(extract from final comments of book 'Comparison of Newer Bible Versions' by Ray Luff, 2009. You may obtain this 229 page book by sending us a cheque for 12.50 USD / 14.95 CDN (we will pay the post for North America.) ICC Truth 273 Manchester Drive, Newmarket, ON, L3Y 6J4, Canada
God our Saviour (Our Lord Jesus Christ, member of the Godhead.) wants you to spend eternity in a condition that is called eternal life (to be saved) and He wants you to know the truth. The truth is we are all going to exist forever but the truth also is that many, if not most, are not going to experience everlasting life.
The Bible says; Daniel 12 - 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt.
You will experience ‘everlasting contempt’ if you miss your opportunity to know the Lord Jesus Christ, His salvation and His plan for your life. The opportunity you have now during your life on earth to Know Him you will regret for eternity if you don’t take advantage of the opportunity while it is still offered to you. Now is the time that you have the opportunity to have the course of your eternal existence set in the right direction.
The Bible says; 2 Corinthians 5 – 6 Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
If you are not certain that you have everlasting life then I recommend that you make it a matter of prayer that God will bring you to the point that you know this as a certainty. I suggest to everyone whether they know their eternal state for certain or not that they begin reading the Word of God from a worthy type of Bible, either a KJV easy reading edition with the “thee’s” and “thou’s” taken out or an actual King James Bible. Begin reading alternately starting in Genesis chapter 1 from the Old Testament and in Matthew chapter 1 in the New Testament. Pray that God will reveal himself to you personally. Seek God’s truths in His Word (the Bible). Pray for Him to reveal Himself to you. He wants to reveal Himself to you as He has done for many of His followers. You cannot come to Christ on your own merit. You cannot be good enough to be accepted into fellowship with Him. You must agree with him that you are unworthy and that you need his forgiveness to approach him.
The Bible says; Romans 3 – 23 For All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
It also says; Romans 6 – 23 For the wages of sin is death.
You must be willing to admit that you are dead and headed for a lost eternity. You must be willing to admit your need of salvation.
Daniel 12 – 1 ... and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.
God created you as an eternal being, but He describes eternal existence as ‘everlasting contempt’ for some and ‘eternal life’ for others. Contempt would be because you missed your opportunity to know Him, Know His salvation and to know His plan for your life and for eternity while you were given a chance to set the course of your eternal existence. God says in His word that our opportunity to set this course happens during this lifetime and the course cannot be altered after the first death. The Bible warns of a second death which is to be greatly feared in Revelation 20 but you will notice that those who are recorded in the Book of Life are pardoned.
Revelation 20 - 11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
What is really important for you is that your name becomes written in the Lamb’s book of Life. The Bible says we are dead in our trespasses and sins. It tells us that God has remedied this situation for us by having our sins paid for by the Lord Jesus Christ.
Everlasting Life is granted by the Lord Jesus only.
To understand God’s offer to have our sins paid for, we must first understand who the Lord Jesus Christ is, that He could make this offer.
John 1 – 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. … 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
The following riddle was given in the Old Testament, over 500 years before the birth of Christ.
Proverbs 30 - 4 Who has ascended into heaven, or descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name, If you know?
Jesus answered this riddle;
John 3 - 13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
There was the answer to a second riddle embedded in his message. In the Old Testament the Jews while in the wilderness complained of snake bites. They asked God to take them away or to stop the snakes from biting. God’s response was to tell them to tell Moses to make a snake of brass and erect it on a pole. Whenever anyone gets a snake bite they were to look to the pole and they would live. In the same way God tells us today that he won’t exempt us from life’s sorrows but he will give us eternal life if we look to the Lord Jesus Christ who has been lifted up on a cross. [9]
The Apostle Paul explains that the Lord Jesus Christ was able by his death and resurrection to reconcile us to God. God is holy and man is sinful. Our sin problem has to be resolved before we can enter into God’s holy presence.
2 Corinthians 5 - 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. …17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Two things God desires for you
Jesus promised to send His disciples (which would include any who will follow Him today) a member of the Trinity called the Comforter and the Spirit of Truth will indwell you forever! The Bible says you can have a new spiritual beginning that will allow you to see the kingdom of God.
John 3 - 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Jesus said; John 14 – 6 … I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me. … 15 If you love me, keep my commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it sees him not, neither knows him: but you know him; for he dwells with you, and shall be in you. 18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while, and the world sees me no more; but you see me: because I live, ye shall live also. 20 At that day you shall know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 He that has my commandments, and keeps them, he it is that loves me: and he that loves me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (CKJV)
The first purpose of the indwelling presence of the Spirit of Truth is to guarantee our salvation from the lake of fire.
Ephesians 1 - 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession,
The second purpose for the indwelling presence of God the Holy Spirit is to comfort you and to guide you into all truth as you learn God’s words. As you obey God’s words Jesus promises that the other two members of the Godhead; the Father and the Son will be manifested in your lives. The full Godhead will radiate from you in such a way that others will know it around you. You will radiate light as you are drawn to the light which comes from Christ.
John 12 - 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”
Isaiah 55 - 11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. 12 “For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Your experience as a follower of God; one who has invited the Lord Jesus Christ to come into their life and to dwell with you forever and one that studies His words and obeys them, will be one of joy. And that joy will seem to you as if crazy things are happening all around you. God will turn your sorrow into laughter. God will wipe every tear as you diligently seek Him. A Christian chorus says; “You ask me how I know He lives. He lives within my heart.” If you confess your sins God our Saviour will make you a new creature as promised.
The Bible says; 1 John 1 - 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
Jesus said; 1 John 5 - 11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life,
The invitation is extended to all who will open up dialogue with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus says; Revelation 3 – 20 Behold I stand at the door and knock, if any man hears my voice and opens the door I will come in and dine with him and he with me. [10]
After that, the further condition that you Obey God will result in the living presence of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ himself will be manifested in you. How can you obey God if you don’t read His instructions? Therefore you must also take the time to study and get to know our Lord Jesus Christ in the light of His words that we have recorded in the Bible.
Read these 2 verses again from the John 3 passage;
John 3 - 15 If you love me, keep my commandments.... 21 He that has My commandments, and keeps them, he it is that loves Me: and he that loves Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him.
God desires two things of you which will prepare you to Manifest Christ in your life.
1 Timothy 2 - 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time,
For the two things to happen, which are to be saved and to come to know the truth, you must first come to the one Mediator the Lord Jesus Christ. No priest, No church leader can substitute for your coming directly to Him. Approaching Him is done by prayer. You may not know what to say to Him. Ask Him: He will give you the words. Confess your need of Him and invite Him to take over your life.
I am interested in hearing from you. I particularly like discussing with people who wish to debate with me.
The Bible says that; Proverbs 27 – 17 Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. (CKJV)
If I can help sharpen you in some way or if I have helped you please let me know.
This concludes our study of Modern Bible Versions. May our God and Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ Bless you as you commit to becoming a student of His Word.
Your fellow servant,
Ray T. Luff
[9] For more about why God still allows suffering for disciples of Jesus see 2 Corinthians 1:3-7. The God of all Comfort, comforts us all our tribulations that we might be able to comfort others. If you explore another of my websites http://Bibledoor.blogspot.com you will find an .mp3 message on the topic “why does God allow Suffering?”
[10] If you read the whole passage it was written to the last of the seven churches. It actually indicates that our Lord Jesus Christ is in a position of having been locked out of a lukewarm, apostate type of church: a church which He says makes Him want to vomit: a church which has need to cleans it’s eyes as it cannot see and which has become wealthy but lacks the need for our Lord Jesus Christ. He is patiently knocking at the door of that church asking if they will let Him in. You may have a life which is in similar disrepair but our Lord wants you to let Him in to you as well. He wants to make something beautiful of your life.
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