There's no partiality with God, brethren, let me tell you that. The reason God has drawn some. I said that He only draws those He's drawing to have a part in preparing for the Kingdom of God. He's not drawing them just to get them saved. Everyone is going to be drawn to salvation in the end.
Well, what about all these millions and billions that have lived and died and never have been drawn, and they were cut off from God, and God cut them off, and they never had a chance. Oh, well, God's gonna take care of that too. And that's what I'm here to explain to you right now.
The World Tomorrow, the Worldwide Church of God presents The World Tomorrow with Herbert W. Armstrong, ladies and gentlemen, Herbert W. Armstrong.
Now, if we try to view the conditions in the world from the point in time of today where we live today, it's a good e like going into or rather to say, tuning in a movie on your television set, and you tune in when it's about 3/4 of the way along, and you don't know what's gone before. You don't know what led up to the place where you are now, and you're bewildered because it doesn't make any sense to you. You don't know what they're talking about or what's, what's, what's unless you know what went before and what led up to it.
So, what led up to our day today to our kind of world today? Now, the world is different than it was 2000 years ago in many, many, many ways; in some ways, it's still the same. Unfortunately.
Now, in John 7, verses 37 and 38 (John 7:37-39), Jesus Christ stood up and said, 'In the last day, the great day of the feast. If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me,' said Jesus, 'as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake He of the spirit', that is the Holy Spirit of God, 'which they, that believe on Him should receive, for the Holy Spirit was not yet'. That is at that time, 1900 years ago, 'was not yet given because that Jesus was not yet glorified'.
Now, there is a point you should notice. The Holy Spirit had not been given to the Church of the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, it's called the congregation of Israel, but congregation is just another English word for church. And in one passage in the New Testament, it's called the church in the wilderness in the days of Moses. But God called Israel to reveal his knowledge to them of God's way of life, of his basic law of his government. He gave them his great overall spiritual law of love, which is defined down under the 10 Commandments. It's love toward God and love toward neighbor.
Then, in addition, he gave them a ritualistic law. Now that is a physical law, not a spiritual law. It was a law of physical rituals to do morning, noon, and night, to teach them the habit of obedience because he did not give them the Holy Spirit. He gave them this physical ritual law as a substitute until the Holy Spirit came. But a substitute didn't do the job, a physical law. And he also gave them a law of animal sacrifices because Christ had not yet come. Now, the sacrifices could not forgive sin of an animal sacrifices, but they were a reminder of sin. The Holy Spirit was not yet at that time, given. The Holy Spirit had come up to that time only for prophets. Now, at that time, even the apostles had not yet received the Holy Spirit in ancient Israel; only the prophets had the Holy Spirit of God.
Now another scripture I want to read right here in connection with this John 6:44 where Jesus said, 'No man can come to me except the Father who sent me draw him.'
Now, that is the most remarkable statement. He said, no man can, even if he wants to, he's unable, unless God the Father draws him.
I want you to notice one thing, the initiative must be taken by God. It isn't up to the average man, the man in the street, the man, wherever you find him out on a farm or in the city to just say, 'Well, I want to come to God.' Now, no man can come to God except through Jesus Christ. Jesus said, 'I am the way, the light, and the truth.' But Jesus says, no man can come to him unless the Father takes the initiative and draws him through the Holy Spirit. But that doesn't mean you have the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will only be used as an instrument in drawing him toward Christ. And the choice has to be God's.
Now that leads us back to something. That's why I say you can't understand the conditions and the things that the Bible says of our time. If you don't go back and know what went on way, way before.
Herbert W. Armstrong will return right after this message.
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Now, then we come down to our time, now. Christ came and preached the good news of the Kingdom of God, the restoration of the government of God on this earth. That's the most important thing to God right now in a sense because that is the basis of developing character and for God's ultimate overall purpose for the whole universe, which very few know or understand. And I read to you how Christ said, 'Let him who's thirst come to me and drink,' that the Holy Spirit would come to them. But the Holy Spirit had not yet at that time been given yet because Christ had not yet been glorified. Now, that's why Ancient Israel had animal sacrifices as a substitute to remind them that Christ would come. Although their animal sacrifices didn't forgive their sins.
Jesus said, no man could come to him unless the Father drew them. And God did begin to draw some. Only 120 had been drawn for the whole 3 1/2 years of Jesus Christ's ministry. And on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came and entered into that 120. But there were many others there from all the nations around the earth. And Peter preached a sermon, and they were convicted because they realized, especially those who had been in Judea at the time, that they were the ones who had killed the very Savior Jesus Christ or had caused it. They said, 'What shall we do?' And Peter said, 'Repent and be baptized, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.' So about 3000 were converted. Now, they were those that God had drawn. But the other people in other places outside had not been drawn and were not converted.
Then there was one time that God wanted the apostle Paul to go to a certain place. For He said, 'I have many people there.' In other words, God was going to draw many people there. Jesus said to Peter and others of the apostles, 'Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men,' because they were fishermen fishing in the Sea of Galilee.
Well, now when you go fishing, you may let your fishhook down into the water and maybe you can stand there all day and never get a fish. At another time or another place you let it down, and you get fish just one after another. As fast as you can pull them out because they run in schools, and you never know where the fish are, and you don't know what fish you're going to get. You can't pick out and say, 'I want to get that one,' and think that that one's gonna take the hook, and you're gonna pull him out. Well, that's the way it is with men.
I know when I was first converted, I wanted to see all of my family and relatives converted. So, I tried to talk them into it, and they just thought I was crazy. Any of you ever had that experience? No man can come to Christ unless the spirit of the Father draws him, and God, the Father had not drawn those people. I couldn't help that. That was not my doing.
Now, here's the point I want you to get: no man can come to Christ. God has cut others off from Him. People think that it's man that cut God off. Oh, no, God cut man off. Now, does that seem fair? A lot of people say, well, that's not fair then, God didn't give them any chance of conversion. That's true. He didn't, He didn't give them any chance of salvation.
Well, now, the human reason would say, Well, then God's not fair. Why does He give some a chance and others not? There's no partiality with God, brother. Let me tell you that the reason God has drawn some. I said that He only draws those He's drawing to have a part in preparing for the kingdom of God. He's not drawing them just to get them saved. Everyone is going to be drawn to salvation in the end. Well, what about all these millions and billions that have lived and died and never have been drawn, and they were cut off from God, and God cut them off, and they never had a chance. Oh, well, God's gonna take care of that too. That's what I'm here to explain to you right now.
Now let's go on from there. Judgment is on us, but we are only the first fruits. But we who are called now have to overcome this world ourselves and Satan. Now, let me tell you something, the others that God has not called, He just hasn't called them yet. And when He does call them, they won't have to overcome any Satan. They won't have to. We've got a lot tougher time than they will have. On the other hand, we are going to be rewarded according to our works. And those of us that do overcome Satan are going to rule with Christ in His throne. Jesus had to qualify to sit on that throne. He had to overcome Satan who had been sat on that throne when he was the archangel Lucifer. Jesus had to overcome Satan. He had to reject Satan's way, and he did. If we're to sit with Him on His throne, do you think we can get on there without qualifying also? Well, you better think again. If we're going to rule with Christ, we have to overcome Satan the same as He did. Now, those that God has not called, He hasn't called yet. But when He does, there won't be any Satan around, and they'll have so much an easier time of it. There's no partiality with God. Absolutely not, but we can have a greater reward, although we will have a tougher time getting to it.
Those that have been cut off from God, that could not come to Him unless God would draw them, have not yet been judged. Now, their works have been recorded, whatever they have done, they're still going to be judged for it. But they're also going to be given a chance to repent and be forgiven for it when their time of judgment comes. There are a number of judgments mentioned in the Bible. I don't have time to go into all of those just now.
Herbert W. Armstrong will return right after this message.
Salvation, to the religions of the world, it means deliverance from suffering, from evil, and above all, from death. No corner of the globe, no moment in time has been without rites and rituals facilitating passage from this world to the next. Is the path to salvation straight and narrow with many burdens to bear, or is the yoke easy and the burden light? Are many called but few chosen, or is it the will of God that all will be saved? This free booklet, just 'What Do You Mean... Salvation?' explains the biblical teaching on this all-important subject. For your copy, call this toll-free number, 800-423-4444. That's 800-423-4444.
Now, then, what of the billions and billions of people that could not come to Christ, could not come to God? They were cut off from God. No chance of salvation at all from the time of Adam on. What about all of them? God's responsible for them? That's God's responsibility. And there can be no unfairness with God. Some people would say, 'Well, it doesn't look like God's fair, lets us be called now and not a lot of others.' No, that's poppycock.
God is fair with everybody. Let's go to the 20th chapter of Revelation. And beginning with verse 11 (Revelation 20:11-13), you find in the beginning is how Satan is taken away and the first resurrection and the people reigning with Christ 1000 years. But now let's begin with verse 11. 'And I saw a great white throne.'
Now this is after the 1000 years is over. And John, in his vision, 'saw a great white throne and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life, and the dead were judged out of those things that were written in the books according to their works'. Now, there was the Book of Life that shows that many are going to be saved, and there will be no devil around at that time. The devil will appear just briefly after the 1000 years, and then he'll be put away again before this happens.
Let's turn now, if you will, back to Ezekiel 37. I read that whole 1st 14 verses (Ezekiel 37:1-14). 'The hand of the Lord was upon me.' That's the prophet Ezekiel 'and carried me in the spirit of the Lord and sent me down to the midst of the valley which was full of bones and caused me to pass by them, round about. And behold, there were very many in the open valley, and lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live now?' They're dead. They're skeletons, they're bones. Can a skeleton live? 'And I answered, Oh Lord, God, thou knowest.' At least he knew God knew.
'And he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones and say unto them, Oh, you dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord Eternal under these bones. Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you and you shall live.' These skeletons, these bones. 'And I will lay sinews upon you', on these bones, 'and I will bring flesh upon you and cover you with skin and put breath in you'. Breath is what we have to have for physical life, in immortal life, spirit life, we won't need any breath. So, this is speaking about bringing people back to human life just like we are now. It's not speaking of an immortal resurrection to immortality.
'And you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord, the Eternal. And I prophesized as I was commanded. And as I prophesized, there was a noise, and behold, a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them above, but there was no breath in them'. So naturally, this is talking of human life, and so, they still didn't have life in them.
'And then said, he unto me, prophesy under the wind' or air, 'prophesy, son of man. And say unto the wind, thus says the Lord Eternal, come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon the slain that they may live. So I prophesized as he had commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and they stood upon their feet as an exceeding great army.'
'Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel, these bones are the whole house of Israel', that is the ancient Israel prior to the time of Christ. 'Behold, they say our bones are dried and our hope is lost. We're cut off from our parts.' Because they never received the Holy Spirit, and they never received salvation, and they didn't understand that they still could receive it.
Now, here is a resurrection at the end of the 1000 years. 'Therefore, prophesy and say unto them, thus says the Lord Eternal, behold, O my people, I will open your graves.' Now, this is Israel, 'and cause you to come up out of your graves and bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Eternal. And when I have opened your graves, O my people', you see, they never did really understand it, 'and I brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my spirit into you.'
Now, when he brings them up, get this point, first, he puts breath in them and now they're going to come after they have that breath to know God. Now God's gonna draw them to him 'and shall put my spirit in you'.
Now, that's when they're going to receive the Holy Spirit, 'and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then shall you know that I, the Eternal, have spoken it and performed it, saith the Eternal.' Isn't that a wonderful teaching? Isn't that wonderful, the ways of God?
Now, not only Israel but all nations are going to come into such a resurrection. Let's turn now to Matthew 12, beginning with verse 41 (Matthew 12:41-42). 'The men', Jesus is speaking, and he said, 'The men of Nineveh shall rise up in judgment.' Now, speaking about a judgment, the great white throne judgment after the millennium. 'The men of Nineveh shall rise up.' That's a resurrection from the dead 'in judgment with this generation and shall condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. And behold, greater than Jonah is here.'
And he was talking to the Scribes and Pharisees. And he was much greater than Jonah, but they wouldn't believe him. He says, 'Now the queen of the South shall rise up in judgment with this generation and shall condemn it.' And that's a Gentile nation, 'for she came from the uttermost parts of the world, or of earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. And behold, a greater than Solomon is here.' So, they're going to be in this judgment too, in the resurrection. The men of Sodom and Gomorrah will fare better in that judgment than those that were rejecting the very Christ himself when he was on earth 1900 years ago. And it shows that there will be a resurrection of all of those that God had cut off from Him.
Brethren, can you get this into your mind? We've always assumed that God is trying to save the whole world. All Protestants believe that. And I suppose all Catholics in their way. God has cut the world off except those that the Father calls. But there is this judgment coming, and they're going to have it easier than we do when their time comes. Let's understand that all shall have been called. It is only the church and the prophets who have to overcome Satan, and we're going to rule with Christ. We have a chance at a greater reward, but we pay a bigger price to get it too. Let me tell you.
Now, then in closing finally, will you turn to Romans 11, beginning with verse 33 (Romans 11:33-36) 'Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgments?' These judgments of his that I've been telling, judgment is on us, now. It'll be on those who are alive in the millennium. It'll be on everybody else that never had been judged before after that in the great white throne judgment. 'For who hath known the mind of the Lord, and who hath been his counselor, or who hath first given to him? And he's and it shall be recompensed unto him again, 'for of him and through him and to him are all things, in whom glory forever. Amen.'
And we're looking forward now to that great time in the millennium, and there'll be no Satan. And then after that, when all that have been cut off by God and from God will then be called, and they won't have any Satan to confront them. What a wonderful time that'll be.
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