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Fruit of a False Prophet and the Bible is a study on how false prophets mishandle the Word of God, not fulfilling it in their own life.
Contents
- 0.1 Fruit of a False Prophet and his Handling of the Word of God
- 0.2 Introduction.
- 0.3 Contaminated and half-hearted work of God
- 0.4 The fundamentalist position
- 0.5 Satan’s mark on Satan’s work
- 0.6 Satan’s objective.
- 0.7 The False Prophet’s handling of the Word of God
- 0.8 “Do what I say, not what I do.”
- 1 The fruit of a godly minister is piety and holiness.
Fruit of a False Prophet and his Handling of the Word of God
Fruit of a False Prophet and the Bible
by Pastor David Cox
Summary: This study will investigate what the fruit (life and ministry) of a false prophet. Part 1 of this series is simply an introduction, and begins by contrasting a man of God’s fruit (piety and holiness) with the false prophet’s fruit (sin, not doing God’s will).
The Fruit of a False Prophet Word of God
Introduction.
Heb 13:7 Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of [their] conversation.
God has given us the pattern of following godly men, in the pattern of their faith. This is why the Bible has so many biblical biographies of men of God. These examples impress us with patterns which many times we follow “naturally” (more easily because we contemplate and meditate on their lives). It is very important to understand that in a real sense, our testimony and the spiritual example of our lives impress, guide, and lead other people. There is nothing wrong with this, and Hebrews 13:7 commands this, with the understanding that we are to do this when our leaders are godly men, not hypocrites. We are to “consider the end of their conversation”, or what is the end fruit of all their life’s efforts, work, and spirit.
Likewise we see the Bible propose that a false prophet can be discerned (for reasons of rejecting, denouncing, and separating from him) by his fruit.
Matt 7:15-27 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither [can] a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. 24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
What this passage of Scripture teaches us is first of all, each man and minister will produce something (an end result) of his life and ministry. We can examine this fruit and determine what kind of person he is by his fruit.
Christ readily admits that false prophets will blend in with the brethren to become “one of us”. Just because a person is in our church does not make him a true believer. This is extended even to ministers of the Gospel. These men that Christ refers to are people who have “validated” their ministry before the church and the brethren via an identification with God (“Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?). They have exercised spiritual authority in commanding demons (demons will obey a false prophet in order to validate their comrade in arms). And they have done miracles (which again is by the power of demons to deceive and trap men under their spiritual domination).
But Christ delineates a spiritual principle that God gives us to discern and avoid these deceptive ones. The principle is that what you are determines what you produce spiritually. “A corrupt tree cannot bring forth evil fruit.” Those “trees” which don’t produce good fruit are destroyed in hell (these false prophets). This leads Christ to declare the principle clearly, …
“Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” (Mat 7:20)
Coupled with the quality or type of fruits they produce is the guideline that identification as a minister of God is not a reliable thing for us to discern ministers with, rather, a clear and forceful adherence to the will of God the Father.
This is the only clear guiding principle that is always faithful. A true minister of God will have an addiction to the will of God. He will live, breath, swim in, and be saturated with the will of God, and he can never get enough of it. A false prophet will only give lip service to the will of God, and he will obey the will of God up unto the point that he establishes himself and gains the confidence of the people of God, and then he will abandon it parcially or totally if he can get away with it.
Contaminated and half-hearted work of God
Jesus refers to these ministers as people who are active and involved in the work of God. They are pagans, and they are inactive ministers. They do things, great and mighty things in the name of God, but they detach themselves from God’s will, and do what they determine “as their best judgment.” Jesus says that they “work iniquity” because all work done for God, in God’s name, but not in the will of God, how, when, where, etc that God wants, is a work of iniquity no matter how “good” it may seem.
Jesus ends this section with a comparison. If we examine the fruit of a minister to see its character and disposition in light of the will of God (which is the standard by which we judge everything), we will be like the man who built his house on a rock. This person’s life withstood all the evil times that were thrown at it, and standing, it continued to stand.
Others will encounter great personal and ministry disasters, because “great will be the fall of it” because it was not established firmly on the rock.
The fundamentalist position
Even though many people “despise” Fundamental Christians, many fun of them every way they can, here Jesus presents the case of Fundamentalist Christianity. Fundamentalist Christianity can be defined as a Christianity based on solely on the authority of the Word of God, avoiding all alternative methods and goals of ministry. Many Fundamentalist Christian ministers and churches don’t fit that definition of Christ. This is essential Christianity, in that without the “essential” or the “Fundamental”, you have nothing, not even salvation.
Talk is cheap, and obedience to God in an extremely literal and minute way (everything has to be considered under God’s Word) is difficult. But this is what true Christianity is.
Satan’s mark on Satan’s work
Moreover Jesus is teaching us that Satan and his ministers cannot “minister” or work without leaving their mark on what they do. If we could only recognize this mark of Satan’s work, it would prevent us from getting involved in it in the first place.
What is the mark of Satan? Very simply, it is the mark of a will that is not God’s will. Satan’s mark is that he does what he thinks best without searching, meditating, submitting, and doing God’s will. He simply deides and acts. There is no serious searching of God’s will in the matters of life and ministry, much less submission.
This “other will” is not always seen as in a bad light. Many times it seems better than God’s very will. But it is not God’s will, and that is what is the mark of Satan. Even if a person does God’s will, but he has not personally established it from God’s Word as God’s will, it is still marked as a willfulness of the individual which God condemns. We can define sin as anything that is outside of God’s will.
Equally here is an attitude of arrogance and haughtiness that is involved in the very essence of willfulness against God.
Satan’s objective.
We have to understand what is Satan’s primary objective. It is not direct Satan worship, making a statue or image of Satan and bowing down and worshipping it. Satan’s strategy is very singular. All he is trying to do is t get people to do what seems best to them. He wants every person to use their own judgment, and not to look to God as the Judge and supreme authority in their lives, but rather what they deem as best. This is the “god” of Satan, and this is his “religion”, and many a preacher in the pulpit has this same god of Satan.
The False Prophet’s handling of the Word of God
A true minister of God has a deeply seated fear of teaching or doing something outside of the will of God. But since the false prophet has an inner repulsion towards the will and word of God (no real fear nor reverence for God), his handling of both is to pervert, twist, overthrow (say the exact opposite of what it says), and to deny as false everything in the Bible he can get away with. He also is very astute at using alternatives instead of the will of God and the Word of God.
All of this gives us an “end product” of not knowing the real will of God, because we are constantly in confusion in doubt about what the false prophet says about the Bible and God’s will.
There is an inviolable link between true doctrine and godly conduct. One will bring the other. The two have to live and dwell together. What’s more, no Christian can truly obey God “blindly”. I say blindly because he MUST know the word of God in order to obey the will of God. The two are alo linked together. His daily conduct and all of his beliefs are rooted in a defense from the Scriptures.
1Pet 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
Col 4:6 Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
The biblical and obedient Christian always has his defenses (biblical reasons) for why he does what he does, how he does it. He bases his life and ministry on the rock of God’s will and word. The false prophet has a different foundation, that of shifting and moving quicksand. He changes his foundation as it “suits him” because he has the satanic idol of his own will and good pleasure as what dictates in his own life.
All of this rejection and perversion (twisting) of God’s word and will has an end product, and when you see what it produces (its fruit), you can recognize that it is not of God, it is not good.
“Do what I say, not what I do.”
1Pet 5:3 Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.
Heb 13:7 Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of [their] conversation.
A very simple test based on Christ’s principle can be applied to any minister of the gospel, and you will clearly see the principle in action. Take whatever the preacher, minister, pastor, etc says and does. If everybody in his church was exactly like the pastor, would his church work and be a godly and pleasant place? For example, the pastor preaches he is the authority and everybody should unilaterally obey him in every point. If everybody was this way, would the church work? Obviously not. If the pastor doesn’t go on evangelism but sends the rest out, if everybody followed his example to be exactly like him, would the church function? Would it grow? No.
Christ’s system works, and it works well. When we realize that the “biblical style of leadership” is that the leaders must be a living example of all the spiritual principles they preach and teach, and they must preach and teach the spiritual principles which they live by, we see a system that any newcomer can evaluate and see the blessings of obeying God in this Christian lifestyle by simply observing the leaders. It is possible to live a godly life. Why do I know this? Because I see people (the pastor and leaders of the church) every Sunday actually living that godly life before me. Respect and imitation are generated by the respect the congregation has for them.
A false prophet always has to work a double system. There is one set of rules for the members, and a hidden set of rules for the pastor. The false prophet will teach strongly against adultery while he is secretly doing it. This is the advantage he wants from “his system” and his manipulation of the brethren.
The fruit of a godly minister is piety and holiness.
Gal 5:22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
1John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
God specifically commands us to “try the spirits” to see if they are of God. The teaching that John gives us here is simply that “Jesus Christ is come in the flesh.” This speaks of Jesus humility and meekness. He was great and glorious, but Christ set that glory aside for a while in order to come as a humble man, a meek and mild servant of God.
This attitude of humility instead of arrogance and haughtiness is the first “fruit of his life.” After seeing all that boasting and proud posturing, and all that feeding a great big ego, of self-pride, we see a fruit or end which is not like Christ’s humility and meekness.
Matt 12:33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by [his] fruit. 34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Prov 20:11 Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work [be] pure, and whether [it be] right.
This fruit then is shown by the words of his mouth. Basically we speak things that are not in our heart. With time, our word will reveal the state of our heart with God. The actions and words of the person establish WHAT HE IS SPIRITUALLY. Give it time, and you will see what he is by his speech and by his actions.
- Why so many Crises Today?
- What is Prophecy?
- The Fruit of a False Prophet Part 2
- Pastoral Covetousness OT
- Pastoral Covetousness NT
- Ministerial Requirement Not Covetous
- Good Shepherd Sacrifices
- Fruit of a False Prophet and the Bible
- FP: The Fruit of a False Prophet Obedience part 3
- FP: The Burden to Confront Sin
Burroughs Gospel Worship 14 chapters (263 pages) which are each a sermon on how to properly worship God. (format PDF)
“Jeremiah Burroughs’ Gospel Worship has greatly influenced my understanding of biblical worship. It is one of the most important books I have ever read.”
–R.C. Sproul
Download: Burroughs Gospel Worship.
Whether or not you believe in God, this is a “must-read” message!!
All throughout time, we can see how we have been slowly conditioned to come to this point where we are on the verge of a cashless society. Did you know that Jesus foretold of this event almost 2,000 years ago?
In the book of Revelation 13:16-18, we read,
“He (the false prophet who deceives many by his miracles–Revelation 19:20) causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.”
Referring to the last generation, this could only be speaking of a cashless society. Why? Revelation 13:17 says that we cannot buy or sell unless we receive the mark of the beast. If physical money was still in use, we could buy or sell with one another without receiving the mark. This would contradict scripture that states we need the mark to buy or sell!
These verses could not be referring to something purely spiritual as scripture references two physical locations (our right hand or forehead) stating the mark will be on one “OR” the other. If this mark was purely spiritual, it would indicate both places, or one–not one OR the other!
This is where it comes together. It is amazing how accurate the Bible is concerning the implantable RFID microchip. This is information from someone named Carl Sanders who worked with a team of engineers to help develop this RFID chip:
“Carl Sanders sat in seventeen New World Order meetings with heads-of-state officials such as Henry Kissinger and Bob Gates of the C.I.A. to discuss plans on how to bring about this one-world system. The government commissioned Carl Sanders to design a microchip for identifying and controlling the peoples of the world—a microchip that could be inserted under the skin with a hypodermic needle (a quick, convenient method that would be gradually accepted by society).
Carl Sanders, with a team of engineers behind him, with U.S. grant monies supplied by tax dollars, took on this project and designed a microchip that is powered by a lithium battery, rechargeable through the temperature changes in our skin. Without the knowledge of the Bible (Brother Sanders was not a Christian at the time), these engineers spent one-and-a-half-million dollars doing research on the best and most convenient place to have the microchip inserted.
Guess what? These researchers found that the forehead and the back of the hand (the two places the Bible says the mark will go) are not just the most convenient places, but are also the only viable places for rapid, consistent temperature changes in the skin to recharge the lithium battery. The microchip is approximately seven millimeters in length, .75 millimeters in diameter, about the size of a grain of rice. It is capable of storing pages upon pages of information about you. All your general history, work history, criminal record, health history, and financial data can be stored on this chip.
Brother Sanders believes that this microchip, which he regretfully helped design, is the “mark” spoken about in Revelation 13:16–18. The original Greek word for “mark” is “charagma,” which means a “scratch or etching.” It is also interesting to note that the number 666 is actually a word in the original Greek. The word is “chi xi stigma,” with the last part, “stigma,” also meaning “to stick or prick.” Carl believes this is referring to a hypodermic needle when they poke into the skin to inject the microchip.”
Mr. Sanders asked a doctor what would happen if the lithium contained within the RFID microchip leaked into the body. The doctor replied by saying a terrible sore would appear in that location. This is what the book of Revelation says:
“And the first (angel) went, and poured out his vial on the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore on the men which had the mark of the beast, and on them which worshipped his image” (Revelation 16:2).
You can read more about it here–and to also understand the mystery behind the number 666: https://2RUTH.ORG
The third angel’s warning in Revelation 14:9-11 states,
“Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.'”
Great hope is in our midst, and is coming in a mighty way–the greatest revival for Jesus in the history of the world where we will see the most souls come to Him of all tribes, tongues, nations, and peoples (Rev. 7:9-10); for we have this promise in God’s Word in the midst of these dark times:
“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years (not literal–rather a spiritual label for time spent in eternity); and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while (when the Antichrist and false prophet will rise up and God will test the world).” (Revelation 20:1-3)
“The coming of the lawless one (the Antichrist) is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)”
Who is Barack Obama, and why is he still in the public scene?
So what’s in the name? The meaning of someone’s name can say a lot about a person. God throughout history has given names to people that have a specific meaning tied to their lives. How about the name Barack Obama? Let us take a look at what may be hiding beneath the surface.
Jesus states in Luke 10:18, “…I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.”
The Hebrew Strongs word (H1299) for “lightning”: “bârâq” (baw-rawk)
In Isaiah chapter 14, verse 14, we read about Lucifer (Satan) saying in his heart:
“I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.”
In the verses in Isaiah that refer directly to Lucifer, several times it mentions him falling from the heights or the heavens. The Hebrew word for the heights or heavens used here is Hebrew Strongs 1116: “bamah”–Pronounced (bam-maw’)
In Hebrew, the letter “Waw” or “Vav” is often transliterated as a “U” or “O,” and it is primarily used as a conjunction to join concepts together. So to join in Hebrew poetry the concept of lightning (Baraq) and a high place like heaven or the heights of heaven (Bam-Maw), the letter “U” or “O” would be used. So, Baraq “O” Bam-Maw or Baraq “U” Bam-Maw in Hebrew poetry similar to the style written in Isaiah, would translate literally to “Lightning from the heights.” The word “Satan” in Hebrew is a direct translation, therefore “Satan.”
So when Jesus told His disciples in Luke 10:18 that He saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven, if this were to be declared by a Jewish Rabbi today influenced by the poetry in the book of Isaiah, he would say these words in Hebrew–the words of Jesus in Luke 10:18 as, and I saw Satan as Baraq O Bam-Maw.
The names of both of Obama’s daughters are Malia and Natasha. If we were to write those names backward (the devil does things in reverse) it would be “ailam ahsatan”. If we remove the letters that spell “Alah” (the false god of Islam being Allah), we would get “I am Satan”. Chance? I do not believe so!
Obama’s campaign logo when he ran in the year 2008 was a sun over the horizon in the west, with the landscape as the flag of the United States. In the Isalmic religion, they have their own messiah that they are waiting for called the 12th Imam, or the Mahdi (the Antichrist of the Bible), and one prophecy concerning this man’s appearance is the sun rising in the west.
“Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people— saying with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.'” (Revelation 14:6-7)
Why have the words of Jesus in His Gospel accounts regarding His death, burial, and resurrection, been translated into over 3,000 languages, and nothing comes close (the Quran about 110 languages)? Because the same Spirit of God (YHVH) who created all people likewise transcends all people; therefore the power of His Word is not limited by people; while all other religions are man-made, therefore they tend to primarily stay within their own culture. The same God who speaks to all people through His creation of the heavens and earth that draws all people around the world likewise has sent His Word to the ends of the earth so that we may come to personally know Him to be saved in spirit and in truth through His Son Jesus Christ.
Jesus stands alone among the other religions that say to rightly weigh the scales of good and evil and to make sure you have done more good than bad in this life. Is this how we conduct ourselves justly in a court of law? Bearing the image of God, is this how we project this image into reality?
Our good works cannot save us. If we step before a judge, being guilty of a crime, the judge will not judge us by the good we have done, but rather by the crimes we have committed. If we as fallen humanity, created in God’s image, pose this type of justice, how much more a perfect, righteous, and Holy God?
God has brought down His moral laws through the 10 commandments given to Moses at Mt. Siani. These laws were not given so we may be justified, but rather that we may see the need for a savior. They are the mirror of God’s character of what He has written in our hearts, with our conscious bearing witness that we know that it is wrong to steal, lie, dishonor our parents, murder, and so forth.
We can try and follow the moral laws of the 10 commandments, but we will never catch up to them to be justified before a Holy God. That same word of the law given to Moses became flesh about 2,000 years ago in the body of Jesus Christ. He came to be our justification by fulfilling the law, living a sinless perfect life that only God could fulfill.
The gap between us and the law can never be reconciled by our own merit, but the arm of Jesus is stretched out by the grace and mercy of God. And if we are to grab on, through faith in Him, He will pull us up being the one to justify us. As in the court of law, if someone steps in and pays our fine, even though we are guilty, the judge can do what is legal and just and let us go free. That is what Jesus did almost 2,000 years ago on the cross. It was a legal transaction being fulfilled in the spiritual realm by the shedding of His blood with His last word’s on the cross crying out, “It is finished!” (John 19:30).
For God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 18:23). This is why in Isaiah chapter 53, where it speaks of the coming Messiah and His soul being a sacrifice for our sins, why it says it pleased God to crush His only begotten Son.
This is because the wrath that we deserve was justified by being poured out upon His Son. If that wrath was poured out on us, we would all perish to hell forever. God created a way of escape by pouring it out on His Son whose soul could not be left in Hades but was raised and seated at the right hand of God in power.
So now when we put on the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14), where God no longer sees the person who deserves His wrath, but rather the glorious image of His perfect Son dwelling in us, justifying us as if we received the wrath we deserve, making a way of escape from the curse of death; now being conformed into the image of the heavenly man walking in a new nature, and no longer in the image of the fallen man Adam.
Now what we must do is repent and put our trust and faith in the savior, confessing and forsaking our sins, and to receive His Holy Spirit that we may be born again (for Jesus says we must be born again to see and enter the Kingdom of God in John chapter 3). This is not just head knowledge of believing in Jesus, but rather receiving His words, taking them to heart, so that we may truly be transformed into the image of God. Where we no longer live to practice sin, but rather turn from our sins and practice righteousness through faith in Him in obedience to His Word by reading the Bible.
Our works cannot save us, but they can condemn us; it is not that we earn our way into everlasting life, but that we obey our Lord Jesus Christ:
Jesus says,
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)
“And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” (Hebrews 5:9)
“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’
Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ And He said to me, ‘Write, for these words are true and faithful.’
And He said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.'” (Revelation 21:1-8)