Kingdom Ready Blog

Going way WAY back into some old-school literature this week with a pamphlet that is 65 YEARS OLD! This one-time radio sermon was broadcast just a few months after the close of World War II in November of 1945!  I thought I would bring this sermon tract into the digital age and give it new life as it is a great explanation of how Paul’s famous expression is NOT a support for the immortal soul belief - but is instead a Resurrection truth like all of Paul’s other writings. 

Enjoy! 

PAUL’S DESIRE TO DEPART AND TO BE WITH CHRIST

by

VICTOR L. HARRISON

Radio Pastor and Evangelist

This post is by Dr. John Roller, an expert on the doctrine of Conditional Immortality. You can visit his blog at johnroller.com and hear an interview I (Sean) did with him on Truth Matters or download his e-book about the historical development of the doctrine of hell. The following question and answer was sent out as part of the “Roller Update.”

Coming to you live from Anthony Buzzards’ 19th Annual Theological Conference in Atalanta GA… I’m on the laptop and wirelessly connecting to the web.  Yeah, isn’t technology great!

Anyway, here’s an article I’ve been trying to write forever it seems.  Finally, I got around to getting it done over some downtimes over the past couple of days.  The subject is the 11th Chapter of John and the wonderful truths I believe that can be learned from it.

Life after death – according to Martha & Jesus

By Ron Shockley

With last Sunday being “Resurrection Day” or “Easter,” it has caused me to take the time to reflect upon Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection, and ponder the question, “Where did Jesus go when he died on the cross?” 

Here’s another old conditional immortality pamphlet from my father’s collection that I’m bringing into the digital age.  I searched the internet for this particular piece and never found it.  Although I did find out that the author (Horace Lorenzo Hastings) lived back in the 1800′s (1831-1899).  This little track was published by Adventist churches for decades after – my particular copy by Advent Christian Publications & then hand stamped from the Advent Christian Church of Shamrock, Texas (probably in the early 1970′s).  Enjoy!

1. Who is immortal?
“The King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God.” 1 Tim. 1:17.

I found the following six-part video by the noted Baptist author Warren Prestidge. Pastor Prestidge is the one who wrote Life, Death, and Destiny: one of the best books on conditional immortality around. Click here to check it out.

Today I’m continuing in my quest to post more works from my collection of old theology writings that are now out of print and as far as I know are not yet out there in any digital form among the “ether” of the internet.

The following little poem is from a very old newspaper clipping that my parents had saved in a theology file they had put together over the years.  I truly do not know just how old it is, though from the looks of it it very well could be from the era of the 1940′s – 1950′s.  The author is listed as “H. A. Owens”.  But I have not been able to find any information about that person anywhere.

I stopped adding new shows/podcasts to Truth Matters months ago when I went back to school. However, before I left I had recorded this show with David Burge of New Zealand. I finally found the time to edit it and so you can now download it (if it interests you) by going to www.truthmattersradio.com or clicking the link below. Also, please add David to your prayers as he is currently fighting cancer (see note at the bottom).

to listen to “Objections to Conditional Immortality Answered with David Burge” click here

More Common “Proof Texts”

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16 is probably the primary passage that on the surface appears to support the popular notion that judgment, with resulting punishment and reward, is meted out before the resurrection. But this would contradict the rest of Scripture, which says that judgment will take place after the resurrection at the return of Christ (Daniel 12:2; John 5:28,29; Revelation 20:11-15).

Common “Proof Texts”

Despite the overwhelming evidence of the Scriptures, there are a small handful of passages that are repeatedly cited as proof that a believer goes immediately to be with the Lord at death. One of the most common is Paul’s statement in II Corinthians 5:8, “We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” This verse is almost always misquoted as, “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.” It is generally assumed Paul meant that to be absent from the body (i.e. at death) equals being present with the Lord. Similarly, Paul wrote in Philippians 1:23, “For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better.” Did Paul mean that when he departed he would be immediately with Christ? Does being absent from the body mean being present with the Lord? If this was what he meant, it would contradict not only the Hebrew understanding of death which we have discussed, but even many things that Paul himself wrote elsewhere.