Thursday, January 12, 2006

Eternal Retribution


"Woe unto thee Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: For it thy mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee." (Matt. 11:21-24)
"The men of Nineveh shall raise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and behold, a greater than Jonas is here. The queen of the south shall raise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, a greater than Solomon is here." (Matt. 12:41-42)
It could be (based on the principles of these verses) that the worst occupants of the Lake of Fire will be those who are in our dispensation, have heard of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ, maybe even sat in church services hearing the Word of God preached, and yet continue to rebel against the Lord Jesus Christ by not repenting of their sin and recieving Him as their Savior. It is so easy to condemn someone who is an outright blatant sinner to Hell (I am not suggesting that this is ok, at least for now), but these verses serve as a reminder that God's scales of justice are different from ours, and that there are degrees of torments in that fiery Lake, and apostates will recieve a worse condemnation than perhaps an atheist.

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