Notes for our next studies – 5 Common Heresies Today – borrowed from – pursueGOD.org
https://www.pursuegod.org/five-common-heresies-today-2/
#3 God Will Be Good with Everyone in the End
This idea, often called Universalism, is the idea that everyone goes to heaven in the end. It doesn’t really matter what religion you believed or didn’t believe, God wouldn’t actually punish anyone in hell, so everyone will end up in heaven eventually. Some believe that if you don’t come to believe in the right spiritual truth in this life, you’ll be given another opportunity in the afterlife to turn to God and accept his truth. Others just believe that there is no one right way and that all roads will eventually lead to heaven.
(John 14:6-7; Matthew 7:21-23, 25:31-46; Acts 4:11-12; 1st John 5:11-12.)
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— This false belief does well to follow the idea of “Not taking the Bible too literally”, for to follow this idea you cannot believe that the Bible carries God’s written authority.
We will open with: ‘There Is A Redeemer’ – by Keith Green
So, for those of us who do see the Bible as God’s Word, let’s get busy and dig into what He says about such ideas… This study can also show us much about our own beliefs.
John 14:6-7 (ESV) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (7) If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
To be fair we will start at John 14:1-2… “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. (2) In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”
— This is a verse that those who argue that all faiths lead to God like to quote. As they presume that the other “rooms” Jesus refers to here speak of other ‘ways’ to God.
— As with all deceptions, a little truth can be accepted, only if it is taken out of the context of the rest of the story. So it can only be that anyone who wishes to hold this idea as a statement of their faith, they must deny and exclude the verses that follow these words of the Lord Jesus.
So, to avoid deception, let’s follow further…
John 14:3-6… And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (4) And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. (5) Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? (6) Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
— Here we see ‘Just Regular Joe, THOMAS’, blurting out a question that they were all probably thinking…
Isn’t this the very question that every faith tries to answer,
“Where are we going, how can we find the way?”
— Or in other words, “What does my faith promise for myself and my loved ones?”
— Q1/ Have you ever worked your way through this question? – (What does following Jesus offer us?)
— Q2/ How do the words of Jesus speak to the idea that everyone goes to heaven in the end?
(SEE Vs.6) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
— Q3/ Digging deeper, what is the requirement between us and Jesus written in Vs.7?
“If you had known me, you would have known my Father also.”
— To leave this on a positive note, Jesus continues, “From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
— Think about Thomas when he meets the resurrected Jesus…
John 20:28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Our next scriptures must challenge all those who consider themselves Christians…
Matthew 7:21-23… “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (22) On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ (23) And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
— It’s pretty clear here that not everyone is being admitted into the Kingdom of Heaven.
— Q4/ Digging deeper: When these people make the claim that, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?” – What is their claim to God’s gift of eternal life, based on? (Also, who really accomplished these mighty WORKS?)
— Q5/ What does Jesus tell us is required to be admitted into God’s Kingdom of Heaven?
(SEE Vs.23) And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
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Looking further into Matthew’s writings about who enters Heaven…
Matthew 25:31-40 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. (32) Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. (33) And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. (34) Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. (35) For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, (36) I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ (37) Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? (38) And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? (39) And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ (40) And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
On the other hand, Matthew 25:41-46 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. (42) For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, (43) I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ (44) Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ (45) Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ (46) And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
— This follows Matthew 7:21-23. We see that a life spent claiming faith without works is also not enough.
— Q6/ Why would Jesus say that a living faith in Him must contain good works?
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From Acts 4:11-12 (ESV) Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, (9) if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, (10) let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. (11) This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. (12) And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
— Just two questions from me here…
— Q7/ Under what power (authority) does the Bible tell us that Peter was making these strong and forceful statements? (SEE Vs.8)
— Q8/ If we receive this as a message from God’s Holy Spirit, is there any other way to be saved from judgment? (SEE Vs. 11-12)
Now we look at 1st John 5:6-12… (ESV) This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. (7) For there are three that testify: (8) the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. (9) If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. (10) Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. (11) And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. (12) Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
–Q10/ Where did “the Spirit and the water and the blood” (Vs.8) testify about Jesus?
The WATER: This is seen to refer to the cleansing of sin, and purity of Christ…
— There is a recorded testimony of this in Matthew 3:13-17… (ESV) Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. (14) John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (15) But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. (16) And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; (17) and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
The BLOOD: This refers to Christ’s atoning death on the cross…
SEE Luke 22:14-20 (ESV) And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. (15) And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. (16) For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” (17) And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. (18) For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” (19) And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” (20) And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
The SPIRIT: Various references to the union between Jesus and God’s Holy Spirit can be found, however probably the most significant for us is found as Jesus teaches Nicodemus about the need to have faith in Him (Jesus) to be spiritually reborn in…
SEE John 3:5-15 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (6) That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (7) Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ (8) The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (9) Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” (10) Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? (11) Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. (12) If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? (13) No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. (14) And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, (15) that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
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As we close in further discussion and fellowship, we celebrate the fact of God’s goodness in bringing us, and any who choose to believe, into His glorious Kingdom to come.
So we close with the song: ‘Grace that is greater than our Sin’
and then move to our time of prayer…