Quote: “The visitation of God comes either in salvation or condemnation; it comes one way or another. Every one of us will experience the visitation of God. God will show up in your life for salvation, now, and forever, or for judgment in the future, and forever.” – John MacArthur. In what way does the visitation come? The most common way is through gospel proclamation. A gospel messenger is the mouth-piece (or writer!) for the proclamation but it is God Himself who does the actual speaking. “You can’t convert me,” I’ve been told copious times through the years. My response? “I’m not here to convert, I’m here to proclaim. What happens now you’ve heard the gospel is between yourself and God.”
How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? Romans 10:14-15. The preached or proclaimed message from the one sent, that’s the most common way for one to experience the visitation of God. Often I’ve been asked how one can know for certain that God exists. My usual answer is, “He’s speaking through me to you right now.” Deny it as they will, even those who mock, ridicule and reject the message know in their heart the truth of that. I might add too, once a person has heard the gospel of Jesus Christ, they can never be the same as before.
The one who, by faith, receives the gospel and acts upon it becomes a new person in Christ immediately, experiencing on-going internal visitations from the Spirit of God forever. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life John 5:24. The one who rejects the gospel experiences the judgment of God’s condemnation; it being on-going for all eternity if he/she dies in their sin. He who believes in Me is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God John 3:18. (Underline mine.)
Quote: “All people are by nature condemned. There is but one way of being delivered from this state, by believing on the Son of God. They who do not believe or remain in that state are still condemned, for they have not embraced the only way in which they can be freed from it. Nevertheless, those to whom the gospel comes greatly heighten their guilt and condemnation by rejecting the offers of mercy, and trampling under foot the blood of the Son of God. And there are thousands going to eternity under this “double” condemnation.” – Albert Barnes. Family, friends or acquaintances, once they hear but then reject the gospel, will often from then on show up as being among the most belligerent and vicious of people.
Whatever their concepts of Jesus Christ were prior to hearing His gospel, they change dramatically when learning it was He Himself who says all unbelievers are condemned already. Yet in 35 years, I don’t recall anyone deliberately and openly cursing Christ for saying it; they curse the messenger instead! What they don’t realize however, in cursing the messenger they are cursing Christ also, plus God the Father. He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects (despises) you rejects (despises) Me, and he who rejects (despises) Me rejects (despises) Him who sent Me Luke 10:16. Every level of cursing thrown at the messenger, Jesus looks upon it all as being thrown at Himself and God the Father!
It’s very important for people believing themselves to be Christians to grasp what’s said there. Take Roman Catholic people as one example. Just about everything their Church teaches about God, Jesus Christ, grace, faith, salvation, condemnation and damnation clashes with what the Bible teaches us about them. To make matters worse for Roman Catholic people, they are told they belong to the one true church. That means in real terms, all non-Catholic churches are not true churches at all. Their current pope, like those gone before him tell both them and the entire world this on a regular basis and both them and the world believe it without question. So when a gospel messenger proclaims the truth to them, “despised” is what he/she is.
It’s a similar story for Jehovah’s Witnesses in my years of experience, although they cover their despising a little better than the Roman Catholic people. One of my most vehement despisers of recent years, has all his life believed in reincarnation. In addition, he holds firmly to a view of death once held by a famous novelist and dramatist, perhaps most famous for his work of fantasy! Still, much is fantasy that denies biblical revelation, fairy tale or otherwise. Definition of truth: “the actual state of affairs, as contrasted with rumor, false report and mythology.” I don’t think “fantasy” would be out of place in that definition! And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free John 8:32.
The visitation of God to each person is first, one of offering the truth and there could be numerous visitations following with the same offer. God alone knows perfectly just how deeply imprisoned we human beings are because of our ignorance of truth, hence our violation of it. That’s why, We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says,………. Behold now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation 2 Corinthians 6:2. But having declared this, God alone knows when it’s time to cease those visitations and when He reveals such to His messengers, it is a sobering experience! I believe God recently revealed to me of one, “I have finished with him. I have no use for him!”
What does it mean now for that person? It means the visitation of God for judgment is now under way. It also means I sever all communication. This has been the case a few times over my 35 years as a messenger of the gospel. It is also a sad experience when such people die, for the great white throne judgment awaits them at the end of the future earthly reign of Jesus Christ Revelation 20. There’s no coming back from that! It was not lip-service Jesus was paying when He declared to His disciples, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me John 14:6. “I’ll do it my way,” said the dying old lady one time, when I shared the gospel with her.
The visitation of God, offering her the gift of salvation that day was the final offer. The visitation of God for judgment got under way the moment she told me that. “I’ll do it my way,” might sound appealing, boosting one’s ego, hopes and dreams when listening to Mr Sinatra sing the song and when life is grand and everything’s coming up roses, but it’s still a fantasy nevertheless! She would have discovered the reality of that the exact moment her living soul departed from her dead body. And there is salvation in no one else (but Jesus Christ); for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved Acts 4:12. In every way is Jesus THE way. If it were otherwise, He would have been the first to tell us!
In every way is Jesus THE truth. He’s not simply true, but TRUTH itself! One old-time theologian said of Jesus, “He is the sum and substance of all the truths of the Gospel; they are all full of Him, and center in Him; and He is the truth of all the types and shadows, promises and prophecies of the Old Testament; they have all their accomplishment in Him, He is a faithful, as well as a merciful one – true and faithful to Him (God the Father) that appointed Him; and as a King, just and true are all His ways and administrations…… ” What is truth? John 18:39. Pontius Pilate asked Jesus that question, but he didn’t want the answer. I’ve been asked that also, by people who didn’t want the answer. Some of the answer is in this paragraph.
In every way is Jesus THE life – the Creator and Giver of all life – natural, spiritual and eternal. At the beginning, the first man and woman were in possession of all three; but the latter two shriveled up and died the very moment they embraced the lie. Instead of being empowered by the LIFE of God, they became disempowered by what was left, natural life, which is in fact, death plus condemnation. For that reason, the visitation of God has come to their every descendant, first to offer the gift of salvation. If and when that gets finally rejected the visitation of God for judgment begins. How does God feel about this? It breaks His heart. But, God will not overrule any person’s decision – with this or anything else. “For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord GOD. “Therefore turn and live!” Ezekiel 18:32.