance behind which is a corrupt and immoral life. We
often sing, "Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me," but we
know that the prophet has said of the Christ, "He has no form
or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we
should desire Him" (Isaiah 53:2).
The beauty of selfless sacrifice is seen in its finest
hour in the suffering and death of Christ. "Greater love has no
one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends"
(John 15:13). Of the life of Jesus, Peter stated it simply,
"...who went about doing good and healing all who were
oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him" (Acts 10:38). The
people of God can do little to improve their physical
appearance, but each one can adorn his life with meekness and
holiness, doing good and sharing, "for with such sacrifices God
is well pleased" (Hebrews 13:16).
The beauty of the Lord's church is in its purity as a
cleansed body, and the continued purity of the church depends
upon the purity of the lives of all the saints. "A little
leaven leavens the whole lump"; therefore, we must "purge out
the old leaven" so that we may be a new, unleavened lump (I
Corinthians 5:6,7).
How beautiful is a life of "golden deeds," of kind and
compassionate words and works, of pure and wholesome speech, of
a meek and submissive attitude (I Peter 3:3-6), of a genuine
respect for others and unpretended love of the brethren, of a
holy and harmless life of doing justly, loving mercy, and being
ready unto every good work, of a heart in which is no guile!
How beautiful is the simplicity of worship: hearts that are
attuned to the will of God, voices blending together in songs
of praise, heartfelt prayers of supplication and thanksgiving,
the solemn yet joyful fellowship of the Lord's Supper, the
earnest exhortation and edification of the church through
teaching, and the sacrifice of our financial resources to the
Lord's work! Let the words of "A Beautiful Life" ring in our
hearts as each of us gives himself diligently to the task of
being "a worker who does not need to be ashamed" (II Timothy
2:15). Surely the "beautiful people" are the godly people who
shine as lights in a dark world of sin and degradation!
-- Via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New
Georgia, June 1, 2008
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News & Notes
Let us continue to remember Charles Walker (Haley Patrick's
grandfather) as he is recuperating from his recent heart attack
and surgery.
Let us also keep our shut-ins in our prayers: the Shuffs
and sister Pine.
If you are visiting with us today, we are glad and
thankful for your presence. Please feel free to come again!
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CHURCH OF CHRIST
102 Rushing Road (at the Hampton Inn)
Denham Springs, LA 70726
Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM
evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520
tedwards@onemain.com
http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go
DIRECTIONS:
Take the Denham Springs exit (exit 10) off I-12.
At the end of the exit ramp, turn north. Go about a
stone's throw to Rushing Road. (You'll see a Starbucks,
Circle K, and two other gas stations -- with each on each
corner.) Turn left on Rushing Road, and go less than
0.3 of a mile. Hampton Inn will be on the right. We
assemble in its meeting room, which is near the main
entrance.
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