THE DAMAGE OF THE SECOND DEATH -
Reflections on the millennium
Chapter 5
THE GEHENNA OF FIRE IN THE KINGDOM
WEEK 4 - MONDAY
Bible Reading: Lk 12:1-9
Read and pray: "I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God" (Lk 12:8,9)
FEAR HIM WHO HAS
AUTHORITY TO CAST INTO GEHENNA
Now let us see what other passages of the Bible say about this matter. Luke 12:1 says: "In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, He began to say to His disciples first". He did not speak to all, but first to His disciples. "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy".
The Lord’s word here proves that the disciples are not the hypocrites; they are the people of God. Then, in verses 4 and 5, the Lord said: "I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: Fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into Gehenna".
The word of God is sufficiently clear. It tells us, not once but many times, that it is possible for a Christian to be "cast into Gehenna". This is stated clearly here. The Lord told the disciples not to fear those who kill the body, but after that can do nothing more.
They should not fear what some may do to their body, since that is all they could do. However, they should fear Him who can cast them into Gehenna. The following verses also prove that here the Lord is referring to the disciples, that is, to the Christians.
Verses 6 and 7 say: "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows". Only Christians are sparrows.
The unsaved are not sparrows; they are ravens. In Matthew, the lilies of the field and also the sparrows refer to the Christians. The sparrows do not sow, reap, or gather into barns (Mt 6:26). This refers to the Christians and not to the unbelievers.
Here it is stated clearly that it is possible for God’s "sparrows" to be "cast into Gehenna". Note also that it is said that the hairs of these persons have all been numbered. God would not have such care for unbelievers.
Therefore, what is being shown here is that those who belong to the Lord need not fear what may be done to their bodies. The only one they should fear is God, for He has authority to cast them "into Gehenna". We must fear God who has the authority to deal with our soul, and not those who can only kill our body.
The next two verses, 8 and 9, are very precious. "And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God".
Christians may be divided into two classes: those who confess and those who do not confess His name. Some confess His name, while others do not. Some are prepared to be persecuted, while others are not.
Some will only be Christians secretly; these are the ones who desire the glory of men. Others confess the Lord openly and are ready to be martyrs. Therefore, you can see to whom the Lord is referring in these verses of Luke 12. We must not fear any suffering that comes from confessing His name. If we do not confess His name, our sin is more serious than all other sins.
Consequently, He will not confess our names before the angels of God. When you consider verses 1 to 9 as a whole, you will see that the "casting into Gehenna" in verse 5 is equivalent to the Lord not confessing their name before the angels in verse 9. The confession before the angels may be illustrated with an example.
Suppose that a young man has done something wrong and ends up in jail. His parents or other family members may pay the bail and free him from trouble. But suppose that the young man is truly bad, and his parents feel that he needs some suffering. As a result, his parents do not pay the bail.
The same happens with Christians. Unless the Lord confesses our names, we will be punished. There is a wonderful word in Revelation 3:5: "The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels".
At the beginning of the kingdom, before the judgment throne, the angels of God will bring the Christians before God. The book of life will be there. In the book of life are recorded all the names of the Christians. There will be many angels and many Christians. The Lord Jesus will also be there.
One or more angels will then read aloud the names from the book of life, and the Lord Jesus will confess some of the names. Those whose names He confesses will therefore enter into the kingdom. When other names are read, the Lord will say nothing. In other words, He will not confess their names. The angels will then put a negative mark on those names.
Thus, the names of the overcomers will remain unmarked in the book of life, while the names of the defeated will be marked. As for the unsaved, their names do not even appear in the book of life. One group of people will not have their names in the book; another group will have their names there, but the names will be marked; and a third group, at the time of the kingdom, will have their names preserved just as they were originally written in the book.
If your name is marked at the judgment throne, that does not mean that you are finished and will no longer be saved. Revelation 20:15 says: "And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire". This shows us that those whose names are not recorded in the book of life will be eternally in the lake of fire.
Those whose names do not appear in the book of life will be cast into the lake of fire. This will occur at the beginning of the new heaven and the new earth. We cannot say that those mentioned in Revelation 3 do not have their names written in the book of life. We can only say that their names were marked. Consequently, they will not be cast into the lake of fire, for their names are already in the book of life.
Eternal salvation is very secure; it can never be shaken. On the other hand, however, there is a danger. If we are tolerant of sin, if we do not forgive others, if we commit adultery, if we insult the brothers, if we fear to suffer, to be ashamed, persecuted, and if we fear to confess the Lord, we must be careful, for God will cast us "into Gehenna" to be punished temporarily.
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