Latest / INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living / The Final Exit Interview Msg 1015 - Pastor Chuck Swindoll Insight for Living

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The Final Exit Interview Msg 1015 - Pastor Chuck Swindoll Insight for Living · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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  Speaker 1: Please open your Bibles to Revelation chapter 20. We are
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  Speaker 1: finishing this most serious of chapters today in the last
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  Speaker 1: five verses of Revelation 20. One fine expositor calls this
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  Speaker 1: the most serious, sobering, and tragic passage in the entire Bible.
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  Speaker 1: I want to tell you that while I Certainly am
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  Speaker 1: committed to preaching God's word. I take no delight in
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  Speaker 1: preaching this today, but it is a responsibility and is
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  Speaker 1: a part of my calling. So today I declare it
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  Speaker 1: because it is truth and it is such sections as
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  Speaker 1: this that keep people from preaching through the book of Revelation.
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  Speaker 1: So today we hear from God's word as I read
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  Speaker 1: for you Revelation 20 verse 11 through 15. Then I
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  Speaker 1: saw a great white throne and him who sat upon it,
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  Speaker 1: from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no
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  Speaker 1: place was found for them. And I saw the dead,
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  Speaker 1: the great and the small, standing before the throne, and
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  Speaker 1: books were opened, and another book was opened, which is
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  Speaker 1: the book of life. And the dead were judged from
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  Speaker 1: the things which were written in the books according to
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  Speaker 1: their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which
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  Speaker 1: were in it. And death and Hades gave up the
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  Speaker 1: dead which were in them. And they were judged, every
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  Speaker 1: one of them, according to their deeds. Then death and
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  Speaker 1: Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is
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  Speaker 1: is the second death, the lake of fire. And if
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  Speaker 1: anyone's name was not found written in the book of life,
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  Speaker 1: he was thrown into the lake of fire. I have
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  Speaker 1: an outline that will help guide us, which you will
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  Speaker 1: find as a part of your worship folder today. You
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  Speaker 1: may want to place it right here in this section
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  Speaker 1: of scripture for us to use later. We have already
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  Speaker 1: prayed this morning, and so we will briefly come again
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  Speaker 1: before our Lord, before this morning's offering, and ask for
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  Speaker 1: God's guidance through this message. May we pray together? Our Father,
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  Speaker 1: it's sobering to look into the face of a young
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  Speaker 1: man who is committing himself to a life of ministry.
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  Speaker 1: It doesn't make him special. It doesn't make him in
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  Speaker 1: any way superhuman, but it is a reminder of a
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  Speaker 1: high calling and therefore a series of demands in which
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  Speaker 1: he will continue to release his will for yours. And
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  Speaker 1: this is good for us to witness. It is a
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  Speaker 1: good reminder for us in ministry. It also is helpful
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  Speaker 1: for all of us, regardless of our calling in life,
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  Speaker 1: to realize that you have a way in our work.
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  Speaker 1: You are pleased to use us in whatever may be
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  Speaker 1: the calling. And we pray that you will use these
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  Speaker 1: who have gathered in this place in special ways to
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  Speaker 1: carry out the work you've called them to do. We
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  Speaker 1: pray as well that you will be pleased in the
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  Speaker 1: examples that are set before the world at large as
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  Speaker 1: we live out our lives. We will need your strength
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  Speaker 1: and we will need your infilling, your enablement to make
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  Speaker 1: that happen. Now we commit to you, our Father, this
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  Speaker 1: serious section of your word. May truth be declared without
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  Speaker 1: hesitation and equally important, may truth be heard and acted upon. Amen.
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  Speaker 1: Where appropriate. We thank you in the midst of all
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  Speaker 1: of it. Our father for your. Great grace. Marvelous. Grace.
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  Speaker 1: That meets us in our need. Provides what we don't deserve.
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  Speaker 1: And keeps us. In your eyes favored. And encouraged. Thank
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  Speaker 1: you for the opportunity to give. We do so now.
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  Speaker 1: Again because of your grace. In the name of Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: we pray. Everyone said amen. Hide and seek is the
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  Speaker 1: oldest of all games in time. We have learned the
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  Speaker 1: rule since we were little children. You need to know
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  Speaker 1: where to run and you need to know how to hide.
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  Speaker 1: It's amazing. The secret is knowing both and when you're
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  Speaker 1: good at it, you're never it. I always thought that
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  Speaker 1: was the funniest word, it. We start playing this game
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  Speaker 1: when we are very small. We learn how to run.
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  Speaker 1: We learn where to hide. Some never outgrow the game,
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  Speaker 1: so they spend their lives doing both. I read this
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  Speaker 1: past week of a of a psychologist in a graduate
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  Speaker 1: school who was learning how to administer various intelligence and
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  Speaker 1: personality tests. One was a test for preschool children. He writes,
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  Speaker 1: as I administered a social judgment test to a three-year-old,
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  Speaker 1: I asked her what she would do if she broke
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  Speaker 1: a toy that belonged to a friend. With great confidence,
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  Speaker 1: she blurted, I would hide it. He adds, I bit
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  Speaker 1: my cheek to keep from laughing. I thought about teenagers
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  Speaker 1: when they first get their driver's license and how the
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  Speaker 1: tendency stays with them to run and hide, especially when
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  Speaker 1: the driver who has just gotten his license is trying
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  Speaker 1: to squeeze into a parking space and mistakes the gas
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  Speaker 1: pedal for the brake pedal and runs into a very,
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  Speaker 1: very nice looking car. What's the first thing the kids
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  Speaker 1: do when that happens? Well, they look around to see
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  Speaker 1: if anybody is watching, and then if they don't think
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  Speaker 1: long enough about it, they really do put the pedal
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  Speaker 1: to the metal and get out of there so that
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  Speaker 1: nobody will hold them responsible. It reminds me of a
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  Speaker 1: story that happened years ago where a man really had
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  Speaker 1: that happen. He was in a tight parking space and misjudged,
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  Speaker 1: and his bumper scraped across the long side of a
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  Speaker 1: brand-new shiny Porsche. Unfortunately, a lot of folks saw that happen,
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  Speaker 1: and he looked around and saw them, and so he
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  Speaker 1: got out of his car and got a piece of
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  Speaker 1: paper and began writing, I just hit your car. Others
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  Speaker 1: saw it happen. They think I'm leaving my name and
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  Speaker 1: my address and my phone number, but I'm not. Sorry, buddy.
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  Speaker 1: Better luck next time. Stuck it under the windshield wiper
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  Speaker 1: and ran and hid in the traffic outside. Ours is
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  Speaker 1: an age-old habit, and you have to wonder where it
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  Speaker 1: came from. Well, you may be surprised to know we
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  Speaker 1: learned it from Adam. We learned it from our ancient,
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  Speaker 1: ancient parents in the most pristine of all environments, the
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  Speaker 1: Garden of Eden. Turn back quickly to Genesis chapter 2
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  Speaker 1: and the very last part of the chapter. And remember
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  Speaker 1: where you are when you get there. It is a
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  Speaker 1: place of fragrant blossoms and pure air and clean water
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  Speaker 1: and tame domesticated animals and delightful nature. Pieces of fruit
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  Speaker 1: and no doubt vegetables to eat and the enjoyment of
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  Speaker 1: one another. We even have a couple that's newly married,
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  Speaker 1: even though they've been freshly created. And God did the
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  Speaker 1: ceremony and has called them to be one. And they
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  Speaker 1: have enjoyed his presence without any sin and without any shame.
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  Speaker 1: In fact, they are so at ease with each other,
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  Speaker 1: they are not even self-conscious. They are not self-aware. Verse
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  Speaker 1: 25 of the second chapter says, Rather pointedly, the man
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  Speaker 1: and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.
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  Speaker 1: They enjoyed each other's presence. They were not at all
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  Speaker 1: aware of themselves. You and I can't imagine that. All
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  Speaker 1: our lives it's been about us. But these people are
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  Speaker 1: living only for the other person. Until the third chapter
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  Speaker 1: events occur and in the first six verses the tempter comes,
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  Speaker 1: they yield and first the woman falls, then the man falls.
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  Speaker 1: Both are guilty and immediately everything changes. Everything. Verse 7 says,
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  Speaker 1: the eyes of them both, the eyes of both of
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  Speaker 1: them were opened. And they knew they were naked. What
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  Speaker 1: an amazing statement. Implying before they didn't know. That's why
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  Speaker 1: there was no shame. There was no embarrassment. There was
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  Speaker 1: no uneasiness. But now they know. And what do they do? Well,
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  Speaker 1: they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.
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  Speaker 1: And then they heard the sound of the presence of
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  Speaker 1: the Lord in the distance, the one with whom they
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  Speaker 1: had met since their creation. And instead of running toward him,
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  Speaker 1: they ran and hid from him. First time ever. Missing them,
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  Speaker 1: the Lord calls to the man, verse 9, and asks,
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  Speaker 1: why are you there? Why are you there, Adam? Please
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  Speaker 1: observe the response. Verse 10. I heard the sound of
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  Speaker 1: you in the garden. That's true. I was afraid. That's true.
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  Speaker 1: Because I was naked. That's a half true. He was
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  Speaker 1: afraid because he disobeyed. He was afraid because he ate
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  Speaker 1: of the tree that he was told not to eat from.
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  Speaker 1: But he covers up. He's hiding the real reason by
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  Speaker 1: giving an alternate reason. I was naked. And the Lord's
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  Speaker 1: response is insightful. Verse 11. Who told you you were naked?
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  Speaker 1: I'm always amazed when I see that in the Genesis account.
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  Speaker 1: Does anybody have to ever tell you you're naked? I mean,
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  Speaker 1: you know every button that pops off. You know every
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  Speaker 1: zipper that won't quite work all the way to the top.
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  Speaker 1: It's all you can think about until you can get
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  Speaker 1: out of that garment. Who told you you were naked? J.
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  Speaker 1: Grant Howard writes, their eyes were opened. That changed everything.
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  Speaker 1: Before they saw everything as God saw it, which was good.
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  Speaker 1: Now they have an awareness that is perverted. And distorted.
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  Speaker 1: Everything has changed. And what did they do? They ran
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  Speaker 1: and they hid. We've been doing it ever since. From
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  Speaker 1: the earliest years. When we break a friend's toy. We
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  Speaker 1: hide it. When we mark a person's car. We run.
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  Speaker 1: It's a habit of life. And it never stops. On
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  Speaker 1: your way to Revelation 20, stop off at Romans 5.
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  Speaker 1: If you aren't familiar with your Bible, there are four
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  Speaker 1: Gospels in the New Testament, then the book of Acts,
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  Speaker 1: then the letters began at Romans. Chapter 5. I want
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  Speaker 1: to show you how come we're still doing what Adam did.
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  Speaker 1: Romans 5, verse 12. Just as through one man, that
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  Speaker 1: would be Adam, sin entered into the world and death
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  Speaker 1: through sin. See, they always go together. Had there never
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  Speaker 1: been sin, there would have never been death. Adam and
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  Speaker 1: Eve would have lived forever. They'd have lived forever. But
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  Speaker 1: because of sin, there came death. Death and sin, Siamese
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  Speaker 1: twins of depravity. And so death spread to all men
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  Speaker 1: because all Eugene Peterson, in his paraphrase, the message, you know,
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  Speaker 1: the story of how Adam landed us in the dilemma
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  Speaker 1: we're in first sin, then death, and no one is
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  Speaker 1: exempt from either sin or death. That sin disturbed relations
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  Speaker 1: with God in everything. And everyone. As precious as every
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  Speaker 1: birth is to us and to our God is. every
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  Speaker 1: child is born with a nature that is wrong with God.
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  Speaker 1: That's why there has to be a second birth, spiritually.
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  Speaker 1: We are born physically, and in that physical birth, we
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  Speaker 1: get a nature from our parents that they got from theirs,
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  Speaker 1: and they got from theirs, and all the way back,
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  Speaker 1: we got from Adam. Because it's spread to all. It's
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  Speaker 1: like a polluted stream. It's never suddenly unpolluted. So the
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  Speaker 1: pollution spreads. And the sin problem continues to this present moment.
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  Speaker 1: To the child being born at this very moment. In
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  Speaker 1: the hospitals around this country. Every child. Growing up to
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  Speaker 1: be an adult. Sinful. By choice, by nature, we are
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  Speaker 1: wrong with God. So the wonderful answer, which is developed
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  Speaker 1: beautifully in this letter to the Romans, is that there
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  Speaker 1: is hope beyond sin and death, and that hope is
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  Speaker 1: in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. By trusting in
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  Speaker 1: the Lord Jesus Christ, His righteousness... Is credited to our account.
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  Speaker 1: And we become. The righteousness of God. Because of him.
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  Speaker 1: And God therefore can fellowship. And delights to fellowship with us.
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  Speaker 1: As we relate to him by faith. You who love
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  Speaker 1: great writing. of course, appreciate the works of Shakespeare. And
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  Speaker 1: in his work, As You Like It, written around 1600,
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  Speaker 1: there appears the familiar line, all the world's a stage
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  Speaker 1: and all the men and women are merely players. They
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  Speaker 1: have their exits and their entrances. We come today to
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  Speaker 1: the final exit. There's no other entrance. This is the
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  Speaker 1: last exit interview, if you will. As mankind, men and women,
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  Speaker 1: teenagers and children alike who have come to an age
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  Speaker 1: of understanding the gospel will stand before God and there
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  Speaker 1: is no hope beyond this point. No more hiding, no
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  Speaker 1: more running. It all comes to bear at this moment.
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  Speaker 1: I found this statement very helpful. We live in a
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  Speaker 1: world where the white noise of sin is always humming.
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  Speaker 1: It can never be turned off completely. This sinfulness speaks
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  Speaker 1: to our natural disposition, a malignant condition. that influences the
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  Speaker 1: very fabric of creation and touches every aspect of our existence.
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  Speaker 1: The white noise is always on from the moment of
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  Speaker 1: birth to the moment of death. When we come to
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  Speaker 1: Revelation 20, 11 to 15, we come to the final
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  Speaker 1: scene before heaven. It is neither pretty nor relieving. If
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  Speaker 1: you've never come to know the Lord Jesus Christ and
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  Speaker 1: you die in that condition, this is your future. So
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  Speaker 1: I say today, without any reservation or hesitation, I need
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  Speaker 1: the attention of every lost person listening. at this time
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  Speaker 1: please listen closely I will not exaggerate nor will I
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  Speaker 1: attempt to embellish this section of scripture I will simply
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  Speaker 1: teach the verses as they appear as best I can
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  Speaker 1: I'm interested when I come to Revelation 20 and it
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  Speaker 1: really goes back to chapter 19 that virtually every verse
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  Speaker 1: begins with and or then And, and, then. And, then, then. And, and.
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  Speaker 1: Through Revelation 20. Then I saw. Verse 2. And he laid.
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  Speaker 1: Verse 3. And he threw him. Verse 4. Then I saw.
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  Speaker 1: On and on. When you get to verse 11. Then
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  Speaker 1: I saw. So these things are moving in sequence. We're
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  Speaker 1: not skipping around in time. These are moving in sequence
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  Speaker 1: with one another. So... The beast and false prophet. have
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  Speaker 1: been thrown into the lake of fire. Satan has been
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  Speaker 1: cast there as well at the end of the millennium.
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  Speaker 1: So the lake of fire is occupied by beast, false
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  Speaker 1: prophet and Satan and no one else yet. Not yet.
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  Speaker 1: Now it will be filled with people. Who have lived
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  Speaker 1: their lives and chosen to resist the message of the
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  Speaker 1: gospel through their death. And this is their future. John says, then,
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  Speaker 1: verse 11, I saw a great white throne. It's great
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  Speaker 1: because it's God's throne. It's God's eternal throne. It's white
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  Speaker 1: because from it emanate justice, purity, justice. And it's a
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  Speaker 1: throne in the sense that it represents a place of judgment.
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  Speaker 1: It is the final exit interview of the lost. I
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  Speaker 1: noticed that it doesn't take place anywhere on earth or
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  Speaker 1: anywhere in the heavens. Verse 11 tells us from whose
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  Speaker 1: presence earth and heaven fled together. So if you will
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  Speaker 1: try to think creatively, you have heard of the creation
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  Speaker 1: of the earth and the heavens. Now they are uncreated.
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  Speaker 1: Here is a vacuous emptiness that is earthless and heavenless.
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  Speaker 1: Barnhouse writes, there is to be an end of the
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  Speaker 1: material heavens and earth which we know. It is not
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  Speaker 1: that they are to be purified and rehabilitated, but that
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  Speaker 1: the reverse of creation is to take place. They are
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  Speaker 1: to be uncreated. As they came from nothing at the
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  Speaker 1: word of God, they are to be sucked back into
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  Speaker 1: nothingness by the same word of God. So somewhere in
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  Speaker 1: the spaces, the throne space, and the lost are brought
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  Speaker 1: before God. The 11th verse says no place was found
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  Speaker 1: for them. There's no place to run. There's no place
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  Speaker 1: to hide. There's no place to seek comfort. It is
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  Speaker 1: now past hope. At this point, there is no other alternative.
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  Speaker 1: Option available. And what occurs? If I may ask you
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  Speaker 1: to discipline your eyes, read the first part of verse
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  Speaker 1: 12 and then the first part of verse 13. We'll
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  Speaker 1: come back in a moment to take up the second
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  Speaker 1: part of those verses. I think it will make a
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  Speaker 1: little bit more sense as they tie together. John says,
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  Speaker 1: and verse 12, I saw the dead, the great and
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  Speaker 1: the small standing before the throne. Verse 13. And the
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  Speaker 1: sea gave up the dead which were in it. Death
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  Speaker 1: and Hades gave up the dead which were in them.
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  Speaker 1: What we have is a cross-cultural, universal gathering of the lost.
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  Speaker 1: There is no status at this time. There are no
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  Speaker 1: generals and captains and sergeants and privates from the military.
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  Speaker 1: They're all on the same level. There are no older
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  Speaker 1: and younger. There are no rich or poor. There are
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  Speaker 1: no special races. There is no special language or culture
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  Speaker 1: that has given special treatment. The small and the great
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  Speaker 1: together are brought before God. John 5, 29 calls this
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  Speaker 1: the resurrection of judgment. To help clarify it, I hope
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  Speaker 1: it clarifies, I provided a chart for you. On the
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  Speaker 1: opposite side of your outline, have you ever seen a
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  Speaker 1: more confusing-looking chart at first glance? I completely own responsibility
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  Speaker 1: for that, but I had a lot to say, and
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  Speaker 1: I tried to say it in a way that would
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  Speaker 1: help you follow through. Go to the far left at
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  Speaker 1: the top. This is answering what happens to a person
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  Speaker 1: after death. Understand at death what occurs. Listen closely. We
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  Speaker 1: are made up of that which is seen and unseen.
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  Speaker 1: We'll call the seen the body. The unseen, we'll call
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  Speaker 1: it the soul. There are other terms used, but let's
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  Speaker 1: keep those simple terms. The body and the soul. When
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  Speaker 1: death occurs, get this clear. There's a separation between the
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  Speaker 1: seen and the unseen. With the separation, there is a
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  Speaker 1: destiny that they move toward. And each of the destinies
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  Speaker 1: involves a resurrection. Stay with the first category of the Christian.
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  Speaker 1: That would be people who live as we're living during
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  Speaker 1: this time. At death, the soul of the Christian goes
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  Speaker 1: into the presence of the Lord. At death, the body
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  Speaker 1: of the Christian goes into the grave or is cremated
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  Speaker 1: or dies a terrible death in an explosion and is
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  Speaker 1: blown apart or goes and dies a death at sea. Whatever,
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  Speaker 1: we call it the grave. The body separates from the
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  Speaker 1: soul and your loved one who knew the Lord Jesus
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  Speaker 1: Christ as Savior, his soul went immediately to be with
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  Speaker 1: the Lord Jesus. Absent from the body is to be
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  Speaker 1: face to face with the Lord. In the future, the
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  Speaker 1: Lord will return in the sky for his own. I'm
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  Speaker 1: calling this the rapture, and the body and soul will
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  Speaker 1: be joined together in a glorified state as the body
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  Speaker 1: is resurrected, as the parts are put back together, if
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  Speaker 1: you will, as the cremated body is brought back to life.
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  Speaker 1: The dead body is now given a glorified state, and
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  Speaker 1: the soul of that individual is joined at the rapture,
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  Speaker 1: and we stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Some
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  Speaker 1: call it the Bema, B-E-M-A, which is the Greek word
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  Speaker 1: for judgment seat. We stand before the Lord to receive
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  Speaker 1: our rewards. The judgment is not to see if we
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  Speaker 1: get into heaven. That was determined during our life. Getting
• 26:49
  Speaker 1: into heaven is never decided after death. It's always decided
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: before death. And so, having come to Christ, when we
• 26:59
  Speaker 1: stand before the Lord Jesus, it's to determine death. the
• 27:02
  Speaker 1: rewards that we receive. And the Bible speaks of five
• 27:05
  Speaker 1: different kinds of crowns that can be given to God's people.
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: And we place the crowns before him in worship and
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: we enter into our eternal home in heaven. Now you
• 27:17
  Speaker 1: could trace that subject all the way through the Old
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: Testament believer. When the Old Testament believer dies, the soul
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: goes to a place called paradise or Abraham's bosom. Remember
• 27:30
  Speaker 1: the Lord said to the thief who believed, this day
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: your soul will be with me. Where? In paradise. It
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: is a place for the departed spirits or souls of
• 27:43
  Speaker 1: the saved, not of this era. And they are reserved
• 27:47
  Speaker 1: there until the second coming of Christ, when he returns
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: before the millennial reign and raises up Old Testament believers
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: who will be a part of the judgment day. On
• 27:59
  Speaker 1: the earth and then heaven. The tribulation believer is explained
• 28:03
  Speaker 1: the same way. The millennial believer is the same way
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: as best we can determine. Now notice the last category.
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: All unbelievers. What happens at death? When an unbeliever dies,
• 28:17
  Speaker 1: the soul is placed in a temporary place called Hades
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: or Sheol. Hades is a Greek word. Shield is a
• 28:29
  Speaker 1: Hebrew word. It's a place of torment. That's temporary. And
• 28:32
  Speaker 1: it's held there until the time we're looking at right
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: here in Revelation. The body goes to the grave and
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  Speaker 1: whatever kind of grave it may have gone to. And
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: then finally, when the body and the soul of the
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: unbeliever are joined together, there is the appearance before the
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: great white throne judgment. The ultimate destiny we will hear
• 28:58
  Speaker 1: about today and it's marked there for you on the chart.
• 29:03
  Speaker 1: Now back to the passage. Revelation 20 verse 12. I
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. 13.
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: The sea gave up the dead which were in it,
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: meaning the bodies, the material part of us, that which
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: has been taken from this earth, that which has gone
• 29:24
  Speaker 1: into the sea, that You know, there's been death and
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: death and Hades. All of the souls that have been
• 29:31
  Speaker 1: held there give up the dead which were in them.
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: And please back to verse 12 now. Notice the judgment.
• 29:40
  Speaker 1: The books were opened and another book was opened, which
• 29:45
  Speaker 1: is the book of life. And the dead were judged
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: from the things which were written in the books, plural,
• 29:54
  Speaker 1: according to their deeds. Verse 13 affirms at the end
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: that they were judged, every one of them, according to
• 30:04
  Speaker 1: their deeds. The books, listen carefully, plural means scrolls, literally
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: the scrolls, refers to the record of every thought and
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: word and deed of every unsaved person who lived and
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: died without Christ. God keeps a perfect and complete record
• 30:26
  Speaker 1: of Of every life. When this judgment occurs. There is
• 30:31
  Speaker 1: a review. Of those things. Not even the most righteous individual.
• 30:41
  Speaker 1: Who has ever lived as a lost person. Earns the
• 30:44
  Speaker 1: favor of God. Because his righteousness. Is a perfect righteousness.
• 30:50
  Speaker 1: And the only way one can fellowship. With an eternal
• 30:52
  Speaker 1: God in heaven. Is to be as perfect as he is.
• 30:56
  Speaker 1: You say, well, I'm a Christian, but I'm not perfect.
• 30:58
  Speaker 1: You've already forgotten. In Christ, you are as perfect as
• 31:02
  Speaker 1: his son. When you trust Christ, that righteousness of his
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: is credited to your account. And that is the righteousness
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: God sees when you stand before him and you appear
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: clothed in the righteousness of Christ. These without Christ, no
• 31:21
  Speaker 1: matter how good the deeds, no matter how great the works,
• 31:24
  Speaker 1: no matter how fine the words are, No matter how
• 31:27
  Speaker 1: pure the motive, no one is able to measure up
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: to the perfect holiness and righteousness of God. And so
• 31:38
  Speaker 1: having been judged according to deeds, everyone falls up short,
• 31:42
  Speaker 1: comes up short. Now, what about the book of life?
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: I understand the book of life to be the listing
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: of all of God's elect. Appearing in the book of
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: life is the name of every individual who has died
• 32:00
  Speaker 1: with Christ Jesus as Savior of their lives. Your name
• 32:05
  Speaker 1: is there. My name is there. Because of the grace
• 32:08
  Speaker 1: of God in our coming to Christ, the name is
• 32:12
  Speaker 1: in the book of life. You see, the sort of
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: a second check is not only do their deeds show
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: them as undeserving, but the absence of their names from
• 32:24
  Speaker 1: the book of life. affirms that they are lost. Warren
• 32:31
  Speaker 1: Wiersbe writes serious words. The great white throne judgment will
• 32:35
  Speaker 1: be nothing like our modern court cases. At the white throne,
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: there will be a judge but no jury, a prosecution
• 32:44
  Speaker 1: but no defense, a sentence but no appeal. No one
• 32:49
  Speaker 1: will be able to defend himself or accuse God of unrighteousness.
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: All those being judged at the great white throne judgment
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: will hear the sentence of their lostness. You say, well,
• 33:09
  Speaker 1: I mean, is that really fair? Is that really, you know,
• 33:13
  Speaker 1: what about those that were ignorant of God's standard? Romans 1.20
• 33:18
  Speaker 1: makes it clear that creation speaks of God, of his standard,
• 33:26
  Speaker 1: of his matchless power. And even the human conscience as
• 33:32
  Speaker 1: well condemns us, Romans 2, 14 and 15 tell us.
• 33:39
  Speaker 1: So those will stand before the living God unworthy of
• 33:45
  Speaker 1: eternal life with him. Pause for a moment and let
• 33:55
  Speaker 1: it sink in. You will never hear this at a
• 34:01
  Speaker 1: liberal church. You will never hear this from someone who
• 34:07
  Speaker 1: wants you to like them so they just can't bear
• 34:10
  Speaker 1: to tell you the truth. You will hear this as
• 34:17
  Speaker 1: it is written in the word of God and because
• 34:20
  Speaker 1: it is true. There is no other escape. This is final.
• 34:35
  Speaker 1: To affirm it, verse 14 adds, death and Hades were
• 34:38
  Speaker 1: thrown into the lake of fire. So this is the
• 34:41
  Speaker 1: end of death. Remember it entered when Adam sinned? Now
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: it exits. In fact, this is called the second death.
• 34:53
  Speaker 1: Isn't that interesting, folks? We refer to being born and
• 34:57
  Speaker 1: then born again for the sake For the lost, there
• 35:03
  Speaker 1: is a death and a second death. A death again.
• 35:09
  Speaker 1: A finality. A removal from this earth into this eternity.
• 35:20
  Speaker 1: If anyone's name was not found written in the book
• 35:25
  Speaker 1: of life, he was thrown into the lake. One older
• 35:35
  Speaker 1: writer puts it, the two voracious and insatiable monsters who
• 35:41
  Speaker 1: have swallowed all past generations, Hades and death, are forced
• 35:48
  Speaker 1: to disgorge their prey. I don't know of a clearer
• 35:56
  Speaker 1: verse to evaporate all theories of universalism than verse 15. Now,
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: let me add a word because I need to be
• 36:08
  Speaker 1: true to my conscience here. I believe there will be
• 36:13
  Speaker 1: degrees of punishment. I do not believe that all will
• 36:18
  Speaker 1: be punished in the same manner, though I believe all
• 36:21
  Speaker 1: the lost will spend eternity in the lake of fire.
• 36:26
  Speaker 1: On the basis of Jesus' parable in Luke chapter 12,
• 36:29
  Speaker 1: verse 47 and verse 48, I believe there will be
• 36:37
  Speaker 1: a measuring out of the punishment. He tells of the
• 36:42
  Speaker 1: slave who knew the master's will, Luke 12, 47, and
• 36:48
  Speaker 1: did not get ready or act in accord with his will,
• 36:50
  Speaker 1: will receive many lashes. Here's the one who knows and rejects,
• 36:54
  Speaker 1: continues to hear and rejects, continues to be witness to
• 36:57
  Speaker 1: and rejects, continues to hear and rejects. That'll be the maximum.
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: But there are those who did not know and committed
• 37:06
  Speaker 1: deeds worthy of a flogging, who received but few. For
• 37:11
  Speaker 1: everyone who has been given much, much will be required,
• 37:14
  Speaker 1: and to whom they entrusted much of him they will
• 37:17
  Speaker 1: ask all the more. I believe there will be degrees
• 37:20
  Speaker 1: of punishment, and yet all will face an everlasting condemnation. Now,
• 37:31
  Speaker 1: my message is today very simple. It's time to stop running,
• 37:37
  Speaker 1: and it's time to quit hiding. For any of you
• 37:40
  Speaker 1: who continue to do that, and I speak of that spiritually,
• 37:45
  Speaker 1: I have two words in my application. In answer to
• 37:51
  Speaker 1: the question, how, I have one word, Christ. And in
• 37:57
  Speaker 1: answer to the question, when, I have one word, now.
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: How's that for an application of a message, huh? Christ now.
• 38:07
  Speaker 1: Christ now. Now. There's an old legend where Satan and
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: his demons met for a time to plan the strategy
• 38:22
  Speaker 1: over earth in order to persuade people against walking with
• 38:27
  Speaker 1: God and serving Christ. One demon spoke up and said
• 38:32
  Speaker 1: that He would go to earth and persuade people that
• 38:35
  Speaker 1: there is no heaven. Satan frowned and responded, that'll never work.
• 38:41
  Speaker 1: There are too many people who believe it, and the
• 38:44
  Speaker 1: Bible is full of too much evidence about it. Another
• 38:48
  Speaker 1: imp stood and said, I've got a better idea. I'll
• 38:51
  Speaker 1: convince them there is no hell, no lake of fire.
• 38:56
  Speaker 1: Satan's response again was negative. Too many are convinced otherwise,
• 39:01
  Speaker 1: plus the human conscience. stands against that as a witness
• 39:06
  Speaker 1: against your message. After the passing of a little time,
• 39:10
  Speaker 1: a dark spirit glided forward and grinned a sinister grin,
• 39:15
  Speaker 1: saying he would go and his message would be both
• 39:18
  Speaker 1: acceptable and effective. Satan, curious, asked, and what will be
• 39:23
  Speaker 1: your message? I'll tell them there's no hurry. That was
• 39:31
  Speaker 1: the method chosen and it is still effective. Many a
• 39:38
  Speaker 1: person who dies without Christ did not expect to die
• 39:41
  Speaker 1: when it happened. Many an individual thought they had a
• 39:45
  Speaker 1: full life ahead of them, whatever full life means. You
• 39:51
  Speaker 1: don't know what your life will be like. James tells
• 39:56
  Speaker 1: us it will appear for a little while and then
• 40:00
  Speaker 1: vanish away. Cynthia and I have a very, very dear
• 40:07
  Speaker 1: friend who we've known for years. She and her husband,
• 40:10
  Speaker 1: marvelous Christian people, really not that old, just early retired
• 40:16
  Speaker 1: and enjoying life to the full, good health, happiness, just
• 40:20
  Speaker 1: built a home, just got resettled, just at the top
• 40:24
  Speaker 1: of their game, if you will. He goes to the
• 40:28
  Speaker 1: church to rearrange a few chairs, and he dies on
• 40:32
  Speaker 1: the spot. No warning, no previous signal, no advance prompting. Suddenly,
• 40:45
  Speaker 1: he's gone. Thank the Lord he was ready to meet.
• 40:50
  Speaker 1: His heavenly father. I'd like us to bow our heads.
• 40:56
  Speaker 1: This is a very serious moment. And I'd like you
• 40:58
  Speaker 1: not to move around. Please. Let's just sit before the Lord.
• 41:02
  Speaker 1: And allow him to speak. Next time we're together. We'll
• 41:08
  Speaker 1: turn to the subject of heaven. And we look forward
• 41:11
  Speaker 1: to that with great delight. But we'll not go there
• 41:13
  Speaker 1: till we finished here. Are you absolutely sure? I don't
• 41:18
  Speaker 1: care what age you are. I don't care what your
• 41:21
  Speaker 1: background is. I don't care if you've ever been to
• 41:23
  Speaker 1: church before or you were raised in a church. Are
• 41:25
  Speaker 1: you absolutely sure that you know Jesus? Are you absolutely
• 41:30
  Speaker 1: certain there's been a time in your life when you've
• 41:33
  Speaker 1: trusted in Christ alone, by faith alone? Force yourself to ask,
• 41:40
  Speaker 1: can I go back to a time when I have
• 41:43
  Speaker 1: received Christ, taken him as my savior? If that answer
• 41:49
  Speaker 1: is no, Christ. Now. Believe in him. Trust him. Now.
• 42:11
  Speaker 1: But as many as received Christ to them, he gave
• 42:14
  Speaker 1: the authority to become the children of God, even to
• 42:16
  Speaker 1: those who believe in his name. This is the record
• 42:20
  Speaker 1: that God has given us eternal life. And this life
• 42:22
  Speaker 1: is in his son. He who has the son has
• 42:25
  Speaker 1: the life. He who does not have the son does
• 42:29
  Speaker 1: not have the life. There's no in between. You're not
• 42:39
  Speaker 1: somewhere along the way. It's inappropriate to try to work
• 42:45
  Speaker 1: real hard to somehow impress God. We've already seen the
• 42:48
  Speaker 1: small and great weren't able to do that. Nothing in
• 42:57
  Speaker 1: my hands I bring, says the old song, simply to
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: the cross I cling. We have a prayer room that's
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: here in the front of this building on your right
• 43:09
  Speaker 1: where our soul care people meet with you who need
• 43:13
  Speaker 1: a little time to talk this through. Maybe you're the
• 43:18
  Speaker 1: type that just has a few questions. I commend you.
• 43:23
  Speaker 1: That's good. Come and ask them. Maybe you don't need
• 43:28
  Speaker 1: anybody to talk to. You're convinced now in your heart,
• 43:33
  Speaker 1: this is what you need. Not only is this the
• 43:38
  Speaker 1: greatest thing to do for yourself, this is the greatest
• 43:40
  Speaker 1: thing to do for your family. You will be transformed.
• 43:46
  Speaker 1: Your whole insides will be rearranged. Your whole focus for living.
• 43:51
  Speaker 1: Best of all, your eternal home will be secured. Christ now. Lord,
• 44:03
  Speaker 1: may those two words ring in our minds as we
• 44:08
  Speaker 1: turn away from what we have heard and enter back
• 44:12
  Speaker 1: into the things of his life. May they haunt each person,
• 44:20
  Speaker 1: each individual who's never come to your son. May it
• 44:25
  Speaker 1: be for them A throbbing, constant, restless message. Till they
• 44:33
  Speaker 1: turn to your son, Jesus. We who know him are
• 44:38
  Speaker 1: grateful and have no pride in knowing. We have great joy,
• 44:43
  Speaker 1: but there's no arrogance. There's nothing we've done to earn
• 44:47
  Speaker 1: the gift. But today we speak, we pray with passion.
• 44:55
  Speaker 1: That you will let not one individual who has heard
• 44:58
  Speaker 1: this message. Turn away from it. Without Christ. Now Lord
• 45:06
  Speaker 1: dismiss us in the seriousness of the moment. With the
• 45:08
  Speaker 1: reminder that you speak truth. And you haven't stuttered. It's
• 45:15
  Speaker 1: landed with full force. And we now must reckon with it.
• 45:20
  Speaker 1: In the name of Jesus our Savior. The only righteous one.
• 45:24
  Speaker 1: our Lord. And everybody said, Amen.