The Most Terrible Words in the Bible…..
By Pastor F. M. Riley
December 10, 2012
“Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come forever and ever:
That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord:
Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us,” Isaiah 30:8-11.
Introduction
Okay, you have made a “profession of faith,” have been baptized and joined the church, and are now a church member in good standing. As such you attend church services more or less frequently, and you live a fairly good “moral” life. Sadly, there are thousands (or millions) of people in your exact same position in the churches and ranks of Christianity today. I say sadly, because making a “profession” of faith, being dipped, poured, or sprinkled in some church’s baptistry, and living a clean “moral” life, is no substitute for an actual experience of saving grace with the Lord Jesus Christ. The churches and the ranks of Christianty today are filled with lost church members who are in the same position you are in. What you have done may help you to live a fairly good, comfortable, life while you are still alive, and be well thought of by your fellow man, but what if you heard the Lord say…….
“pray not for this people…..for I will not hear thee”
Some 700 years before the first coming of Christ the Lord God brought His judgment upon the northern kingdom of Samaria. Samaria was invaded and carried away into captivity by the armies of ancient Assyria. The Lord God permitted this to come to pass because of the apostasy and extreme wickedness of the Jewish people living in the northern kingdom. There is no record that any “remnant” of these Jews ever returned from Assyrian captivity. Rather, as the centuries passed, many of the Jews in Assyria assimilated into Assyria, Babylon, and Media-Persia and other nations, and gave up their Jewish heritage.
Sadly, the southern kingdom of Judah didn’t learn a thing from what happened to Samaria. Just like their sister before them, they rebelled more and more against the Lord God. Read it for yourself in Ezekiel 16. The Lord God then brought upon Judah the Babylonian armies who destroyed the Jewish temple and carried the people of Judah off into captivity in Babylon for 70 years.
However, before either one of these kingdoms were brought under the judgment of God, they were repeatedly warned to turn from their evil ways. Read it for yourself in 2 Chronicles 36:15-16; Jeremiah 7:13; 7:25, 11:7-8; 13:10-11; 16:12;17:23;18:12; 19:15; and 25:3-4. How gracious and kind and longsuffering the Lord God had been with them, yet they refused to hear the true prophets which the Lord sent them, and walked after the imaginations of their own evil hearts.
This situation was a great burden to the true “men of God” which were sent to minister to Israel and to Judah, so much so that these true “men of God” wept sore and cried out to the Lord as they prayed for the Lord’s mercy upon their people. It is then in this setting that some of the most terrible words in the Bible were first uttered. Listen carefully as the Lord God of Heaven tells His prophets, “Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to Me, for I will not hear thee,” Jeremiah 7:16. See also 11:14.
Such terrible words! So what if the Lord God suddenly said about your soul, “Don’t even pray for him (or her), for I won’t hear you? If the Lord ever said such about the soul of any reader, they would spend eternity in hell for sure. Terrible words! However, they are not the most terrible words that a soul will ever hear…….
“weighed in the balances, and found wanting”
The Lord God has a long memory. He never forgot how ancient Babylon had invaded His land, slaughtered thousands of His chosen people, looted and burned His Holy Temple, and carried hundreds more of the surviving Jews back to Babylon as captives.
Many years passed! Nebuchadnezzar died and was succeeded on the throne of Babylon by his descendants. Among them was a grandson whose name was Belshazzar. Belshazzar was a young man totally unfit in character for the position he had inherited. Becoming the King of Babylon apparently went to his already “swelled head.” He evidently believed that “great Babylon” was an invincible city, and he presumed that being ruler of it made him invincible.
So being lifted up with pride in the invincibility of his great capitol city and palace, he threw a drunken party for his officers and officials, even while his city was being surrounded by the armies of Cyrus, King of the Medes. In utter contempt for Cyrus and any gods except those of the Babylonians, he removed the sacred vessels of Israel from the treasury where they had been kept, and used them to drink from as he and his officers honored the pagan gods of Babylon. During the course of these drunken festivities, suddenly a hand appeared writing on the wall of the palace. The appearance of this hand so terrified Belshazzar that his loins were literally loosened, and his knees smote together, Daniel 5:6. In essence, Belshazzar was so terrified that his loins were loosed and he soiled himself. Neither Belshazzar nor any of his “wise men” could read what the hand had written on the wall, so Daniel was summoned to the palace to “interpret” the writing for Belshazzar. When Daniel read the writing, he interpreted it as saying to Belshazzar, “Thou are weighed in the balances, and art found wanting,” Daniel 5:27. That same night Belshazzar was killed and his wicked soul descended into the pits of hell. What terrible words!
I am aware of many today who live as if there is no tomorrow. They spend their lives in partying, drinking, drugging, sports, indulging in fornication and adultery, and any other kind of wickedness which crosses their minds or path. But someday, and it may be SOON, the Lord may say to you just like He said to Belshazzar so long ago, “Thou art weighed in the balances and found wanting.” When that happens, it will be too late to cry out for mercy! You will have already sinned away your opportunity for saving grace, Hebrews 2:3. Your death will then shortly come to pass and you will go into eternal damnation, just like Belshazzar did so long ago. Few reading this will ever have a position in life equal to or even near to the position that Belshazzar had, yet regardless of your position in life, what if the Lord God one day says of your soul, “Thou art weighed in the balances and found wanting?” These are terrible words! Seek the Lord as your Savior NOW while you still have the opportunity! Yet even these terrible words are not the most terrible words that a soul will ever hear…….
“I never knew you, Depart from Me”…..
During His personal ministry the Lord Himself sternly warned those to whom He was preaching, against making a false “profession.” Men can sometimes fool other men, but no man ever fools God. In Matthew 7:13-14 the Lord first graciously warned men about the way of salvation, saying that “wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat. But the Lord also warned them, “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Folks, this boils down to a very simple truth. Any fool, drunken or sober, dumb or intellectual, can stumble into hell. The gate to hell is wide enough to accommodate anyone.
On the other hand, true salvation has to be sought for, and comparatively speaking, the Lord said that “few find it.” Let this truth soak in! Don’t assume that just because you have made a “profession” and have become a member of some church and have been baptized that you are now saved and on the road to Heaven. Your “profession” and “baptism” is not what guarantees you salvation. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself is God’s way of salvation, and the only way to be saved is to receive Christ into your heart and soul by “faith” as your own personal Savior, John 14:6; Acts 4:12; 16:30-31; Romans 10:8-13; Ephesians 2:8-10. This means that there has to have been genuine repentance of sin and a genuine experience of saving grace in Christ alone for salvation, Acts 20:20-21.
To reinforce this truth, the Lord then added the warning set forth in Matthew 7:21-23, obviously spoken to and about some highly “religious” folks who have deceived themselves about being true believers. In this passage Christ made it very clear that He is not impressed with all of the “religious” works which men do, not even those works men do while falsely using His name. Compare Jeremiah 14:14.
In speaking of the future day of judgment, the Lord explicitly stated, “Many will say unto Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: Depart from Me, ye that work iniquity,” Matthew 7:21-23.
Did you hear it? These terrible words coming from the lips of the loving Savior Himself? “I never knew you: Depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.” Folks, such is the deception of “religion.” “Religion” causes people to believe that they are “working for God” and that God is well pleased with them for their “works.” Yet the inspired Scriptures explicitly teach that all works not wrought in and through the power of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself are only wasted efforts, for the Lord explicitly stated, “…..for without Me, ye can do nothing,” John 15:5. Compare Ephesians 2:8-10, noticing especially verse 10. It is the Lord God who does the work of God, only using yielded true believers as His instruments.
It is “religious” people who make “false professions” and then try to work their way to Heaven by their own so-called “good works.” These lost “religionists” in the churches today are the people the Lord was speaking about in Matthew 7:21-23. These vain, self deceived “religious people” will one day hear the Lord Himself say, “I never knew you; Depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” What terrible words these will be as they ring in the ears of lost “religionists,” many of whom have worked their whole lives trying to earn their way to Heaven, when the inspired Word of God makes it perfectly clear that the Lord Jesus Christ has already done all of the work necessary to secure salvation for all who will believe, John 3:36.
“I never knew you: Depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.” These are terrible words, and will be even worse when spoken into the ears and soul of some lost reader. But even these are not the most terrible words that a lost soul will ever hear…….
“hath never forgiveness”…..
In the 12th chapter of Matthew is the account of the rejection of Christ by the religious leaders of Israel. Even though Christ performed all of the miraculous works right before their eyes that were predicted to be performed by the promised Messiah, Isaiah 29:18-19, yet those wicked “religionists” rejected Christ and proclaimed to the people that His miracles were being done through the power of “Beelzebub the prince of the devils [demons], Matthew 12:24. This was a deliberate act on their part of attributing the works done by Christ through the power of God’s Holy Spirit to the power of Satan [Beelzebub, lord of the flies]. The Lord’s response to such a wicked accusation was to tell them, “Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost [Spirit], it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come, Matthew 12:31-32.
These are terrible words! They should strike fear into the heart and soul of anyone who is guilty of such wicked blasphemy. I have been in the Lord’s ministry many years and have personal knowledge of a few who have dared to commit this “unpardonable sin.” Most of the people I know of who committed this sin didn’t live out the week, and some of them didn’t live out the day after committing this evil sin. Almighty God is not the “all loving, all forgiving” WIMP that some today make Him out to be. There are limits to God’s longsuffering and patience with rebellious mankind. Those who dare to step over those limits will spend eternity in the lake of fire of brimstone regardless of how much longer God permits them to live in the flesh. These are terrible words, “hath never forgiveness,” Mark 3:29. These words will strike terror into the heart and soul of every person who has committed this heinous crime against the Holy Spirit of God, yet these are not the most terrible words that lost unbelieving mankind will ever hear…….
“God gave them up”
Read Romans 1:16, 1:22-24, 1:26-28, and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. These inspired Scriptures tell those who will believe about the origin of the so-called “homo-sexual” lifestyle. It originated in the depraved hearts of those who set their wicked hearts and minds in rebellion against the righteousness and holiness of Almighty God.
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself explicitly stated that the immoral condition of humanity at the end of this present age would be exactly like that of Sodom and Gomorrah, Luke 17:28-30. All we believers have to do today is look about us to see the truth of our Lord’s statement.
Now notice the express statement, “God gave them up.” This statement is repeated three times in this chapter. In Romans 1:24 “God gave them up to uncleanness.” In 1:26 “God gave them up unto vile affections.” In 1:28 “God gave them over to a reprobate mind.” This latter verse is worded exactly the same in the Greek text as the first two verses; “God gave them up.” These Scriptures again emphasize that our holy, righteous, and loving God does have “limits” to His compassion and mercies. Ignore and exceed those “limits” at the risk of your own soul.
Folks, if God ever gives up on your soul, you will most certainly spend eternity in the lake of fire and brimstone. The inspired Apostle Paul, in speaking of these same kinds of people, clearly states in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind…….shall inherit the kingdom of God.” This spells it out clearly enough for anyone to understand. These people, men or women, who engage in such a habitual lifestyle are as sure to spend eternity in the lake of fire and brimstone as if they were already there. But can these people be saved? Of course they can! But only after genuine repentance and a turning away from their ungodly lifestyle, 6:11-13; Luke 13:1-5.
Again, these are terrible words, “God gave them up.” But even these are not the most terrible wordsthat unbelieving men and women will ever hear……
The Final Judgment
Carefully study the “20th chapter of Revelation,” especially verses 11-15. I am sure that most of our readers have heard these Scriptures preached and taught by various preachers at various times, but right now I would ask our readers to visualize a great Court Room scene, remembering that God is a God of “justice and judgment.” This great court room scene will take place at the “appointed time,” following the end of the Millennial Kingdom.
[1] First, notice the accused. All of the spiritually “dead” of humanitythroughout all of human history, plus all of the followers of Satan, both spiritual [ fallen angels and demonic spirits] and physical [unbelieving rebellious humans] will be summoned to appear before the Judge sitting upon His great White Judgment Throne, Revelation 20:12. What a solemn and somber scene that will be…..
[2] Second, notice the Judge. Contrary to what is commonly believed and taught, the Judge is not God the Father. Identify the Judge for yourself by reading John 5:22-23. Remember the words of the inspired Apostle in Romans 14:9-12 and Philippians 2:9-11.
[3] Third, notice the evidence against those being judged. The Word says, “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 which were written in the books, according to their works,” Revelation 20:12. Now compare this with the Lord’s statement in John 12:47-50. The “books” refer to the sixty-six books of our Judeo-Christian Bible, the inspired Word of God, and they will be there as “evidence” against those being judged, that those being judged did not study, believe, keep, observe, or honor the Word of God.
[4] Now watch somberly and quietly as one after another of the accused comes before the Great White Judgment Throne of the Lord God and their case is presented. After all has been said both pro and con about each of the accused, the Great Judge turns to one of his angels holding “the book of life” and asks him to search through the book and see if the name of the accused is written there? Understand the solemnity and importance of this moment by comparing Luke 10:17-20. Feel the very tension in the court room as the angel searches through the book. Then listen to the most terrible words that will ever be heard by any human soul, “Lord, his [or her] name is not in the book!” No, these words are not recorded in the Bible, yet any true believer who will deal honestly with God’s Word can understand how strongly these words are implied as we visualize this Court Room scene. Listen now to the gasps and hysterical screams of those tormented souls as they finally realize the real importance of having rejected the Lord Jesus Christ as their own personal Savior. Their name is not in “the book of life.” Is yours??? Well…??
[5] Watch and listen now as the verdict is handed down by the Great Judge. GUILTY! Guilty of rejecting the very One who loved them so much that He went to Calvary and shed His precious blood giving up His own life to pay their sin debt, making a way for them to be eternally saved. Yet they refused to receive, even as a free gift, what the Lord God did for them, Romans 6:23.
[6] Listen again to the screams and cries of the damned as their sentence is immediately carried out. No appeals! No reprieve! No second chance! “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire,” Revelation 20:15.
Conclusion
Dear readers, once again I have poured out my heart and soul and tears in trying to warn those readers who may be lost in sin “to flee from the wrath to come.” My prayer is that the Lord God will carry this message home to the heart of every reader. I am sure that every adult reader of this study has heard many terrible words uttered by people during their life time. But in the final analysis those words won’t matter much. I have tried to set before our readers some of the most terrible words recorded in the Bible. However, the absolutely most terrible words that any immortal soul will ever hear is not recorded in the Word, but rather implied. Those words will be uttered by the angel whom the Lord appoints to search through the Book of Life. Listen again as the voice of the angel echoes across the Court Room, “Lord, his [or her] name is not in the book!
Dear readers, my prayer is that none of my readers will ever hear those most terrible words pronounced against their own soul. I truly want to meet every reader when our Lord comes to resurrect and rapture His people to glory. Please, please, don’t disappoint me! The precious blood of Christ was shed for you, just as it was for me. I know that there is indeed “power in the blood” for I was saved for time and eternity when I received His sacrifice for my soul. Won’t you also seek the Lord in humble and sincere prayer and ask Him today to come into your heart and life and save you from your sins? If you are sincere in seeking the Lord, He will hear your prayer and save you right then and there, Read John 5:24 and 6:37. May the Lord give every reader the grace to truly believe is my prayer for you. Read Romans 10:8-13 and Ephesians 2:8-10.
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled,” Matthew 5:6.
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Permission is granted to any true believer or Bible believing Christian ministry to reproduce this study to share with others, or to quote from it in context as written.
This ministry is financed solely by the free will offerings of those readers who feel led of the Lord to help us send forth God’s wonderful Word.
Please address all comments, questions, and correspondence to: Pastor F. M. Riley, Last Call Gospel Ministry, 184 County Road 108, Harrisburg, Missouri 65256, or I can be contacted by email at: fmr7sngn@centurylink.net
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