“It’s a mystery”, he said. Because he didn’t have an answer that supported his beliefs.

The common person will typically read what is written in their particular translation and accept it at face value. There have been over 45 different Bible translations published so far. Many original words have been replaced in the modern translations of scripture in an attempt to help people understand what our Lord is saying. In doing so the translators insert what they believe the text may be saying and this manipulation of the scriptures can sometimes lead to the creation and support of false teachings. The infallible Word of God is still true, but what we see written is quite often from man.

Many people tend to believe that the Word is open for personal interpretation and should be left for the reader to decide how it’s message is relevant to themselves. I, for one, do not accept that theory. Only by truly seeking the actual truth will we know what the message is and that can only be done by accepting the facts and being very discerning about traditions and wishful thinking.

On this page we are going to look at some of the mysteries and provide facts to clear them up. There are many false teachings that are prevalent in our churches and even our studies today. To get a clear understanding of scripture we need real facts, not wishful thinking. As question come in I will update this page but we are going to start with this list of mysteries for now:

MYSTERIES:

• Heaven – which one are we talking about?
• Hell – is there really a place of eternal suffering for unbelievers?
• The Cross – why was this word never found in the original writings?
• The Church – when was this word invented?
• Once Saved Always Saved – is that true?
• Rapture – when will this actually happen according to scripture?
• Mark of the Beast – what are the possibilities and what do I think?
• The Beast – does scripture tell us who the Beast truly is?
• 666 – what does this number actually represent?
• Anti-Christ – is this a man?
• Jews – who are the Jews?
• Death – what really happens according to scripture?
• Eternal Life – are all souls eternal?

There are many times you will ask a question about something in scripture and the common response will be “It’s a mystery”. A lot of the confusion comes from mistranslated key words like hell, church, and cross. You can look up the origins of these words yourself but here is bit of help.

The word “Hell” is a pagan word that popped up in western Europe about 725ad. It was the dark netherworld of the dead. Different cultures had traditions about what that place might be like. The King James Bible was first to use it as a replacement for the Hebrew word Sheol which the Hebrew scriptures described as the dark pit or abyss where all souls go after death. Sheol was used 64 times in the Old Testament and was never described as a place of suffering, just a grave or a dark pit from which there is no escape. Peter says bad angels are imprisoned in the dark pit since the days of Noah waiting for judgement, and Revelation says it will be the place where Satan will be chained for 1000 years.

In the New Testament  the word “hell” is used to conceal Greek words:

–Gehenna – the Valley of Hinnom where the Jews burned trash and dead things (the burning trash pit)
This is not sheol. This is the fate of all who reject the Creator and his promise…burned with the trash.
Mat 5:22, 29 and 30.  Mat 10:28 says this is where the soul and body are destroyed.
Mark 9:43 unquenchable fire, Mark 9:45 the fire of Gehenna,  Mark 9:47 Gehenna, Luke 12:5,
James 3:6 flames of Gehenna,

-Tartarosas  – deep black hole or abyss in Hades.
2Pet 2:4

–Hades – Greek word for the grave or place of the dead.
Depending on context it can mean the god Hades, the realm of Hades, or the place of the dead.
Mat 16:18 “the gates of Hades will not prevail against…”

–  The “Cross” is the symbol of the Roman Catholic Church. It was not original scripture either. It has universally replaced the original Greek word “stauros”, which is an upright stake or pole. The Roman Vulgate Bible inserted the word “cross” in all Greek scripture to promote that symbol. A good example of wrong usage is when Jesus told the man to pick up his cross and follow me. Most every traveler had a strong walking stick to beat off dogs and thieves, but church leaders try to make us think it has a spiritual meaning, We know it means pole in this context and also in every other place it was used.

– The non-scriptural word “Church” is from early western European cultures and refers to the place or location that a meeting is being held. The Jews had places they gathered like temples and synagogues. Differing groups of believers today have specific locations that they gather to worship and fellowship.

Today the word “church” is used to describe both the group and the location. The word “church” is now also used to describe the entire Christian universe of believers both dead and alive.

In Revelation 2
The word comes from the English circe, Scottish kirk, Dutch kerk, and mostly from the German kirche 
The word “church” is now used in almost every translation to conceal the Greek word Ecclesia which literally is the group or the members of the assembly. Early Bibles used the word “congregation”. Today the meaning has been lost and the Roman concept of “one universal church” is what is being promoted in most Christian gatherings. When you read the word “church” in your Bible it is a mistranslated word every time.

Jesus was referring to his flock and chosen followers when he spoke of the ecclesia (the people).
Jesus is the rock, the anchor, the body, the church. To Jesus is where we will gather.

Church = the meeting place or location
Ecclesia = the people who gather there

-Once saved always saved is not a direct quote from scripture. What scripture says is that salvation is guaranteed to those who put the trust and loyalty in the Creator of all things. Those who believe have the ticket to salvation and eternal life in their hands but they still have to be on board the ship or it will leave without them. Satan and the fallen angels believe in Jesus Christ but they won’t get saved. People can believe and fall away from their faith for a time and come back and still be saved. But many who once truly believed will fall away and not be saved.

–The Rapture is a theory that I spent countless hours on. I could not find any Biblical support to suggest that an instantaneous disappearance of believers will occur before, during, or at the end of the Great Tribulation that is prophesied to occur before the return of Jesus Christ. When Jesus returns his angels will gather/harvest those believers who endured to the end and resisted The Beast and the False Prophet and will be judged in the First Judgment. The only place a total removal of all believers occurs is found in Rev 18:4 where all “my people’ are called away before the final plaques are poured out on an unbelieving unrepentant world. This will happen at the end of the millennial reign of Christ on this present Earth just before Abaddon/Apollyon (the angel released from the bottomless pit…Satan) takes control of Jerusalem and the Temple.

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Let’s take a look at a few of the mysteries that have been solved.

1.  Jesus told the thief, “I tell you today you will be with me in Paradise” (the Hebrew has no    comma…that was added later). And three days later he told Mary that he had not yet gone to the father. So where did Jesus and the thief go when they died?
Solution:  The souls of Jesus and the thief went to sheol (hell). But the gates of sheol could contain Jesus so he arose from the dead. From there he went to a place we cannot go…the right hand of his father in heaven and he is preparing a place for us (Paradise) and will come again.

2.   If Jehovah loved the world so much how come there is so much killing in the scriptures?
Solution: Adam’was created with the option to live forever. His choice to disobey his creator lowered all of mankind to the same status of animals that just die and perish. All humans must die and it is just a matter of when. To wipe out large groups and individuals who hate the Creator, and all he stands for,  is the same as eradicating a rat infestation. Every person has a choice between righteousness and selfishness. All must die in the flesh but some will be raised with eternal life. You choose.