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Our topic is, "What Does 'The Smoke of Their Torment Rising Up Forever' Mean?" Here's Rick, Jonathan, and Julie.
[Rick] (0:21 - 0:32) Welcome everyone, I'm Rick. I'm joined by Jonathan, my co-host for over 25 years. Julie, a longtime contributor, is also with us. Jonathan, what's our theme scripture for this episode?
[Jonathan] (0:33 - 0:45) Revelation 14:11: "And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name."
[Rick] (0:45 - 1:55) To many Christians, the fear of an eternal place of torment for unbelievers is very real. In the first four parts of this Hellfire Series we addressed many of the sources of these fears one at a time. What we have seen is straightforward.
First, the concept of unquenchable fire comes from the Old Testament and simply means a fire of destruction that burns until its work is done. Second, "weeping and gnashing of teeth" refers to deep regret on the part of those who should know better and has nothing to do with flames and torture. Third, the Parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus is just that. It's a parable that demonstrates the unfaithfulness of the Jewish nation when they rejected Jesus. Fourth, history plainly reveals that the origin of torture and flames in an afterlife comes from pagan origins and is not at all biblical. Finally, here we are, right here, right now, looking at the book of Revelation.
Do its graphic statements fit in with all that we have previously discovered? Absolutely!
[Julie] (1:55 - 2:25) Let's start out by saying interpreting Revelation is intricate and much study is needed, including putting proper events into their proper time frames. Some things are historic; other things are prophetic. While we don't believe any one group or individual understands Revelation in its entirety with unfailing accuracy, there is a lot that absolutely fits together harmoniously. We encourage our listeners to email us at [email protected] with any questions.
[Rick] (2:26 - 2:57) The two Revelation scriptures we're going to look into are Revelation 14:10-11 and Revelation 20:10. As we consider these scriptures, we must first note, like Julie, you said, Revelation is a book of symbols. Repeat after me; it's symbolic! Let's take notice of what the main symbols are that we need to understand in these two scriptures regarding the specific hellfire question. Let's read through both of these scriptures, Jonathan. Let's start with Revelation 14:10-11:
JONATHAN:
"He also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name."
Now let's read Revelation 20:10: "And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." These two separate passages are scripturally connected.
[Julie] (3:38 - 3:47) I'm glad we're taking these head-on because we're going analyze whether or not these Revelation texts teach a burning eternal torment. On the surface, they sound pretty ominous!
[Jonathan] (3:47 - 4:00) We'll closely review four main points: First, "he" (and we'll find out who "he" is) will be tormented with fire and brimstone. Second, what does it mean "the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever?"
[Rick] (4:01 - 4:17) Those are both from Revelation 14:10-11, and what we'll find is those are indicative of a present-day experience before the day of judgment begins. That's where they're going to land when we put this all in order. Julie, what are the next two points?
[Julie] (4:17 - 4:24) Then <third> the lake of fire and brimstone, and <fourth> they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
[Rick] (4:24 - 4:56) Now those verses from Revelation 20:10 are the final future end of judgment day experiences. What we're going to see is you have a similarity in some of the phraseology. One takes place in this age, and the other is way at the end of things.
We need to understand that right from the start. Let's take the context of Revelation 14--that's the one we're going to start with--and we're going to do a very general interpretive perspective on what is happening in these verses.
[Julie] (4:57 - 5:13) Revelation 14 takes place during the close of when the gospel message goes out. We sometimes call that "The Gospel Age." It's a time of harvest.
During this time, all of what has called itself Christianity is being judged by God and by man based on both doctrine and conduct.
[Rick] (5:14 - 5:19) Let's look at Revelation 14. We're going to take several verses one piece at a time. Let's start with verse 8, Jonathan:
[Jonathan] (5:19 - 5:30) "And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality."
[Rick] (5:31 - 6:12) Babylon. We see Babylon as a symbol of the systems of confusion, hypocrisy, power, and fear-mongering that were instituted in the name of Christianity after the Apostles were off the scene. Get that--in the name of Christianity after the Apostles were off the scene. "Fallen, fallen" shows us that God's favor is far removed from them as they immorally contaminated the nations with their intoxicating desire for power all in the name of Christ. Now that's a mouthful, and that is very condemnatory when you look at what happened with these systems.
[Jonathan] (6:13 - 6:22) The Apostle Paul warned us that after his departure this would happen. It tells us in Acts 20:29 that there would be "savage wolves...not sparing the flock."
[Rick] (6:22 - 6:29) We have that basic symbol. Now, built on that basic symbol, Revelation 14:9:
[Jonathan] (6:29 - 6:39) "Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand..."
[Rick] (6:40 - 7:08) This next messenger warns--you've got another angel, a third one--this next messenger warns those individuals who are in harmony with God through Christ to not be party to this vile corruption in any of its many beastly or copied forms, to not think like these systems or do what these systems have given them to follow. It is telling us you have to be separated, apart from all of these things.
[Julie] (7:09 - 7:26) While much has been said about this mark of the beast in both churches and scary movies, the message in <Revelation> 15 and 16 will be how God intends to destroy Babylon. God's people are warned to "Come out of her, my people," in Revelation 18:4 before her total destruction in Revelation 18:21.
[Rick] (7:27 - 7:45) We're not going down that road because that's not what this is talking about. What we're looking at is this serious consequence for partaking of the sins of these systems for God's true people. Now let's move on to Revelation 14:10. This is where it really starts to heat up, no pun intended.
[Jonathan] (7:45 - 7:58) "He also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb."
[Julie] (7:59 - 8:08) Again we're talking about time period. The harvest is a time of separation. Those who maintain an attachment with these false systems become guilty in proportion to their understanding.
[Rick] (8:09 - 8:39) That's the key; when you maintain an attachment to what these systems did and how they operate and the thought processes in them. What we're seeing is this phrase, "...tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb." It sounds, like you said earlier, Julie, that sounds ominous. Righteous judgment and consequences, again in this life, will be the result of such careless disobedience. We need to now take this apart a little bit further.
[Jonathan] (8:39 - 9:02) We talked about the Greek word for "tormented" in Episode #1346 of this Hellfire Series. It means a touchstone, literally a black stone that tests gold and silver for purity. It is a test of genuineness.
Scripturally, it's used in the sense of seeing how well one copes with difficulties in a resilient way, under the most difficult conditions.
[Rick] (9:02 - 9:56) This stone is to test the purity of metal. That's what it's for. It is to test the mettle of an individual-- Mettle, M-E-T-T-L-E. "Mettle" meaning the vigor and strength of an individual. It is there to expose things that are false and to make sure that things that are true are marked clearly.
It tests the vigor and strength of individuals under seriously difficult conditions. That's what it means to be tormented. It is not to be tortured! Please, please, folks, understand that when you look at the word, that's not what it means. It's something much more focused, something much more clear. This torment is this testing to reveal someone's strength in a certain context. You've got this "tormented;" we put that word aside and put that "serious testing" in its place, and now you've got "with fire and brimstone."
[Julie] (9:56 - 10:12) Fire destroys what it consumes, but brimstone intensifies the destructive aspect when it's added to fire. We know that as sulfur, and sulfur fumes are toxic and deadly. Fire and brimstone together, symbolically, they emphasize the severity of the destruction.
[Rick] (10:13 - 11:05) The fiery trial of destroying earthly thoughts and actions in this life will not be an easy one. Remember, we're looking at this Revelation 14:10. These individuals, if they are partaking of the sinfulness of Babylon and not walking away from it because they are given God's strength to do so, that's what we're looking at. It's the fire, the difficulty, the destruction of those fleshly desires that has to be taken upon in this Revelation 14:10. This is similar to one instance of weeping and gnashing of teeth from Episode #1342. We're going to look at The Parable of The Wheat and The Tares that takes place at the end of the Gospel Age in the harvest time. We're going to focus in on the symbology in this parable of fire, because it talks about fire and brimstone here. Let's go to Matthew 13:41-43:
[Julie] (11:05 - 11:52) "The Son of Man will send forth his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then THE RIGHTEOUS WILL SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear." In summary, Rick, we learned that this Parable of The Wheat and Tares isn't about individual people. It's about the process of the development of the true church.
The true church develops in an environment with a lot of corruption, meaning among false church systems as well. As these two develop together until that harvest time, there then has to be some sort of sifting or separation work. Quick recap, what's this "furnace of fire" that they get thrown in?
[Rick] (11:52 - 12:05) That's the point. That's why we're bringing this up. It's this "furnace of fire," because in our Scripture in Revelation it says you will be tested "with fire and brimstone." Well you've got fire here, too. This "furnace of fire" is the time of trouble. We know that because the scriptures tell us that. Jonathan, Malachi 4:1:
[Jonathan] (12:06 - 12:32) "For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts." "Weeping and gnashing of teeth" symbolizes the deep regret of great loss at being exposed as false and hypocritical--NOT eternal torture.
[Rick] (12:32 - 13:45) It's done in the context of fire, which is a destructive force, not a tormenting force. In The Parable of The Wheat and The Tares, you have that sense of deep regret in the context of not a tormenting, but a destroying fire. It's bringing down the systems.
That's the point. Again, the Revelation 14:10 scripture, "he will be tested with fire and brimstone." He'll be tested in a way that is very serious and taking away and burning away the imperfections of their character, the sinfulness.
It's removing it from them. It's helping to change them. This difficulty and accountability unfold to show that God teaches all of humanity, no matter how blessed they could have been, that the sinfulness of sin must be identified and dealt with.
If you understand that that phrase, "he will be tormented with fire and brimstone," means he will be tested with the destruction of the flesh, essentially-- and by flesh, I mean in a symbolic sense, fleshly desire, fleshly thinking-- then the next part of the verse is going to make more sense. Jonathan, let's go to Revelation 14, the first part of verse 11:
[Jonathan] (13:45 - 14:02) "And the smoke of their torment (meaning testing) goes up forever and ever." Smoke continues to ascend after destructive fire has done its work. In this case, smoke would represent a remembrance or evidence of the past, the lingering effects of experience.
[Rick] (14:03 - 14:47) It's not about their burning up! It's about the remembrance of what happened. The results of their hard testing and consequences will become a lasting memory and testimony to the sinful and corrupting compromise of anything that is sacred.
That's what it's there for. It's that remembrance. This lesson has everything to do with the memory of the sins committed and NOTHING to do with any tormenting of those who are sinful. Now, why do we say this smoke rising up forever is not showing how they're being tortured and tormented? The answer is because the scriptures told us that many times before. We're going to look at one example, Isaiah 34. Let's look at verses 5, then 8-10:
[Jonathan] (14:48 - 14:50) "For my sword hath drunk its fill in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Edom, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment... For Jehovah hath a day of vengeance, a year of recompense for the cause of Zion. And the streams of Edom shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever; from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever."
[Julie] (15:22 - 16:01) Again, we refer you to Episode #1341, where we studied what the phrase "unquenchable fire" means. There was a literal fulfillment in the destruction of the Old Testament city of Idumaea. The people were sinful.
They were annihilated. We know for sure, though, that this fire is still not literally burning today. But it's also part of the future day of vengeance prophecies, when there will be a day of destruction of earthly systems.
This "unquenchable fire" represents the full and complete judgment of sin. The smoke represents the eternal memory that will stand as a permanent learning experience for all.
[Rick] (16:01 - 16:56) That's the way God designs things. He gave us this permission of evil so that it could be used as a remembrance experience. There's nothing like real-life experience to go back to and say, never want to go there again! That's what we're looking at. The smoke going up forever is simply saying, that tells you something bad happened there. That's something we don't ever want to go back to.
Boy, that was awful! That's what this Revelation scripture is saying. It's speaking in the same terms as the Isaiah scripture. Folks, you cannot take Revelation out of the context of the rest of the Bible. If you do, you're doomed. You're doomed to misunderstanding and misrepresentation.
It fits in the symbolism of the rest of the Scriptures. We've got this "going up forever and ever." We see that it's the remembrance that goes up forever and ever.
Now, let's finish Revelation 14:11:
[Jonathan] (16:56 - 17:02) "...they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name."
[Rick] (17:03 - 17:55) Now, this "have no rest day or night," this is removed from the smoke because the smoke is showing you the remembrance. This is going back to the individuals who were making the mistakes and saying, while you're in that situation of being off, being wrong, of bringing idolatry into your Christianity, it's going to be difficult. You're not going to be able to be faithful as you would have.
This is a state of dissatisfaction, no rest day or night. Again, nothing to do with torment. It's a state of dissatisfaction and unrest amongst those who are called out of those systems, but who hold on to their corruption.
The problem is that we hold on to what we have, and when we do that, there's no place or space for what we are given. You can't take corruption out and expect God to bless you the way he would if you left it all behind.
[Julie] (17:55 - 18:10) This reminds me of The Parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus. We spent all of Episode #1346 going over this parable. It was the role reversal that Jesus predicted would come to the nation of Israel and its leadership when favor would be given to the Gentiles.
[Rick] (18:11 - 18:25) Let's take a look at some very short excerpts from that Parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus. Let's go to Luke16:27-28, and this is when the Rich Man is in a position of realizing he is now out of God's favor:
[Jonathan] (18:25 - 18:54) " He answered, Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment." Again, same word for testing for purity.
In other words, warn my brothers! Save them from this humiliation of revealing and anguish of heart. I am sure that if one risen to such favor from such humiliation as Lazarus were to go to them, they would believe and avoid this suffering.
[Rick] (18:54 - 19:29) He's begging on behalf of others, like, don't let them go through this regret that I'm going through. You mentioned the testing. You see, it was the testing when the gospel was given to the Jewish nation, and they pushed it aside.
This is--when we fast forward to what we're talking about in Revelation 14--it's the testing to the true gospel given to those who have an association with Babylon, and they don't put it aside. You see, there's a parallel. There's a testing between those two things.
Let's continue with just snippets from this parable, Luke 16:29:
[Jonathan] (19:29 - 19:34) "Abraham replied, They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them."
[Julie] (19:35 - 19:47) The rich man and his brothers were indicted by their past. The religious leadership of Israel wouldn't believe Jesus was the Messiah when he was standing literally right in front of them. This is their "touchstone" experience.
[Rick] (19:47 - 20:05) Touchstone ... This is what is showing what they're made of. At this point in the parable, the rich man (the Jewish nation) and its leaders are debating with Father Abraham. It's not a debate you want to get into because you're not going to win, okay? Let's continue with Luke 16:30:
[Jonathan] (20:06 - 20:11) "No, father Abraham, he said, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent."
[Rick] (20:11 - 20:50) Look, Father Abraham, you're not understanding me. The point is that Abraham has said, you've been given everything you needed, and you rejected it. Still pressing and hoping against hope.
Just give my brothers a chance, essentially, is what's being spoken of in the parable. Abraham's response is, they already have everything they need. That's what the Revelation 14 Scripture is showing us; that those who are in that situation, where God gives them His spirit and draws them out and shows them how to be separate, and they decide not to be separate. You already have everything you need, and you have the same kind of testing. Let's just wrap up looking at The Rich Man and Lazarus with Luke 16:31:
[Jonathan] (20:51 - 21:08) "He said to him, If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead." The ruling class as representatives of the Jewish nation had sealed Israel's fate by a continual rejection of the teachings and miracles of their Messiah.
[Julie] (21:08 - 21:30) Again, this was a parable, so it wasn't really Abraham speaking. This is Jesus (using Abraham) talking. We found out the big twist in the story. This was Jesus foreshadowing that he would raise the real Lazarus from the dead about two weeks later, and still the Pharisees wanted to kill Jesus. So they weren't convinced, even by somebody coming back from the dead, just as Jesus predicted in this parable.
[Rick] (21:30 - 22:03) You can see the parallel when you fast forward to the end of this time of the gospel, when we have the opportunity to put all of the sinfulness of all of those systems aside, and some don't. They fall into that same category, in that same kind of testing. NOT eternal torment, NOT fire and brimstone ... symbols of this testing that will lead to an experience that will be remembered by all. Let's look at this. Smoke, Torment, Forever and Bible truth; let's put it in order.
[Jonathan] (22:03 - 22:25) Having reviewed Revelation 14:8-11, in the appropriate context of symbolism and prophecy, we can now see a clear picture. The smoke of their torment rising up forever actually refers to the severe testing of those who were called out of Babylon and all of its systems, but did not leave the corruption behind.
[Julie] (22:25 - 22:45) Their example of answering God's privilege with compromised obedience will be a constant reminder to all of humanity of the importance of complete loyalty to God and His righteousness. Again, email us at [email protected] if you have questions on the symbolism or how to study Revelation in general. We have some really great study helps for you.
[Rick] (22:46 - 23:27) The idea of compromised obedience is the lesson in Revelation 14:10-11. There's goodness there, but it's compromised, and there's a test as a result of that compromise. Now when we go to Revelation 20:10, it's going to be a little bit of a different story using similar symbols. When Revelation 20:10--let's remember that the symbols that we have thus far seen absolutely are consistent with the rest of scripture. Therefore, this next scripture, Revelation 20:10, won't be a surprise. To get started, let's go to Revelation 20:1-2, because these verses give us a four-part perspective of Satan's influence. Revelation 20:1-2:
[Jonathan] (23:27 - 23:40) "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years:"
[Rick] (23:40 - 24:29) Satan is described in four different ways, and these are representative of his influence, his power; not him as a being, but his influence and power. The dragon is symbolic of Satan's domination and intimidation.
The serpent, that's easy--Satan's deception and lies. The devil, what is the devil? When you think of the devil, Satan's nastiness and his intentional harm to any and all who would oppose him.
Then Satan, the name, all that Satan represents as an opposer of God, as the god of this world. You have Satan described in the aspects of what his power is. That's what's on trial here.
It's the power and influence of Satan. Now let's go to Revelation 20:7-8, so we can work our way up to verse 10:
[Jonathan] (24:29 - 24:38) "When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth."
[Rick] (24:38 - 25:35) Now when the thousand years are complete--this is after the long day of judgment-- this is a final end result here. This particular prophecy takes place way forward in time.
The last one we talked about is much more present-day. They're very, very different in their placement. It says he "will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth," which means the nations are following godliness. "The nations of the four corners of the earth," they're all following godliness, and he's coming out to mess that up. That's what we're looking at here. This is the test that will lead--for "the nations" from "the four corners of the earth"-- this is the test that leads to The Parable of The Sheep and The Goats. The reason we're bringing in another parable is to show that Revelation ties in with the rest of the Bible. In The Parable of The Sheep and The Goats, it is a parable that talks judgment of the nations. Julie, Matthew 25:32:
[Julie] (25:36 - 25:43) "All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats."
[Rick] (25:43 - 26:07) You have the nations being separated because they're being tested because Satan and his powers and influences are all loose. You see, it all fits together. It all fits together.
The results of this little season of testing, this short time of testing that Jesus talked about in Matthew 25, the results will be abundantly clear. Let's go back to Revelation, to our scripture, Revelation 20:10. What's the end result of all of this?
[Jonathan] (26:07 - 26:18) "And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented (the act of revealment) day and night, forever and ever."
[Julie] (26:19 - 26:39) Like that symbol of Babylon, this "beast" and the "image of the beast," also known as the "false prophet," are personifications of human institutions--corrupt religious systems Satan has used to defile God's truth and keep mankind in bondage and slavery. Here the "devil" joining them represents Satan's civil power over the people of the earth.
[Jonathan] (26:40 - 26:54) Every single system that would pollute God's truth and draw men from God is revealed as counterfeit and will be destroyed. Meanwhile, the memory of what these evil systems stood for and did will be a constant reminder of the results of godless evil.
[Julie] (26:55 - 27:19) You hear people plead "never forget" when there's a major disaster like 9/11 or the Holocaust. Since the 1950's, Israel honors Holocaust Remembrance Day once a year. The country comes to a complete standstill for two minutes at 10 a.m. Sirens go off, people stop at the market, drivers get out on the highway and stand by their car. Here in Revelation, we're talking about this much bigger "never forget" remembrance.
[Rick] (27:20 - 27:37) Going back to The Sheep and The Goats, we have that never-forget remembrance and the smoke rising up, and you see that it's all for the purpose of educating; NOT for the purpose of hurting. It's all an education process. Let's just drop in again, Julie, on The Sheep and The Goats, Matthew 25:41:
[Julie] (27:37 - 27:45) "Then He will also say to those on his left, Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels."
[Rick] (27:46 - 28:23) See how it all fits together. There's destruction for any and all who will not comply. They'll be given incredible opportunity--and a few won't. It will also be with any and every individual here. Everybody, after centuries of God's grace and God's peace and God's justice and God's righteousness reigning on earth, if they reject all of those things, that's what ends up happening. NOT torment, simply destruction. This last point, this "lake of fire," is the symbol of utter destruction and that is shown to us very plainly a few verses later in Revelation 20:14:
[Jonathan] (28:24 - 28:29) "Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire."
[Rick] (28:29 - 29:26) "This is the second death, the lake of fire." Because the scriptures have already unequivocally defined this condition in the symbol of Gehenna-- we learned that in the previous episodes-- it all ties together. There is NO torture. It's simply destruction because that's what God's plan is. God is a God of love.
Revelation shows us that. It shows us that the hard way by showing us the underside, the underbelly, the guts of all of the hard experiences. Revelation doesn't pull punches. It says when you have an experience that brings sin and destruction, it will be reckoned with and it will be remembered forever. That's the point! All of these things are not about hurting people.
It is about teaching all of humanity the grace and the goodness and the importance of following after God through Christ, period and forever. Smoke, Torment, Forever, and Bible Truth; let's wrap this up.
[Jonathan] (29:27 - 29:45) We can clearly see in the symbols of Revelation 20:10 the culmination of the ages-long revealing process of the sins and corruption of the Devil, beast, false prophet, as well as those who followed these systems. Their actions can and will continue to be remembered even after their destruction.
[Rick] (29:45 - 31:35) You can have the world moving on to this eternal beauty and perfection. In the minds of humanity will be the remembrance of all of those things so that nobody ever forgets the moment, Julie, like you described with the Holocaust. That's touching. People stop and they look back and they think. That's what this is about on a worldly scale. It just is an amazing, amazing circumstance to understand. Why go to all this trouble?
Why does God go through all this trouble to do all these things? It's so His plan for all of His creation will praise and honor Him forever. One last Revelation scripture, Revelation 21:3-4: "And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away." The scripture reads this way because all of what we talked about will have been accomplished. The remembrance will be there, the experiences will be exposed, the systems that perpetrated evil will be destroyed, and it's all done. They will live in God's kingdom happily and peacefully forever under the guidance of God through Christ. Amen. Folks, this is what those Revelation scriptures mean. It is nothing like you may have been taught.
Think about it. Folks, we love hearing from our listeners. We welcome your feedback and questions on this episode and other episodes at ChristianQuestions.com.
Coming up in our next Episode: "Is It Ever OK for a Christian to Lie?"
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