Special Bible Study

Exodus 12, Luke 16 and 1st Peter 3

Fred R. Coulter—June 25, 2011

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Today's going to be a special Bible study. What we're going to do is answer some difficult Scriptures, some questions that have come up recently.

Let's understand how we put the Scriptures together. That's why in the first appendix in the Bible we have Fourteen Rules for Bible Study. Especially because the Old Testament, it does not have everything in chronological order, verse-by-verse after verse-by-verse. In some places it talks about the first coming of Christ, then the next verse it's the second coming of Christ. We're told how to study in Isaiah 28:9. The whole answer to the entire question is found in different places in the Bible, so you have to put it together. That's why Paul wrote to Timothy (2-Tim. 2)—that he is to rightly divide the Word of Truth.

You can take the Word of Truth, wrongly divide it, read part of it, and people think that you're reading out of the Bible, which you are, but you're not giving the whole picture. And we're going to see that is especially true in the things we're going to cover today. Then, I have my handy-dandy old King James Version, we're going to read a couple verses out of here so that we can understand the truth of the Scriptures verses the interpretations that are normally associated with it.

So Isaiah 28:9. God asked the question: "Whom shall He teach knowledge?…. [Not everyone wants to learn. And those who honor Him with their lips but their hearts are from Him do not understand, because that automatically closes the eyes and the ears.] ...And whom shall He make to understand doctrine?.… [Doctrine means the truths concerning the teachings of the Bible.] ...Those who are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts." In other words, it's not beginners. This has to be for those who have had a certain working of the Scriptures, a certain knowledge of the Scriptures, a certain time in the Church, and so forth.

Verse 10: "For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little." That's how you put it together. Notice the same process that we use to understand is the way that we understand the Bible because we do it correctly, but because those who don't want to know don't do that, here is what happens to them. The same word, the same Bible, the same everything.

Verse 11: "For with stammering lips and foreign tongue He will speak to this people.... [That's what has happened here.] ...To whom He said, 'This is the rest He gives to the weary'; and 'This is the refreshing,' yet they were not willing to hear.... [God's Word would have helped them greatly, but they weren't willing to hear. Notice how the same thing works backwards upon those who are not willing to hear.] ...So then the Word of the LORD was to them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken and snared and taken" (vs 11-13). In other words, they wouldn't understand.

Today, the keys we know in understanding the Bible is

• keeping the Sabbath
• the Holy Days
• preaching the Word of God in season
• apply these rules of Bible study

and when we have something that looks like a conflict, we search the Scriptures to see how we are to resolve the conflict so that it is correct.

Exodus 12: How do you resolve the difference between the 430 years and the 400 years

I got this question just the other day. There's another question that we'll also answer a little later referring to this. Exodus 12:41: "And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, it was even on that very same day, all the armies of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.... [This is the same day of the year 430 years later.] ...It is the night to be much observed to the LORD..." (vs 41-42).

I'm not going to go through the whole understanding of God establishing the covenant with Abraham at this time. We're just going to look at the numbers.

Genesis 15:13: "And He said to Abram, 'You must surely know that your seed that be sojourners in a land that is not theirs... [go forward beyond the parenthetical statement] ...four hundred years." That means 400 years they will be sojourning.

How can we square 400 years and 430 years? How do we find it from the Scriptures where we know what it really says so there would be no conflict between the 400 and the 430? The Word of God is true and the Word of God does not contradict itself. Let's look at this and see if we can find the answer to the question. In the parenthetical statement it reads: "...and shall serve them and afflict them..." (v 13). That should be 'they shall afflict them.' The way most translations have it is they take out the parenthesis, so it runs in as one sentence and reads: "…and shall serve and afflict them four hundred years."

Then someone gets together and starts going through the chronologies and realizes that the children of Israel were only in Egypt right at 200 years and were severely afflicted right at about a 110 years. So, they ask the question: What is this? Then there's another question we'll look at a little bit later.

Where was the first place that Abraham went? Well, he went down to Egypt—went to the land of Canaan, then down to Egypt. Notice how similar this is to our calling, Genesis 12:1: "And the LORD said to Abram, 'Get out of your country, and from your kindred, and from your father's house into a land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation. And I will bless you and make your name great. And you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those that bless you and curse the one who curses you. And in you shall all the families of the earth be blessed'" (vs 1-3).

That's quite a statement—all the families, not just the nations. So that means everybody. So how far does this reach? This reaches

• through the Old Testament
• through the New Testament
• through the Millennium
• through the Last Great Day
• the second resurrection

It affects all people. So that's something!

Verse 4: "Then Abram departed, even as the LORD had spoken to him. And Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran."

How can we establish the age of Abraham in Gen. 15? Doesn't give us an age right here—does it? Before we do that, I want you to write down 400, and then right next to it write down 430, and we will see how we can reconcile it. Then we'll see another problem when we get back to Exo. 12.

God made this covenant with him, then right after that what happened? Sarah wanted to help God fulfill this promise, so she said, 'Since I haven't been able to bear children, why don't you go into Hagar and perhaps the Lord will give us a child through her, since He promised to give you a child.' And he forgot one thing: the promise was a child 'of your own loins.' So this became the mistake that is living with us clear down until today.
Genesis 16:16: "And Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram." That means that in Gen. 15, Abraham was 85-years-old. How old was Abraham when Isaac was born? He was 100-years-old.

Notice, it skips 13 years, actually 14 with inclusive counting. Genesis 17:1: "And when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appears to Abram and said to him, 'I am the Almighty God! Walk before Me and be perfect.'" So, we have accounted for—by the time Isaac was born when he was 100—15 years—correct? So put 15 under the 400. So far we've accounted for the 15 years.

Let's come to Genesis 22, and here's how we come to understand the next 15 years, though we have to deduce it from the information we have. The information we have is based on Scripture. In order to make a conclusion based on Scripture, you can rightly conclude certain things if you have all the facts first to begin with, which we do.

This is when Abraham was told to go offer Isaac as a burnt offering, when they got there; we'll just go ahead to that point. Genesis 22:5 "And Abraham said to his young men, 'You stay here with the donkey, and I and the boy..." As we're reading this, let's ask: What is the Biblical age of adulthood? Twenty! So therefore, he didn't say young man, he said boy. How can we determine the age of Isaac? We concluded since he's called a boy here in v 5! What does the King James Version say? 'I and the lad.'

Verse 3: "And Abraham rose up early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him..." So, these were 20 or over. We've got the distinction: lad/boy. It says, "…took two of his young men with him…" same as we have here in the Faithful Version.

Verse 6: "And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it upon Isaac his son.… [Here we have another type. In this case then, Abraham is a type of God the Father and Isaac is a type of Christ. Christ carrying His cross to His sacrifice.] ...And he took the fire pot in his hand... [It says in the King James Version 'fire'; you can't carry fire in your hand. What they did, they had a pot of coals, so that's what he took.] ...and a knife. And they both went together. And Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, 'My father,' And he said, 'Here I am, my son.' And he said, 'Behold the fire and the wood. But where is the lamb for a burnt offering?' And Abraham said, 'My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering.' So they both went on together" (vs 6-8).

Here is a lesson in faith. God wants to know what are we going to do when the going gets really tough, when we have a trial.

• Are we going to quit and give up?
• Are we still going to love God and be faithful?

This was a real test. None of us have had to go through anything like this.

Verse 9: "And they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there..." When he built an altar, how was the altar to be built? We find that in Exo. 21, when God gave the instructions to Israel that if you're going to build an altar it shall be of whole stones. You shall not lay an engraving tool upon it, lest you put an idol on it.

Since we know that God's laws are true from the beginning of the Bible to the end of the Bible, we know exactly that that's the kind of altar that he built here. This also tells us it was a pretty rocky place. "...and laid the wood in order. And he bound his son Isaac and laid him on the wood, upon the altar" (v 9). Why did he do that? What was going through his mind?

It's not like George C. Scott's version of Abraham where he was nearly cursing God, and all of this sort of thing. The answer is given in the New Testament. In Heb. 11 it said that he did this because he received them from the dead, because of Sarah being unable to have children, and also that he counted God worthy and capable and having the power to raise him back to life. So, if he offered him, he would still have him alive. He believed that, trusted God.

Verse 10: "And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son." I don't think he stood there and was kind of saying, 'Well, I wonder if I should do that? Should I take this knife out? I wonder if God is going to intervene?' If God told him to do it, well, you do it. So he did. He took the knife to slay his son.

Notice what happened, because this gives us the answer as to why we go through the things that we do to try our faith as well. "And the angel of the LORD called to him from the heavens and said, 'Abraham! Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am... [I imagine he said, 'HERE I AM!'] ...And He said, 'Do not lay your hand upon the lad, nor do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me'" (vs 11-12).

So he's called a boy up here in v 5 and a lad down here, 'your son, your only son,' and since we are dealing with 430 years, here must be the other 15 years. So Isaac had to be 15-years-old; so that's the 430 years.

Now let's go on, we're going to learn a couple of other lessons here, v 13: "And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked. And, behold, behind him a ram was entangled in a thicket by its horns... [It wasn't there when they came up—was it?—otherwise they would have seen it. I'm sure Isaac was looking around, 'Where's the lamb?' Because his father said he'd provide a lamb and if there was the ram in the thicket, Isaac would have said, 'Oh, dad, there it is down there.'] ...And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide; so that it is said until this day, 'In the mount of the LORD it will be provided'" (vs 13-14). There comes a test for all of us somewhere along the line to where God can say this of us

Verse 15: "And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, ' "By Myself have I sworn," says the LORD, "because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son; that in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens, and as the sand which is upon the seashore. And your seed shall possess the gate of his enemies. And in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed... [Now we've got all families, all nations.] ...because you have obeyed My voice"'" (vs 15-18).

Exodus 12: The sojourning of the children of Israel in Egypt for 430 years

Let's come back to Exodus 12 and there's another little chronological problem here we've got to sort out and that's found in v 40, because it always happens, someone reads it and then asks the question.

Exodus 12:40: "Now the sojourning of the children of the Israel in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years." How could that be when they were only there about 215 years and then they were enslaved for about 100 years? How do you answer that question? Without the New Testament you have no way of answering it!

Let's come back to Heb. 7 and we again from the Scriptures can deduce why that is a true statement, even though they weren't there the 430 years physically.

Hebrews 7:4, concerning Abraham and Melchisedec: "But consider how great this one was to Whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils. For on the one hand, those from among the sons of Levi who receive the priesthood are commanded by the law to collect tithes from the people—that is, from their brethren—even though they are all descended from Abraham; but on the other hand, He Who was not descended from them received tithes from Abraham, and blessed him who had the promises. Now it is beyond all doubt that the inferior one is blessed by the superior one. And in the first case, men who die receive tithes; but in the other case, He received tithes of Whom it is witnessed that He lives forever. And in one sense... [here's the answer]: ...Levi, who receives tithes, also gave tithes through Abraham." (vs 4-9).

Why? Because all the inheritance was in the loins of Abraham and you have Abraham, passed it on to Isaac, passed it on to Jacob, passed it on to all the twelve sons of Jacob, of whom Levi was one. So in a sense, as this is—Levi was in the loins of Abraham—all twelve tribes were in the loins of Abraham. So therefore, we can now conclude that it is a true statement that the children of Israel sojourned in Egypt 430 years, because wherever Abraham went, wherever Isaac went, wherever Jacob went the inheritance was with them.

That's the only way you can answer it. Otherwise you are stuck with a problem, then the Bible must contradict itself. That's how you solve both of those problems. For the Jews who do not honor the New Testament, they can't answer that question. They can probably figure out the question concerning the 400 years and the 430 years. So, that's how you reconcile the 400 and the 430—15 years from the promise until the birth of Isaac. Then Isaac was 15-years-old when he was taken to be offered as a sacrifice.

Luke 16: regarding serving two masters and holding the traditions of men

Let's come to the New Testament, and also this shows another thing here in Luke 16, how that it is so easy for people to carry preconceived notions when they're reading the Bible. Most people when they get interested in the Bible, the first thing they try and do is look in the Bible to verify what they believe is true when they don't have a clue. You have may have some understanding, but you don't have a clue.

We're going to learn several lessons here, Luke 16:10: "The one who is faithful in the things that are least is also faithful in much; and the one who is unrighteous in the things that are least is also unrighteous in much." In other words, if you're a crook! You're a crook! You're a crook!

How many have watched Greed on CNBC? You ever watched that? Oh, man, some of these people, it's incredible what they do. Of course, you know, they had a special on Bernie Madoff, but Bernie Madoff is only one of how many. And the worst one of all is going to turn out to be the bankers of the world, when it's all said and done.

Now here's a lesson for us, v 11: "Therefore, if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give to you your own?" (vs 11-12). So, here's the thing: What happens with this? This is what is called in James, 'a double-minded person.' And the way a person becomes double-minded is, they have split loyalties.

That's why Jesus followed it up with this, v 13: "No servant is able to serve two masters... [You can't serve one master and then yourself. You can't serve one master and then another master, unless you're a double-agent spy.] ...for either he will hate the one, and he will love the other; or he will hold to the one and will despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (v 13).

We're going to see He was telling this to the Pharisees. And there was good reason that He was telling this to the Pharisees, because being hypocrites, as He called them how many times, they were double-minded, claiming to serve God, and doing so maybe part of the time, but serving themselves and their own traditions most of the time.

Verse 14: "Now the Pharisees who were also covetous, heard all these things; and they ridiculed Him. And He said to them, 'You are those who justify themselves before men, but God knows your hearts... [When you read what Jesus said, He came straight at them with the truth—didn't He? He didn't waste anything.] ...for that which is highly esteemed among men is an abomination before God." What is highly esteemed among men with the Pharisees? Their traditions!

Not many people know it, that's why if you don't have the book, Judaism: A Revelation of Moses or a Religion of Men?, you need to get it and read the whole thing, because the rabbi becomes greater than God by their own admission.

If the rabbi says something that contradicts the Bible, the rabbi is correct and God is wrong. And they even said of the high rabbis, who they call reebi, they even said, 'God has to obey the reebi.' But God isn't going to obey any man. Let's see what happens when you serve two masters, being your own traditions, yet professing that you serve God.

So after the disciples were criticized for eating with unwashed hands, Mark 7:6: "And He [Jesus] answered and said to them, 'Well did Isaiah prophesy concerning you hypocrites, as it is written, "This people honors Me with their lips, but their hearts are far away from Me."'" In James 4, James told them, 'Purify your hearts, you double-minded.' And we will see what double-minded is, right here.

Verse 7: "'"But in vain do they worship Me, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men." For leaving the commandment of God... [It says what? 'No man can serve two masters! He will love one and hate the other and he will serve one and despise the other'—correct? Yes!] ...leaving the commandment of God, you hold fast the tradition of men, such as the washing of pots and cups; and you practice many other things like this.' Then He said to them, 'Full well do you reject the commandment of God, so that you may observe your own tradition.'" (vs 7-9).

And it's just like it is on Fiddler on the Roof, starts right out, he's playing the violin. They ask him why they do the things they do and he said, 'Tradition.' Then he starts singing the song, 'Tradition, tradition.' That's what it is with them. They justify themselves before men. Notice how they do it. We'll add just a little bit in here. We see that Jesus really gave them a witness. I mean, it is something!

John 12:40, He quotes Isaiah again: "'He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts... [If you don't fully serve God, that's what eventually happens over a period of time.] ...so that they would not see with their eyes and understand with their hearts, and be converted, and I would heal them.' Isaiah said these things when he saw His glory and spoke concerning Him. But even so, many among the rulers believed in Him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him... [Why? Political decision!] ...so that they would not be put out of the synagogue... [Why?] ...For they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God" (vs 40-43). 'No man can serve two masters.' They weren't even being trustworthy with what God gave them.

"Then Jesus called out and said, 'The one who believes in Me does not believe in Me, but in Him Who sent Me. And the one who sees Me sees Him Who sent Me. I have come as a light into the world so that everyone who believes in Me may not remain in darkness. But if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. The one who rejects Me and does not receive My words has one who judges him; the word which I have spoken, that shall judge him in the last day'" (vs 44-48).

With that said, how can the Jews reject the New Testament? And how can some Protestants, because what they read in the book of Romans that Jesus was a minister to the circumcision, say that all of the Gospels do not apply to Gentiles, and we are Gentiles, so we don't have to bother with anything in the Gospels? Didn't read that!

"…judge him in the last day." What does this tell us? This verifies the fact that the Word of God is greater than the heavens and the earth, so it will still be there.

Verse 49: "'For I have not spoken from Myself; but the Father, Who sent Me, gave Me commandment Himself, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life. Therefore, whatever I speak, I speak exactly as the Father has told Me'" (vs 49-50). That's the way that it has to be.

Luke 16: concerning the Law and the Prophets

Let's come back to Luke 16 and let's see what He told them. In Matt. 12, Jesus said when they were criticizing the disciples for eating the grain in the field, He said, 'One is here that is greater than the temple.' He was referring to Himself.

Here's one that most Protestants come to and they say, 'Oh, this is where the law is done away. Jesus Himself did away with it.' Listen to what He said, Luke 16:16: "The Law and the Prophets were until John... ['Everything from John onward is what we should do.' Is that right?] ...from that time the Kingdom of God is preached, and everyone zealously strives to enter it."

What is He saying? That He abolished the Law and the Prophets? No! He didn't! But what is He saying from the time of John? What did John preach? Repentance and believe on the One Who came after Him! And that is Christ. What did Christ preach? The Kingdom of God! What did He say after He heard that John was cast into prison? He went into Galilee and He began preaching and saying, 'Repent and believe the Gospel for the Kingdom of God is at hand.' This is saying the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is greater than the Law and the Prophets, because it gives the spiritual understanding to the Law and the Prophets.

That's why if you haven't gone through the sermons, God's Grace and Commandment-Keeping, go through them, so you see how we are to keep them. It's not an outside ritual that we do here, but it is something that becomes a very part of our minds. And conversion of the minds means our minds are rewritten and reprogrammed by God's Spirit.

Let's come to Matt. 5, and you know exactly where I'm going concerning the Law and the Prophets. I do not know how the Protestants can honestly handle these verses here, Matthew 5:17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill." To fulfill means to fill to the full or complete, giving it the full spiritual meaning, the full spiritual application of the Law and the Prophets.

Because here's why, v 18: "For truly I say to you, until the heaven and the earth shall pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no way pass from the Law until everything has been fulfilled." What is a jot and a tittle? That's given to give pronunciation to the words, because Hebrew is written in consonant letters and those jots and tittles give you the a-e-i-o-u, as it were, of the language.

He says: "...one jot or one tittle shall in no way pass from the Law until everything has been fulfilled" (v 18). Has everything been fulfilled? Let's put it this way. Has everything been completed, the plan of God? No! And when the plan of God is completed on the earth, what's going to happen? A new heaven and a new earth and then we step on into eternity—don't we? Yes, indeed! The heaven and earth will still be here, which means what? The laws and commandments of God will still be there and how do they apply to those of us who are in the Kingdom of God as spirit beings. We'll leave it at that.

Verse 19: "Therefore, whoever shall break one of these least commandments... [Of course, for the Protestants that's Sunday. For the Catholics it's Sunday and idols. Then everything else goes to pot from there—right?] ...whoever shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven... [I don't think they're going to get there.] ...but whoever shall practice and teach them, this one shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven."

How can any preacher read that and say that if you teach people to keep the commandments of God, that you're teaching them to earn their salvation by works—when we're not. No way! It says you're going to be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven if you teach them and practice them—right? Yes! But it also tells you something else. Before you can teach them, you must practice them, because practice comes first.

Here's a catch; most people don't even understand this. We touched on it with Mark 7—right? And what was he talking about? He was talking about how they rejected the commandments of God, which then is the righteousness of God—correct? Yes! Versus the traditions of men, then which is the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees—right?

Verse 20: "For I say to you, unless your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, there is no way that you shall enter into the kingdom of heaven." Matthew calls it the Kingdom of Heaven, but it's the Kingdom of God coming from heaven, so he calls it the Kingdom of Heaven. That tells us very clearly about how we cannot serve two masters.

We just expanded from Matt. 5 on Luke 16:17: "But it is easier... [Think of that!] ...for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail." Why? Because these laws are in force all the time—aren't they? Applies to everybody everywhere.

(go to the next track)

Let's continue on concerning Jesus and the Pharisees. Let's see one of Jesus' strongest rebukes in John 5. This is something, especially after He told them face-to-face that the Law and the Prophets, it's easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for them not to be enforceable.

Again, we're going to learn quite a bit out of here, the way that it is written. After talking about John the Baptist, Jesus says, John 5:36: "But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works that the Father gave Me to complete, the very works that I am doing, themselves bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. And the Father Himself, Who sent Me, has borne witness of Me. You have neither heard His voice nor seen His form at any time'" (vs 36-37).

That's why Jesus came to reveal the Father. This also tells us that the One that Moses saw on Mount Sinai, because he did see Him—right?—was the One Who became Jesus Christ. Which then establishes again, everywhere you look in the Bible it establishes two, two in Elohim—one that became the Father, one that became the Son. Nowhere do you find the Holy Spirit listed as a person.

When John in Rev. 4 sees the throne of God with God sitting on it, 24 elders, and then in the fifth chapter the Lamb of God with Him, how many are there? Two—the Father and the Son! Where is the person of the Holy Spirit? If it's supposed to be in heaven and a person, where was it? Where was its throne? There were 24 elders, but where was the Holy Spirit person? Wasn't there, because it's the power of God!

This is really a condemning verse, right here, and so will the rest of them from here on, v 38: "And you do not have His word dwelling in you... [Wasn't that what was supposed to be what they were to do? Yes, indeed! What's going to be with us? We're to have God's Word dwelling in us—right? Yes, indeed!] ...for you do not believe Him Whom He has sent." If you had His Word dwelling in you, you would have understood the Scriptures as to who I am—that's what He's saying.
Verse 39: "You search the Scriptures, for in them you think that you have eternal life; and they are the ones that testify of Me. But you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life. I do not receive glory from men.... [But that's what they want. 'Oh, rabbi. Oh, rabbi.'] ...But I have know n you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves" (vs 39-42). You can't have any stronger, more condemning language than that right there.

"I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; but if another comes in his own name, you will receive him.... ['Oh, what a wonderful person this is.'] ...How are you able to believe, you who receive glory from one another, and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you... [That is in the Greek present tense, because the Law of Moses is always working.] ...accuses you, even Moses, in whom you have hope. But if you believed Moses, you would have believed Me; for he wrote about Me. And if you do not believe his writings, how shall you believe My words?'" (vs 43-47).

Let's go to Deuteronomy 18 and see where Moses wrote about Him. This is Moses speaking, so when he refers to the Lord your God, that's Moses speaking. And here's where he wrote about Him. Just put in your margin there, or in your notes, Acts 3, where Peter said that Jesus was that Prophet of Deut. 18. There's one man who supposedly leads a Church of God who says he is that prophet—his day is coming.

Deuteronomy 18:15, Moses is speaking to the people: "The LORD your God will raise up unto you a Prophet from the midst of you, of your brethren, One like me... [Who was Moses? He was mediator/Christ was Mediator. Moses brought the law/Christ is Lawgiver. Moses was high priest until his brother, Aaron/'until One like me' and the only One Who fills that is Jesus.] ...To Him you shall hearken." Meaning you better listen to Him. And hearken instead of saying 'listen, I kept the word.' Hearken because hearken has this meaning: You hear and you obey.

Verse 16: "According to all that you desired of the LORD your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, 'Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, so that I do not die.' And the LORD said to me, 'They have spoken well what they have spoken…. [Then He gives what the Father gave Him to give. The Lord is speaking this] …I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, One like you, and will put My words in His mouth. And He shall speak to them all that I shall command Him. And it shall come to pass, whatever man will not hearken to My words which He shall speak in My name, I will require it of him'" (vs 18-19). So when He says to the Pharisees, 'Moses wrote of Me and if you would have believed him, you would have believed Me.' So He's also saying, 'God's going to require what you're telling Me.'

"But the prophet who shall presume to speak a word in My name which I have not commanded him to speak or who shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die" (v 20).

That's quite a thing. Everyone who is a preacher, teacher, minister, whatever, or is going to try and teach someone the Word of God, just being a lay member, remember this: You only show them what God has given, because that's what God wants them to know. You can expound upon it, as long as everything agrees with the Word of God. That's why Jesus said, 'No man can serve two masters.' And 'that it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to pass.'

Luke 16: The parable of Lazarus and the rich man

Here's another one. Now I'll read part of this in the old rusty King James Version, but nevertheless there are some things in the King James Version wrongly translated which cause people to believe false doctrines. Why? Who were the translators of the King James Version? Those who used to be associated with the Roman Catholic Church! There's much more I could say, but I won't.

Luke 16:19: "Now, there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, and daily indulged himself in luxury.... [We could say this is typical of the elite of the world.] ...And there was a certain poor man named Lazarus, who was laid at his porch, full of sores. And he longed to be nourished with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table; and the dogs even came and licked his sores…. [probably felt pretty good] …Now it came to pass that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels into Abraham's bosom..." (vs 19-22).

That means that souls go to heaven—right?' What does the Bible say? When do the angels carry them? At the resurrection! So you need other parts of the Bible to interpret this. Remember where we started: precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little, there a little. "...And the rich man also died and was buried' (22).

Now, let me read the King James Version. Here we go, v 23: "And in hell he lifted up his eyes... [Why is 'hell' here? That's what those translators believed! Hades means the grave.] …being in torments..." There's an ever-burning hell fire and if you don't do what's right, you're going to hell!' Well, you know, even the Catholics they weren't satisfied with hell, that didn't bring them any money, so they had to invent purgatory. That's kind of a slow-roasting section of hell.

The priests are so poor in what they do, they do such a bad job, that almost all of the Catholics end up in purgatory. The reason they end up in purgatory is so that the relatives pay the priests to bump them up a notch, to say special masses for them so that they will get out of purgatory. Little children that haven't been baptized, they got a little compartment for them and that's called purgatory infantium, for infants. You need lots of money to get those little infants out of there.

What does this do? This keeps people coming to the Catholic Church, to give them money, to come to the mass, and they're locked into it, and as it says there in Heb. 2, that people are held in bondage by fear of death. That's what the whole Catholic operation is about: it's death—always remembrance of someone dead.

"'...and sees Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom'" (v 23, KJV). Now let's come back to the Faithful Version, v 23: "And in the grave he lifted up his eyes and was in torment..." You have to ask the question: When Lazarus died, when is it that he's resurrected? When the rich man died, when is it that he will be resurrected?

1-Corinthians 15:20: "But now Christ has been raised from the dead; He has become the first-fruit of those who have fallen asleep.... [died in Christ] ...For since by man came death, by man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die..." (vs 20-22).

No one escapes, not even Ray Kurzweil and he looks much older than the last time I saw him. He's the one who has predicted that by 2030 we will all be immortal because of computers and nano-technology, little things that will go through our body to keep us alive. What happens if there's a break down? What happens if there is a gigantic electric magnetic pulse that you're standing in and all of those little nano things shut down all at once and all die.

"...so also in Christ shall all be made alive" (v 22).

Here's what Jesus said and we find that there are two resurrections listed here, John 5:25: "Truly, truly I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead... [all shall die] ...shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear shall live. For even as the Father has life in Himself, so also has He given to the Son to have life in Himself; And has also given Him authority to execute judgment because He is the Son of man. Do not wonder at this, for the hour is coming in which all... [What does it say back here in 1-Cor. 15:22? All! Does it mean all? Yes!] ...in which all who are in the graves shall hear His voice And shall come forth: those who have practiced good unto a resurrection of life..." (vs 25-29).

1-Corinthians 15:23: "But each in his own order... [We see there's an order here—correct?] ...Christ the firstfruit; then, those who are Christ's at His coming." Not until! So, you can't say in Luke 16 that Lazarus was carried away by the angels into heaven.

John 5:29: "'...and those who have practiced evil unto a resurrection of judgment.'" Where else does it tell us that there is more than one resurrection?

Let's come back here to Rev. 20 and here it tells us. Here we find some very interesting things. Every word in the Bible is necessary and every word has meaning. Every word tells us something about the plan of God and how He's carrying it out. Here we have where we go to another place and read these and put it together. Here are the ones who are Christ's, who are raised at His coming. Then once they're raised, come on the Sea of Glass and then come back down to the earth and take over the earth. This is what it's talking about here:

Revelation 20:4: "And I saw thrones; and they that sat upon them, and judgment was given to them; and I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and those who did not worship the beast... [The beast goes clear back to where? Garden of Eden—right? Yes!] ...or his image, and did not receive the mark in their foreheads or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years."

Notice a parenthetical statement in v 5. Let's go past the parenthetical statement first, v 4: "...lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years…. This is the first resurrection" (vs 4-5). Why do we have the parenthetical statement in v 5? Immediately when you're reading it, you ask: What about the rest of the dead? And that answers it.

Let's finish this here, v 5: "…This is the first resurrection. Blessed and Holy is the one who has part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power.…" (vs 5-6).

Now let's read the parenthetical statement of v 5: "...(But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were completed.)…" This means that the second death has power over those who are raised at the end of the Millennium.

For the details on that, what you have to do is go to day seven and day eight of any Feast of Tabernacles, and you'll have that explained. There is a second resurrection that has two parts:

• Those who have not committed the unpardonable sin are raised to be given an opportunity for salvation
• The incorrigible wicked are raised, all of them together, to be sentenced and have the final judgment and cast into the Lake of Fire.

They are going to be raised and they are going to be standing around a big lake of fire, v 12: "And I saw the dead... [This has to be the rest of the dead—correct? Yes!] ...small and great, standing before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged out of the things written in the books, according to their works."

Since God didn't call them for the first resurrection, they didn't have anything but just ordinary works of the flesh, which was living a life that was sinful in varying degrees, but they didn't commit the unpardonable sin. But God never gave them an opportunity for salvation. So, here God gives them the opportunity for salvation. If they were judged by the works that they did before they were resurrected, they would be condemned to second death immediately—right? Being judged out of the things written in the book, that's where we find with the other Scriptures—so you'll have to wait for the Last Great Day for that—where they live 100 years and are able to have an opportunity for salvation.

Verse 13: "And the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and the grave..."

Let me read the rusty King James Version again. Even the King James people could not keep that as 'hell.' They had to put a marginal reference, because the translation in the Scripture, v 13: "And the sea gave up the dead that were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead that were in them; and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the Lake of Fire…." (vs 13-14, KJV).

Think about how contradictory that statement is. If hell is supposed to be a place of ever-burning, how is it they're going to deliver them up and then be cast into the Lake of Fire. You cast a lake of fire into a lake of fire? So they had to put there a marginal reference 'grave.' But these are the Scriptures they turn to, to prove, 'Yes, there is a hell. The Bible says there is a hell. King James Version is right all the time, divinely inspired of God.' There are people who believe that. They won't accept any of the things wrong that are mistranslated. They won't accept it's a mistranslation.

Verse 14 (KJV): "…This is the second death" (v 14, KJV). If you die a second time, that means you already died once—correct? That means you already lived once. So, here we have the rich man now, in the second resurrection, the part to be cast into the Lake of Fire.

Now, let's go back to Luke 16 and let's analyze that a little bit more. I didn't even think about that, casting hell back into a lake of fire. How do you cast hell into hell? Don't know, I didn't think about that until I was going over it, preparing the sermon the other day here.

Luke 16:22: "…And the rich man also died and was buried.... [First death—correct? Yes!] ...And in the grave... [Not hell!] ...he lifted up his eyes and was in torment, for he saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom…. [Lazarus and Abraham were in the first resurrection, he wasn't.] …And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have compassion on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am suffering because of this flame'" (vs 22-24).

Now the King James reads: "And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments... [v 24]: ...'for I am tormented in this flame'" (vs 23-24). Not because of the flame. Think of it this way, now if someone took you to Mount Kilauea on the island of Hawaii and you went up to the top of the volcano and it has a volcano lake down in the crater. Say someone took you up there and they said, 'Okay, now we're going to throw you down there.' Would you be in torment? Sure you would! So, that's when he was in torment.

Notice what Abraham said to him. This also shows us, when you're studying some of these things, take your time studying it. Don't just read over it real fast. Ask questions as you go along, because this becomes a very revealing in just a little bit here.

Verse 25: "Then Abraham said, 'Child, remember that in your lifetime you received good things to the full, and likewise Lazarus evil things. But now he is comforted, and you are suffering. And besides all these things, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed...'" (vs 25-26). What is that great chasm? 'Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God.' So it shows that they're in the Kingdom of God as spirit beings, yet able to communicate with human beings.

"...so that those who desire to pass from here to you are not able... [We cannot go back and be flesh and blood again.] ...nor can those from there pass to us.'…. [because you have to be a spirit being] …And he said, 'I beseech you then, father, that you would send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers; so that he may earnestly testify to them, in order that they also may not come to this place of torment.' Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them'" (vs 26-28).

Was Abraham contemporary with Moses? No! When did Abraham find out about Moses? At the resurrection! Then he found out all about the Law of Moses, which was the Law of God. Then he found out about all the rest of the Bible. Just think what it's going to be for Abel. He had none of these things. This shows that they had to be resurrected. They knew and understood Moses, knew and understood the prophets. 'Let them hear them.'

Verse 30: "But he said, 'No, Father Abraham, but if one from the dead would go to them, they would repent.'.... [If the Son of man comes in the flesh and they don't repent, why would they repent with someone who returned from the dead?] ...And he said to him, 'If they will not hear Moses and the prophets, they would not be persuaded even if one rose from the dead'" (vs 30-31).

So you see how the Law and the Prophets goes all the way through this part of Luke 16 and how we need the rest of the Bible to connect the truth together to know how these things fit together. When do they take place? It's imperative that you also have a correct translation. The word 'hades' means grave and it's translated grave in every other place, except in those instances where the King James translators wanted to put hell in the Bible.

1-Peter 3: Jesus preaching to spirits in prison

Let's go to one other place, because the Protestants also believe that Jesus went to hell to preach to the spirits in prison. 1-Peter 3, because here's where the Protestants believe that when Jesus was in the tomb that He went by the spirit to preach to the spirits in prison.

1-Peter 3:18: "Because Christ indeed once suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God; on the one hand, He was put to death in the flesh; but on the other hand, He was made alive by the Spirit…. [He became a spirit being again.] …By which He also went and preached to the spirits in prison" (vs 18-19).

When was Jesus resurrected? After three days and three nights—right? He committed His spirit to the Father, the last words before He died. So in the grave did He have the spirit? No! Couldn't have the spirit until after He was resurrected. So how could He, while He was in the grave, go by the spirit and preach to the spirits who were in prison? Well, the next verse tells us when He did that. He did do that, but not at the time they claim.

Verse 20: "Which disobeyed in a past time, when once the long-suffering of God was waiting in the days of Noah... [When did He go there? He went there as the Lord God, in the spirit, to their prison, as we'll see in just a minute, in the days of Noah, not while He was in the grave.] ...in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few—that is, eight souls—were saved through water."

2-Peter 2:4: "For if God did not spare the angels who sinned... [Those were the spirits that sinned and became demons.] ...but, having cast them into Tartarus... [The good old rusty King James says: 'Cast them into hell.' All the demons are in hell, so Jesus went to hell and preached to them. Why would He do that? Tartarus, transliteration of the Greek word 'tartaroo'—which means a place of restraint or prison.] ...delivered them into chains of darkness to be kept for the judgment."

Where are demons? Demons are in the earth, as well as Satan, around the earth! There are also demons, as we know from Rev. 9:1[transcriber's correction], in the abyss. And the abyss is opened at that time and all of the disobedient demons come out. And it says there a little later that they have a king over them who is Satan the devil, who is called Apollyon [Greek] or Abaddon [Hebrew].

He did not go to a flaming hell to preach to them. Wherever the place of restraint is—I don't know where it is—we could speculate, but remember, speculation is never true. What we will have to do is just end it here and you can see with these four places of difficult Scriptures how easy it is to twist the meaning, especially if you only read the verse and you're preaching from the pulpit and people may or may not have their Bibles open, and you go on and don't explain it. And you give an interpretation to it with no basis in the Bible at all and you say, 'There it is right in the Bible, Luke 16, there is a hell. And there it is right there in Rev. 20, there is a hell.' And you don't think about it and go through it and understand what it really is.

With these questions being asked more often, I thought now would be a good time to go ahead and cover these, because we've had enough doom and gloom and down and collapse of everything. We know it's coming. Once in a while it's good to give our minds a little rest from the depression.

Scriptures quoted from The Holy Bible In Its Original Order, A Faithful Version by Fred R. Coulter (except where noted)

Scriptural References:

• Isaiah 28:9-13
• Exodus 12:41-42
• Genesis 15:13
• Genesis 12:1-4
• Genesis 16:16
• Genesis 17:1
• Genesis 22:5, 3, 6-18
• Exodus 12:40
• Hebrews 7:4-9
• Luke 16:10-15
• Mark 7:6-9
• John 12:40-50
• Luke 16:16
• Matthew 5:17-20
• Luke 16:17
• John 5:36-47
• Deuteronomy 18:15-20
• Luke 16:19-23
• 1-Corinthians 15:20-22
• John 5:25-29
• 1-Corinthians 15:23
• John 5:29
• Revelation 20:4-6, 12-14
• Luke 16:22-31
• 1-Peter 3:18-20
• 2-Peter 2:4

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• 2-Timothy 2
• Exodus 21
• Hebrews 11
• James 4
• Matthew 12
• Revelation 4, 5
• Acts 3
• Hebrews 2
• Revelation 9:1

Also referenced:

Sermon Series: God's Grace and Commandment-
Keeping

Book: Judaism: A Revelation of Moses or Religion
of Men? by Philip Neal

FRC:lp
Transcribed: 7-6-11
Formatted: bo—7-7-11