Is your ultimate fate decided for you in advance?
No subject has baffled, perplexed, and worried people more. Here, for the
first time, many will read the astonishing TRUTH, so plain all can
understand. THE very fact of the casualties of so many
wars has caused a great deal of added sorrow and grief that is entirely
unnecessaryif we UNDERSTAND! Many have grieved in the belief that
loved ones died "lost"when, if they understood the truth, these
probably were not lost at all!
The Common Conception
Several years ago a man, quite worried over the subject of
predestination, went to a certain minister.
"Do you believe in predestination?" he asked.
"The Bible teaches it, brother: was the ministers reply.
The minister tried hard to explain. "But that doesnt really
mean: he said, "that you have nothing to do with your own salvation.
It doesnt mean that it is all setyour decision and eternal fate all determined
for you in advance. You are to make your own decision. But God knows all things,
even in advance. And so He knows beforehand how you are going to decide."
This didnt satisfy the troubled man at all.
"If God knows beforehand how I am going to decide," he reasoned,
"then it is all predetermined. If He knows in advance I am to be LOST,
then thats the way Ill have to decide in the end. And since Ill lose out
anyway, WHY TRY? On the other hand, if He knows now Im going to
repent and accept Christ and be saved, Ill have to do it in the end anyway, whether
I try or not. Then my ultimate fate is predetermined. Isnt that what predestination means
that the ultimate fate of each one is PREdestined destined, or
determined, IN ADVANCE? And if thats so, then we simply are not
free moral agents, and we have nothing to say about it
The poor man was more discouraged than ever.
And no wonder. Neither could convince the other, because both were arguing
from a false premisethat predestination has to do with whether each individual shall
be lost, or saved.
Does the Bible teach that your ultimate fate is already
predestinated?
Neither the preacher nor his perplexed questioner had read carefully what the
Bible does say.
What confusion we are in todaywhat BABYLON! Lets
UNDERSTAND this!
All UNsaved Not Finally LOST
But all this perplexity and worry has arisen from another
general assumptionone of the greatest errors of this time, yet almost universally
taken for granted without so much as a thought to inquire into it.
That is the assumption that there are only two classes, living or
deadthe SAVED, and the LOST. How many sermons have
you heard based on the theory "there is no middle-ground! Either you are
this minute SAVED, or youre a LOST soul!"
This teaching has led to untold suffering and unnecessary grief.
Thousands are grieving over departed loved ones who had never made a
profession of Christ. Perhaps over one who really lived wickedly; perhaps over one who
lived a good life in the worldly sense, but still had never accepted Christ or
been converted. Still others grieve because of a doubtthey are not sure whether some
loved one died saved.
If this article does no more than dispel some of this needless grief, and
bring a little enlightenment and COMFORT to some of our readers, it will
have been worth while.
So LISTEN! Notice carefully! Its important that you UNDERSTAND!
Suppose this universal assumption were true. See where it leads us!
This teaching comes from the supposition, also generally taken for granted
without question, that this is the one and only age and time when God is trying
desperately to SAVE the worldthat the mission of the Church is to
save the worldthat this is the ONLY day of salvation, and it is now
about over. "Probation" is about to close. Soon it will be too late.
What of the Ignorant Heathen?
We know, of course, the Bible plainly says there is but one
name given under heaven among men whereby we may be savedthe name of Jesus Christ!
(Acts 2:21)
Over in China, India, Japan, other parts of Asia and Africa, many islands,
are millions upon millionsprobably at least a billion soulswho, in spite of
the comparatively few missionaries sent to heathen lands, have never so much as HEARD
that ONLY name! Think of it! A billion soulshalf the
earths populationhave never heard of Christ! They simply do not KNOW
about salvation from sinGods Plan for eternal lifehave never HEARD
the true Gospel!
They cannot be SAVED! And now let us ask, can we
believe that a God of Love brought these souls into the world without their knowledge or
consent, permitted them to live and die without ever having HEARD the
precious Gospelthat God has simply consigned them to eternal punishment because
they never HAD A CHANCE?
Or, do we believe that in some manner, God saves them, if they live up
to the best they know, WITHOUT having known and accepted Christ
without having been converted? Is there, then, some OTHER name-some OTHER
way to salvation and life eternal, than through Jesus Christ our Lord? Certainly we can
find no such teaching in the Bible
Then what is the TRUTH?
Not the ONLY Day of Salvation!
The amazing, startling TRUTH is that this
is NOT the age in which God is trying to save all the world! It is not
the ONLY day of salvation!
Rather, we are nearing, now, the end of the six working days of the
millennial week allotted to Satan!
Scripture plainly reveals Satan as the GOD of this
worldthis AGE (2 Cor. 4:4) the prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2) the
actual spirit RULER of this present world! He is IN POWER
(Luke 4:5-6). He offered to turn over this power to Jesus, if He would only worship Satan.
Jesus actually won the RIGHT to that powerto dethrone and replace
Satan in powerby resisting him in that temptation. When Christ comes to rule, Satan
shall be dethroned and utterly shorn of power. But he has power, now!
Satans Millennial Week
Satan retains that power only by Gods express
permission! God has, in effect, turned over ONE WEEKa
millennial week each "day" an actual thousand yearsto Satan. A day is as a
thousand years with God, and a thousand years as a day. It forms a complete
period of time,
Gods principles never change. Applied to this millennial
"week," God has said to Satan, in effect: "Six days shalt thou
labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy GOD:
in it thou shalt not do any work!"
Satans WORK is a labor of deceptionof deceiving
mankind upon earthof turning Gods TRUTH upside
downcausing honest sincere people to accept a counterfeit for the genuine
deceiving the people into SIN! And how successfully he has worked at his
occupation for six thousand long years!
We are nearing, now, the END of the first six days of
Satans "week? And the coming SEVENTH millennial day
shall be the Sabbath of the Lord our GOD! The first six days God
has turned over to Satan, and given him free reign to influence and to deceive, wherever
man would permit. But the coming SEVENTH millennium is GODS
dayit shall belong to HIM. In it, Satan shall not do ANY
workhe shall be chained, restrained, thrown into the symbolic "bottomless
pit," (Rev. 20:1-4)he shall not deceive a single soul! That day shall not
belong to him, thank God!it shall belong to GOD, who shall rule
through CHRIST!
Jesus plainly said He is "LORD of the Sabbath."
(Mark 2:28) And as this millennial Sabbath dawns, Jesus shall return to earth IN
PERSONas King of kings not only, but LORD of lords! He is
coming not only to reign and to rule, as King of kings. But as LORD of
lords, He is coming as High Priest to SAVE!
The fact we must now seethe ASTOUND1NG fact, almost
unbelievable in the light of erroneous traditions, yet TRUEis that
we have been living in the age of SATANS DOMINIONwhile Satan,
with Gods express permission, has been RULINGand NOT
in the age when God has set His hand to SAVE the world!
Not Given to Many to UNDERSTAND
Notice carefully, now! Shocking as this truth may come to
many, yet it is the PLAIN TRUTH. During this time while Satan has been
permitted to reign, it is simply not given to all to understand
Gods truth!
For instance, most people suppose Jesus spoke in parables in order to make
His meaning clearer. But He didnt. He spoke in parables to HIDE His
real meaningto cover it so they could not understand! After Jesus had
spoken the parable of the sower and the seed, notice: Mark 4:10-12: Mat. 13: 10-13.
Notice, Jesus plainly said that except to His disciples whom He had called,
"it is not given" to even KNOW of the Kingdomeven to
them who actually saw Jesus and heard Him speak in person! They were not
permitted to understand!
Thats astonishing! But there it is, in your own BibleREAD
IT!
Not ALL Called NOW
But there is no injustice with God. He denies no one an
opportunity of salvation. These many are simply called NOWat
this timein this, Satans age! This is simply not the TIME
when God is trying to save everyone.
If He wereand of course we know Satan is trying to deceive people into
loss of salvationthen Satan surely would be getting the better of the contest. But
it is NOT a contest between God and Satan, at all God alone rules in high
heaven, and what Satan does he does not do in competition or in spite of God, or contrary
to Gods willhe does it only by Gods express permissionand
God gives that permission for an express and wise PURPOSE. Some day we
shall understand!
But God denies no one a chance. There is no injustice with God. Everyone is
to have his full chance. But God does things HIS WAY and in HIS
TIME, and in HIS PLAN all are not being called now.
Millions who have died without a chance shall be resurrected and GIVEN
their full chanceand without a devil to tempt them! The space of this article does
not permit a full explanation of this, but the 37th chapter of Ezekiel is one very
definite revelation of this fact.
Notice, I Corinthians 1:24-26: "But unto them which are
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because
the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
For ye see your calling, brethren, how that NOT MANY wise men
after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, ARE CALLED."
Notice, "unto them which are called!" Some are called. All
are not called, at this timeduring this age of Satans dominion!
—For ye
see YOUR calling, BRETHREN"Paul is speaking
only to those he calls "brethren"those who had been called"how
that not many"notice it, "NOT MANY wise men
after the flesh"and are not most people wise after the flesh todaydoes
that not include MOST?"not many mighty, not many
noble"NOT MANY of these in the world ARE CALLED!
Gospel Preached for a Witness
Did Jesus say the Gospel was to be preached to CONVERT
all nations? No, only FOR A WITNESS! "And this Gospel of the Kingdom
shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then
shall the end come?the end of the AGE! (Mat. 24:14) Then follows the NEW
age when the reign of Christ shall replace that of Satan!
While, during the present age, many in number are called, yet it is but a FEW
comparatively. And those who are called are called to a calling, and what is it?
First a calling to a changed lifea life of overcoming sin and self. And
notice what Jesus said of those now called, who do grow in grace and in
knowledge, who endure unto the end, and who overcome! Notice their ultimate calling!
Rev. 2:26-27: "And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works
unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: and he shall rule them
with a rod of iron."
When Jesus was here on earth it was His custom, as recorded in Luke 4:16, to PREACH
THE GOSPEL every Sabbath day. And when this Great Millennial Sabbath dawns, Satan
will be imprisoned, and Christ will come not only to ruleHe shall also PREACH!
The worldly Pharisees thought it wrong for Him to HEAL on the
Sabbathand the religionists of this day, mostly, seem to believe it would be wrong
for Him to heal sin-sick souls during the millennial Sabbath! But He shall do it, just the
same!
When MOST of Israel Shall Be Saved!
One of the most wonderful chapters in the Bible is the
eleventh of Romans. Few seem to understand ityet its plain! Some, today, say
God has rejected and utterly cast away the Jews. They suppose the Jews are Israel, whereas
actually they are merely of the House of Judah, which split off from Israel in the days of
Kings Rehoboam and Jeroboam. Nevertheless, Romans 11 speaks undoubtedly of ALL
the tribes of Israel.
This marvelous chapter says God has not cast away His people Israel.
But it reveals that only a small portion of Israel are of the election of GRACE
at this time.
The rest are blinded spiritually, and GOD blinded
themdeliberately and for a purposenot permanently, but until the
"fullness of the Gentiles be come in,"and then what?
"Then," we read in Romans 11:26, "ALL ISRAEL SHALL BE
SAVED, as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Delivered"CHRIST,
at His second coming"and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob." Israel
is spiritually blinded, now. God blinded them. They are not now being called,
to salvation. They are not being given any chance, now, at all! The wonderful
opportunity that shall come to them after the fullness of the Gentiles has come
inafter the Deliverer comes, and they are no longer blindedshall not be a SECOND
CHANCEthey have never yet had ANY chance!
And, if we can but understand, this chapter dealing with national fleshly
Israel refers to our own race our American and British peoples, as well as to the
Jews! It includes MOST of our American people! It includes, undoubtedly,
most of these departed loved ones who died without having accepted Christ and becoming
converted! They may have HEARD the name of Christ, but they did not
understand! God never called them, during their life-time in THIS AGE! Of
course they did not die automatically savedbut, on the other hand, neither did
they die LOST!
Thats the comforting TRUTH! The overwhelming majority
of our American people, today, are neither saved nor lostThey simply have not, yet,
been called!
The Purpose of the Christian Calling
But if God is not trying to save the whole world nowif
most are not now called, or given opportunity for salvationWHY does
God call any, during this age? Whats the PURPOSE of
calling some now?
That great purpose is to be trained to RULE with Christ, and
to TEACH, under Him, WHEN HE COMES IN HIS KINGDOM-WHEN
all Israel SHALL BE SAVED! We are being trained, prepared, fitted, thru
trial and test, thru hardship, thru persecution, thru tribulation, with continual Bible
study and PRAYER, growing in grace and in KNOWLEDGE, to
be able, THEN, to fill the high office of a king or a priesteither
to rule in the civil sense or to preach GODS TRUTH when the time
comes that ALL may be privileged to understand, and to be CALLED.
What a glorious mission is the true Christian LIFE!
So DONT GRIEVE over departed ones you have felt were LOST.
The chances are they were simply not now calledit was not GIVEN to
them to understandtheir chance had not yet come. But they shall be resurrected, the
spiritual blindness removed, and, if YOU are one of the called, and if YOU
are faithful and finally CHOSEN, YOU MAY BE USED THEN TO MINISTER TO THEM, AND TO
LEAD THEM INTO SALVATION AND LIFE ETERNAL.
Oh, what a GLORIOUS HOPE! What truly GOOD
NEWS, is the true Gospel of CHRIST, which most people today
simply have NEVER HEARD. They are hearing a FALSE gospel
today!
But Paul in Rom. 11 shows that salvation has come in the FEW,
the ELECT in Israel, and to some of the GENTILES. And WHY?
He explains it in Verse 31. They are blinded, NOW, that, thru OUR
mercy who ARE now called, THEY may obtain mercy and
salvation THENwhen Jesus comes as the great DELIVERER!
How PLAIN, and how WONDERFUL!
Great Harvest of Heathen Souls
But now, how about the hundreds of millions of heathen who
never heard?
Will GENTILESheathen Gentileshave a chance of
salvation after Christ returns?after the KINGDOM is set up to rule
over ALL NATIONS?
Flesh and blood, remember, cannot inherit the KINGDOM. Only
those finally born again-born of the Spiritthose who shall have become
Spirit, and no longer flesh and blood (John 3:1-8) shall be in the Kingdom!
And they are the saints of this time, NOW called,
changed, then, to immortality. (See 1 Cor. 15:50-54). They are those called
during this dispensation who have endured unto the end, and proved overcomers. And they
shall rule, and teach, the nations (Rev. 2:27 and 3:21, Daniel 7:18, 22, 27). They shall
reign on the earth, not up in heaven (Rev. 5:10). They shall rule THE
NATIONS-ordinary mortals of all races, on earth (Rev. 2:26). They shall thus
rule, and teach, for one thousand yearsChrists millennial "Sabbath."
(Rev. 20:4,6).
Those now called, during this time, are called to a life of TRAININGspiritual
character-trainingto fit them for positions of high responsibility in the Kingdom.
The one, for example, who multiplies ten times over in spiritual character what God gives
him at conversion, shall be qualified to rule ten cities. The one who overcomes, and grows
in grace and knowledge only five times, shall be qualified to rule over five cities. The
one who thinks he "got saved" merely by "accepting Christ"
and, deceived by the "no works" teaching, did not grow or develop in his
Christian life at all, will have taken from him even the salvation he thought he had! See
the parable of the "pounds," Luke 19:11-27.
But who shall these converted immortals reign over?
One glimpse into this millennial rule is found in Isaiah eleven. It portrays
Christ ruling the world in RIGHTEOUSNESS. It is a time when wild animals
are tamed. Babies are being born, and nursing babes and weaned babies shall be playing
with wild animals and deadly snakesnow tamed and harmless. Now notice:
Isaiah 11:10-11: "And in that day there shall be a root of
Jesse (Christ), which shall stand for an ensign of the people; and to it (the
RootChrist) shall the Gentiles seek: . . . and it shall come to pass in
that day, that the Lord shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of
His people (Israel).
To Christ, then ruling, shall the GENTILES seek!
And then, as the returned DELIVERER, shall He set His hand again the
second time to RECOVER ISRAEL AND JUDAHthe time when the spiritual
blindness is removed!
Notice, again: Micah 4:2, "And many nations shall come, and say,
Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Eternal, and the house of the God of
Jacob (The Kingdom of God), and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His
paths."
And now what of those Gentiles who NEVER HEARD? Notice!
Isaiah 66:15, 19: "For behold the Eternal will come with fire, and with
His chariots like a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury (last plagues) . . . And I
will set a sign among them, and I send those that escape of them unto the nations, to
Tarshish, Pul, and Lud (Gentile nations). . . and Javan, to the isles afar off, that
have not heard my fame, neither seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the
Gentiles."
The Great FALL Harvest
When Jesus the Great DELIVERER shall come,
the dead in Christ (those who have been called, and who have accepted
the call and been finally saved,) shall be resurrected out of their graves immortal (I
Cor. 15:50-53); and together they shall be caught up into the air to meet the
coming King, with whom they shall reign
Thus they shall be SEPARATED from all earths
mortalsmark that! The separation between mortal and immortal is made before
Christ ever touches this earth!
They meet the King Eternal up in the clouds. Where do they go from there? The
first four verses of Zechariah fourteen reveal that in that same daynot a
thousand years afterwardChrists feet shall stand upon the Mount of Olives,
from whence He ascended!
Then, upon this earth He shall take over HIS thronethe throne of His
father David. (Luke 1:32) That, then, is the throne on which the saints made immortal
shall sit with Him (Rev. 3:21).
And then what shall happen, during the thousand year reign from then
on?
Matthew 25:31-34, 41: "When the Son of man shall come in His
glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory:
and before Him shall be gathered all nations (Gentiles and Israelites): and he
shall SEPARATE them one from another, as a shepherd
divideth his sheep from the goats: and He shall set the sheep on His right hand, but the
goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come, ye
blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you. . Then shall He
say unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting
fire."
Notice, all those called and saved prior to Christs second
appearing on earth had been SEPARATED from the unsaved before Christ
stood upon earthwhile still in the clouds of the airbefore He sat
upon the throne of His glory!
The SEPARATION going on after He sits upon that
throne ruling over THE NATIONS, therefore, is a different, and a
succeeding separation!
Here are earths nationsearths mortalsall
nations! And now begins a process of SEPARATION. It is according to the
decisions they make, and the actions they take. Those who turn to a life of RIGHTEOUSNESS
are set on the RIGHT hand. They are convertedgiven IMMORTALITY
because Christ says to them: "Inherit the Kingdom!"and mortal
flesh and blood cannot inherit that Kingdom! (I Cor. 15:50).
Those who do evil then receive the full penalty of the lawDEATH!
They are sentenced to depart into the lake of fire!
Certainly this passage pictures nothing but a process of salvation going on, after
Christs return, DURING His millennial "Sabbath Day."
That is the great "FALL Harvest of souls!"
The astonishing fact is that the present soul-harvest corresponds to the
early Spring grain-harvest of Palestine. It is so pictured in the annual round of
festivals God gave to Israel to keep His people continually in the understanding of His PLAN!
This is the preliminary harvest of souls! This is the time of SATANS
dominion. And out of it God is calling a people for His name, that through our
mercy who now are called, the great majority not now called may, then, obtain mercy! Those
now called to salvation are merely the "first-fruits" of Gods
salvation (Jas. 1:18). They are called, now, to prepare for the office of "king"
or "priest," to become the instrumentality through which Christ will really save
the world, when HIS time comes! What a glorious PLAN,
and GOSPEL!
Not a SECOND Chance!
But, some will say, is not this the doctrine of a SECOND
CHANCE?
Absolutely not!
One text ought to make that plain, Hebrews 10:26-27: "If we win
willfully, after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there
remaineth NO MORE SACRIFICE FOR SINS, but a CERTAIN
fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation."
Those to whom it has not been given to understandthose not now CALLEDhave
not received the KNOWLEDGE of the Truth.
They may have heard it preached. But most of them do not really grasp
itthey do not really UNDERSTAND! Because the TRUTH
is spiritual knowledge, and spiritual knowledge cannot be transmitted naturally
to a mortal human mind! Spiritual truth is revealed! None receive it, though
their ears hear the words, or their eyes read them, except as GOD opens
their understanding and by His Spirit reveals to them the TRUTH!
But, if one has been truly called of God, convicted by Gods
Spirit, his mind opened to the precious spiritual knowledge of the Truth, then if
that man sins willfully, deliberately, intentionally, without resistance-THAT MAN
IS THROUGH! He had had his chance! He shall have no other, during the
coming millennium!
Those who shall then be saved are those who have not, until then, been CALLED!
They are those who NEVER HAD A PREVIOUS CHANCE!
In Gods own time, according to His Plan, all shall have their chance!
But each in his order. Those who were born and lived first receive theirs last. And those
born last come in first! The illustration of the "Valley of dry bones" in
Ezekiel 37 shows the whole House of Israelthose spiritually blinded who
lived and died without a chanceresurrected in mortal bodies to mortal life, as
before. It shows their understanding being openedthe KNOWLEDGE
coming to them for the first time. Then God puts His Holy Spirit within them, and they are
saved!
Those Who Died Unsaved!
And so it follows, now, that most of our loved ones
who have died unsaved in all probability did not die LOST! In
all probability they were not called, during this age. But their call is
coming later! They shall be resurrected back to life, and given their fair
chance! And you, if you are calledif God reveals this wonderful TRUTH
to your mindare having YOUR one and only chance NOWyour
chance to prepare and fit yourself to be used of Christ in the loving labor of helping to
save them, then!
Oh, what great MEANING we begin to see in the Christian
life! What glorious PURPOSE! What grave responsibility! Will you make your
calling and election SURE?
And now, in the light of this wonderful revelation of truth, we should be
able to UNDERSTAND this matter of "PREDESTINATION".
What "Predestination" Is NOT
Very few understand what "predestination" is.
First, consider what it is not. There is no teaching in the Bible that says the decision
you are to makeyour final fate of becoming either saved or LOST, is
already pre-determined, and that you are DESTINED finally to arrive at
that fate!
Absolutely NO TEXT anywhere in the Bible says anyone
is predestinated to be LOST!
But doesnt the Bible say anything about predestination? Certainly. But it
does not say what people seem to think! People seem to think it says we are
predestinated to be either saved or lost. Some to be savedothers to be lost.
Let us read the only texts in the Bible speaking about
"predestination." And see if you can find anything in any of them about anyone
being predestinated to be LOST. The difficulty is that people have
assumed and taken for granted what is not true.
There are just FOUR places where the word
"predestinated" occurs in the Authorized version.
Romans 8:28-30: "And we know that all things work together for
good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose. For whom He
did foreknow, he also did PREDESTINATE to be conformed to the image of
His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He did PREDESTINATE,
them He also called: and whom He called. them He also justified: and whom He justified,
them He also glorified."
Ephesians 1:4-5, 11-12: "According as He hath chosen us in Him
before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in
Love: having PREDESTINATED us unto the adoption of children by Jesus
Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will . . . in whom also we have
obtained an inheritance, being PREDESTINATED according to the purpose of
Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will: that we should be to the
praise of His glory, who first trusted in Christ."
Notice, none of the places in the Bible where predestination is mentioned
says anything about anyone being predestinated to be LOSTpredestinated
to reject Christ. No one is predestinated to make a certain decisionto accept or
reject Christto be saved or lost. But some have been predestinated to be called to salvation,
NOW!
WHEN We Were Called
Of those called NOW, in this age, notice WHEN
we were called!
II Timothy 1:9: "God, who hath saved us, and called us with an
holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace,
which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began."
And, as in Ephesians I, quoted above, notice carefully what it SAYS:
God chose us in Him, when? "Before the foundation of the
world!"
"Having PREDESTINATED us"what for? To be LOST?
No, "unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ."
"Being PREDESTINATED according to the purpose of Him,
who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will: Were any predestinated.
then, to be LOST? Is it GODS WILL that any
be lost? He says it is not! Then cant we see that "predestination" has
nothing to do with WHETHER we shall be lost or savedwith our
decisionwith our ultimate fate?
Notice carefully, now!
"Being PREDESTINATED. . . that we should be to the
praise of His glory, who FIRST trusted in Christ!" Those
predestinated are the FIRST to trust in Christ merely the first
preliminary soul-harvest!
And now do you begin to see the glorious truththat predestination has
nothing to do with your making a decision or your fateit has only to do with the TIME
of your callingwhether you are called NOW, in this age, or later!
Notice it in the passage in Romans 8:28-30:
"For whom He did foreknow." How GREAT is God! If
you are one now called, God "foreknew" youKnew you thousands of years
before you were born! and "whom He did foreknow He also did PREDESTINATE
to be lost? No, "to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the
firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did PREDESTINATE, them
He also CALLED." Not will call in the future
called, now, in this age.
There it is! Note it!
"Whom He did predestinate, them He also CALLED!"
Predestination has to do with BEING CALLED. Not with being
saved or lost. Those now being called, in this age, were foreknown, and PRE-destined
to be called nowto be the FIRST to put their hope in Christ. All
others have their call later!
God does not decide for you, in advance, whether you shall be saved or lost.
He DID decide far in advance which ones He would call in this FIRST
calling, to be a priest or a king in His Kingdomto have part in the saving of OTHERS!
How WONDERFUL are Gods ways, when He opens our
understanding to reveal them to us!
Let us make our calling and final election SURE!
Let us not grieve over departed loved ones who probably were not called, in this life. God
is able to raise them up again. They will come up in the Great White Throne Judgment. And
in that judgment, The BOOK OF LIFE shall be opened, and many shall then
find it. Judgment, now, is upon the true Church of Godthose now called (I
Pet. 4:17). And WE are later to JUDGE THE WORLD! (I Cor. 6:2)
The overwhelming majority on earth today are neither saved nor lost. Their
chance has not yet come. This is not their time. But it is coming as certainly as
Gods Word is TRUE!
This is NOT the age when Christ is desperately contesting
Satan as to whether all humanity shall be saved or lost. If it were, as most seem
to believe, a controversy for souls now, between Christ and Satan, then Satan surely is
winning the contest, and a one-sided contest it is!
But Satan is not more powerful than God! We near, now, the close of the sixth
working day of Satans week. Soon will come "the Sabbath of THE LORD THY
GOD." Satan shall be chained, Christ shall rule-And PREACH,
and SAVE! |