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DOES TRUTH-MATTER on July 1, 2021

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jack anderson

The keys of heaven and of eternal life Revelation 1:17-18 (KJV) 17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: 18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have t... View MoreThe keys of heaven and of eternal life Revelation 1:17-18 (KJV) 17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: 18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. ----- ----- Over the last few years there have been a number of films produced and streamed online dealing with the subjects of witches, or vampires, or satan, or demons, or people who have superhuman powers. All these films have one thing in common: they aggrandize and exalt and magnify evil, making evil look like good, and even promoting it as good. They shine a spotlight on people who do evil in order to get what they want, making it seem as though everyone does it, and therefore it is ok to do evil too. The protagonists will even use evil means to possibly help others along the way, thereby elevating themselves to the level of being a hero and a role model. And then, to make matters worse, they promote and advertise these films about evil to young adults and teens, so that these false positive views of evil can infect their heart and mind, thereby possibly turning them away from the living God. God wants us to turn away from evil and to do good, so we will live forever! Pursue good, and eschew evil! Death is the only thing in a person’s life that is guaranteed, as is the final judgment of evil by the living God after death. We do not get to live this life and then live another life as someone else after we die, trying to do better in the next life than we did in this one, as many people believe; nor do we get to live this life and then cease to exist after we die; nor do we get to live this life and then get to live in the cosmic sea of oneness after we die. God created every one of us as a living soul, which will live forever, creating us in His own image, and then He gave us only one physical body, to use in this life. We have only one body and one life to live before the final judgment. In addition, He will give us our very own spirit when we become a believer and follower of Jesus Christ as Lord, and His Spirit will indwell us, interacting and communicating with our spirit to lead us and teach us all the ways of the Father and of His Son. The truth of the matter is that God loves us, no matter what, even if we do evil all the time. I know some would say, “So why do I need to do good, evil is so much more fun?” The simple answer is twofold. First, even though God loves you, like a father loves his child, this does not mean that you cannot disappoint Him in ways that cause His righteous anger to burn against you when you do evil over and over again, and never ask for forgiveness. And second, even though God loves you, it does not mean that your actions in this life do not also have consequences in this life, which will determine where your soul spends eternity in the next life. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2 Corinthians 5:10) “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment”. (Hebrews 9:27) Since God created our soul to be eternal, we have two choices where we will spend eternity after we die to this world: in heaven with God, or in hell apart from God’s presence. When we believe and follow Jesus Christ as Lord, our soul will be guaranteed a home in heaven after we die, redeemed for all eternity to come; but if we never believe in Jesus, so that He could save us, then our soul is guaranteed to be thrown into the lake of fire after we die, which is the hell scripture talks about, and we will be in conscious torment for all eternity to come, forever separated from the presence of the living God. In scripture, hell is described as the land of darkness, where there is no light, no God, and where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, and where there is a blazing furnace with eternal unquenchable fire, and where souls are tormented for their disobedience to a loving and just and righteous God. Hell is forever and irrevocable; once you are there, there is no getting out, ever! In these verses, John is telling his brothers and sisters in Christ that when he saw Jesus in all His glory and majesty standing in the middle of the seven candlesticks, and heard Him speak, he fell at His feet as though dead, unable to stand in His presence, unable to look at Him, unable to see His face and live. John is in good company with Ezekiel, and Daniel, and Peter and James and John at the transfiguration, and Paul on the road to Damascus. Here John was awestruck and afraid. He could not look at His glorious presence, because it was too overwhelming. But then, Jesus placed His hand on him and said “Do not fear.” By touching him in a comforting way, Jesus gave him the strength and the confidence he needed to accomplish the task set in front of him, writing everything he sees and hears during his visions. Jesus also reminds John that He is the first and the last, and that He lives, and even though He was dead, He is now alive again forevermore, never to ever die again, and that He has the keys of hell and of death. When Jesus says that He has the keys of hell and of death, He is saying that as Savior He alone has all the power and authority to save everyone the Father gives to Him, and to keep them from entering into hell, and to keep them from dying the second death; and as Judge He alone has all the power and authority necessary to condemn to hell everyone who is not saved, and to condemn them to the second death in the lake of fire at the white throne judgment on the last day. His power and authority are His keys, which He can use to open up heaven and eternal life to all who believe, and which He can use to shut up heaven and eternal life to all who do not believe, condemning them to hell and the second death forever. The faith the Father gives to you is your key into heaven as a believer and follower of Jesus Christ as your Lord! Heaven or hell: to believe or not to believe! Are you familiar with the modern day films which aggrandize and exalt and magnify evil, and contain protagonists who are witches, or vampires, or satan, or demons, or people who have superhuman powers? What has been the spiritual impact of these films on the people you know who have seen them? Can you describe death and hell, from a biblical perspective, in your own words? How can you assist Jesus in using the keys He has of death and of hell to open up heaven and eternal life? Does Jesus also possess the keys of heaven and of eternal life, as well as the keys of death and of hell? Thank the Father for giving you this glimpse into heaven to see how Jesus wields His keys of death and of hell, and His keys of heaven and of eternal life! Thank the Father for giving you the use of Jesus’ keys of heaven and of eternal life when you tell people about His good news! The keys of heaven and of eternal life are the gospel, the good news about Jesus Christ! Spread the good news, wherever you go! By Ken Gilbert

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July 1, 2021