Ken,

Just 'happened' across your site. My dad died a week ago today (Sunday 2nd March) but was unsaved. As he lay in the hospital bed sufferring I thought, 'Get used to it dad cos you've got an eternity of it ahead'. I was appalled and still deeply disturbed a week later. I was 'born-again' nearly twenty years ago and baptised in the Holy Spirit. I believed in eternal torment for sinners but never sat comfortable with it. Over the last seven years, a close friend has died, I have lost my job (3 times), have been unemployed off and on for 3 years and have filled the gaps with temporary low paid jobs. I've had two traumatic splits with girlfriends, a split with my church of eighteen years and have got mounting debts. I used to follow the prosperity doctrine and the 'law of tithing, willingly submitted in all things to church leadership, prayed off and on for the salvation of my family and have suffered the 'silence' of the Lord for nearly 6 years. And now, with my dad's death, I have been left shattered by the helplessness I feel in not being able to do anything about lost souls. I no longer believe in the 'Prosperity Doctrine' or the 'Law of Tithing'. I no longer can read God's word because I can't see past the 'hatred' of mankind. I've looked at UR sites but cannot reconcile such things as 'if we do not forgive others God will not forgive us'. I've been attempting to study for a degree in Biblical Studies because I had a desire to be in the ministry. This has come to a temporary halt because I can't face teaching on eternal torment or conduct funerals of the unsaved knowing that they are in hell. I'm a bit of a mess, right?!! I live in Gosport, on the south coast of England. I still believe but I fear I no longer know God. I still believe in the work of the cross but it seems useless and powerless seeing as most will not benefit. I get bad tempered when well meaning christian friends say that man has free will to decide heaven or hell, knowing that all the odds seem stacked against us. After all, didn't Peter write that if it is so hard for us to be saved what hope is there for the unbeliever. Your testimony struck a chord with me and I am determined to come out at the other end. I recently heard a New Zealand guy talk of a Near Death Experience he had. He found himself in hell but the prayer of his mother saved him. All very confusing. Please remember me in your prayers if you are able and, if you have any pointers I would be very, very grateful. In the meantime, I will continue to study your site. Thank you and God bless you all.

Mark

Mark, this letter has also been sent to Bcc, certian brethren on the Internet who share the same doctrine in Christ that we hold dear.

Brother Mark, greetings in Christ the Lord from British Columbia Canada. I greet you in the Lord.

What do you mean when you say you have "suffered the 'silence' of the Lord for nearly 6 years"? I beg to differ Mark, God is speaking to you loud and clear. In fact, He has looked upon your heart and is delivering you unto Himself in righteousness and in pure holiness, without any blemish or spot or flaw. Hard to believe? I don't think so. Because the things you stated in this letter is ample proof to me that God is working His perfect will into your life. He has allowed the spirit of truth to speak to your walk, and to cause you to become restless and unfit in the denominational walk you have been in thus far. And not only so Mark, but God has looked upon you as a member of your family, and has hand picked, chosen if you will, you - personally, to be one that He will one day refer to as "His overcomer".

All of the pressures that have come to bear upon your life are of God. He is the one directly responsible for those pressures upon you, including the passing away of your father, the job situation, relationships, church relationships etc. God ordered that these would happen, and the INTERPLAY of good and evil in your life is completely ordered and controlled by God, to bring you to such a place as this. And that place is so that you will finally HEAR the good news of the gospel of Christ.

That gospel is that there is NO such thing as a Christless eternity, or separation of any one person who has ever lived or will ever live from the life that is in God and that life that is found in the "abundant" life that Christ said He would give. And you will also learn by the very same Lord, that the eternal salvation is guaranteed for every man WHEN God leads them to it, either now, or as in the case of your father, when they are on the other side. There is no such thing as eternal agony and torment in eternal hell. There is no such thing as anyone being separated from our Loving Heavenly Father. Jesus Christ is the propitiation not only for our sins, but for the sins of the entire world. And it is not based upon the time we have here in flesh bodies to decide. One cannot decide unless God leads them to it. More can be explained if you desire more depth into this area.

And Mark, YOU don't have to do ANYTHING about lost souls. That is Jesus job alone. He may use us, but that is not the point. Christ is the savior and it is up to HIM to save or not save. This is HIS WORK, not ours. You need not be burdened for lost souls, Christ has a plan for every man. Each man in his own order will come into that eternal salvation.

I am glad for you that you are not able to continue on in Biblical Studies because you are obviously being taught what Paul referred to in Galatians as "another gospel", which he said was cursed.

Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

The typical bible study colleges etc teach things that are an affront to the Word of God and to the person of Our Lord Jesus Christ. They teach eternal torment, doctrines that show God was suprised by Adam's fall in the garden, and so God has been mad ever since, doctrines that show that good christians will 'escape' the tribulation that the world is coming into.

Not so for those that overcome, as is listed in the first 3 chapters of Revelation. These overcomers do not hold to those doctrines of a God that is angry and a savior that can only do a portion of what God sent Him to do.

Concerning man having a free will. I may not be able to answer this as well as some of my brethren in Christ, but this I will say. There is no such thing as "free will" in man. We are servants, either to the Lord, or to sin, that was plain in Romans 6:16. Man is not a free moral agent, we are bound by the will of God in our present circumstances, which, if we are overcoming, will work into good quicker than if we resist His will. Either way, God will work in each man in their due order to come not only into His perfect will, but into the fullness of what Christ gave them by His atonement, until God is truly all in all.

Mark, the cross will benefit everyone, because everyone was nailed to it! No one exempt. Although at this point you are disollusioned with what you see as 'truth', it may be that you need to ask yourself a few questions.

Here is one question.

If Christ was who He said He was, the savior of the world, then ask yourself this Mark. 1 Corinthians 15:24 says that Christ will deliver up the Kingdom to God, a completed work. According to christian doctrine that is bereft of truth, they state that maybe 20% of humanity will be saved. So let's say that Christ somehow by a miracle manages to save 99.9% of humanity. There is still .01% of humanity unsaved. Then ask yourself Mark, would Christ then have "missed" the mark? Sin means to miss the mark right? So then Christ Himself would have at that point, committed sin. Cause a part of humanity remains in eternal hell and unsaved. Christ would not have fulfilled what God sent Him to do.

That is a good question to ask yourself. LOOK AT JESUS MARK. Look at Him, see Him who is perfect in all He does, all He said, who successfully brake the bands of death that held Him and came forth as the new creation species that is eternal and righteous and never will die or forget any one of those in the earth who are yet without being "found" by Him.

Ask yourself another question Mark.

In Revelation 1:8 Christ says to John the Revelator that He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the ending.

So that means that there was a beginning, right? The disciples in Matthew 24 asked the Lord what would the END of things be. To understand the end, one must first understand the BEGINNING. And in the beginning, there was NO SIN, NO FALL, NO INIQUITY, NO DESPAIR, NO DEATH, NO SORROW - NOTHING SHORT OF GOD'S FULLNESS. And if we know the beginning, that is what the END WILL BE. For to come to the end, one must return to the beginning. Christ is the END as he was the BEGINNING. And He is all things inbetween. So here is your next question. If Christ is the end, the end of death, the end of hell, the end of the lake of fire and brimstone, the end of sin, iniquity and also the mysteries of God, then WHAT DO WE HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT?

You see Mark, Christ is going to do a 100% complete work.

Christ laid His hand upon you, and even in your disolusionment over what you see in the church realms, and by the death of your father, you must admit, that His hand IS upon you BECAUSE he has brought you to a place wherein you will now, at this point, seek HIM ALONE.

For when you find Him Mark, you will ABANDON ALL ELSE TO FOLLOW HIM. There is nothing that our Savior will not accomplish, He is the OMEGA and the END. Nothing will escape Him or His army Joel 2.

As for the New Zealand brother who had a near death experience. In my opinion, that would have been a working of God to bring that one to a place of repentance, not necessarily a doctrinal statement of the character of God.

One must understand Mark, that the entire christian world, those whom I refer to as they in "christendom", believe that God is mad. He is mad cause His perfect plan got flawed in the garden. Not so. God is not mad, but WAS IN CHRIST RECONCILING THE WORLD UNTO HIMSELF. And no man can come unto Christ EXCEPT the Father draw them to Him. God is NOT mad. But madness has infiltrated christian denominationalism, so that now they don't know what is or what is not God.

From all such FLEE. Run instead unto the Lord, and cling to Him and ask HIM to show you the truth of my words.

You can find all such information you need at our homepage http://www3.telus.net/wc/vissfam.html and if you look at the center button rows, you will see a button link to a page called "Through The Cross and the Blood, Salvation Of All Links", http://www3.telus.net/wc/salvation_links.html which will list out to you pages on the net of those who speak and believe as I do.

There are quite a few sites there that are very informative, but I would like to point out three in particular that are very well versed in the word of God and may do a better job at answering questions that I.

They are Promised Seed Ministries http://www.promiseed.com Stacy Wood Jr. promiseed@aol.com

Light of His Glory Ministries http://www.ocis.net/~rmckay Ross and Sue McKay

Eagles Cry Messages http://www.eaglescrymessages.com Dave and Sheila Gardner eaglecry@tcac.net

These are dependable brethren.

You can also download and install Windows Messenger at http://messenger.msn.com/default.asp?client=1 and then link to us kjvisscher@msn.com in case you want to type or microphone talk with me in person online, it works better if you are on high speed internet, but dial up internet works ok for type chat.

I do hope to hear from you again Mark, you blessed me very much by writing and I can fully understand and see the hand of God working to bring you to a place wherein you have to seek Him for pure truth.

I bless you in the Lord.

Kenneth B Visscher

Praise God Mark,,, for in Him there is neither male nor female, bond or free, Jew or greek,,, I look forward to our fellowship. Ken

----- Original Message -----

From: Mark

To: Ken & Janis Visscher

Subject: Re:

Ken,

Thanks for your message and kind concern. I've been away for a few days attending my dad's funeral. The vicar was a lady, something that I've always opposed (God does seem to be turning things upside down for me!). She preached the ultimate redemption of my dad and actually went over to his coffin and proclaimed over him the salvation of christ. The force and conviction of what she was proclaiming caused my spirit to smile and 'rejoice' amidst all the grief. I've been to a number of funerals but I've never experienced that sort of thing before. Anyway, I'll be in touch again very soon and it would be good to build a friendship. Thanks again for your love and concern.

Best Wishes

Mark

Hi Mark, Your father will not only be in the Kingdom of God, but all his tears, or sorrows, or both will be wiped away from his eyes by God our Father. Sin is not an issue with God anymore, for anyone.

I don't know if you had bitterness with your dad, but know that if there was or is something wrong, God will fix it. There will be no more sorrow. Read the last two chapters of Revelation. Ken

----- Original Message -----

From: Mark

To: Ken & Janis Visscher

Hi Ken,

Just thought I'd drop you a line to say I'm still here. It's been a bit hectic and fraught over the last few days. I've continued to trawl the web reading various articles on UR and I've also been perusing your site. Odd thing happened today, though. I tend to 'watch' christian tv when I'm doing other things as a backdrop. This evening there was an evangelist, David Hathaway, on a chat show. Normally, these chat shows are quite tame and mundane but my ears pricked when a caller contacted the show to say that, although he respected David's ministry in Russia, he couldn't go along with the hell message because he believed in universal reconcilliation. In the years I've been watching and listening to christian tv I've never heard this before. A somewhat agititated conversation ensued but, sadly, I found myself rebuffinf the UR guy with the same scriptures that the tv host was trying to use, though not very effectively. He got into a right mess with some of his 'isms' (eg, calvinism). One scripture that was quoted was the watchmen in Ezekial. God tells them that if they fail to warn the people of impending disaster he will hold them (the watchment) accountable. In this way, christians are charged by God to warn as many people as possible about God's judgements/hell and this is God's act of love in pushing the christian out of complacency. It seems, however, slightly out of context although I do feel that sometimes God must give his children a bit of a kick to get His message out. I suppose, also, I'm not going to change my thought patterns overnight. Anyway, thanks again for your support. I look forward to hearing from you.

God Bless

Mark

Hello Mark; Thanks for writing. Believe me, I have heard all the traditional scripture references that denominations use to refute UR, and none of them hold water. May I ask you a question Mark? Where did Jesus, or any disciple in the new testament who's writing has been included in the canon of scripture, ever say that we were to "warn as many people as possible"? Can you find that in the New Testament? We are told by the risen and Glorified Christ to go forth and "preach" this gospel (good word) to EVERY creature. But where does it say we are to work tirelessly in warning everyone? Paul said in Colossians just one verse, in the entire new testament about warning people. Here is what he said:

Col 1:28 Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:

Now let me ask you Mark, if we obey Col 1:28, and warn every man, what is the end result? PRESENT E-V-E-R-Y MAN PERFECT IN CHRIST JESUS. Where does it say that the blood of the guilty is on our hands and heads according to the new creation order that Christ has now made by being raised from the dead? What is the 'hell' message? It is a message of doom and wrath that is never ending that will not ever find mercy or favor with God. God is mad, that is the hell message. No. God is NOT mad. As for your rebuff, that shows you that the indoctrination of denominations is simply still a part of your thinking. It is that very thinking that what I share with you is being dealt with by the Lord.

How does God deal with us? What does He do? He in mercy - contradicts - what we think is truth. The very spirit of truth comes to us and gives us a DOUBT about what we think is 'truth'. That doubt is in fact the spirit of truth. And that truth will surely contradict all of christendom's present doctrines!

Mark, if Christ finished the work (He said "It is finished"), then does that include the salvation of humanity? What was finished at the cross? The atonement for humanity. Then christendom jumps in with the thought that man has to 'choose', using verses like Romans 10:9,10 etc to prove that we have a choice. But Jesus said that we don't have a choice, that no man can come to Him (for salvation) EXCEPT the Father draws him. We are servants to whom we choose to obey Rom 6:16. There are lots of verses in the New Testament that talk about firey vengeance upon those who choose to disobey the gospel. Is that eternal hell fire separation from God? Or is it correction?

Let me ask you about one verse out of the book of Proverbs.

Pro 11:1 A false balance [is] abomination to the LORD: but a just weight [is] his delight.

Now if we look at this, we can see it is talking about scales, like you'd find in a vegetable or fruit market. If they are false, it is said to be an abomination to the Lord because the consumer would be getting robbed. In the same way Mark, would a man, who lives 70 years as a sinner, have a 'just' balance if he spends eternity in the agonies of torment and separation from God who is love in the lake of fire with no hope of it ever ending? Would God then be guilty of a false balance? If you look at Proverbs 16:11 you can see that all the weights and balances belong to the Lord. In other words Mark, God controls the interplay of good and evil and the circumstances that effect each human life.

As for God giving His children a bit of a kick to get the message out. If a child is called to do so, and is not doing so, God knows how to work on them so they DO get out and do that which is according to His will. But understand, the responsibility for the salvation of mankind is not ours. It never has been, never will be. We are told to preach the gospel to every creature, which some call the great commission. If you read my article at our site on that, you will see that Christ saying that is the GUARANTEE that it WILL happen! It is HIS work, NOT ours and it is HIS enablement, not ours that will cause this work to be completed.

I for one cannot accept the eternal torment, Christless eternity, eternal separation from God mentality that has christendom running around in ruthless insanity. When I read the word of God Mark, I cannot find God being mad at anyone. In fact, God was the one that ORDERED Adam to fall into sin! God created that tree that Adam was not to partake of, so that Adam WOULD partake of it, so that creation WOULD come into the bondage of decay! That was all part of God's WILL! No one else is responsible. God was NOT surprised, everything that happened - happened according to HIS PERFECT WILL. God thrust creation into this death and decay so He could show forth in total Glory His INFINITE LOVE. There is no such thing as the hell doctrines that christendom promotes nowadays.

I have some Gleanings up by a ministry who has been a boon to many in the body of Christ. If you go to Roger Tutt's site and click on the "Gleanings" link, it will open a window on the right that shows forth excerpts from the cassette teaching ministry or Ray Prinzing. There are numbers there, you click on each number, and it will go to that section of the tape. There is sound wisdom in those gleanings. I don't have them all up there yet, still working on it as I am a very busy man with all my Internet work, but there is about 75% of them up there, parts in the center still undone. I will get them up as soon as I can, but if you take time to read some of these things on Roger's site, you will be blessed and it will teach you with light that is bright and beautiful. The site is at http://www.angelfire.com/on4/hope/ Also, the writing I wrote on the Great Commission is at The Visscher Family Homepage at http://www3.telus.net/wc/greatcommission.html There is another good article on "It Is Finished" at Ross and Sue McKay's site at http://www.ocis.net/~rmckay and the article in particular is at http://ocis.net/~rmckay/Accordingto.htm although that site has many other excellent writings.

Thankyou for writing.

Ken Visscher

Mark, do you want me to give you some answers about this email? Ken

---- Original Message -----

From: Mark

To: Ken & Janis Visscher

Subject: Re: hey

Hello, Ken

Sorry I haven't been in touch. I've been having a tough time spiritually and I needed to unscramble my brain a bit.

It's not easy trying to get out of the ET mentality. I recently read on the net of a christian guy who has his own site. He was a proponent of ET then switched over to the UR type camp. Now he's gone back to ET because, he says, the bible is clear about it. He doesn't like it but that's what God says and that's what he must obey. I have some sympathy with him but it causes me great discomfort. It seems to me at the moment that Jesus inference was always on eternal torment for the unbeliever, which is why the church grew up on it. I've read that the early church did not believe in ET but I can't find any source outside of Universal Reconcilliation proponents who will agree with that hypothesis.

This morning I thought I might go 'mad'. I was thinking of the God and how difficult he has made it to be saved: the bible points to salvation through faith, or works or both. Even then, Jesus might say, "Away from me you evil doers I never knew you"! It seems one can never be assurred of one's salvation.

Anyway, these things we must work out and no doubt one day I will find some peace. I really do appreciate your concern, I mean that. I enjoy checking out your site too. I read your emails frequently so it will sink in eventually, I hope.

Take care, Ken and God Bless.

Mark

----- Original Message -----

From: Ken & Janis Visscher

To: Mark

Subject: hey

Mark, would love to hear from you again, hope your ok, write me back,,, ken

See my reply below this string,, ken

----- Original Message -----

From: Mark

To: Ken & Janis Visscher

Subject: Re: hey

Ken,

Yes, please. Obviously I am not able to digest anything too heavy in the way of detailed systematic theology at the moment but it is an vital part of my spiritual journey to find answers and/or peace. Your comments are very welcome. If I sound a bit aloof or off the wall at times I hope you'll forgive me!

Thanks again, Ken. I really do appreciate it.

Mark

----- Original Message -----

From: Ken & Janis Visscher

To: Mark

Subject: Re: hey

What I meant to say Mark, was, do you want me to respond to this or just drop it for a time,,, if you want to see this through, let me know, I will respect your decision, but I do want to fellowship with you. Ken

----- Original Message -----

From: Mark

To: Ken & Janis Visscher

Subject: Re: hey

Hello, Ken

Sorry I haven't been in touch. I've been having a tough time spiritually and I needed to unscramble my brain a bit.

It's not easy trying to get out of the ET mentality. I recently read on the net of a christian guy who has his own site. He was a proponent of ET then switched over to the UR type camp. Now he's gone back to ET because, he says, the bible is clear about it. He doesn't like it but that's what God says and that's what he must obey. I have some sympathy with him but it causes me great discomfort. It seems to me at the moment that Jesus inference was always on eternal torment for the unbeliever, which is why the church grew up on it. I've read that the early church did not believe in ET but I can't find any source outside of Universal Reconcilliation proponents who will agree with that hypothesis.

This morning I thought I might go 'mad'. I was thinking of the God and how difficult he has made it to be saved: the bible points to salvation through faith, or works or both. Even then, Jesus might say, "Away from me you evil doers I never knew you"! It seems one can never be assurred of one's salvation.

Anyway, these things we must work out and no doubt one day I will find some peace. I really do appreciate your concern, I mean that. I enjoy checking out your site too. I read your emails frequently so it will sink in eventually, I hope.

Take care, Ken and God Bless.

Mark

Hello Mark, not sure how much systematic theology I have, cause I am not sure what that is, but I do know a few things! :o) Anyways, on to this email. Rather than trying to unscramble your brain about all this, lets just go sit at Jesus feet for awhile to learn from Him.

One thing you will have to recognize Mark is that we do get confused by a combination of two things.

1) Confusion comes when we are presented with doctrine that is out of the norm. Doctrine that UNDOES what we thought was truth before.

2) That the enemy of our soul, by God's permission, can cast stumblingblocks of confusion (usually over doctrine), in our pathway. This is allowed by God as a test. Why? So that we will learn to resist the devil and he will flee from us. This resistance will also prove to God that we have a love for the truth.

There have been lots of people Mark who fall back into the et mindset, deeming God to be angry, and finding that eternal torment is the easiest thing to believe. The reason for that is also twofold.

1) Falling away from UR is usually due to a lack of "foundation" in what they have recieved as truth.

2) The price to pay for believing UR is usually too high as it will separate one from family and former christians who went with them into fellowship.

This man who went back to ET is RIGHT about the Bible being not clear about it. In fact, it is hard to see it when you just read black ink on white paper! What says Proverbs?

Pro 25:2 [It is] the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings [is] to search out a matter.

These truths are hidden to the natural man, or theological understanding UNLESS the spirit of the Lord WITHIN a person bears witness to this as truth. When someone is convinced of truth, they must become well versed in the word of God to be able to teach others why they believe this doctrine.

I agree with you that it seems that Christ is speaking of eternal torment for the unbeliever, but one must find by careful search in the scripture just exactly what Jesus really did say and what He really did mean. In every case where he refers to a "great gulf fixed" and being cast in the latter day away from His presence, there must be an answer. And there is.

Every time Christ referred to this type of subject, He was only making a point. But that point was finalized by the atonement He accomplished. The great gulf, the casting away, all that was reconciled by the arms of His cross when He paid the price for our sin and iniquity. Not only so, but the word of God thereafter, through Paul, Peter, John and James also points to this finished fact. God no longer speaks this way, as this man said, and as he said, he must obey God. For God to do otherwise would be folly to him as well. But the truth is finished. If you read the gospels in the light of Christ, you will see that Christ has accomplished a full work of redemption, and that in time mankind will come into it. Also in time, Christ will hand back to Father a completed Kingdom with nothing lacking.

And lest I be found to fall short of His standard, it is UP TO GOD to bring me UP TO that standard.

The entire crux of this matter rests on one question Mark. Who's work is this, God's or man's?

Now if it is man's work, then we must believe in ET. But if it is God's work, then ET is impossible. Why? Because God COMPLETED HIS WORK IN CHRIST. The full expression of His love and redemption was finalized in Christ. Now your next question would be "What about man making a choice to accept or reject Christ?" Mark! Do we really have that choice? Can we choose so freely or reject so freely? If Christ' words were true that no man could come to Him except that the Father Draws (drags) him, then can they NOT come? Or if God is NOT drawing them CAN THEY COME? Who's responsibility is this Mark? Do we have this free will to decide when we hear the gospel? I know that according to the scripture, when the time comes for a person to hear and believe, they will. Whether that time be here on earth, or after passing away from this world, that matters not to God, for He is the God of the dead and of the living.

So I am going to ask you to do something Mark. Rather than getting sick in your mind trying to figure this out, just take the entire thing, and my emails and lay them out before the Lord. Ask HIM to show you plainly so that you can believe or not believe. But whether you choose to believe or not believe IS NOT THE ISSUE. The issue is, WILL GOD'S WILL BE DONE? And if God sent Christ to be the propitiation for our sins, and to save mankind, and there be even ONE not found and saved, then Christ Himself WOULD BE A SINNER. Why? Because sin means "to miss the mark". And if God requested Christ to save humanity, and He does not do it, then He will indeed have missed the mark. No, He said:

Joh 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Joh 17:4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.

Joh 17:5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.

If He finished the work, what else is there? Practically, it is being worked into each person in their due time, but in the propensity of the situation, it is fully accomplished.

You know what Mark? Jesus received ONLY ONE COMMANDMENT FROM HIS FATHER. And do you know what that was? JUST THINK MARK, ONLY ONE COMMANDMENT.

You can find it in John ch 12. :

Joh 12:49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

Joh 12:50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.

His commandment was LIFE EVERLASTING. So then Mark, if that was His only commandment, what about the hell fire preaching etc? Well, it had it's place in allegory, but its finality was IN HIS ATONEMENT. And Jesus DID NOT JUST DIE 2000 years ago! No, look at this verse:

Rev 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Now wait a second! From the FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD? Why Mark? Why is that? Because THE FALL OF MAN IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN INTO DEATH AND SIN WAS GOD'S PERFECT WILL AND PLAN. But before any of this even happened, God had slain a lamb.

I will now ask you a question Mark. What if Adam had NOT eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? What if he would have obeyed God and not partaken of it, nor his wife Eve? Then Mark, GOD WOULD HAVE BEEN A SINNER. Because GOD SLEW A LAMB. It would not have been lawful, from the foundation of the world, for God to slay a lamb and cause a death! BUT GOD DID BECAUSE THE FALL WAS PART OF HIS ABSOLUTELY MARVELLOUS PLAN. This plan was played out AND COMPLETED WHEN CHRIST ROSE FROM THE DEAD. So then, the salvation of man is not our work, but His, the choice is not when WE want to come to Him, it is up to Him to do so WHEN HE CALLS EACH ONE.

Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Not everyone on this earth will come to salvation in their lifetime. God has ordained who will and who won't come to be saved by the spilt blood of Christ on Calvary. BUT HE HAS ORDAINED THAT IN THE NEXT LIFE/AGE ALL WILL KNOW HIM, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST.

Heb 8:11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

And if you don't believe that choice can be made for God in the afterlife, what about this verse?

1Co 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.

1Co 15:24 Then [cometh] the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

1Co 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.

1Co 15:26 The last enemy [that] shall be destroyed [is] death.

Note verse 23, every man in his own order. It is not relegated to the breathing of the lungs or the beating of the heart. It is according to the time of spirit for that individual. For God will reconcile all things back unto Himself. Just as Jesus did when He died, He descended into the lowest hell and preached to the spirits in prison, those who died while the ark was a preparing (or prior to the time of Noah's flood) 1 Peter 3:19.

What about Sodom and Gomorrah etc? Those ungodly nations/cities of the old testament. Look at what God told Ezekiel. Did you know that they will be restored to their former estate to come serve the Lord in righteousness? Eze 16:55 (please read in context).

Mark, YOU have to settle this before the Lord. I threw a monkey wrench in the gears, but it must be, for it is the time of your calling and the Lord will reveal to you His will.

Father, I pray for Mark, and ask that you would comfort him in all his afflictions. I ask dear Lord that you would look upon him and pity him and show unto him great mercy. Lord, I ask you to bring him into YOUR peace, and that you will keep him there. And I ask dear Lord that you would open up his mind in quietness and in confidence, that he might behold the mystery of your word, and know that you are a God of life that will fail none of His creation. Lord, make Mark into a mighty preacher of the true word of the Lord, and give unto him I pray that pearl of great price. Even the restoration of all creation. Raise Mark up oh Lord, that he might shine brightly the gospel (good word) of Christ through every motion of his life before you. And allow him to be strong as all things around him shake apart, knowing that you are separating him unto Yourself by the Holy Spirit. Bless his walk Lord. Make of him a FULL OVERCOMER so that he may RULE AND REIGN with Christ upon the ETERNAL THRONE OF GLORY. In Christ's name and for His sake. Amen