There were about 1,656 years between the Creation in Genesis and the flood in Noah’s time.  If you think that the Bible is old and outdated, consider that there have been about 1,930 years since the last books of the Bible, in terms of chronology, were written.  When the flood hit in Noah’s time there had only been about 270 some less years that had passed from the Creation until then than the years which have passed since the latest books of the Bible were written until this present day.

God judged Sodom and Gomorrah approximately 450 years after the flood.  Do you think that the people in Sodom and Gomorrah weren’t calling the stories of the flood old tales by then?  And do you think they were not calling the ways of men whom God deemed righteous, such as Noah, outdated, backwards, regressive, etc?  And do you think that enemies of God in the times of Moses, Jeremiah, David, etc. weren’t saying such things about the previous judgments which God had executed; and about the ways of those whom God deemed righteous in previous generations?  We even see multitudes of examples in the Bible of how Israel often provoked God and received His judgment due to deceiving themselves that the warnings and threats of God’s Law didn’t really apply to them anymore; thinking that they could depart from the words which He had spoken without horrible consequences to themselves.  Things like this have always happened.  

And it is madness to think that this has also not been happening over the past 2,000 years in people dealing deceitfully regarding God’s full revelation of Himself in Jesus Christ.  We are living in a very wicked, perilous time where such thoughts are reigning in society and even prevailing throughout the professing Christian churches.  You want to claim the Bible is outdated and you don’t really need to heed everything in it, that you don’t really need to listen carefully to God’s instructions there, that you don’t really have to live by every word of God?  You think that hell is old-fashioned, and God isn’t taking note of and recording everything still, with the certainty of bringing every work into judgment and rendering to every man according to His deeds?  There is a long list of groups and individuals who have said such things which got horribly reproved, put in their place, and proven to be fools.  They knew better than they were living.  They were fools to think that God wasn’t watching or to think that God had changed or to think that God had abandoned His throne somehow or to think that the test was over already or to think whatever they thought to justify and secure themselves in their falsehood?

Job 34:21-22: “For his eyes are upon the ways of man, and he seeth all his goings.  There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.”

Many destroyed by the flood said they loved God.  Cain and King Saul offered sacrifices to God, but they were unacceptable sacrifices because they didn’t really die to themselves in order to actually follow His instructions.  When the Bible speaks about forgetting God, it is speaking of suppressing His light and refusing to wholeheartedly follow what He commands.  You will surely do that if you consider the Bible outdated, backwards, etc.  And even those who say that it’s not outdated and backwards are no better than those who say that it is when they don’t heed its whole counsel and they refuse to walk in all of its light.

The people in Noah’s time found out the hard way.  They should have known.  They were certainly warned through Noah’s preaching.  Yet those stories of Creation, and of Adam and Eve being kicked out of the Garden for their transgression (over 1,600 years ago to them) seemed like a distant tale of a backwards time.  It had even been (in the final years before the flood) about 600 years since Enoch being caught up into heaven had happened.  It was easy for them to believe that they had progressed beyond heeding such allegedly backwards stories.  And that was especially so since their great love of sin, and their obsession with the pleasures and cares of life, made such a belief seem especially convenient and easy to retain.  So they rather found out the obvious the hard way and went to hell in a sudden judgment which they were not expecting and which they were unaware of beforehand.  

The same suppression of light which caused them to live in the pleasures of sin securely enough to continue in sin also caused them to be shocked at the judgment for doing so when the judgment finally happened.  

And that can be said of every other judgment of God recorded within the Bible, and every other judgment of God which has otherwise happened or ever will happen- most notably of Christ’s second coming that will mark the end of this age.  Proceed in sin at your own risk then and don’t strive rather with your whole heart to properly understand and walk in the whole counsel of God laid out in the Bible.  Multitudes have taken the same risk and it didn’t end up well for them, even though there were others before them who took the very same risk and it didn’t end up well for them either.  It’s a big club- and there is room for more.

Psalm 94:7-11: “Yet they say, The Lord shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it.  Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?  He that planted the ear, shall he not hear?  he that formed the eye, shall he not see?  He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct?  he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?  The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity.”

Jeremiah 10:10: “But the Lord is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.”

Psalm 92:5-9: “O Lord, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.  A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this.  When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: But thou, Lord, art most high for evermore.  For, lo, thine enemies, O Lord, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.”

Reading then from Matthew 22:17-21 (where Jesus’ opponents are tempting Him, they say): “Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou?  Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?   But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?  Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny (not a penny as we think of one; this was a coin worth significantly more).  And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?  They say unto him, Caesar’s.  Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.”

Man was made by God, in His image, for God’s service and God’s purposes.  When this is carefully considered and comprehended, even comprehended to a small extent in line with a Biblical understanding of the extent of man’s obligations towards His Creator, this is one of the most awesome and terrifying statements ever uttered.

Revelation 4:11 says: “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”

When Jesus commanded in Matthew 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness” there is also a verdict there about what man’s greatest crisis is.  Nothing else could possibly be that important.  

Along the same lines, we are told in James 1:12-15: “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.  Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”  

The following verse then shows the terrible awakening which will happen on Judgment Day to those who refuse to sober up over Judgment Day and eternity and turn to the Lord while they have the chance.  

Jeremiah 8:20: “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.”  

Sobriety is thus necessary in both the natural and spiritual realms in order to prepare ourselves properly to meet the Lord.  Remember that if someone tells you that the Bible doesn’t condemn drug and alcohol use.  Using anything that interferes with one’s sobriety is a sin to use.  Yet even beyond that, the common mindset today, especially in the 1st world, leaves people drunk with the cares of life and too wrapped up in their lives (often even in extremely vain and trivial things) to seek God like they need to in order to come into line with Him and do the good before Him which He requires. 

Our accountability to God implies that life is a test before Him.  Whether you are rich or poor, whether you are strong or crippled, or whatever your lot is in anything else pertaining to this life does not make you better or worse off in the biggest issue for you.  For none of these things relieve you from the trial which you are under, and the court date which you have, with the Almighty God.  If you are happy, comfortable, and feel blessed- you still have this crisis to deal with.  And if you are overwhelmed with grief, uncomfortable, and/or feel anything but blessed for whatever reason- you yet have a bigger crisis to deal with.  And that is the very same crisis which the people that seem the opposite of you right now have.  There is truly no partiality with God nor any discharge from the ultimate trial which He has placed each and every man and woman under.

The Bible says in Proverbs 14:9: “Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favor.”  

I think that most people when they hear that verse, think of especially bold and impudent sinners.  There are indeed people like the people of Sodom, whom the Bible describes as “wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.”  Yet anyone who doesn’t fear God so as to utterly depart from that which is sin in His eyes, and preeminently esteem and align with all of His verdicts and judgments in the Bible, can justly be termed a mocker of sin.  

The Bible says that the unrepentant treasure up wrath for themselves on Judgment Day (Romans 2:5).  Nobody is getting away with anything.  When God’s wrath fully comes, it is then too late to repent and get right with Him.   

One problem with much evangelism now is that it implies (or often directly even says) that coming to Christ is a one-time transaction.  You do it, it’s done (supposedly), now you’re saved (supposedly).  It is a horrible, misleading deception which often makes people two-fold the children of hell.  After they’ve gone through the alleged transaction, they now must also be freed from the delusion they’ve come under as a result of it in order to really come to Christ and get on the actual road to salvation in Him.  People didn’t come to Jesus in the Gospels for a one-time transaction- at least not in a way that was acceptable to Him.  What He did accept was when people came to Him to bow to Him as Lord and be His disciple in recognition of His divine character and authority (which the light of creation and the light of God’s Word testify to).  Believing in Him in a way that saves means submitting to do what He says, following His instructions, learning His ways, etc. in hope of the mercy and grace He offers through His atoning death on the cross.  That was how the Apostles preached Jesus Christ.  Jesus said in John 14:6: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”  Many deny this, yet many also want Him as the life rather than as the way, the truth, and the life.

Responding to an altar call, saying a sinner’s prayer to accept Christ (especially as a child, but anytime really), and/or many other common unreliable methods not derived from the Bible by no means put a person on the way to eternal life in Jesus Christ.  Each person is accountable to deal with God in the depths of their heart and come into line with Him regarding their desires, pursuits, and values.  We must turn to Him so as to forsake unrighteousness and pursue righteousness in His eyes- even in the very thoughts and intents of our hearts.  We must choose to worship Him in the depths of our hearts to the point that no suffering to do righteousness before Him is considered an overreach nor unreasonable in any way; and no reward offered to us to do evil before God would persuade us to comply.

The preciousness of eternal life implies eternal condemnation for those who die in their sins.  To deny God’s righteousness in eternally condemning sinners to the fire of hell is to make a mock of sin.  To not esteem eternal life which God offers in His Son, according to the terms He has laid out in His Word, is to make a mock of sin- since not esteeming eternal life from God leaves one in their sins.  And to stay in one’s sins before God, especially when He has provided a sure remedy to escape His condemnation, is foolish, unreasonable, and mad.  What was seen from Matthew chapter 22 “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s” is indeed a terrifying statement.  Yet at the same time, nothing could be more reasonable, better, and profitable for one to do.

Mark 8:36: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”

And Jesus spoke this in the very context of our need to render unto God the things that are God’s.

Man has always found ways to not only blatantly reject and scorn the grace of God, but also to counterfeit it, cheapen it, and make the actual terms of God’s Covenant seem unreasonable and overly harsh.  Yet the many counterfeits of something, when known to exist and wisely considered, serve to prove and emphasize the tremendous value of the authentic and genuine thing which the counterfeits masquerade as.  

This is ultimately only more evidence that God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him through Jesus Christ according to His Word; and that to fail to do so is to oppose yourself and choose eternal condemnation- despite the way to escape this having been made for you.

Christian Baptism is supposed to be the declaration that one is now under Jesus Christ’s authority, so that henceforth they should not serve sin through the life He offers to those who worship and serve God under His authority.  Christian baptism is intended as an initial act of obedience in entering into the whole package of Christianity.  Things like infant baptism are evil because infants cannot have a repentant attitude and an obedient, ready mind towards Christ.  Baptism cannot represent to them what God intended it to represent.  It is no different than with the little children (and others) who get coached into saying the sinner’s prayer, and then maybe even into baptism, in the evangelical churches.  It becomes a deceptive ritual that has an incredibly strong tendency to serve as a substitute for the entire package of Christianity rather than as a knowledgeable, willing entrance into the whole package of Christianity (like it should be regarded as in truth).

So many likewise have a false hope of salvation in Christ through having responded to an altar-call or something similar.  So many so-called Gospel ministers glory in getting people to respond to an altar-call. Think of Billy Graham crusades, and the many different crusades that report statistics which, if added up and taken at face value, would indicate that the entire population of earth has been converted to Christ!  It is really madness.  I’ve been in meetings where the vast majority came up to the front near the end.  I have little doubt those who put on these meetings considered them to be successful because of this.  The altar, or whatever was at the front of the church, was so crowded that anyone who really wanted to pray and seek God would have been better off just staying where they had been sitting.

Through the atoning blood which Jesus shed on the cross and His unchanging Priesthood, whereby He is able to save those who come to God by Him from the guilt and power of sin, He offers grace and peace- which we obtain from Him only if we put away our sin and submit ourselves to the sharp judgments of His Word.  Sin must be put away and self must be dealt with through the Word- severely.  Otherwise, His controversy remains.  His sword still hangs over those who are not accordingly walking in His covenant of peace.

Jesus thus said in Matthew 10:34: “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.”

Jesus did not speak in vain when He spoke about a narrow gate that must be entered and a constricted, narrow way that must be followed in order to inherit eternal life; and when He spoke of a broad gate and a broad way which leads to destruction.  He did not warn in vain of the need to be so severe in parting from sin in order to avoid the eternal fire of hell that He would liken this parting to plucking out an eye or cutting off a hand or a foot.

The top priorities which Jesus mentioned in the “Our Father” prayer (in Matthew 6) actually implicitly demonstrate the fitting condemnation of those who don’t continually account that they owe their existence to the Holy God of heaven, who don’t continually seek the glory of His name, and who don’t continually live in accordance with His rightful, sovereign claim on their lives by being subject to His commandments on earth.

You are really in a vicious spiritual war for your soul and your eternity is at stake.  

Aaron’s email is: [email protected]

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