No throwing

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

NO THROWING

Matt 18:7-9

7 "Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! 8 If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

NIV

The meaning of our Lord here is not for us to disfigure our bodies to keep from sinning. Of what value would missing a hand, foot or an eye have in keeping the heart and mind from yielding to temptation? Jesus is telling us the temptation is inevitable, but he does give a warning, a woe to the world which brings those temptations to us. This is the world of the physical realm. The world of wants and desires for all things material as well as non-material, such as fame, recognition, pride, just to name a few.

Prov 3:34

34 He mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble .

NIV

The world will always bring those temptations to us, but we need to resist those desires as we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. In doing so, not that it is the reason we seek him first, but because we seek him first, he knows what we need. We are told that he knows we need things the pagans chase after and by seeking him first, he will give us those things we need. We do not need to run after them, we are to resist running after them. That is the idea of cutting off our hand or gouging out our eye. We are to do whatever it takes to resist running after the things of the world which tempt us on a daily basis. It would seem it is nearly impossible to look at anything the world has to offer without having some desire for it. We are continually bombarded at every turn with images of everything beautiful: clothes, houses, cars, boats, motorcycles, well dressed men and women, hobbies of all sorts, sports of all sorts, and money of all sorts. It seems some radio and television stations have more ads about securing our future with gold and silver than about anything else. Ads about wealth management, the near collapse of the world economy, so we need to buy gold to protect ourselves, store up precious metals. What are we going to do with them? Will the Kroger take gold for food? What good will anything do if the world collapses? The point about them is they have the gold and want our money by buying their gold. We have the gold and they have the dollars, because they make a profit selling gold. It is all a sham, as is all the things of the world that are there to tempt us. Everything is about making us want what they have so we will give them our money. Now sure we need food and the store has it so we come to an agreement. We take the food and they get the money, which is the way of life. But when it comes to all the desires, all the wants to chase after them, seeking ways to fulfill ourselves with things, we have moved away from God. The real danger is if we persuade other believers into chasing after them. Even if we are all for God and allow our fellow believers to get distracted by the things of the world and remain silent, we might well be in danger.

Gal 6:1-5

6:1 Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2 Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5 for each one should carry his own load.

NIV

Now this idea about being thrown in hell and suffering eternally as some would interpret those words. It is the fire that is eternal. He does not say those who are thrown into it are eternal. Hell, itself is not eternal as we have been told it will be cast into the lake of burning sulfur.

There are three times in this revelation given to John that speaks of this lake of burning sulfur. First the Beast and the false prophet are thrown alive into it, the rest of that army, the kings of the earth were killed. Then the devil after the thousand years are over was released for a while but then after, he too, is thrown into the lake of burning sulfur. The three of them are going to be tormented forever and ever for they are eternal beings. But we have to notice the rest of people who followed after them are thrown into the lake, but experience the second death. This is first the death of the body and then the second death is that of the soul, or spirit, for they are not eternal beings, they shall perish.

Rev 19:19-21

 19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.   21 The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.

NIV

Rev 20:7-10

 7 When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth — Gog and Magog — to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. 9 They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. 10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

NIV

Rev 21:6-8

 6 He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. 7 He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars — their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."

NIV

Here is where we know that hell or hades is not eternal, but gets cast into the lake of fire which for people is the second death.

Rev 20:11-15

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

NIV

We have been promised, because our names are in the book of life that we will not be harmed by the second death, which would then lead us to eternal life, the opposite of perish, the second death.

Rev 20:4-6

4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

NIV

This is all proof of why we believe what we believe. This being beheaded for Christ carries the same meaning our Lord said in cutting our off our hand or foot and gouging out our eye if it causes us to sin, to turn our back on God. We will not take that mark of the beast, we will not succumb to the ways of the world, chasing after the things, the material, and the physical and emotional gains it has to offer in its tempting ways. We desire our name never be blotted out of the book of life. We need to chase after Jesus more and more each day, being ever mindful of the weakness we have in the flesh.

Some would quote farther along in Matthew the word of our Lord regarding eternal punishment and eternal life as proof the wicked will be everlasting in torment.

Matt 25:46

46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." 

NIV

However the idea again is the lake of burning sulfur is eternal, the second death is eternal, there is no returning from being burned up and perishing, it is eternal punishment, the fire is eternal because the devil, the false prophet and the beast will be tormented eternally because they are eternal beings. We know this is not the traditional belief of so many, and yet we cannot help of see this in this manner. Again we only desire to be in the book of life and have as many as possible there as well. So we will not throw anyone away, we do not want Jesus throwing anyone into that lake. Simply put, no throwing.