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10-7-2018 Weekly Message

The Meditation of the Week: Psalm 17:1-15

Text: Luke 16:19-31

The title of the Word: The end of those who receive their lot in this world

           During the last 6,000 years of Satan’s reign, Satan has been tempting those who live in the world to prevent them from seeing the eternal blessings that God has gives them, so they follow the lust of the flesh, the lust of eyes, and the pride of life. They are still enjoying the things following their father, the first man and consequently mistaking that is for a while as if eternal,

         God’s Word testifies to those who live for a little while to enjoy their lot in Satan’s temptations, and those who see the eternal and everlasting portion of God in the coming world and eternity.

         Cain, who stabbed Abel his brother, who believed in God, and killed him for his lot in the world. Only Noah  found grace in the eyes of God, but all others besides him were also received their lot  in this world . In Sodom and Gomorrah, only one man, Lot was righteous, and all the rest of them sought for a portion in this world, and none remained, but all were destroyed by the fire and brimstone. Of the two sons of Abraham, Isaac became the son of promise, but Ishmael and his descendants did not receive the promise, and were merely those who received the lot of this world. Also, Isaac’s son Jacob regarded the promise of God as precious, but all the nations that were with Esau at the time disregarded birthright, which God gave him, were also received in this world. Israel, which God has chosen, has become a nation of promise, but all other nations have become partakers of this world.

         But God, though their ancestors were not in the promises of God as their lot  in this world, but by giving grace through Jesus’ death and resurrection for Adam’s sins, believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, It has opened the way for a life that enjoys the eternal inheritance of God through the life given to the nations in this world.

        God teaches the story of a rich man without name who enjoyed the lot in this world,  and a man named Lazarus, beggar for no lot in this world. The rich man was living a luxurious life every day in purple and fine linen. Lazarus, on the other hand, lived on the doorstep of his rich man, full of sores over his body, hoping to fill  with crumbs from the rich man’s table, and even the dogs came and licked his sores.

        We can tell one difference between this rich and the beggar. The rich man had no name, but the beggar had a name called Lazarus. In other words, this rich man was not the one God  knows, but the beggar was the one whom God knew. This rich man was a partaker of this world, but even though this beggar lived the most miserable life in the world, Lazarus’ name was recorded in the book of life of God.

          When the Apostle Paul wrote to the Hebrews, he testified that “
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”. According to his testimony, Lazarus died and his rich man also died. After their death, judgment was given to each one, and Lazarus was carried by angels to Abraham’s bosom, and the rich man was judged suffering in hell.

           We can see through the Bible that Abraham’s bosom and hell exist inside the earth. In ancient times Jonah said that his soul cried out in the belly of hell, and Jesus said that his soul would be in the heart of the earth like Jonah, and that his soul would go down to hell to overthrow the sins of this world l. No one will know that there is a tremendous fire and brimstone deep in the earth. Everyone knows that the volcanic fire often pops up from the ground in recent years. Jesus also spoke of what kind of fire  in hell is:

” And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:

48Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

49For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. “(Mark 9: 47-49)

It is also said that Abraham ‘s bosom, which Lazarus was carried away by angels, and the hell   is seeing each other and that there was a great gulf fixed between them, so  that they could not come and go. That is why the Old Testament believers were able to be forgivn their sins by the blood of sacrifices that died for their sins whenever they sinned by God’s law.

But after their death they did not go to hell because of the covenant of the law, but they could not ascend to heaven and went to the place where their father Abraham was. Hundreds of years later, when their promised Lord Jesus Christ died, the Old Testament saints who were in the bosom of Abraham rose from the grave, and when the Lord  resurrected, they came out of the tomb and went into the holy city and showed themselves. (Matthew 27: 50-53).

On the cross, Jesus said to the burglary who believed in Him, “  Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43), The paradise was the bosom of Abraham where   Lazarus  was. He also came up with all the Old Testament saints who were in the bosom of Abraham when He  resurrected. Apostle Paul testified that paradise in the earth was moved to the third heaven by witnessing his third heaven as paradise (2 Corinthians 12: 1-4). When he wrote to the saints of the church in Ephesus,Again, he testified: ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

9(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? (Ephesians 4: 8-9)

In other words, when Jesus shed His blood and died, He rose to the heavens, giving resurrection unto the Old Testament Saints who were confined  in the Paradise that is the bosom of Abraham, who could not ascend into heaven in the law. Therefore, now the bosom of Abraham is empty. So now the rich man in hell is still suffering day and night in the fire, no longer able to see Abraham and  Lazarus.

The important thing we need to know is that the two died, and that Lazarus was in the bosom of Abraham, and that the rich was suffering in hell. Their bodies have already returned to corruption, but their souls were still alive. It is because God created man as “living soul”. It is also the fact that the human soul has all the members of the human body. The rich man in hell saw Abraham and Lazarus in the bosom of Abraham with his own eyes. In addition, He spoke to Abraham with his own mouth and so on.

One important fact can be seen through the Word given to us today. With so much pain in the hell in the midst of fire, the rich man asked Abraham: ” Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:

28For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.

“The rich man said that if Lazarus was raised from the dead and went to them, his brothers would repent  not to come to hell like him.
At that time Abraham said,

” And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. I answered.

That’s right! I bear my testimony that a lot of people are testifying of hell saying they visited  in this age. These testimonies may be beneficial to themselves, but they cannot make others repent.

King David testified of those who received their lot in this life and those that deserved to receive the lot in the coming eternal world:

” From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

15As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness. (Psalm 17: 14-15)

Amen! Hallelujah!