Why many no longer fear God.

Written by Lee Stevenson, sorry I am not the best editor.

I am going to discuss how a person can lose their fear of God and how it is easier then we realize. It can occur subtly over time. Not only have many lost their fear of God they have started fearing man and things of the world more then God. These things will be gone soon. No one , no weapon not even nuclear is more powerful then God. No one is wiser then God. God lives forever meaning his promises endure forever. Why fear things that will be gone soon?

Transgression is an infringement or violation of the law. We have been warned in the last days there would be many false teachings and there would even be teachings of demons. This is why we have to make certain of the things we have heard. Many churches do not take all God’s laws to heart and view some such as bad associations as minor infractions. But if we transgress any of God’s laws we start losing our fear of God and become like the world and lose our ability to identify when we have fallen short. In doing so we we lose our fear of God and become convinced we will not be punished. This results in us losing his protection and he will not hear our prayers.

(Psalm 36:1) 36 Transgression speaks to the wicked one deep within his heart; There is no fear of God before his eyes.

(Romans 3:11-18) . . .. ¹² All men have turned aside, all of them have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, not so much as one.” ¹³ “Their throat is an open grave; they have deceived with their tongues.” “Venom of asps is behind their lips.” ¹⁴ “And their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.” ¹⁵ “Their feet are swift to shed blood.” ¹⁶ “Ruin and misery are in their ways, ¹⁷ and they have not known the way of peace.” ¹⁸ “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

(James 3:17, 18) ¹⁷ But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, reasonable, ready to obey, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, not hypocritical. ¹⁸ Moreover, the fruit of righteousness is sown in peaceful conditions for those who are making peace.

(1 Peter 3:10-15) . . .. ¹¹ Let him turn away from what is bad and do what is good; let him seek peace and pursue it. ¹² For the eyes of Jehovah are on the righteous, and his ears listen to their supplication, but the face of Jehovah is against those doing bad things.” ¹³ Indeed, who will harm you if you become zealous for what is good? ¹⁴ But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are happy. However, do not fear what they fear, nor be disturbed. ¹⁵ But sanctify the Christ as Lord in your hearts, always ready to make a defense before everyone who demands of you a reason for the hope you have, but doing so with a mild temper and deep respect.

If we do not make certain of the things we are taught and apply all God’s word in our lives. We will become spiritually blind. We can have a form of Godly devotion but will prove false to it’s powers. Meaning we would not fully submit to God’s laws but would pick and choose what we want to believe. We demonstrate our faith in God by showing our obedience. The bible tells us those faithful in the least are faithful in much, those unrighteous in what is least is unrighteous in much. If we brush off the commands and warnings of things such as being no part of the world or having bad associations we are ignoring God’s laws and being disobedient. This can start to make us lose our fear of God and lead us away from God.

(2 Timothy 3:1-7) 3 But know this, that in the last days critical times hard to deal with will be here. ² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, disloyal, ³ having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, ⁴ betrayers, headstrong, puffed up with pride, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, ⁵ having an appearance of godliness but proving false to its power; and from these turn away. ⁶ From among these arise men who slyly work their way into households and captivate weak women loaded down with sins, led by various desires, ⁷ always learning and yet never able to come to an accurate knowledge of truth.

(1 Timothy 4:1-5) 4 However, the inspired word clearly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to misleading inspired statements and teachings of demons, ² by means of the hypocrisy of men who speak lies, whose conscience is seared as with a branding iron. ³ They forbid marriage and command people to abstain from foods that God created to be partaken of with thanksgiving by those who have faith and accurately know the truth. ⁴ For every creation of God is fine, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, ⁵ for it is sanctified through God’s word and prayer over it.

(Luke 16:10) ¹⁰ The person faithful in what is least is faithful also in much, and the person unrighteous in what is least is unrighteous also in much.

(Matthew 15:14) ¹⁴ Let them be. Blind guides is what they are. If, then, a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

The bible warns a little leaven spoils the whole loaf of bread. So if we are not applying all God’s laws and obeying them we are spoiling the figurative loaf. When we have bad associations we are adding leaven, which can effect us and draw us away from God. If we pursue things of the world we are not obeying God and not putting him first. It is not wrong to have wealth or material possession but when pursing those becomes more important then our worship of God it becomes a sin. The bible refers to greed as idolatry. Obedience to God will cause others to speak of you abusively. It is best to be spoken of abusively for righteous reasons rather then unrighteous. If we are spoken of abusively for unrighteous reason then we will be judged by God and held accountable. If we are spoken of abusively for righteous reasons then those speaking abusively will be judged and punished by God. We must make sure of the things we are to be able to identify when we are being taught by a blind guide. For sin to become master over us all we need to do is cross the line no matter how small it may seem. . Once we do we become less and less aware of our own short comings and risk losing our fear of God.

We cannot completely remove ourselves from the world, especially when it comes to family and neighbors but we can be cautious when we interact with them. We cannot completely remove ourselves from the world because we have to depend on the world for certain things but how we interact with the world should be guided by God’s word. By being not part of the world we refuse to partake in their conduct and do our best to be no part of the world as much as possible. In doing so we show God that we do not approve of their behavior and we show God we desire to obey him and we prevent ourselves from losing our fear of God.

(1 Corinthians 5:6-8) ⁶ Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven ferments the whole batch of dough? ⁷ Clear away the old leaven so that you may be a new batch, inasmuch as you are free from ferment. For, indeed, Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed. ⁸ So, then, let us keep the festival, not with old leaven, nor with leaven of badness and wickedness, but with unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

(1 Corinthians 15:33, 34) ³³ Do not be misled. Bad associations spoil useful habits. ³⁴ Come to your senses in a righteous way and do not practice sin, for some have no knowledge of God. I am speaking to move you to shame.

(Colossians 3:5) ⁵ Deaden, therefore, your body members that are on the earth as respects sexual immorality, uncleanness, uncontrolled sexual passion, hurtful desire, and greediness, which is idolatry.

(1 Peter 4:3, 4) ³ For the time that has passed by is sufficient for you to have done the will of the nations when you carried on in acts of brazen conduct, unbridled passions, overdrinking, wild parties, drinking bouts, and lawless idolatries. ⁴ They are puzzled that you do not continue running with them in the same decadent course of debauchery, so they speak abusively of you.

(Romans 6:12-14) ¹² Therefore, do not let sin continue to rule as king in your mortal bodies so that you should obey their desires. ¹³ Neither go on presenting your bodies to sin as weapons of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, also your bodies to God as weapons of righteousness. ¹⁴ For sin must not be master over you, seeing that you are not under law but under undeserved kindness.

We are told whatever we are doing , work at it whole-souled as for Jehovah and not for men. If we become a people please it can draw us away from God. We are told we must love God with our whole heart , our whole soul and our whole mind. If we ignore the little things we are not worshiping God with a complete heart, soul or mind. Love should guide all we do. We need to keep strict watch on how we walk and not walk as unwise people being aware we are in the last days and there is a lot of wickedness in the world. We need to keep in mind we could be a stumbling block for others if we disobey the little things in the bible and also lead others away from God and cause them to lose their fear of God.

(Colossians 3:22-25) . . .. ²³ Whatever you are doing, work at it whole-souled as for Jehovah, and not for men, ²⁴ for you know that it is from Jehovah you will receive the inheritance as a reward. Slave for the Master, Christ. ²⁵ Certainly the one who does wrong will be repaid for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality.

(Matthew 22:36, 37) . . .” ³⁷ He said to him: “‘You must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind.’

As we live as temporary residence waiting for our homes in the new system we need to imitate Jesus and not do things out of selfishness or view ourselves as being superior to others. We need to imitate the humility of Jesus.

(Philippians 2:3, 4) ³ Do nothing out of contentiousness or out of egotism, but with humility consider others superior to you, ⁴ as you look out not only for your own interests, but also for the interests of others.

(1 Corinthians 13:4-7) ⁴ Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous. It does not brag, does not get puffed up, ⁵ does not behave indecently, does not look for its own interests, does not become provoked. It does not keep account of the injury. ⁶ It does not rejoice over unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

(Ephesians 5:15-17) ¹⁵ So keep strict watch that how you walk is not as unwise but as wise persons, ¹⁶ making the best use of your time, because the days are wicked. ¹⁷ On this account stop being unreasonable, but keep perceiving what the will of Jehovah is.

(Philippians 1:9-11) . . .; ¹⁰ that you may make sure of the more important things, so that you may be flawless and not stumbling others up to the day of Christ; ¹¹ and that you may be filled with righteous fruit, which is through Jesus Christ, to God’s glory and praise.

The world is passing away and so is it’s desire. God and the heavenly kingdom will remain forever. So would should do our best to store up treasures in heaven and keep our eyes on the things unseen. The things seen will be gone soon. We need to slave for God and not for the world so that we can be concealed and protected when his great day of judgment occurs. By seeking Jehovah daily we will maintain our reverential fear of him which will work as a protection for our hearts and mind. The bible tells us we are to abhor what is bad and cling what is good so if we see someone producing the works of the flesh we should not associate with them because we would be showing God we approve of their behavior and we do not abhor what is bad. This will prevent us from becoming spiritually blind and losing our fear of God.

(1 John 2:17) ¹⁷ Furthermore, the world is passing away and so is its desire, but the one who does the will of God remains forever.

(Zephaniah 2:3)  ³ Seek Jehovah, all you meek ones of the earth, Who observe his righteous decrees. Seek righteousness, seek meekness. Probably you will be concealed on the day of Jehovah’s anger.

(Romans 12:9-11) ⁹ Let your love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is wicked; cling to what is good. ¹⁰ In brotherly love have tender affection for one another. In showing honor to one another, take the lead. ¹¹ Be industrious, not lazy. Be aglow with the spirit. Slave for Jehovah.

(Galatians 5:19-21) ¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are plainly seen, and they are sexual immorality, uncleanness, brazen conduct, ²⁰ idolatry, spiritism, hostility, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, dissensions, divisions, sects, ²¹ envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and things like these. I am forewarning you about these things, the same way I already warned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit God’s Kingdom.

The danger of being spiritually overconfident.

First number is the chapter. The second number is the verse.

Written by Lee Stevenson, sorry I am a lousy editor.

I broke this up in sections to make it easier to read.

Confidence is a good thing. We need confidence in order to do God’s will, to share his word with others and to do our best to do his will. It is when we get overconfident is when we could error. This has caused many to fall short in the past and not only resulted in one harming themselves but it brought harm on others and in some instances caused some to lose favor with God. If we become over confident we stop listening to the little things and may view them as something minor providing an opportunity for sin. We are very near the conclusion of this system of things so now more then ever we need to pay attention and stay alert. Our staying alert and not becoming over confidence is very important in order for us to receive the future promises that give us hope.

We have to be careful about our confidence and in our abilities to handle our sinful nature we inherited from Adam and Eve. We should always be on the guard. We have many examples like king David, Korah, and many others who got over confident about their standing with God , and their handle on their sinful nature which caused them to miss the mark. It is usually when we are most confident that we are the most vulnerable to falling short. Pride can contribute to overconfidence and it resulted in Korah rebelling against the arrangements God had made. This resulted in Korah and others losing their lives. King Solomon had many wives and concubines. Israel was not to marry women of the nations because they worshiped foreign gods. Solomon put trust in his wisdom and standing with God and his overconfidence caused him to disobey God and take in wives and concubines from the nations. This eventually led to him worshiping foreign God’s in opposition to Jehovah.

(1 Corinthians 10:12) 12 So let the one who thinks he is standing beware that he does not fall.

(Proverbs 28:14) 14 Happy is the man who is always on guard, But whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

(Proverbs 16:18-20) 18 Pride is before a crash, And a haughty spirit before stumbling. 19 Better to be humble among the meek Than to share the spoil of the haughty. 20 The one who shows insight in a matter will find success, And happy is the one trusting in Jehovah.

(Numbers 16:1-3) 16 Then Korʹah the son of Izʹhar, the son of Koʹhath, the son of Leʹvi, got up together with Daʹthan and A·biʹram the sons of E·liʹab, and On the son of Peʹleth, of the sons of Reuʹben. 2 They rose up against Moses along with 250 Israelite men, chieftains of the assembly, chosen ones of the congregation, prominent men. 3 So they gathered together against Moses and Aaron and said to them: “We have had enough of you! The whole assembly is holy, all of them, and Jehovah is in their midst. Why, then, should you exalt yourselves above the congregation of Jehovah?” . King Davids overconfidence resulted in him sinning against God and another man, this eventually led to king David being responsible for the mans death.

(Numbers 16:31-35) 31 As soon as he finished speaking all these words, the ground beneath them split apart. 32 And the earth opened and swallowed them up, along with their households and everyone who belonged to Korʹah and all their goods. 33 So they and all who belonged to them went down alive into the Grave, and the earth covered them over, so that they perished from the midst of the congregation. 34 All the Israelites who were around them fled at their screaming, for they said: “We are afraid that the earth may swallow us up!” 35 Then a fire came out from Jehovah and consumed the 250 men offering the incense. . .

(2 Samuel 11:2-4) 2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the rooftop of the king’s house. From the rooftop he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful. 3 David sent someone to inquire about the woman, and he reported: “Is this not Bath-sheʹba the daughter of E·liʹam and the wife of U·riʹah the Hitʹtite?” 4 Then David sent messengers to bring her. So she came in to him, and he lay down with her. (This happened while she was purifying herself from her uncleanness.) Afterward, she returned to her house.

(1 Kings 11:1-6) 11 But King Solʹo·mon loved many foreign women besides the daughter of Pharʹaoh: Moʹab·ite, Amʹmon·ite, Eʹdom·ite, Si·doʹni·an, and Hitʹtite women. 2 They were from the nations about whom Jehovah had said to the Israelites: “You must not go in among them, and they should not come in among you, for they will surely incline your heart to follow their gods.” But Solʹo·mon clung to them and loved them. 3 And he had 700 wives who were princesses and 300 concubines, and his wives gradually inclined his heart. 4 In Solʹo·mon’s old age, his wives inclined his heart to follow other gods, and his heart was not complete with Jehovah his God like the heart of David his father. 5 And Solʹo·mon followed after Ashʹto·reth, the goddess of the Si·doʹni·ans, and Milʹcom, the disgusting god of the Amʹmon·ites. 6 And Solʹo·mon did what was bad in the eyes of Jehovah, and he did not follow Jehovah completely as David his father had done.

Peter became overconfident, in doing so Peter became blind to his short comings. It resulted in him denying he knew Jesus three times. This is why the bible warned us we must always keep on the watch and pray continually. This also requires us to stay aware we are an imperfect human.

Be vigilant in prayers and do all things as if we were doing them for God. Jesus was very persistent in praying. Jesus persisted in prayer even when he was dying. Jesus did not only pray for himself he prayed for others. The apostles followed Jesus example.

Matt. 26:31-35, 69-75

(John 13:36-38) 36 Simon Peter said to him: “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered: “Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, but you will follow later.” 37 Peter said to him: “Lord, why is it I cannot follow you now? I will surrender my life in your behalf.” 38 Jesus answered: “Will you surrender your life in my behalf? Most truly I say to you, a rooster will by no means crow until you have disowned me three times.”

(Mark 14:38) 38 Keep on the watch and pray continually, so that you do not come into temptation. The spirit, of course, is eager, but the flesh is weak.

(Romans 7:21-25) 21 I find, then, this law in my case: When I wish to do what is right, what is bad is present with me. 22 I really delight in the law of God according to the man I am within, 23 but I see in my body another law warring against the law of my mind and leading me captive to sin’s law that is in my body. 24 Miserable man that I am! Who will rescue me from the body undergoing this death? 25 Thanks to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So, then, with my mind I myself am a slave to God’s law, but with my flesh to sin’s law.

(1 Peter 4:7-11) 7 But the end of all things has drawn close. Therefore, be sound in mind, and be vigilant with a view to prayers. 8 Above all things, have intense love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. 10 To the extent that each one has received a gift, use it in ministering to one another as fine stewards of God’s undeserved kindness that is expressed in various ways. 11 If anyone speaks, let him do so as speaking pronouncements from God; if anyone ministers, let him do so as depending on the strength that God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. The glory and the might are his forever and ever. Amen.

Luke 9:18; Matt. 14:23; Mark 1:35, Matt. 27:46; Luke 23:46; John 19:30; Ps. 22:1; 31:5, Rom. 15:30; 1 Thess. 1:2; 1 Pet. 4:7

Satan is always looking to take us down. We live in the last days the lines between right and wrong have be skewed. We need to turn to God and let him guide us and help us determine what is Right and what is wrong. All the worldly things will be gone soon. No wealth or material things will save anyone but it is their faith and trust in God that will save them. Satan even tries to use our good qualities to tempt us. He tried to use Jesus compassion and desire to help others to get Jesus to do an act of worship to him but Jesus refused he put his faith in his heavenly father and the world he had given us. Jesus valued doing God’s will so much that he even put it over food in order of importance.

(1 Peter 5:7, 8) . . .. 8 Keep your senses, be watchful! Your adversary, the Devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking to devour someone. . .

(2 Timothy 3:1-5) 3 But know this, that in the last days critical times hard to deal with will be here. 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, disloyal, 3 having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, 4 betrayers, headstrong, puffed up with pride, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, 5 having an appearance of godliness but proving false to its power; and from these turn away.

(1 John 2:15-17) 15 Do not love either the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him; 16 because everything in the world—the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the showy display of one’s means of life—does not originate with the Father, but originates with the world. 17 Furthermore, the world is passing away and so is its desire, but the one who does the will of God remains forever.

(Matthew 4:3, 4) . . .” 4 But he answered: “It is written: ‘Man must live, not on bread alone, but on every word that comes from Jehovah’s mouth.. . .

(Matthew 5:3) 3 “Happy are those conscious of their spiritual need, since the Kingdom of the heavens belongs to them.

(Isaiah 55:3)  3 Incline your ear and come to me. Listen, and you will keep alive, And I will readily make with you an everlasting covenant In harmony with the expressions of loyal love to David, which are faithful. . .

(Matthew 4:1-4) 4 Then Jesus was led by the spirit up into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. 2 After he had fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, he felt hungry. 3 And the Tempter approached and said to him: “If you are a son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered: “It is written: ‘Man must live, not on bread alone, but on every word that comes from Jehovah’s mouth.’”

(John 4:31-34) 31 Meanwhile, the disciples were urging him: “Rabbi, eat.” 32 But he said to them: “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” 33 So the disciples said to one another: “No one brought him anything to eat, did he?” 34 Jesus said to them: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.

We need to be shrewd and cautious with every step we take. Especially now days with the lines between right and wrong being so skewed. The bible warns us not to trust our hearts because the heart can deceive us. We should fear Jehovah God and let his wisdom found in the world he has given us to guide us. Becoming overconfident in our spiritual maturity or our own abilities or even man can not only bring harm to ourselves and cause us to sin it can also negative effect others around us.

(Proverbs 14:15, 16) 15 The naive person believes every word, But the shrewd one ponders each step. 16 The wise one is cautious and turns away from evil, But the stupid one is reckless and overconfident.

(Jeremiah 17:9)  9 The heart is more treacherous than anything else and is desperate. Who can know it?

(Proverbs 28:26) 26 Whoever trusts in his own heart is stupid, But the one who walks in wisdom will escape. . .

(Job 28:28) 28 And he said to man: ‘Look! The fear of Jehovah—that is wisdom, And to turn away from bad is understanding.. . .

(Proverbs 3:7)  7 Do not become wise in your own eyes. Fear Jehovah and turn away from bad.

King Asa did not become over confident in the peace that Israel was experiencing after they removed the foreign gods. He used the time of peace to fortify Israel’s cities and to fortify Israel spiritually. Even when we are hungry there are foods we still are not permitted to eat and these are foods that still contain blood in them. In some culture they eat the blood or use it to prepare meals. Daniel and his friends refused to eat the food the king provided because it was declared unclean by God and they chose to obey God. This resulted in them being healthier then those who chose to eat the kings food showing even in what we eat we cannot put our confidence in the food but in God who will sustain us.

The lines between right and wrong are very skewed now days. They have many celebrations that are heavily laden with idolatry. The media and others glorify those who pursue power and wealth and some churches even promote those in their congregations who pursue such things. It is not a sin to acquire wealth or if we are put in a position of power but this should not be our goal gaining spiritual wealth should be our goal because all things in this present system will be gone soon but the spiritual treasure stored up in heaven will remain forever.

We are told in the last days the reason these things would occur. People would no longer listen to sound doctrine but would surround them with teachers who would scratch their itchy ears. In other words they would surround themselves with teachers who would tell them what they want to here not what they need to here. We have to remember in times past when a prophet was sent to correct Israel because they were no longer worshiping God in truth they would persecute and sometimes kill them. We are in the last days these things are occurring on a world wide scale. Soon the whole world will turn on true worship. So now more then ever we need to be aware that we are imperfect humans and not trust in things of the world or in ourselves but let God’s world and love guide all we do. This will protect us and God will reward those who trust in him and have faith in him and his son our king Jesus Christ who set the example of obedience even when facing persecution and death. God will reward those who know this is all temporary and their main focus is storing up treasures in heaven.

We must hate what is bad in God’s eyes and love what is good in God’s eyes and in order to know what is good in his eyes we need to deeply study his word so we can get to know him thoroughly. We may become too confident and associate with those who do not believe, or we may associate with those who seem to not be so sinful. These ones have drawn people away from Jehovah in the past and caused them to fall short. So we must be cautious because you can be certain Solomon may have seen many good qualities in the wives and concubines from the nations but his overconfidence in them drew him away from true worship. We should be very careful not to become overconfident in our knowledge or our spirituality to the point we drop our guard keeping in mind that God will reward those who endure to the end.

(2 Chronicles 14:2-7) 2 Aʹsa did what was good and right in the eyes of Jehovah his God. 3 He removed the foreign altars and the high places, smashed the sacred pillars, and cut down the sacred poles. 4 Further, he told Judah to search for Jehovah the God of their forefathers and to observe the Law and the commandment. 5 So he removed from all the cities of Judah the high places and the incense stands, and under him, the kingdom continued without disturbance. 6 He built fortified cities in Judah, since the land had no disturbance and there was no war against him during these years, for Jehovah gave him rest. 7 He said to Judah: “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. For the land is still at our disposal, because we have searched for Jehovah our God. We have searched, and he has given us rest all around.” So their building was successful.

(Daniel 1:8-15) 8 But Daniel resolved in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s delicacies or with the wine he drank. So he asked the principal court official for permission not to defile himself in this way. 9 And the true God caused the principal court official to show Daniel favor and mercy. 10 But the principal court official said to Daniel: “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. What if he should see you looking worse in appearance than the other youths of your age? You would make me guilty before the king.” 11 But Daniel said to the guardian whom the principal court official had appointed over Daniel, Han·a·niʹah, Mishʹa·el, and Az·a·riʹah: 12 “Please, test your servants for ten days, and let us be given some vegetables to eat and water to drink; 13 then compare our appearance with the appearance of the youths who are eating the king’s delicacies, and deal with your servants according to what you see.” 14 So he agreed to their proposal and tested them for ten days. 15 At the end of ten days their appearance was better and healthier than all the youths who were eating the king’s delicacies.

(Acts 15:19, 20) 19 Therefore, my decision is not to trouble those from the nations who are turning to God, 20 but to write them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from what is strangled, and from blood.

(Isaiah 5:20, 21) 20 Woe to those who say that good is bad and bad is good, Those who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness, Those who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! 21 Woe to those wise in their own eyes And discreet in their own sight!

(Amos 6:12) 12 Do horses run on a crag, Or will one plow there with cattle? For you have turned justice into a poisonous plant, And the fruit of righteousness into wormwood.

(1 Timothy 4:1-5) 4 However, the inspired word clearly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to misleading inspired statements and teachings of demons, 2 by means of the hypocrisy of men who speak lies, whose conscience is seared as with a branding iron. 3 They forbid marriage and command people to abstain from foods that God created to be partaken of with thanksgiving by those who have faith and accurately know the truth. 4 For every creation of God is fine, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5 for it is sanctified through God’s word and prayer over it.

(Ephesians 6:10-13) 10 Finally, go on acquiring power in the Lord and in the mightiness of his strength. 11 Put on the complete suit of armor from God so that you may be able to stand firm against the crafty acts of the Devil; 12 because we have a struggle, not against blood and flesh, but against the governments, against the authorities, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the wicked spirit forces in the heavenly places. 13 For this reason take up the complete suit of armor from God, so that you may be able to resist in the wicked day and, after you have accomplished everything, to stand firm.

(Amos 5:15) 15 Hate what is bad, and love what is good, Let justice prevail in the city gate. It may be that Jehovah the God of armies Will show favor to the remaining ones of Joseph.’

(Psalm 97:10) O you who love Jehovah, hate what is bad. He is guarding the lives of his loyal ones; He rescues them from the hand of the wicked.

(Romans 12:9) Let your love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is wicked; cling to what is good.

The bible tells us those who worship in truth will suffer tribulation and will be hated. We have to keep in mind Jesus own people tortured and killed him. Jesus knew this would occur but did not leave that deter him from warning others of the things to come, teaching them about his father, giving them hope in the future promises and teaching them how to obey and have faith in his heavenly father. He was rewarded for his faith and loyalty to God and was promoted to a position in the heavenly kingdom of great authority. If we do our best to imitate Jesus and store up treasures in heaven and do our best to not tire out keeping in mind we will be persecuted in many ways and the persecution is not always obvious. If it was then we could easily prepare but often times in the bible the very people who were pretending to be someones friend would be the one sabotaging the one who was worshiping God in truth. This is why we should let God’s word guide who we call friends it will work to protect us. Having friends who do not share our faith or loyalty to God can put a heavier burden on us. A yoke is what is used to tie beast of burden together so they could share a load. If you put two types of beast of burden to one yoke it would cause them to work against each other. This is why we are warned not to become unevenly yoked with those who do not believe in true worship because we will have burden enough from those who oppose true worship why add farther to that burden?

Now days things have reach a point where many have no idea what is right or wrong and their minds are heavily burdened by not knowing what they should do or what they should think. This is why now more then ever we should listen to Jesus and follow his example. Jesus and our heavenly father Jehovah made it very clear what is right and what is wrong in their eyes. By taking in knowledge of them and putting on Jesus yoke it relieves the burdens many others have and the constant states of confusion and indecision they seem plagued with. Who better to be yoked to then Jesus?

(Matthew 10:22) And you will be hated by all people on account of my name, but the one who has endured to the end will be saved.

(Mark 13:13) And you will be hated by all people on account of my name. But the one who has endured to the end will be saved.

(Luke 21:19) By your endurance you will preserve your lives.

(Hebrews 10:36) For you need endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive

the fulfillment of the promise.

(Revelation 2:10) Do not be afraid of the things you are about to suffer. Look! The Devil will keep on throwing some of you into prison so that you may be fully put to the test, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Prove yourself faithful even to death, and I will give you the crown of life

(2 Corinthians 6:14-18) 14 Do not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers. For what fellowship do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what sharing does light have with darkness? 15 Further, what harmony is there between Christ and Beʹli·al? Or what does a believer share in common with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement does God’s temple have with idols? For we are a temple of a living God; just as God said: “I will reside among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” 17 “‘Therefore, get out from among them, and separate yourselves,’ says Jehovah, ‘and quit touching the unclean thing’”; “‘and I will take you in.’” 18 “‘And I will become a father to you, and you will become sons and daughters to me,’ says Jehovah, the Almighty.”

(Matthew 11:25-30) 25 At that time Jesus said in response: “I publicly praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and intellectual ones and have revealed them to young children. 26 Yes, O Father, because this is the way you approved. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one fully knows the Son except the Father; neither does anyone fully know the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son is willing to reveal him. 28 Come to me, all you who are toiling and loaded down, and I will refresh you. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am mild-tempered and lowly in heart, and you will find refreshment for yourselves. 30 For my yoke is kindly, and my load is light.”

Now more then ever you can see how unreasonable man is and how they are like a wave on the sea which blows whichever way the wind blows. God does not change and what he requires does not change. In knowing God and his son Jesus we are not burdened like others when it comes to knowing when to make our yes mean yes and our no mean no. If we are torn between loyalty to the world and loyalty to God then we are trying to slave two masters adding even more burden to us. The bible warns us we cannot slave for two masters. We will suffer no matter what because this system is coming to it’s conclusion. It is better to suffer as a slave to God then to suffer as a slave to the world.

The bible warned we would have to endure many things but we can be certain neither that our appointed king Jesus Christ understands our suffering because he endured the same sufferings. Nothing can separate us from the love he has for us. He gave his own life so many could be saved. So we have a king who understands our suffering and loves us deeply. Nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus not even death. Jesus came to earth and put God’s will first. He knew what God’s will was because when he was in heaven with God before he had came to earth he learned from God so could perfectly imitate him. Jesus clearly demonstrated his love for man. This shows that God also loves man deeply and desires all to repent and draw close to him and his son Jesus. Those who do so will be rewarded. Since Jesus was the very first creation of God we can be sure he knew God very well and could perfectly imitate what he had seen his father do.

(James 5:12) 12 Above all, my brothers, stop swearing, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath. But let your “Yes” mean yes and your “No,” no, so that you do not become liable to judgment.

(Matthew 5:36, 37) . . .. 37 Just let your word ‘Yes’ mean yes, your ‘No,’ no, for what goes beyond these is from the wicked one.

(Matthew 6:19-24) 19 “Stop storing up for yourselves treasures on the earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal. 20 Rather, store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 22 “The lamp of the body is the eye. If, then, your eye is focused, your whole body will be bright. 23 But if your eye is envious, your whole body will be dark. If the light that is in you is really darkness, how great that darkness is! 24 “No one can slave for two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stick to the one and despise the other. You cannot slave for God and for Riches. . .

(Romans 8:35-39) 35 Who will separate us from the love of the Christ? Will tribulation or distress or persecution or hunger or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 Just as it is written: “For your sake we are being put to death all day long; we have been accounted as sheep for slaughtering.” 37 On the contrary, in all these things we are coming off completely victorious through the one who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor governments nor things now here nor things to come nor powers 39 nor height nor depth nor any other creation will be able to separate us from God’s love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(John 6:37-39) 37 All those whom the Father gives me will come to me, and I will never drive away the one who comes to me; 38 for I have come down from heaven to do, not my own will, but the will of him who sent me. 39 This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose none out of all those whom he has given me, but that I should resurrect them on the last day.

(Colossians 1:15) 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;

(Proverbs 8:22) Jehovah produced me as the beginning of his way, The earliest of his achievements of long ago.

(Revelation 3:14) “To the angel of the congregation in La·o·di·ceʹa write: These are the things that the Amen says, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation by God:

The bible warned we would have to endure many things but we can be certain neither that our appointed king Jesus Christ understands our suffering because he endured the same sufferings. Nothing can separate us from the love he has for us. He gave his own life so many could be saved. So we have a king who understands our suffering and loves us deeply. Nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus not even death. Jesus came to earth and put God’s will first. He knew what God’s will was because when he was in heaven with God before he had came to earth he learned from God so could perfectly imitate him. Jesus clearly demonstrated his love for man. This shows that God also loves man deeply and desires all to repent and draw close to him and his son Jesus. Those who do so will be rewarded. Since Jesus was the very first creation of God we can be sure he knew God very well and could perfectly imitate what he had seen his father do. Jesus even stated he does what he seen his father do. So if we endure a little longer we will be rewarded.

The new system will be here very soon. There will be no more hate, no more evil, no more corruption , no more death and tears of sorrow those will all be done away with. If we endure a little longer we may see loved ones we lost in death during the resurrection.

(James 5:12) 12 Above all, my brothers, stop swearing, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath. But let your “Yes” mean yes and your “No,” no, so that you do not become liable to judgment.

(Matthew 5:36, 37) . . .. 37 Just let your word ‘Yes’ mean yes, your ‘No,’ no, for what goes beyond these is from the wicked one.

(Matthew 6:19-24) 19 “Stop storing up for yourselves treasures on the earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal. 20 Rather, store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 22 “The lamp of the body is the eye. If, then, your eye is focused, your whole body will be bright. 23 But if your eye is envious, your whole body will be dark. If the light that is in you is really darkness, how great that darkness is! 24 “No one can slave for two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stick to the one and despise the other. You cannot slave for God and for Riches. . .

(Romans 8:35-39) 35 Who will separate us from the love of the Christ? Will tribulation or distress or persecution or hunger or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 Just as it is written: “For your sake we are being put to death all day long; we have been accounted as sheep for slaughtering.” 37 On the contrary, in all these things we are coming off completely victorious through the one who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor governments nor things now here nor things to come nor powers 39 nor height nor depth nor any other creation will be able to separate us from God’s love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(John 6:37-39) 37 All those whom the Father gives me will come to me, and I will never drive away the one who comes to me; 38 for I have come down from heaven to do, not my own will, but the will of him who sent me. 39 This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose none out of all those whom he has given me, but that I should resurrect them on the last day.

(Colossians 1:15) 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;

(Proverbs 8:22) Jehovah produced me as the beginning of his way, The earliest of his achievements of long ago.

(Revelation 3:14) “To the angel of the congregation in La·o·di·ceʹa write: These are the things that the Amen says, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation by God:

(John 8:57, 58) 57 Then the Jews said to him: “You are not yet 50 years old, and still you have seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them: “Most truly I say to you, before Abraham came into existence, I have been.. . .

(John 5:19-22) 19 Therefore, in response Jesus said to them: “Most truly I say to you, the Son cannot do a single thing of his own initiative, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever things that One does, these things the Son does also in like manner. 20 For the Father has affection for the Son and shows him all the things he himself does, and he will show him works greater than these, so that you may marvel. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead up and makes them alive, so the Son also makes alive whomever he wants to. 22 For the Father judges no one at all, but he has entrusted all the judging to the Son,

(Psalm 37:9-11)  9 For evil men will be done away with, But those hoping in Jehovah will possess the earth. ו [Waw] 10 Just a little while longer, and the wicked will be no more; You will look at where they were, And they will not be there. 11 But the meek will possess the earth, And they will find exquisite delight in the abundance of peace. . .

(Isaiah 35:4-7)  4 Say to those who are anxious at heart: “Be strong. Do not be afraid. Look! Your own God will come with vengeance, God will come with retribution. He will come and save you.”  5 At that time the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.  6 At that time the lame will leap like the deer, And the tongue of the speechless will shout for joy. For waters will burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert plain.  7 The heat-parched ground will become a reedy pool, And the thirsty ground springs of water. In the lairs where jackals rested, There will be green grass and reeds and papyrus.

(Revelation 21:1-4) 21 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea is no more. 2 I also saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”

(John 5:28, 29) Do not be amazed at this, for the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who did good things to a resurrection of life, and those who practiced vile things to a resurrection of judgment.

(Matthew 24:12-14) . . .. 13 But the one who has endured to the end will be saved. 14 And this good news of the Kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

(Hebrews 10:35-39) 35 Therefore, do not throw away your boldness, which will be richly rewarded. 36 For you need endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the fulfillment of the promise. 37 For yet “a very little while,” and “the one who is coming will arrive and will not delay.” 38 “But my righteous one will live by reason of faith,” and “if he shrinks back, I have no pleasure in him.” 39 Now we are not the sort who shrink back to destruction, but the sort who have faith for the preserving of our lives.

The results of putting our faith in man.

Written by Lee Stevenson

All God made was good. Satan led Adam and Eve to believe they did not need God and that they could be just like him. We have had a very long time to prove that lie to be false. We have tried every form of government and man is only making things worse. They had no reason to mistrust God because he put them in the Garden of Eden and told them to make the whole earth like the garden and to fill it with man. The word used for the garden is similar in meaning to the word used for amusement park in our times.

We can see man is still making bad decisions and believe they can do better then God. Man has put their faith in themselves and other humans. Putting our faith in man has proven to be a very bad decision. Adam and Eve started this by putting their faith in themselves and now we are seeing the end results of man putting their faith in man.

We have the example of GMO foods they genetically altered foods and it has been found to have a serious negative impact on the environment those who eat them including the animals. GMOs have cause the increased use of farm chemicals and they have brought many species of pollinators to extinction and many others are near extinction.

Then we have vaccines. Man decides the immune system God created was not good enough so they decided to introduce vaccines. This has caused many diseases to become more virulent and because of the damage they do to the body most are not on medications to reduce the symptoms from the damage vaccines have caused while being lied to told the things they are suffering from are genetic. Chronic illness especially autoimmunity and cancer are rampant now and people seem clueless what is happening to them and their families.

Some are waking up and realizing what is happening but it is too late because most governments are now forcing these things on people. It has gotten so bad that they almost got a bill passed in the U.S. that would have pretty much made organic foods illegal to buy and grow.

The governments are easily corrupted , those who do have good intentions are easily deceived. The corruption is so bad no one human could solve it they are far out numbered. As time goes on man is becoming more and more sinful and corrupted and we are seeing the end results. Even if one human did make a difference they would die and all they did would most likely be undone and forgotten.

God does not die, has unlimited power, there is no one wiser and he is going to fix this mess very soon and do away with those who are ignoring the fact that this system is at it’s end. Those ruining the earth will soon be destroyed.

(Genesis 1:31) ³¹ After that God saw everything he had made, and look! it was very good. . .

(1 Timothy 4:1-5) . . .attention to misleading inspired statements and teachings of demons, ² by means of the hypocrisy of men who speak lies, whose conscience is seared as with a branding iron. ³ They forbid marriage and command people to abstain from foods that God created to be partaken of with thanksgiving by those who have faith and accurately know the truth. ⁴ For every creation of God is fine, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, ⁵ for it is sanctified through God’s word and prayer over it.

(Genesis 3:1-6) 3 Now the serpent was the most cautious of all the wild animals of the field that Jehovah God had made. So it said to the woman: “Did God really say that you must not eat from every tree of the garden?” ² At this the woman said to the serpent: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. ³ But God has said about the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden: ‘You must not eat from it, no, you must not touch it; otherwise you will die.’” ⁴ At this the serpent said to the woman: “You certainly will not die. ⁵ For God knows that in the very day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and bad.” ⁶ Consequently, the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was something desirable to the eyes, yes, the tree was pleasing to look at. So she began taking of its fruit and eating it. Afterward, she also gave some to her husband when he was with her, and he began eating it.

(Genesis 2:15-22) ¹⁵ Jehovah God took the man and settled him in the garden of Eʹden to cultivate it and to take care of it. ¹⁶ Jehovah God also gave this command to the man: “From every tree of the garden you may eat to satisfaction. ¹⁷ But as for the tree of the knowledge of good and bad, you must not eat from it, for in the day you eat from it you will certainly die.” ¹⁸ Then Jehovah God said: “It is not good for the man to continue to be alone. I am going to make a helper for him, as a complement of him.” ¹⁹ Now Jehovah God had been forming from the ground every wild animal of the field and every flying creature of the heavens, and he began bringing them to the man to see what he would call each one; and whatever the man would call each living creature, that became its name. ²⁰ So the man named all the domestic animals and the flying creatures of the heavens and every wild animal of the field, but for man there was no helper as a complement of him. ²¹ So Jehovah God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, and while he was sleeping, he took one of his ribs and then closed up the flesh over its place. ²² And Jehovah God built the rib that he had taken from the man into a woman, and he brought her to the man. . .

(Revelation 11:18) ¹⁸ But the nations became wrathful, and your own wrath came, and the appointed time came for the dead to be judged and to reward your slaves the prophets and the holy ones and those fearing your name, the small and the great, and to bring to ruin those ruining the earth.. . .

Why did God create the earth, and what is his will for the earth?

Written by Lee Stevenson. Sorry I am not much of a writer or an editor. I am trying the best I can.

You may wonder what is the purpose for the earth why did God create the earth. The bible tells us in Genisis 1 verse 28 God created the earth for man to fill the earth. He also put Adam in a paradise like Garden. He then created Eve and they only had to obey one command to prove their loyalty and faith . (Genesis 4:4-25) . The only words that convey a similar meaning to the word Eden in the Garden is luxury or delight. The closest modern day meaning would be similar to a modern day park that contained all a person needed to be happy and healthy. The meaning of the word Eden is not entirely clear but based on it’s usage throughout the bible it becomes clear that it means a land of delight and plenty. Death at the time was not something man would have experienced.The bible says the earth will be here forever. If he has established it to be here forever then it must have a purpose and he must have a will that he desires for it.

If you read the scriptures below the bible clearly shows the earth will be here forever and there are people who will dwell forever upon it. The bible also shows who those people will be.

Psalm 104: 5  He has established the earth on its foundations; It will not be moved from its place forever and ever.

Ecclesiastes 1:4 A generation is going, and a generation is coming,But the earth remains forever.

Isaiah 45:18 “The One who formed the earth, its Maker who firmly established it, . . . did not create it simply for nothing, but formed it to be inhabited.”

The bible gave a very specific number of those who will go to heaven 144,000. It also tells us they will rule as priest with Jesus over the earth. In Revelations it shows a clear distinction between the two flocks. Those of the 144,000 would gather the other sheep Jesus mentions together and would feed them the spiritual food that Jesus mentioned.

Luke 12:32 “Have no fear, little flock, for your Father has approved of giving you the Kingdom.

Revelation 7:2And I saw another angel ascending from the sunrise, having a seal of the living God; and he called with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, 3 saying: “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until after we have sealed the slaves of our God in their foreheads.”

Luke 12:42And the Lord said: “Who really is the faithful steward, the discreet one, whom his master will appoint over his body of attendants to keep giving them their measure of food supplies at the proper time? 43 Happy is that slave if his master on coming finds him doing so! 44 I tell you truthfully, he will appoint him over all his belongings

John 10:16 “And I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; those too I must bring in, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd.

The bible made a clear distinction between the two sheep folds.

Revelation 7:4 And I heard the number of those who were sealed, 144,000, sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel:

5 Out of the tribe of Judah 12,000 sealed;

out of the tribe of Reuʹben 12,000;

out of the tribe of Gad 12,000;

6 out of the tribe of Ashʹer 12,000;

out of the tribe of Naphʹta·li 12,000;

out of the tribe of Ma·nasʹseh+ 12,000;

7 out of the tribe of Simʹe·on 12,000;

out of the tribe of Leʹvi 12,000;

out of the tribe of Isʹsa·char 12,000;

8 out of the tribe of Zebʹu·lun 12,000;

out of the tribe of Joseph 12,000;

out of the tribe of Benjamin 12,000 sealed.

9 After this I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. 10

Daniel 2:44 “In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed. And this kingdom will not be passed on to any other people. It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it alone will stand forever,

The 144,000 will be resurrected first to rule with Jesus.

Revelation 20: 6 Happy and holy is anyone having part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no authority, but they will be priests of God and of the Christ, and they will rule as kings with him for the 1,000 years.

Romans 8:20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not by its own will, but through the one who subjected it, on the basis of hope 21 that the creation itself will also be set free from enslavement to corruption and have the glorious freedom of the children of God. 22 For we know that all creation keeps on groaning together and being in pain together until now
Matthew 5:5 “Happy are the mild-tempered, since they will inherit the earth

The 144,000 have to rule over someone. They will be ruling over the earth to fulfill the original purpose for the earth.

Psalm 37:29 The righteous will possess the earth,
And they will live forever on it.

This does not mean all is lost God’s will for the earth is certain take place. It has only been delayed . The earth will be filled with obedient humans who will work to make the whole earth like the Garden of Eden. God’s will for the earth to be filled with happy and healthy humans will be fulfilled. Jesus ransom sacrifice paved the way for our redemption by making payment for the sin brought on by Adam and Eves rebellion in the Garden of Eden.

Isaiah 55:10 For just as the rain and the snow pour down from heaven And do not return there until they saturate the earth, making it produce and sprout,

Giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11 So my word that goes out of my mouth will be.It will not return to me without results,But it will certainly accomplish whatever is my delight, And it will have sure success in what I send it to do.

What life will be like when God’s original purpose for the earth is fulfilled. Death will be swallowed up so those in the new system will not die anymore. There will be no crime , no sickness or suffering. We will be able to enjoy the work of our hands and never have to worry if we will have a home to live in. The world will be at peace and there will be no violence or hatred. There will only be tears of joy not tears of sorrow.

Isaiah 33:24 And no resident will say: “I am sick.”

The people dwelling in the land will be pardoned for their error.

Isaiah 11: 6 The wolf will reside for a while with the lamb, And with the young goat the leopard will lie down,

And the calf and the lion and the fattened animal will all be together;

And a little boy will lead them.

7 The cow and the bear will feed together,

And their young will lie down together.

The lion will eat straw like the bull.

8 The nursing child will play over the lair of a cobra,

And a weaned child will put his hand over the den of a poisonous snake.

9 They will not cause any harm

Or any ruin in all my holy mountain,

Because the earth will certainly be filled with the knowledge of Jehovah

As the waters cover the sea.

Isaiah 6:21 They will build houses and live in them,

And they will plant vineyards and eat their fruitage.

22 They will not build for someone else to inhabit,

Nor will they plant for others to eat.

For the days of my people will be like the days of a tree,

And the work of their hands my chosen ones will enjoy to the full.

23 They will not toil for nothing,

Nor will they bear children for distress,

Because they are the offspring made up of those blessed by Jehovah,

And their descendants with them.

Nor will they bear children for distress,

Because they are the offspring made up of those blessed by Jehovah,

And their descendants with them.

24 Even before they call out, I will answer;

While they are yet speaking, I will hear.

25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together,

The lion will eat straw just like the bull,

And the serpent’s food will be dust.

While they are yet speaking, I will hear.

They will do no harm nor cause any ruin in all my holy mountain,” says Jehovah.

Isaiah 2: 8 He will swallow up death forever,

And the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will wipe away the tears from all faces.

The reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,

For Jehovah himself has spoken it.

 9 In that day they will say:

“Look! This is our God!

We have hoped in him,

And he will save us.

This is Jehovah!

We have hoped in him.

Let us be joyful and rejoice in the salvation by him.”

Revelation 21:3 With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”

1Corinthians 15:23But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27For he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. 28When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.

As and end note you may wonder why Satan rebelled against God. We get a clue to that when we read the warning given to Tyrus. The warning clearly did not completely describe his so he is talking about the power behind the bad deeds that Tyrus had done.

Ezekial 28:12 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.

13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.

15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.

16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.

Just as man was created perfect and had free will the spirit creatures that God created also had free will to choose. We also get another clue in Isaiah. He desired God’s power and authority so he had actually become jealous of God and the authority God gave him seemed to go to his head and he became arrogant. So just as man needed God’s guidance foresight and wisdom so also did his spirit creature. It takes faith and trust to be obedient. God does not force that on his creation but does require it. He still leaves us choose whether we will have faith or not. God has don nothing but good for his creation and his actions have shown he could be trusted and we have no reason to doubt him. Satan, Adam, and Eve had no excuse because they were created perfect. We fall short of God because of the sin we inherited from their rebellion against God. Because we are now imperfect we have to learn to be faithful and to trust God and we have to learn obedience. This is why God gave us his word to guide us, show us how to overcome this imperfection and also to give us a future hope.

Isaiah 14:12  “How  you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn!

How you are cut down to the ground,

you who laid the nations low!

13  You said in your heart,

‘I will ascend to heaven;

above the stars of God

I will set my throne on high;

I will sit on the mount of assembly

in the far reaches of the north;3

14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High.’

This is also a reason things have gotten so bad on the earth because Satan did not only get man involved in the rebellion but he also got one third of the angels to rebel with him. When Jesus was seated on the throne one of the first things he did was cast those who rebelled in heaven out of the heavenly kingdom and they are now dwelling on earth. They have very little time left so they want to destroy as much of God’s creation as they can before their lives end.

Revelation 12:7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
11 They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.”

Revelation 12:4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it.

You can find more accurate and information that is more clearly explained at this link. They also have a search feature with very good articles that address many questions a person may have.

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2011247

God’s word will be banned. We must write his word on our hearts while we can.

 

Written by Lee Stevenson. Sorry I am not the best at editing.

Deuteronomy 11:18 English Standard Version (ESV)

18 “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.

Hebrews 8:10 English Standard Version (ESV)

10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, declares the Lord:
I will put my laws into their minds,
and write them on their hearts,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
Matthew 22:37 ESV

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

 

Those who love and trust God would not only read God’s word but they would live it. It would guide all they do. So much so that it would become a part of them. We know our hearts are deceptive and if we do not write God’s word on our hearts and live by his word our hearts can mislead us.

 

Jeremiah 17:9 ESV

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Psalm 40:8 ESV

I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.”

Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

 

Christ set the perfect example for us to follow by imitating him and learning from him we will please God. We must keep the commandments Jesus gave us. We must put on the new personality and not look back at the old.

 

1John ESV

2 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

All this will be gone pretty soon. Why store up treasures that will soon be gone. The treasure we store in heaven will remain. The things in this system will be gone very very soon. We are close to the end of this system and near the beginning of the new system. Most of the things in this system will be gone. If we have not stored up treasures in heaven then what hope do we have?

Matthew 6

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Collosians 3

12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

What we talk about and how we speak indicates what is written in our hearts. We must guard our tongues and speak of good things as much as possible and not get caught up in the habit many have of spreading gossip , rumors and using vulgar language. What comes out of our mouth shows what is in our hearts.

James 1 ESV

19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.

 

Matthew 12

33“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.35 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. 36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

 

Very soon the truths of the bible will not be tolerated. We can see it happening now. Many have become slaves of corruption while falsely declaring themselves righteous. If we do not put God’s word into our hearts we could also be misled.

 

2Timothy 4

3For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

2 Peter 2:10-19 NWT

Daring and self-willed, they are not afraid to speak abusively of glorious ones, 11 whereas angels, although they are greater in strength and power, do not bring against them an accusation in abusive terms, out of respect for Jehovah. 12 But these men, like unreasoning animals that act on instinct and are born to be caught and destroyed, speak abusively about things of which they are ignorant. They will suffer destruction brought on by their own destructive course, 13 suffering harm as their reward for their own harmful course. They consider it pleasurable to indulge in luxurious living, even in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes who revel in their deceptive teachings while feasting together with you. 14 Their eyes are full of adultery and are unable to desist from sin, and they entice unstable ones. They have a heart trained in greed. They are accursed children. 15 Abandoning the straight path, they have been led astray. They have followed the path of Baʹlaam the son of Beʹor, who loved the reward of wrongdoing, 16 but was reproved for his own violation of what was right. A voiceless beast of burden speaking with a human voice hindered the prophet’s mad course. 17 These are waterless springs and mists driven by a violent storm, and the blackest darkness has been reserved for them. 18 They make high-sounding statements that are empty. By appealing to the desires of the flesh and with acts of brazen conduct, they entice people who have just escaped from those who live in error. 19 While they are promising them freedom, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for if anyone is overcome by someone, he is his slave.

Very soon the beast will ban true worship and attack God’s people. When this happens all those who oppose the truth will meet their end and be destroyed. They will take our bibles and punish anyone who is caught with one. Many from false religion will side with the beast also in the battle. This will provoke God to give Jesus the command to end all this corruption and sin and to save those who have been seeking Jehovah with an honest heart.

Revelation 16 NWT

13 And I saw three unclean inspired expressions that looked like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the wild beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 They are, in fact, expressions inspired by demons and they perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the entire inhabited earth, to gather them together to the war of the great day of God the Almighty. 15 “Look! I am coming as a thief. Happy is the one who stays awake and keeps his outer garments, so that he may not walk naked and people look upon his shamefulness.”

Revelation 19 NWT

19  And I saw the wild beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the one seated on the horse and against his army. 20 And the wild beast was caught, and along with it the false prophet that performed in front of it the signs with which he misled those who received the mark of the wild beast and those who worship its image. While still alive, they both were hurled into the fiery lake that burns with sulfur. 21 But the rest were killed off with the long sword that proceeded out of the mouth of the one seated on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.

Matthew 24 NWT

7 “For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be food shortages and earthquakes in one place after another. 8 All these things are a beginning of pangs of distress.9 “Then people will hand you over to tribulation and will kill you, and you will be hated by all the nations on account of my name. 10 Then, too, many will be stumbled and will betray one another and will hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will arise and mislead many; 12 and because of the increasing of lawlessness, the love of the greater number will grow cold. 13 But the one who has endured to the end will be saved.

I have posted on who the beast is, it is the disgusting thing mentioned. When this occurs we are to flee just as Jehovah’s people had to in the past when he had judged a nation. Only this time it will be on a world wide scale. Even now many nations have started to attack true worship so we know it has begun and we need to prepare our hearts so we will have God’s word written on them when they start taking his words from us.

Matthew 24 NWT

15 “Therefore, when you catch sight of the disgusting thing that causes desolation, as spoken about by Daniel the prophet, standing in a holy placer (let the reader use discernment), 16 then let those in Ju·deʹa begin fleeing to the mountains. 17 Let the man on the housetop not come down to take the goods out of his house,18 and let the man in the field not return to pick up his outer garment. 19 Woe to the pregnant women and those nursing a baby in those days! 20 Keep praying that your flight may not occur in wintertime nor on the Sabbath day;21 for then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world’s beginning until now, no, nor will occur again. 22 In fact, unless those days were cut short, no flesh would be saved; but on account of the chosen ones those days will be cut short.

Those who have been causing the tribulation and will cause it will be punished with everlasting destruction.

2 Thessalonians 1:6-10 NWT

6 This takes into account that it is righteous on God’s part to repay tribulation to those who make tribulation for you. 7 But you who suffer tribulation will be given relief along with us at the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with his powerful angels 8 in a flaming fire, as he brings vengeance on those who do not know God and those who do not obey the good news about our Lord Jesus. 9 These very ones will undergo the judicial punishment of everlasting destruction from before the Lord and from the glory of his strength, 10 at the time when he comes to be glorified in connection with his holy ones and to be regarded in that day with wonder among all those who exercised faith, because the witness we gave met with faith among you.

Only those who have written God’s word on their hearts will escape. Many will continue on just as they did in Noah’s day not seeing that the end is near so they will not escape the destruction that is coming. This is why now more then ever it is important to write God’s word on our hearts.

1 Thessalonians 5 NWT

5 Now as for the times and the seasons, brothers, you need nothing to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that Jehovah’s day is coming exactly as a thief in the night. 3 Whenever it is that they are saying, “Peace and security!” then sudden destruction is to be instantly on them, just like birth pains on a pregnant woman, and they will by no means escape. 4 But you, brothers, you are not in darkness, so that the day should overtake you as it would thieves, 5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We belong neither to night nor to darkness.

Matthew 24 NWT

36 “Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 For just as the days of Noah were, so the presence of the Son of man will be. 38 For as they were in those days before the Flood, eating and drinking, men marrying and women being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, 39 and they took no note until the Flood came and swept them all away, so the presence of the Son of man will be.

We must avoid the things that have resulted in those God had judged in times past that blinded them so they did not see the destruction that was coming, so we will not be blinded and escape the destruction that is coming soon we must stay awake and write God’s word on our hearts.

Luke 21 NWT

Play

34 “But pay attention to yourselves that your hearts never become weighed down with overeating and heavy drinking and anxieties of life, and suddenly that day be instantly upon you 35 as a snare. For it will come upon all those dwelling on the face of the whole earth.36 Keep awake,then, all the time making supplicatione that you may succeed in escaping all these things that must occur and in standing before the Son of man.

We do not need to fear when these things begin to occur. It should be happy times for us because it is an indication that deliverance is near and we only have a little longer to endure.

Luke 21 NWT

28 But as these things start to occur, stand up straight and lift up your heads, because your deliverance is getting near.”

Joel NWT

21 Do not be afraid, O land. Be joyful and rejoice, for Jehovah will do great things. 22 Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field, For the pastures of the wilderness will become green, And the trees will bear fruit; The fig tree and the vine must give their full yield. 23 You sons of Zion, be joyful and rejoice in Jehovah your God; For he will give you the autumn rain in the right amount, And he will send upon you a downpour, The autumn rain and the spring rain, as before. 24 The threshing floors will be full of pure grain, And the presses will overflow with new wine and oil. 25 And I will make compensation to you for the years That the swarming locust, the unwinged locust, the voracious locust, and the devouring locust have eaten, My great army that I sent among you. 26 You will surely eat to satisfaction, And you will praise the name of Jehovah your God, Who has done wonders in your behalf; My people will never again be put to shame. 27 And you will have to know that I am in the midst of Israel And that I am Jehovah your God—there is no other! My people will never again be put to shame.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time frame we are in , in reference to the end of this system of things.

This is not finished I am doing it to show the time frame we are in. We need to compare our time to times past when God brought destruction on peoples. As I was trying to do this many things come up so I had to put it together quickly. Those who remain silent and said nothing for the down trodden and would not speak up for them will also be held accountable. Their lack of concern reveals a lot about their heart condition to Jehovah.

It seems things are nearing this now. Countries that were enemies are starting to be allies.

1 Thessolonians 5:1Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

One of the final acts of rebellion man will hand their authority over to the United Nations all nations will bend to the U.N.s will. So will false religions and they will attack true worship.

Matthew 24:15“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, 18and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. 19And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! 20Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 21For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

Things that have brought others to destruction. This keys us into the time frame we are in concerning the destruction of this system.

They would look down on the poor and take advantage of them. They would offer no help to those in need but would be critical of them. While some starved others would be glutinous. It would be like the days of Noah violence would be rampant.

Ezekial 16:49 Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did an abomination before me. So I removed them, when I saw it.

Genesis 6:13

Genesis 6:13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

Deuteronomy 710 But those who hate him he will repay to their face by destruction; he will not be slow to repay to their face those who hate him.

11 Therefore, take care to follow the commands, decrees and laws I give you today.

Deuteronomy 7:26 Do not bring a detestable thing into your house or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. Regard it as vile and utterly detest it, for it is set apart for destruction.

Not following God’s guidance on appointing spiritual leaders would result in true worship being corrupted. That is why it was prophesied true worship would have to be restored in our time.

1 Kings 13 33 Even after this, Jeroboam did not change his evil ways, but once more appointed priests for the high places from all sorts of people. Anyone who wanted to become a priest he consecrated for the high places. 34 This was the sin of the house of Jeroboam that led to its downfall and to its destruction from the face of the earth.

We have done our best to speak for those who are struggling. We can sleep at night knowing we have warned our neighbors and have spoken up for the down trodden.

Proverbs 31:8 ESV

Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute.

We are seeing this occur now, the corruptions is becoming clearer and clearer. The inability of man to be able to exist without God’s guidance is becoming clearer and clearer.

Philippians 3:19 ESV

Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.

2 Peter 3:10 ESV

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

It is why we are told the way is hard, just as it was for the apostles. We were not promised it would be easy.

Jesus is the narrow gate but few would choose to walk in his foot steps because he did not choose wealth and material things over spiritual things. He always put God’s will first. We see how there is a great delusion now and people believe wealth is a sign of approval by God. If that were true then how could pursuit of wealth be following Jesus foot steps?

Matthew 7:13-14 ESV

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

Matthew 24:36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. 37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 ESV

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Matthew 24:9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

1 Corinthians 15:20But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27For he “has put everything under his feet.”c Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. 28When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.

Many who believe they do not have to worry will be among those who are destroyed. They lack the courage to speak up for what is right. They do not warn others or tell them God’s name or tell them about our king Jesus and the heavenly kingdom. They may fear what others thing, or fear what will happen if they do. God does not except cowardice as an excuse.

Revelation 21:8 ESV

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

The reward is worth it and it is eternal. This is all temporary.

Revelation 21:1-27 ESV

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” …

Isaiah 2:1-22 ESV

The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord. …