The Ultimate Twos
In John 12:31-32 Jesus said, “Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” That word “prince” is interesting. In the New Testament there are only two who are called “prince”, the Lord and Satan. Of the ten times the word is found in the King James Bible, twice it is attributed to the Lord Jesus Christ, (“The Price of life,” “A Prince and a Saviour”), and eight times it is to Satan, (“The prince of the devils,” “The prince of the power of the air,” The prince of this world,” “The prince of the power of the air”). There are only two princes, Good and Evil. This clearly defined, one-or-the-other concept is significant in the Bible in many ways. For example,
1. There are two masters: God and Satan
2. There are two roads: Broad and narrow.
3. There are two ways of life: of the Flesh, of the Spirit.
4. There are two deaths: in the Lord, in sin/outside the Lord.
5. There are two resurrections: to Life and to Damnation
6. There are two placements in the day of judgment: Right hand and Left hand.
7. There are two widely contrasting words which will be uttered by the Great Judge on that day of final reckoning: “Come,” and “Depart.”
8. There are two stirring possibilities of eternal destinies: heaven and hell.
Hear our Lord describe the judgment day scene: “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: 32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: 33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels... And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal” (Matt. 25:31-34; 41-46).
How many times have you been pressed to answer whether or not a person who has passed away went to heaven? Sometimes you just cannot not say with any assurance. You say something such as, “Well, it’s in God’s hands and I’m glad I don’t have to be the judge.” There is nothing wrong with that answer. The point of this article however, is that God is never perplexed about such things. He has no trouble telling the difference between a sheep and a goat.
Furthermore, the list of two’s should motivate every one of us to “make our calling and election sure.” Which side of the ledger are you on right now? Jesus Christ has made a way by which we can be sure of our salvation, through faithfulness to Him in His church (Mark 16:16, Rev. 2:10).
By: Glenn Colley