| 10 Comforting Stranger |
| �Let me ask you a question. Where do you believe you will go when you die?� She looked up. �Probably to hell. I haven�t exactly been the kind of person God would want in heaven.� �Would you really want to go to heaven?� �That�s where our dead loved ones are...of course I�d want to see my loved ones again.� �What if they weren�t in heaven? What if they were sleeping until the time when God steps in and changes conditions on earth?� Mike asked. �Sleep? Where?� �In the ground.� �But that would mean that there�s no heaven or hell. Is that what you�re saying?� She stood up and walked around the end of the bed and leaned against the brass foot. �There is a heaven. But, there�s no hell. That was a deception devised by early religious leaders to frighten their followers into submission.� �Then, why don�t good people go there when they die?� �Because heaven was created for God and the angels. Just as the earth was created for humans. Look up Psalms chapter thirty-seven, verse twenty-nine.� Peggy sifted through the pages again. She stopped at the Psalms and ran an index finger down the page until she found the verse. �The righteous themselves will possess the earth, and they will reside forever upon it.� �Does that answer your question?� �So, one day the earth will be inhabited by righteous people, is that it?� Mike nodded. �That�s God�s promise.� �What will happen to the bad ones?� �They�ll have an opportunity to change. Then when the time comes, if they haven�t, they�ll be destroyed.� �That�s a bit harsh.� �Don�t you agree that there�s an over abundance of badness in the world today? People think they can do whatever they want without serious repercussions. And let�s face it; the judicial system doesn�t work...does it?� �Yes, there are alot of bad things happening today and no, the courts don�t do much to correct the situation...but...� �Do you pity murderers, and thieves, and fathers who sexually abuse their children?� Mike stood up and walked over to her. �No!� �Satan is controlling the events on earth right now, and if people come to understand that and turn away from the wrong they�re doing, God will forgive them.� �Satan?� �You believe in hell; don�t you believe in the devil too?� �Well, yes, but how can he be doing these things?� �Because he and his demons were cast out of heaven and thrown down to the earth. This was the only place they could go. Now, Satan wants to take as many as he can down with him, because he knows his time is limited.� �He�s really here?� Mike nodded. �Yes, he�s really here.� �Does the bible say that?� �Revelation chapter twelve, verses seven to twelve.� |