Six Blind Men of Hindustan

So six blind men of Hindustan
disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
exceeding stiff and strong;
Though each was partly in the right,
they all were in the wrong!

Many people like to quote the story of the blind men and the elephant to conclude that we are just like the blind men attempting to explain the Divine, which is just too huge to be grasped.

But this is not the issue. Most of us would acknowledge that we are blind, which is why we follow the teachings of the wise men who claim to see and started religions. The problem now is that those who claim to see are telling us different things. Now we who are blind are confused. Since we are blind, how can we conclude that the wise men are also blind?

All the wise men of Religion
Jesus, Mohammed and Buddha,
Each claimed to able to see
and we who are blind are not on par;
Do we dare to declare them also blind,
Since their opinions are apart so far!

But among the wise men, there is One who claimed that He is more than Man. He is actually from Heaven and thus qualified to tell us all about Heaven.

No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven. (John 3:13 NLT)

So what shall we do? Should we acknowledge our blindness and follow Him, or should we claim that we can see and follow the other wise men?

Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, "We are not blind too, are we?" Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, 'We see,' your sin remains." (John 9:40-41 NASB)

Resurrection

Those who had died in Christ will be raised first, before those who are raptured.
We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 NLT)

Those who are killed during the tribulation will have to wait until the end of the tribulation and the final resurrection to get their new bodies.
When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was complete. (Revelation 6:9-11 NIV)

Away from the body and at home with the Lord

At the moment of the believer's death, the soul will be united with Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:8 NLT
Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.

Philippians 1:22-23 NLT
But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don’t know which is better. I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me.

Where Do The Soul Or Spirit Go At Death

Past (Old Testament Saints before the Resurrection of Christ)
The soul goes to Sheol (Hebrew, Old Testament) or Hades (Greek, New Testament).

Before Christ’s resurrection, Sheol or Hades was divided into two parts, a place of comfort where Lazarus was and a place of torment where the rich man was (Luke 16:19-31).

Jesus went to Sheol or Hades after His death.
Acts 2:27 ESV
For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.
Acts 2:31 ESV
he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.
Ephesians 4:9 ESV
In saying, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth?

He was with the thief.
Luke 23:43 KJV
And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

Old Testament Saints who died were captives of death. Upon His death and resurrection, Jesus set them free and took paradise up to heaven with him.
Ephesians 4:7-8 NIV
When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men.
2 Corinthians 12:4 KJV
How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

Present
At death, a believer "present with the Lord".
Luke 23:43 ESV
And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
2 Corinthians 5:8 KJV
We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
Philippians 1:23 ESV
I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.

Future - The Rapture
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 ESV
For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

Future - Millennial kingdom
The believers will come to life and reign with Christ for a thousand years.
Revelations 20:4
Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

Future - Destruction of the old heavens and earth
2 Peter 3:10 NASB
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.
Revelations 20:11 NASB
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.

Future - New Heaven, New Earth and New Jerusalem (Revelations 21:1-22:5)
The believers shall stay in the new earth with our glorified bodies (1 Corinthians 15:35-58).
2 Peter 3:13 ESV
But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
Revelations 21:1 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.

What Happens after Death?

The Bible provides few details about what happens at the moment of death and beyond. Many Christians think that after death, we will go to Heaven, sit and the clouds, play the harp and praise God forever. But scattered across the Bible, we can describe four events which will take place after death:

1. Absent from the body, present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8)
2. The body shall be raised incorruptible at the second coming of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:52)
3. Appear Before the Bema Seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10, 1 Corinthians 3:12-15)
4. Live on the New Earth (Revelation 20:11-15, 1 Corinthians 2:9)

Strictly speaking, the Bible did not promise Heaven, but Eternal Life (John 3:16, John 5:24) in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 5:10).

Death

Spiritual death - Separation / alienation of soul from God
Physical death - Separation of soul from body
Eternal death - Spiritual death made permanent

Men are born spiritual dead. Both believers and unbelievers proceed to physical death. Believers are born again (John 3:5). They will not see eternal death (Revelations 20:6). Unbelievers will proceed to eternal death (Revelation 20:14).

Spiritual Death
One of the most complete descriptions of our conditions before we become believers - we were spiritually dead.

Ephesians 2:1-3 (HCSB)
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously walked according to this worldly age, according to the ruler of the atmospheric domain, the spirit now working in the disobedient. We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and by nature we were children under wrath, as the others were also.

Physical death
Body goes to the dust (Ecclesiastes 12:7) and soul to Sheol.
Ecclesiastes 12:7 KJV
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
James 2:26 KJV
For as the body without the spirit is dead …
Hebrews 9:27 ESV
And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

World’s view of physical death - funeral and mouners
Ecclesiastes 12:5 NASB
For man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the street.

Eternal death
Isaiah 66:24 ESV
For their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.
Revelation 20:14 ESV
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.

Death is the result of sin
Ezekiel 18:4 ESV
Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die.
Romans 5:12 KJV
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Romans 5:17 ESV
For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
Romans 6:23 KJV
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
1 Corinthians 15:22 ESV
For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
1 Corinthians 15:56 ESV
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
James 1:15 KJV
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Death, the Last Enemy
1 Corinthians 15:24-26 ESV
Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
Revelation 21:4 ESV
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.

The Tree Of Life

In the Garden of Eden
And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:8-9 KJV)

In Paradise of God
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. (Revelations 2:7 KJV)

In the New Jerusalem, two trees of life
In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. (Revelations 22:2 KJV)

Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. (Revelations 22:14 KJV)

Gospel Outline

1. Gospel
1. Meaning of the word "Gospel"
2. What is the Gospel?
3. What is good news?
• The Lost coin
• The Lost Sheep
• The Prodigal Son
4. Why is the Gospel good news?
2. Sin
1. As defined in the Bible
• Lust of the flesh
• Lust of the eye
• Pride of life
2. The Penalty of Sin
3. The Propitiation for Sin - Justice and Mercy reconciled
3. The Implications of the Gospel
1. We are worse than we think
2. We are on the way to hell
3. The Gospel is the Only Way
4. The Profit and Loss Statement of the Gospel
1. The Cost
2. The Returns
• Gift of the Holy Spirit
• Fellowship and Persecution
• Contentment, Peace and Love
• Know God
5. Good Works
1. Light of the world, salt of the earth
2. Ambassadors for Christ
3. Fishers of men

Privatising profits and socialise your losses

Hear over the BBC this morning where Lamido Sanusi, Nigeria's central bank governor, commented that banks cannot privatise their profits and socialise their losses. I like this term, "Privatising profits and socialise your losses". Banks seem to be able to do this.

Corruption in China

The whole political system in China is a form of bribery. The government gives economic benefits to the people and the people will not question the legitimacy of the government.