The World - Part I
John 3:16
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.
Many, very many indeed, are the
mistakes, errors, and false doctrines that have arisen from misconceptions of the
meaning of these words. Invariably the misuse of these words lead to Christ
dishonoring doctrines, which undermine the truth of the gospel; and are
destructive of the true gospel of Jesus Christ. While at the same time, the
misuse of these words give place for the natural enmity of the carnal mind of
men to deny the discriminating love of God, His election of His beloved
children in Christ, and the denial of His predestinating goodness; and this is
the cause of those, who wish to exalt man’s touted freewill as the real motive
force, difference maker, and distinguishing power, of the salvation of the
sinner. O! Our God: we, as mercy beggars, ask that you give us, this hour, a
perspicuous view of the meaning of these words, that we might rightly divide the
word of truth, Amen.
First we shall consider the
errors made through a misconceived meaning of: “The World”. The mistake that is
very often made and which gratifies the fleshly pride of the natural man, is to
take these words to mean all and every man without exception or distinction.
Consider the use of these words in the subject verse: “ For God so loved the
world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish, but have ever lasting life.” (John 3:16). In this verse, if,
“the world” is the inclusive world of men then God loves all men without
exception: but is that alleged meaning congruous with the preponderance of the
scriptures? No indeed, not so, for certainly the scriptures will not agree in
point of fact. Consider the following: “ Was
not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the LORD: yet I loved Jacob, And I hated
Esau, and laid all his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the
wilderness.” (Malachi 1:2-3; Romans 9:13). This is exceedingly plain, and easy
to be understood, but it is impossible for the carnal mind to receive, for,
this destroys the pride of men of the flesh: it puts men in the dust before a
sovereign Lord who can save or kill. Consider the following: “An ye shall not
walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they
committed all these things, and therefore I abhorred them.” (Leviticus 20:23).
The Lord abhorred those nations He cast them out of the promised land before
Israel. Another portion of the word of God, which clearly shows that God does
not love all men without exception: “The foolish shall not stand in thy sight:
thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak
leasing: the Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.” (Psalm 5:5-6), and:
“There were they in great fear, where
no fear was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: thou hast put them to shame, because God hath despised them.” (Psalm 53:5). And another: “ The
mouth of a strange woman is a deep pit:
he that is abhorred of the LORD will fall therein.” (Proverbs 22:14). The
strange woman in Proverbs is usually speaking of false religion, and so it is
in this case; and so, world over, there are multiplied billions that are
partakers of false religion; they are fallen into that deep pit because the
LORD hath abhorred them. God does, as He said He would, He sends the whole
world of the ungodly (II Peter 2:4-6; Romans 11:7-10; I John 5:19: Revelation
12:9; Isaiah 29:9-12) strong delusion, as it is written “And for this cause God
shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: (in this day
the strong delusion is the lie of universalism, that, God loves, and Christ
died for all men without exception: writer) that they all might be damned that
believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (II Thessalonians
2:11-12). Men of this dark day say things like: “love everybody, and God will
sort it out”. The scriptures do not command us to love all devils, nor, every
preacher of false doctrine, not everyone who preaches lies in the name of Jesus
Christ. We should hope and pray for their recovery “out of the snare of the
devil” (II Timothy 2:26), but, those who believe the truth must withdraw from
the fellowship of those who preach evil doctrine, as it is written: “If any man
teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which
is according to godliness; he is proud knowing nothing, but doting about
questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil
surmisings, perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the
truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.” (I
Timothy 6:3-5). “The fear of the lord is
to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do
I hate.” (Proverbs 8:13). A froward mouth is one that speaks perversely, that
is, one who perverts the truth of the word of God, such as those who say that
God loves all men universally. The people of God should be of this paradigm:
“Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.”
(Psalm 119:104); and “Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all
things to be right; and I hate every false way.” (Psalm 119:128).
The way of salvation is a strait
gate, and narrow way, few there be that find it. (Matthew 7: 14). Texts could
be multiplied, but, He that hath an ear let him hear: still, to the serious
seeker of truth: let him consider the following texts: (Matthew 11:25-27;
13:10-17; 23:13-35). God destroyed “the world of the ungodly” (II Peter 2:5) in
the days of the flood; and yet saved eight persons, Noah and his family alive.
The following verses show the attitude of God toward the world of the ungodly: “whosoever therefore will be a friend of the
world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4), “If any man love the world, the love of
the Father is not in him.” (I John 2:15) “And we (the children of God I Jn.
4:4) know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.” (I John
5:19) “the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world:” (Revelation
12:9) that is, the whole world of the ungodly is left under the deception of
Satan.
The world of the ungodly will
deny these truths, because if they admit that the love of God is a
discriminating love, then their doctrines of universal atonement, and that the
supposed, free will of man is the real meritorious cause of the salvation of
man is fallen into the pit from whence it came: for, if Christ died for those
who perish in hell, as well as for those who are delivered from hell fire, then
the blood of Christ made no difference, therefore the difference must have been
made by something in, or, from the sinner, and according to the doctrine of
most so called preachers of our day that difference maker is the choice and decision of the sinner. If the
decision to be saved is the sinner’s, then he is saved by his decision, and not
by the blood of Christ. Continued in
part II.
See the writers blog at www.hebrews915.blogspot.com hear
the gospel preached in truth at www.13thstbaptist.org
webcasting live at listed service times.
Allan J Ison
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