Wednesday, March 5, 2025

And this Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then The End will come.


And this gospel of the kingdom
will be preached in all the world
as a witness to all the nations,
and then the end will come.

Jesus' words from Matthew 24:14

This verse is frequently interpreted as a command—
or at least used to justify
a certain course of action—

but the plain fact is
that it is a prophecy.
It is a statement of a definitive future event,
rather than an instruction.

Consider for a moment
what this prophecy does not say.
There is no mention,
either in the verse
or in its context,
of who will have done this preaching.
It does not say whether
one individual will preach it
or two individuals,
one organization,
seven organizations,
or an angel.
This verse just says it will be done.

Matthew 24:14 also does not tell us the time involved
in preaching the gospel,
except to say that it happens before the end.

It does not indicate whether
it is preached over the course of several decades,
or whether it takes 42 months,
or whether there is a singular announcement
that all the world hears at the same time
through some form of mass media.

This verse also says nothing about how 
this preaching will be accomplished.
There is no mention of television stations,
radio programs, websites,
Internet streams, or any other technology.
The verse simply says that it will be done.
Only God knows exactly how it will be fulfilled.


Written by David C. Grabbe



Sunday, February 23, 2025

Soul Sleeping or Conscious before Resurrection

The Bible is clear that all men live once,
and most of us will one day die
to await a resurrection.

But are the dead "conscious" right NOW?
Or are they asleep 
with no conscious thoughts or experiences,
until the "Last Day"?

You'll find theologians teaching on both sides of this issue.

We are going to look at the KEY verses on the topic,
and then I will share my thoughts 
on how I reconcile the different passages.
You can draw your own conclusions.

First let's look at verses used to promote the idea 
that souls are hanging out someplace 
experiencing a conscious existants 
awaiting the Last Day bodily resurrection.

1 Samuel 28:7-20 Tells that King Saul went to see the witch of Endor 
so she could put him in touch with the deceased prophet Samuel 
for some guidance from the Lord.
It is the only biblical account of a séance
One must decide how to interpret this passage.
Did Samuel himself truly appear?
OR
Was this an illusion perpetrated by the witch?
OR
was it a demonic deception?

The passage states that Samuel came and spoke to Saul.
In 1st Samuel 28 verse 15
we read
"Samuel said to Saul, 
'Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?'"

And what Samuel told him would happen the next day,
In verse 19 of the same passage
we read
 The Lord will deliver both Israel 
and you into the hands of the Philistines, 
and tomorrow you 
and your sons will be with me

The evidence that Samuel actually did appear seems strong.
Nothing is said in the passage to indicate anything different.
The witch ( or what we could call a medium ),
seems to be very shocked 
and surprised that Samuel appeared,
and not a "familiar spirit" or demon 
she might have been used to seeing.
It seems that God allowed Samuel to return 
so Saul could hear what the Lord had planned for him.
And we see that the message was true 
and came to place the next day.

I would point out that nothing is said about
where Samuel was exactly,
or if he we consciously existing,
or if he had merely been "awakened" 
to share the Lord's message with Saul.

This passage does support the fact 
that physical death is not the end of our existence.
In the Old Testament we see many passages about those who have died 
as simply to be in the ground or in the grave.
No reference to a conscious existence.
David seems to have thought the dead 
were not capable of doing anything,
as he references this in some of his psalms.
For example:

Psalms 115:17-18 

The dead do not praise the LORD, 

Nor any who go down into silence. 

But we will bless the LORD 

From this time forth and forevermore. 

Praise the LORD!



Moving to the New Testament
we have the Luke 16:19-31
Here Jesus speaks of a Rich man that has died, 
and a beggar named Lazurus who also has died,
and the two of them are in 
two different places in Hades or Sheol.
The Rich man being in a place of torment,
and Lazurus being with Abraham 
( often referred to as Abraham's bosom ).
A much better place to be.
A lot of people use this parable 
to construct their beliefs about the afterlife.
And some would say it is not a parable 
because proper names are used.
That is not a definitive argument.
I believe that Jesus is using an illustration 
from what was the common belief of this time.
It was commonly taught and believe at this time in this part of the world,
that the afterlife was divided into compartments.
I believe that the point of the message 
( dare I say parable ),
 is seen in the concluding verses of the passage 
where the Rich man is asking Abraham to send someone 
back from the dead to warn his brothers.
verses 29 - 31 
we read

Abraham said to him, 
'They have Moses and the prophets; 
let them hear them.' 
And he said, 'No, father Abraham; 
but if one goes to them from the dead, 
they will repent.' 
But he said to him, 
'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, 
neither will they be persuaded 
though one rise from the dead.' "

I would say that Christ was using commonly held beliefs about the afterlife 
to make the point that even after He was to come back from the dead,
that this would not be enough 
to persuade those who were already 
rejecting the truth 
God had already been providing them.

And this Greek afterlife terminology is again referenced by Christ 
when he told the believing thief on the cross next to him that 
"today you will be with me in Paradise"
( from Luke 23:43 ).

Paul uses the term Paradise, 
also calling it the third Heaven,
in reference to an experience he had.
This can be found in  2 Corinthians 12:1-4.
Read from verse 2 
he says 
"that man was snatched away to the third heaven"

and in verse 4 
we read,
how he was caught up into Paradise 
and heard inexpressible words, 
which it is not lawful for a man to utter

No details about what 
or who 
he saw in this place,
so it does not address the question of 
whether the dead are conscious or unconscious,
or where our actual "souls" exist 
prior to the resurrection of the dead.

Perhaps the most commonly quoted passage about the afterlife 
would what Paul tells says in 2 Corinthians 5:1-8,
Concluding in verse 8,
he states,
to be absent from the body 
and to be present with the Lord.

Seems pretty clear.
I leave my earthly tent ( body ),
I will then be present with the Lord.
The point of the passage is 
that we have a new body waiting for us.
In Verse 1 
we read

For we know that if our earthly house, 
this tent, is destroyed, 
we have a building from God, 
a house not made with hands, 
eternal in the heavens

Paul had already made it clear 
in his previous letter to them,
that this incorruptible body 
is something the dead get 
when Jesus returns.
Not at the moment of physical death.

Please review 
1st Corinthians chapter 15.
With the Key passage being,
Verse 51 and 52
we read
 Behold, I tell you a mystery: 
We shall not all sleep, 
but we shall all be changed— 
in a moment, 
in the twinkling of an eye, 
at the last trumpet. 
For the trumpet will sound, 
and the dead will be raised incorruptible, 
and we shall be changed.

Another misunderstood passage is
Matthew 12:40
we read 

For as Jonah was three days and three nights
in the belly of the great fish,
so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights
in the heart of the earth.


Some try to say that the phrase
"in the heart of the earth"
does not mean buried in a grave or tomb.
Those who support this theory say
that heart implies "middle of" or "midst of,"
and earth should really be translated as "country" or "world." Thus, the argument runs, 
Jesus is actually saying that He would be
three days and nights in Jerusalem,
since it was the center of the nations according to Ezekiel 5:5: 

"This is Jerusalem; I have set her in the midst of the nations and the countries all around her." 

Supporters do not say how Jesus' being in Jerusalem for this amount of time can act as a sign of His Messiahship.

However, this argument holds no water.
First, the Greek is literally translated here,
as it is from a Hebrew idiom found in Jonah 2:2-3,
the place to which Jesus referred in giving His sign.
In that place, "heart of the sea"
parallels "into the deep,"
which Jonah in the previous verse
calls "the belly of Sheol,"
which is the pit where the dead are laid
or the grave.
So, heart of the earth means
"underground," just as heart of the seas 
means "underwater."
"In the heart of the earth," then,
was a Hebrew metaphor signifying
being dead and buried.


What I believe is -
When we die,
that our soul is separated from our physical bodies,
and that we are unconscious 
Asleep

And the next conscious thought or experience will be 
when the trumpet sounds 
and we are raised incorruptible.
We will be absent from our earthly body,
and the next MOMENT 
( in our experience of TIME ),
we will be present with the Lord,
having just been given our new incorruptible bodies.
Those not part of the First Resurrection,
Reference in Revelation 20:4-6
will not be conscience 
until the Great White Throne Judgement 
mentioned in Revelation chapter 20:12-15.
Looking at verses 14 and 15,
we read

Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. 
This is the second death. 
And anyone not found written in the Book of Life 
was cast into the lake of fire.

There are other passages that support this idea,
that the dead are not conscious,
and not currently experiencing anything.

From the Old Testament 
we have this passage in Daniel chapter 12.
Verses 2 
we read,
And many of those who sleep 
in the dust of the earth shall awake,
Some to everlasting life,
Some to shame and everlasting contempt.

And in the New Testament,
Jesus tells us in John 6:40

And this is the will of Him who sent Me,
that everyone who sees the Son 
and believes in Him may have everlasting life; 
and I will raise him up 
at the last day."

Now how does this FIT with 
what we read in Revelation chapter 6,
when the 5th Seal is opened.
It is clear the "souls" are resting and are told to rest a while longer,
But also they seem to be "complaining" about the long wait?
In Revelation chapter 6 verses 9 - 11 
we read

When He opened the fifth seal, 
I saw under the altar the souls of those 
who had been slain for the word of God 
and for the testimony which they held. 
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, 
"How long, O Lord, holy and true, 
until You judge and avenge our blood 
on those who dwell on the earth?" 
Then a white robe was given to each of them; 
and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, 
until both the number of their fellow servants
 and their brethren, 
who would be killed as they were, 
was completed.

Interesting passage.
"Souls under the altar",
and specifically 
those "who had been slain for the word of God".

Were they slain during the time of the first 4 seals 
( the 4 horsemen ),
or would it reference those killed
at any time throughout history?
And what exactly does it mean to "REST"?
Is this symbolic or literal?
Because of the wide use of symbolism in Revelation,
there is much specticulation on this 
and other passages found in the last book of the Bible.
I don't think this proves the dead are conscious,
but I can understand how this passage could be interpreted that way.

The key to understanding the way 
our meeting with the Lord
could be expressed as something 
we should expect immediately,
and yet could still be something 
that does not occur
until a predetermined future time 
is the concept of a 4th dimension.

I believe that TIME as we know it
does not apply to God,
and eternal matters.
I believe scripture is clear that God exists outside of Time.
Or perhaps can see and experience all events 
beyond our linear ( moment by moment ) experience.

He is the great I am.
He is the alpha and the omega.
The beginning and the end.
And He has the ability to hear every thought,
and every prayer that Billions of people on this planet are having.
Time is not a constraint for our God.
He can spend "all His time" with each one of us,
because He is not limited 
by time and space the way we are.
Peter made similar point in 
2 Peter 3:8
we read
But, beloved, 
do not forget this one thing, 
that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, 
and a thousand years as one day.

I did not think it matters much 
if you believe the afterlife 
is going to be a time of consciously waiting, 
or an instantaneous meeting the Lord,
as long as you have 
put your faith and trust 
in Jesus Christ 
to be your Saviour.
That is the deciding factor as to 
what you have to expect in the afterlife.
John the Baptist made this clear
in John chapter 3 and verse 36,
we read

He who believes in the Son 
has everlasting life; 
and he who does not believe the Son 
shall not see life, 
but the wrath of God 
abides on him."

And I'd like to close with this passage
from 1st Thessalonians 5:9-11

For God did not appoint us to wrath, 
but to obtain salvation 
through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who died for us, 
that whether we wake 
or sleep, 
we should live together with Him.
Therefore comfort each other 
and edify one another, 
just as you also are doing.

Till next time,
Maranatha

--
Saved by Grace,
Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 
And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 
but exhorting one another, 
and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:23-25


Saturday, February 8, 2025

Will God Protect the Believers in the time of the Great Tribulation?




Will God Protect You 
in the time of the Great Tribulation?
Maybe. 
God has always protected 
and made provision 
for His people 
during perilous times.
Why would He not do the same for those 
who are trusting and obeying Him 
during this time of trial?

Let me show you some interesting 
"promise" verses
that may apply to the time 
of the Great Tribulation.

In Zephaniah chapter 2 verse 3 
we read

Seek the Lord
all you meek of the earth,
Who have 
upheld His justice.
Seek righteousness, 
seek humility.
It may be 
that you will be hidden
In the day of the Lord's anger.

And in Revelation 3:10
we read

Because you have kept My command to persevere, 
I also will keep you from the hour of trial 
which shall come upon the whole world, 
to test those who dwell on the earth.

Jesus encourages believers to persevere 
and to be Watching 
and Praying during this time.
In Luke 21:34-36
we read

“But take heed to yourselves, 
lest your hearts be weighed down 
with carousing, drunkenness, 
and cares of this life, 
and that Day come on you 
unexpectedly. 
For it will come as a snare 
on all those who dwell 
on the face 
of the whole earth. 
Watch therefore, 
and pray always 
that you may be counted worthy 
to escape all these things 
that will come to pass, 
and to stand before the Son of Man.”

While some may be "Protected" 
during this time of tribulation,
we see clearly that many will be persecuted 
and killed for their faith.
But scripture is very clear 
that nothing will separate us 
from the love of God.

We should not fear death. 
We should welcome it,
since we are promised 
new bodies, 
and an eternity 
with the God who loves us.

Our peace comes from our relationship with Jesus.
And He tells us to be Brave
in the face of tribulation.

In John 16:33
we read

These things I have spoken to you, 
that in Me 
you may have peace. 
In the world 
you will have tribulation;
but be of good cheer, 
( be undaunted - 
Have Courage ),
I have overcome the world.”

Another reason 
we should not be afraid or worried
is because of  
God's love for us 

In Romans chapter 8 verses 35 - 39
we read

 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 
Shall tribulation, or distress, 
or persecution, or famine, 
or nakedness, or peril, 
or sword? 
As it is written:
"For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted 
as sheep for the slaughter."
Yet in all these things 
we are more than conquerors 
through Him 
who loved us. 
For I am persuaded that 
neither death 
nor life, 
nor angels 
nor principalities 
nor powers, 
nor things present 
nor things to come, 
nor height 
nor depth, 
nor any other created thing, 
shall be able to separate us 
from the love of God 
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

So when events seem overwhelming around you 
Remember you can always turn to Him.

casting all your care upon Him, 
for He cares for you.

from 1 Peter 5:7

As you read the Bible,
try to take note of how many times God
has provided deliverance 
and provision.
And realize He can do the same for you.

I'm sure you've read in Daniel 
about his 3 friends surviving the fire 
meant to destroy them.
And every one has heard about Daniel 
being delivered from the Lion's Den.

You might not have heard about 
Ebed-Melech 
the Ethiopian.
We see in Jeremiah how the Lord specificly spared him,
while destruction and death 
came to those around him.
In Jeremiah chapter 39 verses 15-18
we read

... the word of the Lord had come to Jeremiah ...
“Go and speak to Ebed-Melech 
the Ethiopian, saying, 
'Thus says the Lord of hosts, 
the God of Israel: 
“Behold, I will bring My words upon this city 
for adversity and not for good, 
and they shall be performed 
in that day before you. 
But I will deliver you 
in that day,”
 says the Lord
“and you shall not be given into the hand 
of the men of whom 
you are afraid. 
For I will surely deliver you, 
and you shall not fall by the sword; 
but your life shall be as a prize to you, 
because 
you have put your trust in Me,” 
says the Lord.’ ”


I hope this message gives you some encouragement,
for both your current trials,
and whatever the future may hold.
We have a loving Father 
who is more than able
to provide for 
and protect us, 
until it is our time to meet Him.


Thanks for making it 
to the end of this video.
Please check out the other videos 
about the End Times on this channel.
Maranatha


YouTube Version =

--
Saved by Grace,
Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 
And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 
but exhorting one another, 
and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:23-25