Part 12 of 14

The Destiny of the Lost; Those Who Refuse to Receive Christ’s Essential Spirit

Perhaps you noticed in my earlier reference, in Part 6, to the fact that the God-breathed “spirit in man” was in fact God’s spirit “on loan;” God’s spirit gives the crated man “life on loan.” This phrase is a good way to describe man’s spiritual state at creation. A reference to something that is “on loan” intimates that it may then be recalled by its rightful owner. This is exactly what occurs with the physically dead who are lost. It occurs immediately following the Great White Throne Judgment. Their human spirit, which is God’s spirit on loan, returns to God, and their resurrected human body that permits them to stand before Him in judgment, becomes thereby fully dead (Jas 2:26), good for nothing. That body is cast into “the lake of fire” for utter destruction.

Where do I get such a radical understanding that is a departure from long held Christian doctrine of eternal torment for the lost? Consider the following as a brief synopsis of my series called "Man’s Eternal Destiny.”

We may clearly see fallen man’s ultimate destiny in Eccles. 12:7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.    This speaks of the created man who does not receive that resurrected and eternal “spirit of life in Christ Jesus” during his lifetime on earth; and then dies physically. His body then returns to dust, and his human spirit, which was God’s spirit-life on loan, returns to the Lord, after the Great White Throne Judgment. Such a man is one who has rejected the opportunity to receive THE Eternal Essential Spirit of Life, which is only in Christ Jesus.      

Clearly God gives every created man, born of Adam’s fallen seed a God-planned opportunity to gain the deposit of God’s eternal resurrected life which now is in the Son.  Fallen men have become partakers of Sin and death. Fallen man has three (3) great needs.     1) Man has his “sins” forgiven. God did this for us by paying the price for our sins, redeeming us with the blood of His dear Son.    2) “Sins” were the automatic manifestations of the fallen Sin nature within man’s body members (Rom 7:17-23, Rom 8:3). Thus, man needs also to have the Sin nature resident within their bodies of flesh to be “made of no effect,” so they cannot sin any longer (1John 3:9). This is only made possible by man having died with and in Christ at the cross (John 6:3, Gal 2:20a). Thus as Paul writes, He that is dead is freed from the power of the Sin nature (Rom 6:6-7).    3) Then also, man being dead, needs to gain a life capable of living righteously. That life is Christ’s “Spirit of life.”  

Thus we see that God, by the cross of Christ, has accomplished our threefold salvation. In summary, Christ’s shed blood washed away our sins; His death is our death as to our “old man,” and His resurrected eternal life is now our life. What a glorious all-inclusive cross God has provided for man to simply…receive. John 1:12 (KJV) But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 1 Corinthians 1:18 (KJV) For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

With this understanding we can more clearly understand just why Scripture so often refers to man having the opportunity to have Christ’s eternal life versus eternal perishing. John 3:16 (KJV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. The word “perish” here in John 3:16, and everywhere else the same Greek word is used, mean what it says. It means fully destroyed, not just kind of dead. “Perish” is transliterated from the Greek word “appolymi,” which means fully destroy.  Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance says this word is taken from <G575> (apo) and the base of <G3639> (olethros); to destroy fully. This Greek word is transliterated, in KJV. - "perish" 33 times and "destroy" 26 times.

From this we see why it is so imperative that we gain Christ resurrected “Spirit of life.” Only His life is versus an annihilating death for man. 1 John 5:11-12 (KJV) And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. ¹² He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. Thus, our destiny as believers born of God’s Christ-Seed is quite different form that of the lost. Colossians 3:4 (KJV) When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.