Post by ResLight on Nov 21, 2013 14:54:19 GMT -5
You turn man to destruction, saying, "Return, you children of men." -- Psalm 90:3
Praise Yahweh,... Who redeems your life from destruction. -- Psalm 103:1,2.
Enter in by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter in by it. -- Matthew 7:13.
Since I am not exactly certain what the above question was meant to say, I will have to respond to what it seems to me to be asking.
One of the arguments often presented by the JWs is that there would be no need to raise those who have been destroyed in Armageddon, Sodom and Gomarrah, and others whom Yahweh has destroyed, since they have already made their decision to reject Jehovah and the truth.
From the scriptural standpoint, all of us are born into this world, according the flesh, as of the seed of the serpent, sons of disobedience, children of wrath. (Ephesians 2:2,3) The whole world has been traveling the road to destruction ever since; only a few have gotten off that road through faith so as to travel the road to life. In Adam we are all under the sentence of death -- destruction -- due to Adam's sin. (1 Corinthians 15:21,22; Romans 5:12-19) Any who are destroyed, who die, in this age (those who are not counted as regenerated in Christ), are counted as being destroyed due to the sin of Adam. God's special acts of destruction during the ages since Adam, such as in the case of Korah and his associates, Sodom and Gomorrah, the times Jerusalems was destroyed, the destruction of Tyre, Sidon, Nineveh, and the destruction during Armageddon, etc., have/will always resulted in the execution of the original condemnation in Adam, not a new condemnation (the second death) that would placed over the original condemnation without any cancellation of the original condemnation.
Now to say that any of these who were destroyed would not receive any benefit from the resurrection (which would assume that they would simply end up being destroyed again in the age to come) would not agree with what Jesus said. Concerning the people of Tyre and Sidon, Jesus said, "If the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you [Chorazin and Bethsaida], they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes." (Matthew 11:21) Thus Jesus recognized that those people whom Yahweh executed judgment upon long ago were indeed repentable. And concerning the people of Sodom, Jesus said, "If the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you [Capernaum], it would have remained until this day." (Matthew 11:23) By this, Jesus showed that IF the people of Sodom had seen the works of Yahweh that had been done through Jesus, they would have repented, and their city would not have destroyed. Thus, he showed that the people of Sodom could surely benefit from another day of judgment. But, more than that, he goes on to say that they will be that day of judgment, stating, "I tell you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom, in the day of judgment, than for you." (Matthew 11:24) Jesus was saying that not only would the people of Sodom be in the day of judgment, but that also the people of Capernaum would be raised in the resurrection of the unjust in order to be judged in that day of judgment.
This agrees with Jesus' statement at John 12:47,48:
John 12:47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.
John 12:48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken , the same shall judge him in the last day.
Jesus thereby declares that all those who had heard his words and still rejected him would indeed be raised in the last day. Paul states concerning these:
2 Corinthians 4:3 Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled in those who perish;
2 Corinthians 4:4 in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn on them.
Being blinded by the god of this age, they cannot see the truth of the good news concerning Jesus; is this not still true today? The time has not yet come when the nations will not be blinded. (Isaiah 25:7; Revelation 20:3) Are we to expect that Satan will be abyssed before the final battle of Armageddon so that every man, child, and baby will be enlightened with truth so that their rejection of the truth may result in their being sentenced to the second death? No scripture presents such a scenario; indeed, although there has surely been an increase of knowledge in these last days, along with that increase of knowledge has also come a vast array of conflicting doctrines that leads to the blinding of the minds of the people even more so than those people who heard and saw the works that Jesus perfomed, but who did not believe in the first century. Surely, therefore, Jesus would say of these also today who are blinded by Satan, that he came, not to judge them (except that he might execute the judgment that is already upon them -- John 3:18), but rather to save them (John 12:47,48), and they will be judged in the "last day", the day when the world will be judged individually (not in Adam) in the day of judgment.
See:
Will Billions Be Eternally Destroyed in the Battle of Armageddon?
life.rlbible.com/?p=80
Praise Yahweh,... Who redeems your life from destruction. -- Psalm 103:1,2.
Enter in by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter in by it. -- Matthew 7:13.
Since I am not exactly certain what the above question was meant to say, I will have to respond to what it seems to me to be asking.
One of the arguments often presented by the JWs is that there would be no need to raise those who have been destroyed in Armageddon, Sodom and Gomarrah, and others whom Yahweh has destroyed, since they have already made their decision to reject Jehovah and the truth.
From the scriptural standpoint, all of us are born into this world, according the flesh, as of the seed of the serpent, sons of disobedience, children of wrath. (Ephesians 2:2,3) The whole world has been traveling the road to destruction ever since; only a few have gotten off that road through faith so as to travel the road to life. In Adam we are all under the sentence of death -- destruction -- due to Adam's sin. (1 Corinthians 15:21,22; Romans 5:12-19) Any who are destroyed, who die, in this age (those who are not counted as regenerated in Christ), are counted as being destroyed due to the sin of Adam. God's special acts of destruction during the ages since Adam, such as in the case of Korah and his associates, Sodom and Gomorrah, the times Jerusalems was destroyed, the destruction of Tyre, Sidon, Nineveh, and the destruction during Armageddon, etc., have/will always resulted in the execution of the original condemnation in Adam, not a new condemnation (the second death) that would placed over the original condemnation without any cancellation of the original condemnation.
Now to say that any of these who were destroyed would not receive any benefit from the resurrection (which would assume that they would simply end up being destroyed again in the age to come) would not agree with what Jesus said. Concerning the people of Tyre and Sidon, Jesus said, "If the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you [Chorazin and Bethsaida], they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes." (Matthew 11:21) Thus Jesus recognized that those people whom Yahweh executed judgment upon long ago were indeed repentable. And concerning the people of Sodom, Jesus said, "If the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you [Capernaum], it would have remained until this day." (Matthew 11:23) By this, Jesus showed that IF the people of Sodom had seen the works of Yahweh that had been done through Jesus, they would have repented, and their city would not have destroyed. Thus, he showed that the people of Sodom could surely benefit from another day of judgment. But, more than that, he goes on to say that they will be that day of judgment, stating, "I tell you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom, in the day of judgment, than for you." (Matthew 11:24) Jesus was saying that not only would the people of Sodom be in the day of judgment, but that also the people of Capernaum would be raised in the resurrection of the unjust in order to be judged in that day of judgment.
This agrees with Jesus' statement at John 12:47,48:
John 12:47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.
John 12:48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken , the same shall judge him in the last day.
Jesus thereby declares that all those who had heard his words and still rejected him would indeed be raised in the last day. Paul states concerning these:
2 Corinthians 4:3 Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled in those who perish;
2 Corinthians 4:4 in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn on them.
Being blinded by the god of this age, they cannot see the truth of the good news concerning Jesus; is this not still true today? The time has not yet come when the nations will not be blinded. (Isaiah 25:7; Revelation 20:3) Are we to expect that Satan will be abyssed before the final battle of Armageddon so that every man, child, and baby will be enlightened with truth so that their rejection of the truth may result in their being sentenced to the second death? No scripture presents such a scenario; indeed, although there has surely been an increase of knowledge in these last days, along with that increase of knowledge has also come a vast array of conflicting doctrines that leads to the blinding of the minds of the people even more so than those people who heard and saw the works that Jesus perfomed, but who did not believe in the first century. Surely, therefore, Jesus would say of these also today who are blinded by Satan, that he came, not to judge them (except that he might execute the judgment that is already upon them -- John 3:18), but rather to save them (John 12:47,48), and they will be judged in the "last day", the day when the world will be judged individually (not in Adam) in the day of judgment.
See:
Will Billions Be Eternally Destroyed in the Battle of Armageddon?
life.rlbible.com/?p=80
