By COGwriter
I. Introduction
II. God is Love
III. Jesus Came to Save More than A Few
IV. Salvation is Available When God Decides
V. Will God's Will Be Done?
VI. The Only Ones Saved Now Are Those Who Accept The Call Now
VII. God Does Not Hold People Accountable for What They Have Not Been Able to See
VIII. The Bible Clearly Teaches that Those Gentiles Who Have Been Subject to Condemnation Will Have an Opportunity for Salvation
IX. Some Few Will Willfully Reject God's Generous Offer But Their End Will Be Swift
X. All Israel Will Be Saved
XI. The Prophets Spoke About This
XII. Protestants Generally Oppose Apocatastasis, Roman Catholics Claim Eternal Torment, But the Orthodox and Church of God Teach Differently
XIII. Conclusion
Absolutely!
Since most who claim some version of Christianity believe that what they teach is at least partially supported by scripture, this article which contains a listing of hundreds of verses in the Bible supporting apocatastasis, as well as related comments, may be helpful for those who wish to receive their doctrine from the Bible.
But first what is apocatastasis? Apocatastasis comes from the Greek word apokatastasis. The Latin definition (per The Catholic Encyclopedia) is restitutio in pristinum statum, restoration to the original condition. The Greek term apokatastasis is used in the Book of Acts 3:21.
What was the original condition?
Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good (Genesis 1:31, NKJV throughout except as where otherwise indicated).
In theological terms, the concept of apocatastasis normally supports more than the millennial reign of Jesus Christ on the Earth (though that is a part of it). But that will not be the focus of this article. The focus of this article is from the end of the millennial reign--thus from the 100 year period (Isaiah 65:17-20) and into eternity.
Generally speaking, when theologians use the term apocatastasis they are referring to the doctrine that at some time God will offer salvation to everyone, such as after the second resurrection (there are also other views of it). More detail is included in the article Hope of Salvation: How the COGs differ from most Protestants.
This article will mainly be a listing of passages in the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) and the Greek Scriptures (the New Testament) that show how the Bible supports the Church of God (COG) view of apocatastasis.
And what is that view?
More precisely, the COG view is that the Bible teaches that all will ultimately be given an opportunity for salvation through Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12) and that nearly all (perhaps over 99.9%) people who ever lived will accept that opportunity and thus gain eternal life in the kingdom of God and the relatively few who do not will not be eternally tormented, but will be put out of their misery. Thus, the COG teaches that the opportunity for salvation will be universal, and although the vast majority will be saved, some few will not.
While the scriptures shown in this paper support apocatastasis and they are grouped together for ease of emphasis, a reading of them clearly shows that God's plan of salvation as understood and taught by the COG has broad scriptural support.
The overwhelming theme of the Bible is that God is love and that because of His love He sent His Son, Jesus, so that humans would have the opportunity for salvation through Him.
1 John 4:8-11, 16, John wrote:
8...God is love. 9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another...16 God is love...
The overwhelming theme of the Bible is that God loves us and that God has a plan for us. Certainly a God of love has a plan that results in nearly all humans being saved as opposed to most being lost.
John 3:16-17, Jesus said:
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved...
Notice that love is the motivator for God and this lead Him to send His Son to die so that the world may not be condemned but may be saved. This means that ALL MIGHT be saved (not that all will be saved). All will have an opportunity. God's plan is NOT limited to a few elect like many groups teach. Do you believe that Jesus died for the world or only a relative few? Would not a God of love have a plan that would result in nearly everyone being saved through the sacrifice of His Son?
Jude 20-21 teaches:
20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
Notice that it is staying with in the love of God that brings eternal life. Does God love everyone or only a few?
Romans 8:37-39 Paul teaches:
37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Does God have this type of love towards all or only an elect few? And if it is towards all, then will not God do whatever is necessary to call all?
Isaiah 59:1 shows:
1 Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear.
Thus, God certainly can save!
Psalm 145:8-9 reminds everyone that:
8 The LORD is gracious and full of compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy. 9 The LORD is good to all, And His tender mercies are over all His works.
Notice that it is God's tender mercies that are over all His works. Love is what God really is.
III. Jesus Came to Save More than A Few
Did Jesus come only to save the relatively few elect like Calvinists and most other Protestants believe or nearly all who ever lived? Since Protestant's claim Sola scriptura it is to the Bible that the answer to that question is to be found (it should be noted that Roman Catholic theology, while normally allowing for a higher percentage of people receiving salvation than what most Protestant and Baptist groups seem to teach, also condemn most who ever lived to eternal torment and torturing).
Luke 2:10, states:
10 Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
Jesus will be joy to all people who will accept Him. Is there joy is in eternal torment and torture? Of course not! And the Bible does not teach some version of the Infernus from Dantes' Divine Comedy.
It is a human tragedy that pagan influence, secular writers, and non-biblical traditionalist have influenced most who profess Christianity to be misled that God's plan is not a source of joy for most, but tortuous suffering for most who have ever lived.
Luke 19:9-10 shows that Jesus came to save the lost:
9 And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."
Notice that Jesus came to save the lost, not just a small amount of elect people.
John 12:47, Jesus stated,
And 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 idea of Jesus coming to save more than a few is clearly being taught. Will He not succeed?
1 John 4:14, John states:
14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world.
Again, can Jesus be Savior of all without offering salvation to all?
John 12:32, Jesus stated:
32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.
Is Jesus intending to draw all to Him in order to eternally punish most or to save them?
Hebrews 9:28 teaches:
28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
Notice that Christ will bear the sins of many (the word in Greek, polus, implies most). So while not all will accept His sacrifice, clearly many will.
Colossians 1:16, Paul states:
16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.
Does Jesus intend for most of His creation to suffer eternally? Is God not intelligent enough to plan a creation that will result in nearly all being saved?
Romans 5:15-21, Paul states:
15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man's offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. 17 For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. 18 Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous. 20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Since Jesus' free gift is for all men, will not all humankind have an opportunity to receive it? Since by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous certainly many does not mean a few. For grace to reign, does this not mean that most will accept it?
1 Corinthians 15:22, Paul states:
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
All died in Adam, all will be made alive in Christ. All will have an opportunity for salvation, not just a few.
Colossians 1:20, Paul states:
20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
Notice that Jesus will reconcile all to Himself having made peace through His sacrifice. A sacrifice that will be made available to all.
Revelation 15:3-4, states:
"Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Just and true are Your ways,
O King of the saints!
4 Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy.
For all nations shall come and worship before You,
For Your judgments have been manifested."
Notice that all the nations shall come and worship God. Notice that the implication of verse 5 is that only very few will not glorify God's name.
John 5:21-22, Jesus taught:
21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will. 22 For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son,
Has your church judged those that even God the Father has not judged? Does Jesus will to give life to the many or to the few?
What does your church teach?
My church teaches that my God is a loving God who has a plan that will offer salvation to all and that nearly all (probably over 99.9%) will accept Jesus' offer of salvation.
1 Timothy 4:9-11, is Paul teaching that is Jesus the Savior of all men or only a few?
9 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance. 10 For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe. 11 These things command and teach.
Hebrews 7:24-27 teaches:
25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. 26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people's, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.
Notice that Jesus is able to save the uttermost--they are those that are not now near to Him. Also, notice that Jesus died for all and not just a small amount of elect.
Isaiah 25:6-8 teaches:
6 And in this mountain
The LORD of hosts will make for all people
A feast of choice pieces,
A feast of wines on the lees,
Of fat things full of marrow,
Of well-refined wines on the lees.
7 And He will destroy on this mountain
The surface of the covering cast over all people,
And the veil that is spread over all nations.
8 He will swallow up death forever,
And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces;
The rebuke of His people
He will take away from all the earth;
For the LORD has spoken.
Notice that this feast is for all people, that the veil over people will be destroyed, and death will no longer occur.
Revelation 21:6 shows:
6 And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts..."
Does this sound like Jesus intends that salvation will be available to all or only a relative few?
2 Corinthians 5:14-15, Paul teaches:
14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
Notice that Paul clearly teaches that Jesus has died for all. Not a few elect (like the Calvinists teach), not the relative few that accept Christ in this age (as most Protestant/Baptist/Evangelicals teach), not a minority of humankind (as most Roman Catholics teach).
For Jesus to die for all, ALL must have an opportunity for salvation. And since God is all knowing, certainly He knows how to have a plan of salvation where the most possible will be saved.
2 Peter 3:9, Peter explains:
9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
In Luke 3:6, the New Testament is very clear that :
...all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
Salvation will be offered to all who ever lived, with a few understanding the offer in this age, and everyone else in the age to come.
Does your church understand and teach this?
IV. Salvation is Available When God Decides
Even though Jesus came so that all could be saved, He was not originally sent to call everyone in this age as He taught in Matthew 15:24:
"I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
Acts 3:19-21, Peter states:
19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.
Notice that the Bible makes clear that the idea of the times of restoration of all things, the apocatastasis, is not just a term limited to Acts 3:21 (where the Greek term apokatastasis is actually used), but that Peter is teaching that it is what God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began--essentially this is the theme of the Bible--how the God of love will offer salvation to all.
Notice that this time of restoration IS NOT YET here for all. But that it will come to pass.
Luke 1:68-75, notice what Zacharias was inspired to say after the birth of John the Baptist:
68 "Blessed is the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited and redeemed His people,
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who have been since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
73 The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
74 To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
Please stop, think, and consider that Satan (a word that means enemy or adversary) and other enemies have always been around, but that a time for all is coming where there will not be any enemies of the true faith. This simply has not yet been fulfilled, but will come to pass.
After a section in Isaiah (30:8-17) that Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition calls "Doom of incorrigible sinners", notice what God has recorded in Isaiah 30:18:
Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you;
And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you.
So, no, this section in Isaiah is NOT about the ultimate doom of sinners, but instead shows that God will have that He may have mercy on them.
Furthermore, notice this passage in Isaiah 49:13-15:
13 Sing, O heavens!
Be joyful, O earth!
And break out in singing, O mountains!
For the LORD has comforted His people,
And will have mercy on His afflicted.14 But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me,
And my Lord has forgotten me."15 "Can a woman forget her nursing child,
And not have compassion on the son of her womb?
Surely they may forget,
Yet I will not forget you..."
God will not forget, though many act like He does.
James 1:18, James wrote about firstfruits:
Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.
Romans 8:23, Paul wrote the following:
Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit.
Recall that it was the Holy Spirit that was first given on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). And that was a type of the firstfruits of the Spirit.
Who are the firstfruits according to Revelation 14:4-5?
These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.
But what about Jesus? Wasn't He a type of firstfruits?
Yes, He certainly was. Paul notes in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23:
But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming.
Christ is the fulfillment of the wave sheaf offering in Leviticus 23:10. He is the sheaf of firstfruits. He also fulfilled that role when He ascended into heaven on the Sunday (the wave sheaf offering was on a Sunday) after He was resurrected (John 20:1,17). But neither He nor His true followers observed what is now called Easter.
Does not the concept of a firstfruits specifically imply that there will be later fruits? Also, the Day of Pentecost is also called, "the feast of firstfruits" in the Bible (Exodus 34:32). And even today, it pictures that God is only calling some now, but will call all others later (more information is in the article Pentecost: Is It More Than Acts 2?).
1 Timothy 2:1-6, Paul wrote:
1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time...
Notice that God desires that all are to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Can not God make His desire, His will, come to pass? Also notice that Jesus gave Himself as a ransom for all--not just the relatively few elect--and His testimony will come to pass in due time. Are some improperly judging before due time?
Ephesians 1:10, Paul states:
10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him.
Notice when He will gather all: in the dispensation of the fullness of the times. Does your church teach this? If not, does it really understand what the Bible teaches.
Psalms 77:7-9 asks:
7 Will the Lord cast off forever?
And will He be favorable no more?
8 Has His mercy ceased forever?
Has His promise failed forevermore?
9 Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies?
Since the intended answer to all those questions is "no", then it should be obvious that a time for God to be favorable and pour out His mercies will still come.
Isaiah 25:9 teaches:
9 And it will be said in that day: "Behold, this is our God; We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the LORD; We have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation."
Notice that these people are not yet saved. This is a time in the future. When is the time? Actually it is the time the veil over then nations will be destroyed (Isaiah 25:7).
Psalm 65:1-2 shows that there is a time in the future that all flesh will come to God:
1 Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion; And to You the vow shall be performed. 2 O You who hear prayer, To You all flesh will come.
Does your church really understand that?
Psalm 22:27-28 teaches :
27 All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the LORD,
And all the families of the nations
Shall worship before You.
28 For the kingdom is the LORD's,
And He rules over the nations.
Has this happened? Are not many of the original families of the earth dead as nearly all perished in the great flood? Thus, this is something other than the millennium.
Psalm 72:4-5 teaches:
4 He will bring justice to the poor of the people;
He will save the children of the needy,
And will break in pieces the oppressor.
5 They shall fear You
As long as the sun and moon endure,
Throughout all generations.
Has this happened? Is this not for the future? Since this discusses "all generations" is it only for a millennium?
Psalm 86:8-9 teaches:
8 Among the gods there is none like You, O Lord;
Nor are there any works like Your works.
9 All nations whom You have made
Shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And shall glorify Your name.
Since there are nations that died out during the flood and afterwards, how can this be unless God has a time in the future for this to occur?
Notice that while God currently lests the nations weary themselves in vain, Habakkuk 2:13-14 shows that eventually all will have knowledge of God:
13 Behold, is it not of the LORD of hosts
That the peoples labor to feed the fire,
And nations weary themselves in vain?
14 For the earth will be filled
With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD,
As the waters cover the sea.
The fact that it is of God that they now do not, clearly supports that God will offer salvation when He decides.
Philippians 2:9-11, Paul states:
9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Notice that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. How can they do that if they did not even hear the name of Jesus Christ in this life? Now it is important to distinguish just acknowledging Jesus is the Christ does not grant salvation--even the demons know (James 2:19). But certainly acknowledging that Jesus is the Christ is an important step and one that is necessary for salvation (Acts 2:38-39;4:10-12).
Lamentations 3:31-33, Jeremiah teaches that God has a plan of compassion for those He has cast off:
31 For the Lord will not cast off forever. 32 Though He causes grief, Yet He will show compassion
According to the multitude of His mercies. 33 For He does not afflict willingly, Nor grieve the children of men.
He does not afflict willingly, but according to His mercies for the plan which will allow Him to show the most possible compassion.
Jeremiah 16:19-21 shows that Jeremich asks and then God answers that once God will cause those Gentiles who inherited lies to to come to Him:
19 The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
"Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things."
20 Will a man make gods for himself,
Which are not gods?21 "Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know,
I will cause them to know
My hand and My might;
And they shall know that My name is the LORD.
God will at that time cause them to know Him. This simply has not yet happened, but will. And notice that this will be a time that people will realize that they have relied on false religious ideas of others (often called traditions). An article of related interest may be Tradition and Scripture: From the Bible and Church Writings.
Ephesians 2:4-7, Paul states:
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
Notice that His grace is shown in the ages to come. Has your church judged Him before the time?
Titus 2:11, Paul states:
11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men (NKJV)
Has the grace of God yet appeared to all men? Of course not. Thus, there is certainly a prophetic implication of this passage by Paul.
What about the expression "has appeared"? Does that mean that God's grace has been seen already by every one? No. There is a mistranslation of word order.
Here is the literal word order:
2014............. 1063...3588..5485. 3588. 2316. <9999 >......... 4992....3956.. 444
hath appeared... For.. the... grace... of.... God...that bringeth.....salvation to all..men (Interlinear Transliterated Bible. Copyright (c) 1994 by Biblesoft).
Thus a more literal translation is that:
It has appeared that the grace of God brings salvation to all men.
Paul goes on to state that for those who now know, they need to living Godly lives in this present age (Titus 2:12).
1 Corinthians 4:5, Paul states:
5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
Notice that God will be praised and that judgement is not be before the time when the Lord comes. Why then do most professing Christians have a judgement that condemns most who have ever lived?
1 Corinthians 15:28, Paul states:
28 Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.
Notice that this prophesy specifically states that a time is coming when all things will be subject to Him. This will be the time that all who have not had an opportunity will have an opportunity for salvation.
Revelation 21:3 teaches:
3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.
Notice that there is a future time when they shall be His people.
As the following verses show, the truth of God will be hidden until a certain time:
Matthew: 10:26:
26 For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.
Mark 4:22-23:
22 For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.
Luke 8:17-18:
17 For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light. 18 Therefore take heed how you hear.
Luke 12:1-2:
2 For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.
It should be clear to all that God has His time table for when He will have the truth known in order to call all. And that that time has not yet come.
Ephesians 3:8-11, Paul mentions that he was going to be able to preach things hidden to some of the Gentiles:
8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, 11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,
Colossians 1:26-28, Paul says about the same thing:
26 the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. 27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
The mystery has to do with God's plan to offer salvation. And a mystery that most do not know even today.
Isaiah 65:17-20, teaches when the hundred year period will occur:
17 "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;
And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing,
And her people a joy.
19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
And joy in My people;
The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her,
Nor the voice of crying.20 "No more shall an infant from there live but a few days,
Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days;
For the child shall die one hundred years old,
But the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.
Notice that the above shows that there will be some who after everything is restored will be accursed. Thus while most will accept the offer of salvation, some few sadly will wish to remain in their sins ("sin is the transgression of the law", 1 John 3:4, KJV).
Perhaps it should be pointed out here, that it has been documented as far back as the second and fourteenth centuries, that some who professed Christ did understand that there was a one hundred year time period where those that had not been called would have an opportunity for salvation (please see article Hope of Salvation: How the Church of God Differs from Protestantism).
1 Corinthians 4:5, Paul tells Christians:
5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
Notice that the time of final judgment has not yet come.
Ephesians 1:11-12, Paul wrote:
11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
Two points. The fact those that first trusted in Christ were predestined shows that there will be those that will come who were not first. Also notice that they were first called according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will. Is not His will that all will be saved? Will not God's counsel stand?
John 8:29, Jesus taught:
29 And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.
Does it please the Father that most will be condemned or that most will be saved through Jesus?
Psalm 135:6 teaches:
6 Whatever the LORD pleases He does, In heaven and in earth, In the seas and in all deep places.
Does it please the God of love to offer salvation to all, to save nearly everyone or only a few?
Ezekiel 18:32 teaches:
2 For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies," says the Lord GOD. "Therefore turn and live!
Notice that God clearly wants people to live. Would He then have devised a plan that results in the vast majority of humans facing the second death?
Hebrews 9:26-28 teaches:
26 He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
Notice that it was the plan since the foundation of the world that Jesus would be slain for the many. Not only the few.
Proverbs 19:21 shows that God's counsel will stand:
21 There are many plans in a man's heart, Nevertheless the LORD's counsel--that will stand.
Isaiah 46:10, God states:
10 Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, 'My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,'
Notice that God had a plan from the very beginning. Also notice that God says that He will do all His pleasure--is not His pleasure to share His love to all?
John 17:1-2, Jesus taught:
Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 2 as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.
Has the Father only intended to give Jesus a few or the many? What does your church really teach?
VI. The Only Ones Saved Now Are Those Who Accept The Call Now
1 Corinthians 12:3, Paul states:
3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
In other words, no one can be saved unless God gives an opportunity through the Holy Spirit. Is God intending to condemn those that had no chance?
John 6:44, Jesus clearly taught:
44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
Similarly in John 6:65, Jesus taught:
65 "Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."
God the Father must call for any to come to Jesus. But God has not called all now. Certainly a loving God understands that and does not condemn those that do not know or are not able to see.
Notice that only a few are chosen now as in Matthew 20:16, Jesus teaches:
6 "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen."
Notice that only a few will find Christ now, as in Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus teaches:
13 Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
This is the same Jesus who came to save more than a few. And He will, not in this age (as there will only be a few now), but in the age to come .
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, Paul teaches:
13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, 14 to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 11:1-5, Paul shows that while God has not cast away his people forever, He only has called a remnant now:
1 I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, 3 "LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life"? 4 But what does the divine response say to him? "I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal." 5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.
Zechariah 10:6 shows:
6 "I will strengthen the house of Judah, And I will save the house of Joseph. I will bring them back, Because I have mercy on them. They shall be as though I had not cast them aside;
How can people be as though they were not cast aside if they will not have an opportunity for salvation? (These clearly include those who were cast off in Hosea 9:16-17.)
Mark 4:33-34 shows that Jesus only explained what He meant to a few:
33 And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it. 34 But without a parable He did not speak to them. And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples.
John 12:37-40 shows that many cannot believe, even though they saw Jesus' miracles, because they have been blinded:
37 But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, 38 that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:
"Lord, who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"39 Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:
40 "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts,
Lest they should see with their eyes,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them."
Thus, the Bible is clear that people were blinded so that even when they saw the signs from Jesus they could not be coverted now. This is because this was not the age for many to be saved as God's plan, which involves the age to come, will result in the most possible percentage of people being saved.
Jeremiah 6:10 shows that many simply cannot hear God's message:
10 To whom shall I speak and give warning, That they may hear? Indeed their ear is uncircumcised, And they cannot give heed.
Thus, not only can some NOT SEE, some apparently CANNOT GIVE HEED.
Luke 8:9-10 shows that God only wanted few to understand now:
9 Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?" 10 And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that
'Seeing they may not see,
And hearing they may not understand.'
Is that fair?
Well, the God I worship is fair and does have a plan for those who are not called in this age.
Matthew 13:10-17, Jesus explains that parables were spoken so that only some will understand now, and that this is to prevent some from understanding and being spiritually healed now:
10 And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" 11 He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:
'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
And seeing you will see and not perceive;
15 For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
Their ears are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them.'16 "But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; 17 for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
Notice that Jesus said many wanted to know, but were not allowed to know. Because God is a God of love, this is probably because they many if they truly understood would be unfaithful in this age. This is apparently why only a relative few are being called now.
1 Corinthians 1:26-29 Paul explains part of why some are not being called now:
26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28 and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence.
Since God is intentionally not calling certain ones now, do you believe He intentionally has doomed them to eternal torment?
Matthew 19:23-26 shows that humans on their own cannot enter the kingdom of God:
23 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 25 When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, "Who then can be saved?" 26 But Jesus looked at them and said to them, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
At this stage Peter did not fully understand how God would save most, but also clearly felt that God had to have some type of plan (which Peter knew no later than shortly after the resurrection, Acts 3:19-21).
1 Peter 2:9-10 Peter teaches:
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light".
Ephesians 1:4-6 Paul teaches:
...just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.
While some are predestined to be called in this age, most of humanity has NOT been predestined to be lost.
VII. God Does Not Hold People Accountable for What They Have Not Been Able to See
John 9:41, Jesus taught:
41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin...
Notice that Jesus specifically teaches that those that are blinded to the truth have not in some way permanently sinned.
Isaiah 6:9-11, God teaches,
"Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.' Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed." Then I said, "Lord, how long?" And He answered: "Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, The houses are without a man, The land is utterly desolate".
In other words, the bulk of the people are not to understand until after a time of utter desolation.
Isaiah 29:9-10, God teaches that He has closed the eyes of many:
Pause and wonder!
Blind yourselves and be blind!
They are drunk, but not with wine;
They stagger, but not with intoxicating drink.
For the LORD has poured out on you
The spirit of deep sleep,
And has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets;
And He has covered your heads, namely, the seers.
And because of that they cannot understand, even when they try, as the verses that immediately follow (Isaiah 29:11-12) show:
The whole vision has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one who is literate, saying, "Read this, please." And he says, "I cannot, for it is sealed." Then the book is delivered to one who is illiterate, saying, "Read this, please." And he says, "I am not literate."
Perhaps I should add here that because of the above, Isaiah 29:14 and 24 teach that:
I will again do a marvelous work Among this people...
These also who erred in spirit will come to understanding, And those who complained will learn doctrine.
If you are a Protestant, please ask yourself when and how the above prophecy is going to be fulfilled unless God has a plan to offer salvation after the resurrection?
Isaiah 44:17-18 reveals that God has prohibited idolaters to have proper understanding:
And the rest of it he makes into a god, His carved image. He falls down before it and worships it, Prays to it and says, "Deliver me, for you are my god!" They do not know nor understand; For He has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, And their hearts, so that they cannot understand.
Thus, is God going to permanently condemn those who worship idols for what He has not let them understand?
Protestant theology tends to say yes.
Those in the Church of God say no. Unless the idolater has committed the unpardonable sin (which is unlikely) they will be judged as other uncalled people are.
Acts 17:29-30 teaches:
29 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising. 30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked...now commands all men everywhere to repent.
So even though God does want repentence from all, notice that He overlooks idolatry and things done in ignorance.
Isaiah 45:20 teaches:
They have no knowledge, Who carry the wood of their carved image, And pray to a god that cannot save.
Notice that the Bible is clearly teaching that idolaters do not have knowledge. They are blind.
Hence, the billions throughout history in Asia and Africa (and elsewhere) are not condemned to suffer forever for following practices they really do not understand.
Isa 28:10-13 shows that the Bible is only understood by looking here a little and there a little and that the way the God speaks to most people was intended for them to NOT understand:
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept,
Line upon line, line upon line,
Here a little, there a little."
11 For with stammering lips and another tongue
He will speak to this people,
12 To whom He said, "This is the rest with which
You may cause the weary to rest,"
And, "This is the refreshing";
Yet they would not hear.
13 But 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 caught.
How does your church explain the above? Do they understand that people were not supposed to easily be able to understand the plan of God now?
Psalm 33:13-15 shows that God fashions (probably through a combination of genetics and environmental factors) every one:
13 The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. 14 From the place of His dwelling He looks On all the inhabitants of the earth; 15 He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works.
So are people totally responsible for what God fashioned? Would a God of love condemn them to eternal torment?
Proverbs 16:9, similarly to Psalm 33, teaches:
9 A man's heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.
Is not God wise enough to direct steps such that nearly all who ever lived will be saved?
1 John 5:19 teaches:
19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.
Revelation 12:9 teaches:
9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world;
Notice that the whole world has been allowed to be deceived. They have not intentionally chosen the wrong.
2 Corinthians 4:3 teaches:
3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost (KJV).
2 Corinthians 4:4 teaches:
4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
So, right now the gospel is hid and some now are lost. Would a just God who allowed Satan to blind the world so that it could not see the truth of the Gospel not have a plan to later call those who are now lost?
The Bible clearly teaches that two ages will be coming where Satan will NOT be around (Revelation 20:1-3), hence people will have an opportunity for salvation without being under the sway of Satan.
Revelation 13:14-17 teaches that Satan is not the only deceiver, that certain religious leaders do as well:
14 And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. 15 He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. 16 He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, 17 and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Hence, God will even allow miracles to be performed by one who will deceive the world and force all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads. Does not God love these people? Does His plan exclude them?
Notice that the Bible, in 2 Cor 11:13-15 shows that there will be many religious leaders who appear to look like true ones:
13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.
Do you not think that there is a reason that God allows Satan and his ministers to deceive now? Could it be because an all-knowing God will have "qll things work together for good" (Romans 8:28)?
Zephaniah 3:8-15 teaches:
8 "Therefore wait for Me," says the LORD,"Until the day I rise up for plunder;My determination is to gather the nations To My assembly of kingdoms, To pour on them My indignation, All my fierce anger;All the earth shall be devoured With the fire of My jealousy.
9 "For then I will restore to the peoples a pure language, That they all may call on the name of the LORD, To serve Him with one accord. 10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, The daughter of My dispersed ones, Shall bring My offering. 11 In that day you shall not be shamed for any of your deeds In which you transgress against Me; For then I will take away from your midst Those who rejoice in your pride, And you shall no longer be haughty In My holy mountain. 12 I will leave in your midst A meek and humble people,And they shall trust in the name of the LORD. 13 The remnant of Israel shall do no unrighteousness And speak no lies, Nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth; For they shall feed their flocks and lie down, And no one shall make them afraid."
14 Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The LORD has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more.
Notice that although affliction is coming, it will not last. Lies and haughtiness will no longer exist. There will be no more deceit.
John 9:40-41, Jesus taught:
40 Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?" 41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains.
It may be that one of the reasons that Jesus appeared so hard on the Pharisees was because there may have been several among them who were close to blaspheming against the Spirit (and perhaps some who had done it) and He was trying to warn them.
Matthew 11:25-26 teaches:
25 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.
Luke 10:21 teaches:
21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.
1 Corinthians 2:7-8, Paul teaches that Jesus would not have been crucified if the truth was known in this age:
7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
Notice that Paul states that God has hidden wisdom that He ordained before the ages. And if God had made it clear, Jesus would not have been crucified. If God had not hidden any information, Jesus would not have died for our sins. Does your church understand that?
Luke 23:33-34:
...they crucified Him...Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do."
Since Jesus felt those who physically saw Him, heard Him, and had Him crucified should be forgiven, certainly Jesus does not think that those who do not understand about Him now should be condemned.
Does your church understand this? Do they understand that those that crucified Christ rejected Him as their Lord and Savour, yet Jesus wanted them to be forgiven? What would be the point of them being forgiven if they are destined to spend eternity frying in eternal torment as they clearly rejected Jesus?
Well, there would be no point.
Surely Jesus understands the plan of God--surely that is why His words were recorded, so that all would know that there is hope even for many that would seem to be the hopeless. We in the Church of God do have a God of love and understanding.
Job 28:20-21 teaches:
20 "From where then does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? 21 It is hidden from the eyes of all living, And concealed from the birds of the air.
Isaiah 64:7-9, Isaiah states:
7 For You have hidden Your face from us, And have consumed us because of our iniquities. 8 But now, O LORD, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand. 9 Do not be furious, O LORD, Nor remember iniquity forever; Indeed, please look--we all are Your people!
Ezekiel 22:26, God teaches:
26 Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them.
Notice that the above shows that even the religious leaders would violate the law and that the Sabbaths are hidden from their eyes.
Ezekiel 20:49 states that the people did not understand what he was teaching. Notice:
49 Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! They say of me, 'Does he not speak parables?'"
Isaiah 25:7, Isaiah teaches:
7 And He will destroy on this mountain
The surface of the covering cast over all people,
And the veil that is spread over all nations.
Notice that even though people have been blinded to those things which were hidden, God is going to remove the veil that is spread over all the nations. The removal of this veil will allow them to see. Can you now see this or do you wish to have the veil remain over you?
Isaiah 48:5-9 has these words of God:
5 Even from the beginning I have declared it to you; Before it came to pass I proclaimed it to you, Lest you should say, 'My idol has done them,
And my carved image and my molded image Have commanded them.' 6 "You have heard; See all this. And will you not declare it? I have made you hear new things from this time, Even hidden things, and you did not know them. 7 They are created now and not from the beginning; And before this day you have not heard them, Lest you should say, 'Of course I knew them.' 8 Surely you did not hear, Surely you did not know; Surely from long ago your ear was not opened. For I knew that you would deal very treacherously, And were called a transgressor from the womb. 9 "For My name's sake I will defer My anger, And for My praise I will restrain it from you, So that I do not cut you off.
Notice that in the above, God is saying that He had many things hidden from those who worship idols or other false gods so that in the future He would not have to cut them off.
That is why God has not made it clear to everyone now. God knew that if He did, many would be unfaithful so that is why God's plan included allowing most who have thus far lived to not understand the full truth of God.
In Isaiah 52:10 God also teaches that they shall see:
10 The LORD has made bare His holy arm
In the eyes of all the nations;
And all the ends of the earth shall see
The salvation of our God.
Since this is referring to the eyes of all the nations, the same nations that are now blinded, certainly God is teaching that all WILL have an opportunity for salvation.
Furthermore, contrary to the claims of those who feel that God will save everyone no matter what they believe, the Bible makes it clear that there is only one name that can save as Acts 4:10-12 teaches:
10 let it be known to you all...that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,...11 This is the 'stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.' 12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
Since God has hidden parts of His plan, since the name of Jesus is not known by many today nor has it been known for thousands of years by many, since God plans to offer salvation to the ends of the earth, and since no one can be saved without Jesus, it should be obvious to any who will believe their Bibles that God must have planned to offer salvation to everyone at a later time.
Furthermore, please study, pray, and meditate about what Ephesians 2:11-12 says:
11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh--who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands-- 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
Notice that those Gentiles HAD NO HOPE! Up until Christ came, almost no Gentile that ever lived had any HOPE! And since most Gentiles have STILL never heard the truth about Christ (the only name by which men can be saved--Acts 4:12), will your God condemn those who never had hope? People who are still blinded by Satan so that they, in this age (2 Corinthians 4:4), cannot see?
VIII. The Bible Clearly Teaches that Those Gentiles Who Have Been Subject to Condemnation Will Have an Opportunity for Salvation
Micah 7:18-19 teaches:
18 Who is a God like You,
Pardoning iniquity
And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?
He does not retain His anger forever,
Because He delights in mercy.
19 He will again have compassion on us,
And will subdue our iniquities.
You will cast all our sins
Into the depths of the sea.
Is your God going to pardon iniquity for a few or nearly all of the guilty?
Ezekiel 11:16-20 and 36:24-38 both record that God is going to covert many sinners so that they will walk in His statutes:
16 Therefore say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Although I have cast them far off among the Gentiles, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet I shall be a little sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone." ' 17 "Therefore say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "I will gather you from the peoples, assemble you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel." ' 18 "And they will go there, and they will take away all its detestable things and all its abominations from there. 19 Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, 20 that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God..."
24 For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. 29 I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you. 30 And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the nations. 31 Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations. 32 Not for your sake do I do this," says the Lord GOD, "let it be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel!" 33'Thus says the Lord GOD: "On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will also enable you to dwell in the cities, and the ruins shall be rebuilt. 34 The desolate land shall be tilled instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass by. 35 So they will say, 'This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and the wasted, desolate, and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.' 36 "Then the nations which are left all around you shall know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted what was desolate. I, the LORD, have spoken it, and I will do it." 37'Thus says the Lord GOD: "I will also let the house of Israel inquire of Me to do this for them: I will increase their men like a flock. 38 Like a flock offered as holy sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem on its feast days, so shall the ruined cities be filled with flocks of men. Then they shall know that I am the LORD." ' "
Notice that the above has never been fulfilled by Israelites going back to the Middle East as God has YET to give them a new heart. Surely God has a plan to offer salvation to those who many now feel are lost.
Notice Daniel 12:2-4:
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever. But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase"
The above passage shows that death is like sleep. It also refers to a resurrection to everlasting life and resurrection to shame and to everlasting contempt. Notice that those who are wise will shine and still, after they shall awake, turn many to righteousness. Since they cannot turn those who are raised to everlasting contempt to life, who are they turning to life?
Obviously, those who were dead and not dead in Christ are those that are among the many that are turned to righteousness. Thus, the Bible clearly shows that there is a future offer of salvation past this current life and many will be turned to righteousness--many are then converted.
Matthew 11:23-24, notice what Jesus stated:
And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.
If the fate of Sodom is already eternal condemnation, how could it be better for them than for others?
Ezekiel 16:55 teaches that it was known that Sodom would return:
55 When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate (KJV).
What does your church teach is the fate of Sodom?
Matthew 12:38-42 teaches:
38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." 39 But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. 42 The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.
Notice that contrary to the views of what passes as mainstream "Christianity", there will be a difference in judgment in the end.
Now God destroyed Sodom for its wicked works (Genesis 18:20;19:24)--wicked works, that according to Paul's writings make it impossible for them to inherit the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21). If what most Protestants believe is correct, then all in Sodom will be destroyed and will be no better off than those in Capernaum--but that is a clear contradiction of what Jesus wrote.
Luke 10:7-15, Jesus taught:
8 Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. 9 And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.' 10 But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 11 The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.' 12 But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city. 13 "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be thrust down to Hades.
Notice that Jesus is holding those to a higher standard who saw miracles and should have understood His message, than those who were idolaters, pagans, and sexually immoral (including those that lived in Sodom). Jesus makes this concept clear in many other passages.
Does your church teach you that it will be more tolerable for certain non-Christians at the judgment than for others? If not, does it really understand the Bible?
Mark 6:10-11, notice what Jesus taught:
10 Also He said to them, "In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place. 11 And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!"
God completely destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for their sins. Yet, Jesus says that it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than those who had some understanding but would not accept it.
Psalm 90:3 teaches:
3 You turn man to destruction, And say, "Return, O children of men."
God is teaching that He turned humans over to destruction--He allowed sinners to die--yet notice that He teaches that He is going to have them return. Does your church teach anything like this?
Psalm 107:1-3 teaches:
1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
3 And gathered out of the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south.
Thus, God is going to have mercy to those turned over to the enemy (the devil) because God's mercy endures forever--Ambrose of Milan referred to this verse--and stated "this is the privilege not only of a few" (see article Hope of Salvation). When scripture refers to those gathered from all over in this manner, it often is referring to those who have died. Jesus also alluded to this verse in Matthew 8:11:
10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, "Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! 11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus was teaching that Gentiles will be part of the kingdom. And, I and others believe this means more than just a few.
Psalm 145:14 teaches:
4 The LORD upholds all who fall, And raises up all who are bowed down.
It should be clear that is God intending to raise up more than a few who fall.
Psalm 25:8 reveals:
8 Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way.
Is He only intending to teach a few sinners or all sinners? God is not a respector of persons (Acts 10:34 KJV).
Hebrews 8:11-12, states:
11 None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. 12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more."
Notice that the time is coming when all shall know the LORD. And notice that God is saying that He will forgive their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more. Does your church understand this?
Psalms 66:3 teaches:
3 Say to God, "How awesome are Your works! Through the greatness of Your power Your enemies shall submit themselves to You.
Notice that this is a prophecy. All the enemies who would have been alive when that verse was written thousands of years ago have long since died. But this verse shows that they will submit to God. This is considered to be an awesome work through God's great power. Does the God you worship have the power to offer salvation to all so that even His enemies will submit to Him?
Isaiah 29:13-14, teaches:
13 Therefore the LORD said:
"Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths
And honor Me with their lips,
But have removed their hearts far from Me,
And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,
14 Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work
Among this people,
A marvelous work and a wonder;
For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden."
Thus, those who have been deceived by human traditions of false worship can be saved. And many have been! (See Tradition and Scripture: From the Bible and Church Writings).
Also notice the following from Jeremiah 30:9-10:
9. But they shall serve the LORD their God, And David their king, Whom I will raise up for them. 10 'Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,' says the LORD,
'Nor be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar...
Isaiah 55:1-5 teaches:
1 "Ho! Everyone who thirsts,
Come to the waters;
And you who have no money,
Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
3 Incline your ear, and come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you--
The sure mercies of David.
4 Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people,
A leader and commander for the people.
5 Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,
And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the LORD your God,
And the Holy One of Israel;
For He has glorified you."
The above is not simply a reference to Gentiles becoming Christians as most Protestant commentators think. It is David that is the witness to the people. This is the same David that is prophecied to rule over the nations of Israel in the future (Ezekiel 37:24; Jeremiah 30:9). Thus, this is a prophecy for a later time. The simple truth is that even after Jesus came, the statement "nations who do not know you shall run to you" has simply not been fulfilled. I know of not one nation, let alone nations, that have run to become true Christians. What has happened is that after Greco-Roman "Christianity" became the religion of the empire, many were forced to become "Christians" and those that have followed them have almost never followed the Christianity of the Bible.
If some of that confuses you, recall that in Isaiah 55:8-11 God teaches that even though we think different than God that His word will not return void:
8 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD.
9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 "For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater,
11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
Furthermore, notice what Isaiah 56:1-2 teaches:
1. Thus says the LORD:
"Keep justice, and do righteousness,
For My salvation is about to come,
And My righteousness to be revealed.
2 Blessed is the man who does this,
And the son of man who lays hold on it;
Who keeps from defiling the Sabbath,
And keeps his hand from doing any evil."
If the salvation to come is simply the first coming of Jesus, then should not all Christians keep the Sabbath as both salvation and the Sabbath are part of the same quote? Does your church teach that one is "blessed" who does not defile the Sabbath? (You may also wish to read the verses that follow it, like Isaiah 56:3-8 as it makes it clear that foreigners-Gentiles-also are to keep the Sabbath.)
Notice that in Isaiah 57:16-18 that God will not always be angry and that He will heal the souls He has made:
16 For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the spirit would fail before Me, And the souls which I have made.
17 For the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry and struck him; I hid and was angry, And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him; I will also lead him, And restore comforts to him
And to his mourners.
Thus, even those who sinned that God punished (struck) and hid from, God will lead them back! Does your minister proclaim this?
Isaiah 62:1-5 shows:
1 For Zion's sake I will not hold My peace, And for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, Until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, And her salvation as a lamp that burns.
2 The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, And all kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, Which the mouth of the LORD will name.
3 You shall also be a crown of glory In the hand of the LORD, And a royal diadem In the hand of your God.
4 You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, Nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate; But you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; For the LORD delights in you, And your land shall be married.
5 For as a young man marries a virgin, So shall your sons marry you; And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So shall your God rejoice over you.
Notice that salvation is being discussed and that includes Gentiles and lands that were desolate and that God will delight in them. This is not simply a reference to Gentiles who accept Christ in this age, as they were not referred to in the Hebrew scriptures as "Forsaken". Versions of the Hebrew term "azuwbah"
translated as "Forsaken" are used many times in the Old Testament to refer to Israelites (NOT Gentiles)--God is apparently using that term because most seem to feel that the Gentiles prior to Jesus' first coming were forsaken--which, however, they were not. Most also seem to feel that most people dwelling in lands that basically do not accept any version of Christ today are in that forsaken category. But again, recall that God states that they are not forsaken. Which means, according to Isaiah 62, that God has a plan of salvation for them.
Also notice that in Isaiah 65:1-5, God declares that even those who eat unclean meat and did not seek God will be called:
1"I was sought by those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. I said, 'Here I am, here I am,' To a nation that was not called by My name.
2 I have stretched out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, Who walk in a way that is not good, According to their own thoughts;
3 A people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face; Who sacrifice in gardens, And burn incense on altars of brick; 4 Who sit among the graves,
And spend the night in the tombs; Who eat swine's flesh, And the broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
5 Who say, 'Keep to yourself, Do not come near me, For I am holier than you!' These are smoke in My nostrils, A fire that burns all the day.
Notice that these people were not originally called. They even provoked God to anger by eating swine (a biblically unclean animal), but notice that they will find God even though they did not seek Him!
Isaiah 66:17-19 teaches:
17 "Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves,
To go to the gardens
After an idol in the midst,
Eating swine's flesh and the abomination and the mouse,
Shall be consumed together," says the LORD.
18 "For I know their works and their thoughts. It shall be that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see My glory.
19 I will set a sign among them; and those among them who escape I will send to the nations: to Tarshish and Pul and Lud, who draw the bow, and Tubal and Javan, to the coastlands afar off who have not heard My fame nor seen My glory. And they shall declare My glory among the Gentiles.
Even though He will punish those who eat unclean meat, notice that they will be gathered and declared God's glory among the Gentiles. God's glory among the Gentiles is when He calls them all and offers them salvation. Those who believe in the elitist approach that God is only going to save "good" Roman Catholics and/or Protestants and condemn the vast majority of eaters of unclean meats to fry in torment forever are in clear error.
Romans 8:19-21, Paul states:
19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Notice that the creation was not subjected to futility willingly. And that the creation is waiting to be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. The entirety of creation is awaiting apocatastasis.
Hosea 2:23. Here is what a Protestant author wrote on this verse:
God had said that he would name these children as a sign to his people, but there would come a day of restoration:
"And I will have pity on Not-Pitied,
and I will say to Not-My-People,
'You are my people;'
and he shall say, 'Thou art my God.'" {Hos 2:23 RSV}So that even in this time when God was announcing judgment, his grace also was being shown. (Stedman Ray. O.T. Prophetical Books).
That author is correct on that point. God specifically has foretold a time of restoration through the prophets. And those that were not His people, will become His people.
Romans 11:32-33, Paul states:
32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. 33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
Notice that God's plan has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. Also notice that Paul is teaching that God's mercy and judgment is apparently not easy for most to figure out.
Is it someone's fault that they were born in an area that no one knew or taught Christ?
Notice that God knew that most would not at first obey, but that He has a plan to have mercy on them.
Romans 11:13-15, Paul states:
13 For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. 15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
Notice that Paul is teaching that those being cast away can have acceptance after they are given life from the dead (see also vss 26-27). Paul is clearly teaching what is consisting with the COG view of apocatastasis.
IX. Some Few Will Willfully Reject God's Generous Offer But Their End Will Be Swift
Jeremiah 25:31-33 teaches:
31 A noise will come to the ends of the earth--For the LORD has a controversy with the nations; He will plead His case with all flesh. He will give those who are wicked to the sword,' says the LORD." 32 Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Behold, disaster shall go forth From nation to nation, And a great whirlwind shall be raised up From the farthest parts of the earth. 33 "And at that day the slain of the LORD shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall become refuse on the ground..."
Thus while God will plead His case with all flesh, those that are wicked will be eliminated and refuse on the ground (see also Malachy 4:3).
Hebrews 10:26-27, Paul notes:
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries...
Notice that there are some who will be devoured by fiery indignation. This is the Gehenna fire that Jesus referred to. Thus, while all will be offered salvation, some will not accept it.
Deuteronomy 7:10-11, Moses explains that God will destroy those that will not keep His commandments:
10 and He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face. 11 Therefore you shall keep the commandment, the statutes, and the judgments which I command you today, to observe them.
Do you observe His commandments, statutes, and judgments?
Micah 7:18-20 teaches:
18 Who is a God like You,
Pardoning iniquity
And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?
He does not retain His anger forever,
Because He delights in mercy.
19 He will again have compassion on us,
And will subdue our iniquities.
You will cast all our sins
Into the depths of the sea.
20 You will give truth to Jacob
And mercy to Abraham,
Which You have sworn to our fathers
From days of old.
Does God retain His anger forever? No. Does He delight in mercy? Yes. Will He later give His truth to Jacob and mercy to Abraham? That is what the Bible teaches. Is this what your church teaches?
Matthew 10:28, Jesus taught:
29. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna (NKJV, literal).
There would be no need for Jesus to say the above, unless there would be some who refuse salvation. But again, this is a very small amount. And notice that they are destroyed. We in the COG do not teach that human souls will be tortured throughout eternity. While the punishment is permanent, and in that sense everlasting, it is short--the actual punishment is NOT continual torment throughout eternity.
James 5:11 states:
11 Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord--that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.
Permanent torment is not merciful.
Nahum 1:12 teaches:
12 Though I have afflicted you, I will afflict you no more;
Thus, this prophetic book is teachings that there is not a permanent torturing affliction.
Revelation 21:4 teaches:
4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." 5 Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful."
There will be no more death, sorrow, crying, or pain. Thus there will not be an ever burning torment and torture of sinners throughout eternity. That will be done. All things will become new.
Malachi 4:1-3 teaches:
1 "For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up," Says the LORD of hosts,"That will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings; And you shall go out And grow fat like stall-fed calves. 3 You shall trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet On the day that I do this," Says the LORD of hosts.
Notice that the wicked (those who will not repent) will be burned up and will be ashes. This is not an everlasting torment, but a destruction of those that refuse God.
Psalm 68:2 teaches:
2 As smoke is driven away, So drive them away; As wax melts before the fire, So let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
Notice that the wicked are to perish.
Matthew 12:31-32, Jesus teaches about what is commonly referred to as "the unpardonable sin":
31 "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.
Notice two very important points:
And who are those that have blasphemed against the Spirit?
Those who clearly knew the plan of God, but would not humble themselves enough to accept and live. This is part of why very few really understand now. God is only calling few now so that more will not blaspheme the Holy Spirit and not ultimately be saved.
Yet notice, that the Psalms and Proverbs do show that God will save those He considers to be the humble:
He will beautify the humble with salvation (Psalm 149:4).
Apparently all of those who will humble themselves and accept God's offer will be saved. But this will not happen until after the seeds of the gospel are laid and come to fruition in harvest in the age to come. Notice Mark 4:26-29:
26 And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, 27 and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. 28 For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. 29 But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."
Romans 11:26-27, Paul quotes the Hebrew Bible and states:
26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
"The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
27 For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins."
Notice that Paul is teaching that all Israel will be saved. And that the Deliverer (Jesus) will take away their sins. Yet most Jews have never professed Christ. Certainly God has a plan that involves all the Jews and the rest of Israel.
Who is all Israel? It is all who will become spiritual Israel--but this does include most who were Jewish.
Romans 9:6-8,22-24 teaches us:
6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, 7 nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called." 8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed...
22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
Thus, it is not physical Israel, but spiritual Israel who will be saved.
Notice that Romans 2:11 teaches:
11 For there is no partiality with God.
Acts 10:34-35,45 also teaches something of this:
34 Then Peter opened his mouth and said: "In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. 35 But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him..."And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also.
Since all Israel is to be saved and God shows no partiality, does not this mean that Gentiles should be part of spiritual Israel?
Romans 2:28-29, Paul notes:
28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.
Thus, most of the promises in the New Testament (and many in the Old) are NOT referring to physical Jews, but for those that God will call to be Christians.
Furthermore, do God's promise only refer to the relatively few Gentiles that are being called in this Church age? Or does it include those who have died and believe that there hope is cut off?
Notice what Ezekiel 37:1-14 teaches:
1 The hand of the LORD came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones.
2 Then He caused me to pass by them all around, and behold, there were very many in the open valley; and indeed they were very dry.
3 And He said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" So I answered, "O Lord GOD, You know."
4 Again He said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, 'O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
5 Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: "Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live.
6 I will put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in you; and you shall live. Then you shall know that I am the LORD." ' "
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone.
8 Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them.
9 Then He said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live." ' "
10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.
11 Then He said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, 'Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!'
12 "Therefore prophesy and say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.
13 Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves.
14 I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken it and performed it," says the LORD.' "
Notice that these are people who are dead, who are falsely believed to have no hope, and who are falsely believed to be cut off. Notice that they will be resurrected, have hope, and shall no that the LORD is God!
Jeremiah 23:5-8 teaches:
5 "Behold, the days are coming," says the LORD,"That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
6 In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.7 "Therefore, behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "that they shall no longer say, 'As the LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,' 8 "but, 'As the LORD lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.' And they shall dwell in their own land."
Ezekiel 37:24-28 also teaches:
24 "David My servant shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them.
25 Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children's children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever.
26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore.
27 My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
28 The nations also will know that I, the LORD, sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore." ' "
Surely God has a plan that involves resurrecting everyone, teaching them His statutes, and that God will make an everlasting covenant. Surely this has not yet happened, surely it is for the future. It will be for the time of restoration of all, involving David. Does your church teach this?
Ezekiel 39:21-29, God declares:
21 "I will set My glory among the nations; all the nations shall see My judgment which I have executed, and My hand which I have laid on them. 22 So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day forward. 23 The Gentiles shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because they were unfaithful to Me, therefore I hid My face from them. I gave them into the hand of their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. 24 According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I have dealt with them, and hidden My face from them." '
25 "Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: 'Now I will bring back the captives of Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name-- 26 after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid. 27 When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and I am hallowed in them in the sight of many nations, 28 then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their own land, and left none of them captive any longer. 29 And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,' says the Lord GOD."
Zechariah 10:9-12, God states:
9 "I will sow them among the peoples, And they shall remember Me in far countries; They shall live, together with their children, And they shall return. 10 I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt, And gather them from Assyria. I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, Until no more room is found for them. 11 He shall pass through the sea with affliction, And strike the waves of the sea: All the depths of the River shall dry up. Then the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, And the scepter of Egypt shall depart. 12 "So I will strengthen them in the LORD, And they shall walk up and down in His name," Says the LORD.
Notice that God is including those that are dead. He teaches, like He does in Ezekiel 37, that the dead shall live and shall return. But notice this includes more than simply Israelites.
Genesis 18:17-18 reveals the following:
17 And the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, 18 since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
Notice that all the families of the earth are to be blessed. This must also include Gentile tribes and nations that have long since died out. And since many of them had not ever even heard the name of Jesus, there blessing must be in the future.
Even Moses clearly understood that God was not allowing Israel to see in his day:
1 These are the words of the covenant which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which He made with them in Horeb. 2 Now Moses called all Israel and said to them: "You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land-- 3 the great trials which your eyes have seen, the signs, and those great wonders. 4 Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day (Deuteronomy 29:1-4).
Hence, the plan was know for a long time--those who were not able to see would be able to be saved.
Isaiah 45:25 shows:
25 In the LORD all the descendants of Israel
Shall be justified, and shall glory.
Does your church teach that all the descendants of Israel Shall be justified? Most churches teach that the descendants of Israel are Jews and that only a few of them will be saved. But is that what the Bible, not traditions of men, teaches?
XI. The Prophets Spoke About This
While the above sections included quotes from many prophets, it should be understood that many did understand that the prophets foretold that salvation would be offered to all.
John 4:42, states this about the Samaritans:
42 Then they said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world."
This shows that even the Samaritans knew enough from the Hebrew scriptures to understand that Christ was to be Savior of the world, not just a select few. Can Jesus be Savior of all without offering salvation to all?
Daniel 2:44, Daniel states:
44 And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.
The kingdom of God will be over all and last forever.
Psalm 67:1-2 teaches:
1 God be merciful to us and bless us, And cause His face to shine upon us. Selah 2 That Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.
The reason that God is calling some now is so His ways will be known on earth and His salvation will be known among all nations. But since many nations have long died out, this prophecy is not only referring to passages in the New Testament such as Matthew 24:14 (And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come), but must include nations that were gone before Jesus came.
Notice what the Book of Jeremiah 31:33-34 teaches:
33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.
Notice that "after those days" God is going to put His law in their minds and write it in their heart. This has simply not happened with physical Israel and is referring to a later time.
The prophets did understand that God had plan to offer salvation to most at a later time than this age.
XII. Protestants Generally Oppose Apocatastasis, Roman Catholics Claim Eternal Torment, But the Orthodox and Church of God Teach Differently
Herbert W. Armstrong of the COG taught:
...God's purpose in giving His Church