Lesson 110 - THE UNCANCELLABLE APPOINTMENT (PART 1)
By Frank Eiklor and the Shalom Team
The Choosing of Death
"When I introduce myself, you may not want to listen to me. Many have tried to ignore me and regretted it. You see, my name is Death. I haven't always been, and I won't always be. You humans are very limited, so let me just say that I am part of a mystery. You might call it what Paul did—the 'mystery of inquity'.1
"My time to operate is limited because God hates me. In fact, the Creator is going to cast hell and me—Death—into the lake of fire.2 Old James got it right when he exposed the one who concevied me--Sin.3 And sin leads right to the door of what you might call my father--the devil. He was in love with himself. So much so that he was determined to tell his Creator that he wanted to assume that title and power that goes with being God.4 Talk about 'free will!' He got an army of those might angels to follow him—but how do you stand a chance against the one who has always existed from eternity to eternity!? Well, the adversary, Satan, got his lights punched out and was kicked out of heaven.5 He still likes to transform himself into an angel of light to deceive you humans.6
"Anyway, he was cast out to a planet called Earth7—and that's where you and I come in. Your first parents had it all. Even garden walks with God.8 He didn't want robots, so He gave that couple what Lucifer the devil had—the power to choose good or evil—free will. All they had to do was love God by obeying Him. They had it all with just one condition: 'But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shalt not eat of it: for in the day you eat thereof—you shall surely die.'9
"Well, that little lady got into a brief debate with the father of lies—and you know who won!10 Once they used free will to break God's law, sin let me go to work. I, Death, killed them that day, but they didn't know it. Their undefiled fellowship with God was no more. They knew they were naked and hid from Him.11 But soon enough, they learned how terrible and powerful I am. If you could have only seen those first parents when they learned their son had been murdered—by his own brother!12 You see, they had never known of anything 'dead.' They called his name in anguish and wept bitterly—but Abel had already turned cold and stiff.
"Yes, Adam and Eve chose me—Death. That's how it works. The God of Truth gives free will to you humans. The father of lies tempts you to choose and caress sin. Sin turns me, Death, loose to kill you spiritually and, finally, physically.13 We three, Satan, Sin, and Death, have a terrible day of judgment coming. God hates us. The devil has a short time, and knows it. 14 Sin has a sting—that's me, Death—that is coming to an end. 15 But right now, we're still free to work—on you humans. Most of you are scared to death of me.16 Imagine! Scared to death of Death!
"But I'll leave that weapon, 'the fear of death,' for our next visit. I'll just leave you now with the word 'choose.' We three, Satan, Sin, and Death, hope you will choose us because we have come to steal, kill, and destroy.17 Besides, we know that if you choose God and his Holy Son, Jesus, you will forever be separated from us and the lake of fire.18 And since misery loves company, well, you know..."
1 2 Thes. 2:7
2 Rev. 20:14
3 James 1:12-15
4 Isaiah 14:13-14
5 Isaiah 14:15
6 2 Cor. 11:14
7 Rev. 12:13
8 Gen. 3:8
9 Gen. 2:17
10 Gen. 3:1-6
11 Gen. 3:7-8
12 Gen. 4:8-10
13 Romans 7:11
14 Rev. 12:12
15 1 Cor. 15:55; Rev. 20:14
16 Hebrews 2:15
17 John 10:10
18 Rev. 20:14-15
"Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ" (I Corinthians 11:1)
The ST. PAUL SCHOOL, with Frank Eiklor, Eileen Young and Cecilia Contreras