Death – Kathy L McFarland

USA TODAY May 26 2011 Page 10A

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/letters/2011-05-26-beliefs-about-heaven-and-hell_n.htm

Author Rob Bell’s words do not hold true when evaluated through the inerrant word of God. Jonathan Edwards, a colonial‐era pastor, had it right. The difference between the most carnal, sinful, wicked people in the world, compared with the most righteous, spiritual, saintly ones, is one of appearance rather than fallen nature. Those who are able to seemingly rise above common sin have done nothing of the kind; they just have the tools to hide it better from others.

When someone is lucky enough to be born in an environment that teaches these hiding skills, then he or she has the tools needed to look “good” and escape condemnation or restriction from society. Those born within a culture that neglects teaching the necessity for the outward appearance to hide sin receive blunt judgment and accusation from the perfumed pews of Christian pretenders.

Kathy L McFarland
Peck, Idaho

USA TODAY Letter to the Editor by Fulton J Waterloo, “Theology and Nuance” (June 1, 2011)

USA TODAY reader Kathy McFarland made some valid points about the fallen nature of all people in the eyes of God and their continuance in sin in her Thursday letter “Salvation only through Jesus.” However, the possible implications of her theology are nothing short of mind‐boggling.

It is one thing to state correctly, that “Hitler and Mother Teresa were sinners.” It is another to deny the reality that many people cooperate with God’s grace rather than resist it. In the reader’s world, every man is a wife beater; every adult a child molester; every mechanic a cheat; and every lawyer an ambulance chaser, but we just aren’t aware of it.

If the only difference between Hitler and Mother Teresa was that she was “lucky enough to be born in an environment that teaches these hiding skills” then we need to begin a search for the millions of innocent people that she murdered.

Even more dangerous, if there is no difference in the “lived faith” of individual people, does sin even matter? To McFarland’s credit, she has taken the doctrine of “salvation by faith alone” to its obvious conclusion.

This evening, God willing, I will obey the speed limits on my drive home. Inevitably, a motorist will blast by me, only to be pulled over several miles down the road by a state trooper. In McFarland’s reality, the speeding motorist and I were driving the same speed; I just had better “hiding skills.”

Perhaps her letter demonstrates the danger of theology without nuance, and interpretation without guidance.

Fulton J. Waterloo Aston, Pa.
Rebuttal to Fulton J. Waterloo, “Theology and Nuance” (June 1, 2011)

USA TODAY Rebuttal to Fulton J Waterloo’s Letter to Editor dtd June 1, 2011 by Kathy L McFarland

Clearly, Fulton Waterloo has learned the hiding skills of traveling the speed limit, whereas the speeder that passes him is sinfully negligent (if speed could be defined as sin in Waterloo’s world). And Mother Teresa, bless her works in His name, learned from a young age that walking the way of her beloved Christ was preferable to submitting to her fallen nature and allowing it to guide her along a life path. Hitler was evil, through and through; his fallen nature overtaken by the worst of darkness, a glaring example of what happens when fallen nature walks so far away from God.

Beware! It is easy for “good” sinners to compare themselves to “bad” sinners, and convince themselves that the salvation of Jesus Christ is not needed. Sadly, that trick of the mind convinces many to trust in their own perceived righteousness, rather than relying upon the saving grace of Christ, and that error will one day doom them.

Kathy L McFarland
Peck, Idaho

It will NOT be a bright lighted tunnel! It WILL be a ship in waves and wind! Call on Jesus!

(Note to Readers: REPOSTED. This is so important to understand deeply so it is sealed in your memory at the time of your death, that I have included part of the deep study on passing over from earth life to eternal life)

Death: Passing Over as a Christian
Lecture 111-3

By Kathy L. McFarland
The dying experience for a Christian is not complicated. Scripture tells us exactly what will happen, and how we are expected to respond. However, there is a slight complication in learning what the Lord Jesus Christ wants us to know. It is hidden in His Word, similar to the parables He spoke to His disciples. Do you remember what He gave as the reason for speaking in parables?

Matthew 13:34–35 (KJV 1900)
34 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: 35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret
from the foundation of the world.

Mark 4:1–2 (KJV 1900)
And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. 2 And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine.

Mark 4:10-13 (KJV 1900)
10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. 13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?

Also understand:

Proverbs 26:7–9 (KJV 1900)
7 The legs of the lame are not equal:
So is a parable in the mouth of fools.
8 As he that bindeth a stone in a sling,
So is he that giveth honour to a fool.
9 As a thorn goeth up into the hand of a drunkard,
So is a parable in the mouth of fools.

There is only one key to understanding the hidden symbology and typology in our life today that are contained within the Word of God. THE HOLY SPIRIT within Christians that have been baptized
with Him is a crucial means to that understanding. It is the Holy Spirit that guides our studies and reveals the deeper things in Scripture. So, when non-Christians read the Bible, their eyes understand only the literal words within it, and they handle any deeper things within like fools. But Christians have been given the ability to read literal words and find deeper things and teachings of the LORD God that are hidden from the profane and secular.
Sadly, Christianity has been watered down so much in these times, that there are very few teachers of Scripture that know how to seek those deep teachings of God. All Christians can be strengthened by those important Words, but seldom do they experience them because there just is no one to teach them how to really read the Word of God with the Holy Spirit’s help.

Thanks be to God! I have been taught by the Holy Spirit to teach you to see the hidden inside the Word of God. It is the process of passing over in the death of a Christian that we will begin studying that deepness today. Contained within the literal Word of God are important instructions and briefings to what will actually happen when we pass over, and how the Lord Jesus Christ expects for us to handle it. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in understanding this crucial Scripture instructions and be prepared for any traces of the fear of death to leave your thoughts forevermore.

Creation of the Seas

Genesis 1:6–10 (KJV 1900)
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. 9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

The LORD God made the firmament from the waters and called it Heaven on the second day of Creation. He gathered the waters under Heaven and let the dry land of Earth appear. Between Earth and Heaven the waters were gathered together, and He called them SEAS! It is the sea that must be passed over between the Earth and Heaven; it is the division that separates both.

Physical Death

Mark 4:35–41 (KJV 1900)
35 And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. 36 And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. 37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? 39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

1. The Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples the reason for parables, with the Parable of the Seeds, (Mark 4:3-8) and The Explanation of the Parable of the Seeds (Mark 4:13-32). He wanted the disciples understanding of the underlying meaning of their next experience to be forefront on their minds.

2. That very same day, the Lord told His disciples “Let us pass over unto the other side.”

3. Whenever we see the Words “pass over” or Passover, we are immediately drawn to the memory of the LORD God Passing Over those Israelites houses that had the blood of a lamb painted on
their door posts during the carrying out of the last curse for the death of the firstborn against the Pharaoh (Exodus 12).

4. We also remember the Passover remembrance ordained by the LORD God to be celebrated every year (Deuteronomy 16).

5. Those two examples show a critical need for Believers to understand deeply what “pass over” means, and to understand the events that happened in Mark 4:35-41.

6. Literally speaking, pass over speaks of “moving from one shore to another shore over water.”

Other side – 4305 πέραν (peran): adv. and prep. (never compounded with verbs); ≡ Str 4008—LN 83.43 across, on the opposite side; the region across (Mk 3:8; 4:35; 5:1;
6:45; Lk 8:22; Jn 1:28; 18:1)

Conclusion – 4306 πέρας (peras), ατος (atos), τό (to): n.neu.; ≡ Str 4009—1. LN 80.6 limit, end of a space (Mt 12:42; Lk 11:31; Ro 10:18+; Ac 13:33 v.r. NA26); 2. LN 61.15 conclusion, end of a matter (Heb 6:16+)

(James Swanson, Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek (New Testament) (Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997).

7. Note the Hebrew word for “other side” is “πέραν (peran)” which is “across, on the opposite side; the region across.”

8. Note the Hebrew word “πέρας (peras)” as just the end root changes it to “conclusion.”

9. The Lord Jesus Christ took His disciples after sending the multitude away. This journey is just for His disciples.

10. They notice that there are other little ships around them.

11. A great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, and it filled the ship with water.

12. The disciples got scared. Big time. The boat was rocking back and forth severely, and the waves were rushing and beating and splashing and roaring. It was scary, and the disciples reached out to their Lord Jesus Christ who was in the boat with them.

13. They crawled to Jesus in that furious storm. He was asleep on a pillow, unaffected by the buffeting ship. They awoke Him and screamed, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?”

14. Jesus arose up, rebuked the wind and told the sea, “Peace, be still.” The wind ceased and the seas grew calm.

15. Jesus asked his disciples “Why are ye so fearful?” “How is it that you have no faith?”

16. By asking these questions, Jesus lets us know that to be fearful in this situation buffeting winds and furious seas while in a ship, shows A LACK OF FAITH!

17. This experience astounded the disciples and they became EVEN MORE FEARFUL, saying to each other “What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

18. Let’s do a bit of word typology, then I will lay the experience out for you in the deepest teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ.

19. Pass over to the other side – Means to move from life on earth to life in Heaven.

20. When even(ing) was come – Evening represents the end of life.

21. Jesus said to them “Let us pass over unto the other side.” Note that you do not do that by yourself. He said “us.” Jesus and you pass over together.

22. The multitude, the secular and the perverse in the crowd of people just listening to Jesus and not making a commitment; they couldn’t come to the places the disciples were going in the little
ship to pass over.

23. The little ship conveyed the Disciples from one shore to the other as it will convey all Followers of Jesus Christ.

24. The great storm with the winds blowing and the waves beating into the ship is the test of faith given to every Christian as they pass over.

25. Jesus sleeping with His pillow shows us that it is absolutely nothing to be scared about.

26. He taught the disciples and us that he could easily rebuke the wind and the waves and they would calm down immediately.

27. “Why are you so fearful, how is it that ye have no faith?” asks Jesus to show that it is indeed a test of faith easily accomplished.

Conclusion:
Let me recapture what we have learned from this account of the disciples in a storm in a little ship. We have learned exactly what will happen at the moment of a Christian physical death: As your physical body dies and your soul is released, you will immediately find yourself in a little ship. You will see other little ships floating around you; those are floating the souls of the other Christians that have died at the same time you have. The wind will pick up ferociously, and the waves will become bigger and bigger and pound your ship back and forth.

It is a test of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Do you trust Him to be Lord over all?
Do you trust Him to have peace in the midst of the terrible storm?
Do you have confidence in His presence with you as the storm builds?
Do you have certainty that you will reach the other bank and exit your ship into Heaven?
Do you have the deep knowledge of Mark 4:35-41 to prepare you for your physical death and encourage your active strong faith at the moment your soul leaves your body?

Pretty exciting isn’t it! You now have learned how it will feel and what you will see and hear when you experience physical death. And you now know that it is a faith test, and as a strong Christian,
you are not going to fail that little test now are you?

But wait! There is a little problem, maybe. How many of you have heard about the white tunnel of peace that almost dead and temporarily dead report when they awake? The white tunnel where a peaceful entrance into Heaven shows you surrounded by your lost loved ones. Sometimes even angels and God and Jesus lookalikes as they embrace and encourage the almost dead to return to their bodies because it is not their time. And they return with a certain, strong belief, that they and all the people they have known that have died before them are in the peaceful, bright Heaven, celebrating and loving each other.

Quite a different account of physical death, isn’t it? What’s up with that? Could it be our enemy, Satan, that is purposely causing these illusions of the almost dead? What gain could Satan make by putting false illusions in the almost dead?

Possibly, if he tricks the almost dead, he might think they would never increase any faith they might possess in their remainder life. Sadly, for the devil, some actually start walking closer with Christ.
It is a Satan fail sometimes.

But what about strong Christians? Does Satan want them to become shipwrecked when they meet their test of faith and die? YOU BET HE DOES! He wants strong Christians to grow so scared at the crossing between this life and the one of Heaven, that they fail their test, and must go back to their grave and sleep until Jesus resurrects them in the Last Days. When Christians mistakenly believe that everyone can go down a peaceful tunnel and meet God and their loved ones with angels singing and white light comforting them, and instead find they are being buffeted by a great wind and storm that threatens to sink their ship, they are likely to become fearful. And if the great enemy Satan can make good Christians fearful, then he thinks he can win. Regrettably for the devil, it still is a Satan fail; strong Christians learn the secret of death before they die, and if they don’t and become shipwrecked, they still have a place in Heaven, it will just take them a little bit longer to get there!

Thanks be to God!

Shipwrecked
1 Timothy 1:19 (KJV 1900)
19 Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck: 28. It is just a little tiny verse; but it confirms what we already know. If at the time of physical death, you have a weakness of faith, or a bad conscience, you are going to be shipwrecked! 29. If you are being buffeted by the storm in your little ship, and you were expecting a peaceful white tunnel leading to Heaven, and you lose faith or remember some of the bad things in your life, you will be shipwrecked.
30. What is faith? Faith is the surety of things to come. Faith is believing that the Lord Jesus Christ died for your sins, which should lead to a very good conscience from that moment you are saved. Faith is knowing God’s Word and believing it. Faith is knowing that your Savior will warn you before tough times occur. Faith is understanding the deep things in Scripture so you can prepare for physical death and have absolutely no fear when the storm hits!
Look at the Greek word for “wrecked:”

Wrecked: ῥῆγμα (rhēgma), N. wreck; ruin; collapse. Hebrew equivalent: 3) קְרָעִים ). Noun Usage 1. ruin (dissolution) — an event or act that results in destruction; especially that involves the breakup of component parts. Related Topics: Ruin; Desolate; Corrupt.

Wrecks cause ruin, desolation, corruption. Makes sense, does it not? Your faith is corrupted if it disappears at the moment of a scary event. You are made desolate for a lack of faith; you must sleep in your grave alone until Jesus resurrects you in the Last Days.
Please don’t misunderstand this. You are saved and will ultimately join Jesus for your little faith.

But if your faith is corrupted, if it is lacking, if you grow scared at the first storm upon your physical death, then you will be measured by the Lord Jesus Christ as “Lacking.” You will never assume a strong role in the New Earth if you cannot be strong getting there. Amen?