Wallace G. Smith

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

The Spirit World Is Real

Our world today is not the world God wants it to be.

One of the reasons, which will surprise many, is that our planet, its governments, and its peoples are all living under the weight of Satan’s rule. From the beginning of mankind’s existence to today, human history is the written record of what it means to live under the rule of the devil.

Yet that rule is coming to an end—and what a difference that will make.

Join us here on Tomorrow’s World as we dive into God’s word and see the coming end of Satan’s rule.

Satan the Devil Is the Ruler of This World

Welcome to Tomorrow’s World, where we help you make sense of your world through the pages of the Bible.

Have you ever heard the old Protestant hymn, “This Is My Father’s World”? Its poetic praise of the created, natural world around us is beautiful.

Yet, when we look more broadly, it seems very apparent that this world is not our Father’s world. It is filled with suffering, misery, conflict, and heartache—surely not His desire for this beautiful place He created or for the people He fashioned in His own image.

That’s because the world around us, in a very real way, is under the authority and control of Satan the Devil.

That might be hard to believe. Maybe you’ve never heard it before. But I assure you, based on God’s own word, it is true.

Again, it might seem odd to say that Satan rules the world—maybe even a little overdramatic. But we don’t want you to just take our word for it. Don’t just believe us—believe your Bible. In fact, in this case, you can take Jesus’ word for it.

Jesus Did Not Refute Satan’s Authority

In John 14:30, we read something Jesus said to His disciples as His crucifixion was drawing near.

“I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.”

That “ruler of this world” Jesus talked about was Satan the Devil, and He calls him this in two additional passages: John 12:31 and John 16:11.

Now, you might wonder about how that meshes with other statements in the Bible. For instance, in Matthew 28:18, we read Jesus’ comment, after His resurrection, that “all authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

We see the answer to this question reflected in the temptation of Jesus Christ, early in his ministry.

Satan Tempts Jesus Christ

At that time, 3½ years before His crucifixion, Jesus had been fasting, 40 days and 40 nights, drawing near to His Father before launching His ministry.

At that time, Satan appeared to the Son of God and tempted Him—and among the devil’s temptations was an offer of power. We read about it in Luke 4, starting in verse 5.

Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve’” (Luke 4:5–8).

Of course, Jesus did not take the bait. If He had, He wouldn’t be our Savior.

But notice what Jesus didn’t say—He didn’t say Satan was lying about having that authority. He didn’t say that the kingdoms of the world had not been delivered to the devil.

In fact, the kingdoms of the world have been given to Satan. Again, as Jesus said, the devil is the “ruler of this world.” And why? Because rulership of the nations had been given to Satan, as he says to Jesus in the passage.

“All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me…” (Luke 4:6).

Satan Is “the God of This Age”

Yes, God reigns supreme in all things but, for this time, in this age, He has given Satan a certain amount of authority and freedom to act. That’s why even after Jesus’ resurrection, the Apostle Paul still refers to Satan as “the god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4).

Now, you might think, why in the world would God do that?

But the short story is that Satan wasn’t always Satan.

Satan Deceives the Whole World (Revelation 12:9)

Responsibility for the world had been given to him when he was the archangel Lucifer, before his sin and descent into darkness.

However, mankind had an opportunity to replace him—to take the reins of the world and bring it back into line with the will and desire of God. But if you’ve read Genesis 1 through 3, then you know the story.

Given the choice between following Satan’s lead or God’s—between disobeying their Creator and deciding right and wrong for themselves, or obeying their Creator and choosing His guidance over their own desires—they chose to follow Satan’s lead.

And frankly, each of us at various times in our own lives have made the exact same choice as Adam and Eve. Romans 3:23 is plain.

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

So Satan remains, as Christ called him, the “ruler of this world.”

Results of Satan’s Deception

And what have been the results of following the devil’s lead?

We’ve had thousands of years—generation after generation after generation—to figure out how to build the world while deciding right and wrong for ourselves instead of obeying our Creator.

What have we achieved in all this time? What does a world under the rule of the devil look like?

Consider these four facts.

A World of Confusion

1. First, our world is filled with confusion.

Humanity has thousands upon thousands of different religions, philosophies, worldviews, ideologies, and belief systems. Right and wrong differ from culture to culture—even family to family and person to person.

In fact, many today believe there is no right or wrong—that life is a matter of what you can get away with, so long as no one catches you.

In some of our most scientifically advanced societies, the most astonishing ignorance is on the rise, where even the most basic questions—such as what is a family? What is a man or a woman? What is a boy or a girl?—generate blank stares and stammering, babbling nonsense. We are becoming, simultaneously, the most educated and the most stupid generation in human history.

Endless War

2. And under Satan’s rule our world is one of near-constant warfare.

John Arquilla, professor of defense analysis at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, wrote on this fact at the end of 2012 for Foreign Policy magazine.

Writing their Lessons of History in the tumultuous year 1968, Will and Ariel Durant observed that in “the last 3,421 years of recorded history, only 268 have seen no war.” The 44 years since they made this observation have added not a single year of peace to that meager total (“The Big Kill,” Foreign Policy, December 3, 2012).

That’s less than eight years of peace for every century of recorded history. Of course, he wrote that in 2012, a little more than a decade ago. How do you think we’ve fared since then?

As I record this program, right now, Israel is at war in Gaza; Russia and Ukraine are trading dead bodies at an astonishing rate; and nations around the world are arming as if they see World War III dawning on the horizon like an apocalyptic sunrise.

And our current arsenal of weaponry is like nothing history has ever seen, capable of fulfilling the end-time conditions Jesus described in Matthew 24:22—warfare in which “no flesh would be saved” apart from God’s own intervention.

Humanity cries out for peace, but the truth of our existence under Satan’s rule has consistently matched the declaration of God in Isaiah 59.

Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their ways; they have made themselves crooked paths; whoever takes that way shall not know peace (Isaiah 59:7-8).

Famine

3. Also under the devil’s rule, our world is one of FAMINE and want.

I’m blessed to live in the United States—a nation blessed with wealth and almost embarrassing access to food (at least for now). But my life is not the norm.

In its “State of Food Security and Nutrition” report for 2023, the United Nations noted that after years of decline, hunger and food insecurity is on the increase, with more than 700 million people globally facing hunger at some point in the year—roughly one out of every 11 human beings (“The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024”, FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, 2024).

Global poverty, as well, has been on the increase in recent years. And who hasn’t seen the growing waves of homelessness and illegal immigration, as millions seek an escape from the turmoil, danger, and want in their home nations?

Disease and Pestilence

4. Further, the devil’s reign as “ruler of this world” has given us a world of disease and pestilence.

COVID-19 frightened Western nations who are used to feeling that rampant disease was a part of other countries’ lives—not theirs. And, indeed, the constant threat of disease and infection is a way of life for people in so many nations around the world.

And in nations with enough wealth to push back against those diseases that ravage impoverished countries, the specter of “diseases of affluence” rears its head. Cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancers, obesity-related and respiratory diseases, sexually transmitted diseases. In Satan’s world, it seems as if humanity is determined not to be healthy.

As much as we cry to the heavens that we want to understand how life is supposed to work, that we want peace, plenty, and good health, mankind proves generation after generation that we cannot achieve those things—because we continue to seek our own ways, our own paths, our own ideas and values apart from the authority of a loving God.

We seek to continue imagining that we can rule ourselves, the way we want to live. And in doing so, we continue to support Satan on his throne, as the “ruler of this world,” just as Jesus Christ said he was.

In fact, Revelation chapter 6 says that each of these conditions—ideological and religious confusion, warfare, famine, and pestilence—will eventually come to a dramatic climax in the end-times, symbolized by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse holding life-or-death sway over a fourth of the entire world.

But, my friends, there really is good news ahead.

Because while six millennia of human history has proven mankind simply cannot solve the problem of Satan’s rule, Almighty God can solve that problem, and He will. The time is coming when God the Father will send His Son, Jesus Christ, to this world to end the reign of the devil on this planet.

God Gives Jesus Christ All Authority

Where Adam failed to remain faithful to God and failed to replace Satan on his throne, Jesus Christ succeeded. The sinless Son of God has earned the right to reign over this world to the glory of His Father and for the fulfillment of their plan of salvation.

Recall that earlier in our program, we mentioned that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, said after His resurrection that “all authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18).

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ: Satan’s Kingdom Ends

But the time when He will act on that authority and take control of the kingdoms of the world lies just ahead. When it comes, it will be the greatest news mankind could ever hope to hear.

Let’s read about it, starting in Revelation 11:15.

Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was and who is to come, because You have taken Your great power and reigned” (Revelation 11:15–17).

That same trumpet blast, the last trumpet, will also herald the resurrection and glorification of His saints, who will begin their reign alongside Him.

Jesus Christ Will Destroy the Works of the Devil

And the first order of business will be the destruction of the assembled armies of the devil and the banishing of Satan for 1,000 years. We read of that in Revelation 20.

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; 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 (Revelation 20:1–3).

That “little while” would be the focus of a completely different program.

For today’s purposes, we can’t fail to miss that at the beginning of Jesus Christ’s reign on this earth, Satan the Devil and his influence will be utterly removed from this world for the entire 1,000-year period. His rule on this earth will end, [as] the Apostle John wrote in 1 John 3:8.

For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.

And destroy the works of the devil He will!

God’s Way of Life Will Replace Satan’s Lies

Today’s world may be shaped by the character of the devil, but tomorrow’s world will be shaped by the character of Jesus Christ—and what a difference that will make.

For instance, instead of confusion, Christ will bring understanding and knowledge.

The world will know that there is a God. They will know—and believe—that Jesus Christ is His Son. And they will know the way of life that we were created to live.

No More Sorrow or Pain

In fact, look in Isaiah 11:9, which describes the world during the Millennium under Christ. There it says,

They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

The Way of Peace

Notice that statement: “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain.” That’s because the Bible says that the rule of Jesus Christ will replace our world of warfare with one of true peace. Not a peace built on pretense—based on a delicate-but-fragile balance of nuclear stockpiles or treaties that are made in one generation but broken in the next. But a real peace, founded on the laws of God and a way of life that is built on loving your neighbor, instead of seeing him as means to get what you want.

The millennial reign of Christ will see peace between nations, yes, but also peace between families and between people. He will show us how to live in peace—and once they have experienced the joy of living in a world governed by His laws and way of life, Isaiah 9:6 tells us they will call Jesus Christ, the “Prince of Peace.”

The Abundant Life

And in that land of peace there will be plenty for all. Prophecy contains a beautiful picture of this in Amos 9. There, God speaks of a world overflowing with produce.

“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him who sows seed; the mountains shall drip with sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it” (Amos 9:13).

And finally, in a world where the knowledge of God permeates all of life, peace and safety reign, and food is not only plentiful but is grown properly according to divine guidance and biblical principles, we will also experience a world of abundant health.

The Kingdom of God: God’s Laws, God’s Blessings

With Satan’s rule ended, the laws of God will be enforced, including the many laws He established for man’s good—laws of agriculture, of hygiene, and of distinguishing between the clean and the unclean.

Just as He did during His ministry 2,000 years ago, but on a much grander scale, Jesus Christ will intervene and heal the sick.

The prophet Isaiah writes of this coming time in chapter 35 of his book.

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert (Isaiah 35:5–6).

Instead of the confusion, war, famine, and disease of today’s world, tomorrow’s world will be filled with understanding, peace, plenty, and abundant health.

For millennia, man has been struggling and failing to turn the world into a paradise his way, following the pattern of Satan the Devil, who refused to do things his Creator’s way.

But Jesus Christ is returning, and when He does, He will end Satan’s rule and begin His own.

And man will finally experience that paradise he’s always longed for—once he finally gives up for good the idea of doing it his way and submits, totally and completely, to be ruled by the Son of God.

Pray for God’s Kingdom to Come

Today, we’ve discussed the fact that the tragic history and present condition of our world is due to the fact that it reflects the character of its true ruler, Satan the Devil. And the fruit of his reign is exactly what you would imagine it to be—resulting in thousands of years of misery, heartbreak, and human suffering.

But the good news is that Satan’s rule is coming to an end.

In the days just ahead of us, and none too soon, Jesus Christ will appear in the clouds, ready to end the reign of the devil and inaugurate the Kingdom of God—replacing every sorrow of this world with a joy and happiness that can only come from the Son of God who loves us and who longs to make us a part of His family forever.

No wonder Jesus taught His disciples to pray “Your kingdom come” (Matthew 6:10).

The True Christian Walk: Life More Abundantly Now

Yet, there is even better news. That news is that you do not have to wait until the return of Jesus Christ to begin ending the reign of Satan. That’s because God the Father is calling some now, in this age, to begin taking ground from the devil by submitting to the reign of Jesus Christ now—in their lives now and in their family’s lives now.

In John 10:10, Jesus says that He came that those who follow Him may have life, and have it more abundantly.

And Hebrews 6:5 speaks of those who have the opportunity now, today, before Christ’s return, to taste “the good word of God and the powers of the age to come” (Hebrews 6:5).

No, you can’t end the world’s confusion, but you can begin knowing the true God of Scripture better yourself.

And, no, you can’t end wars, no matter who you vote for. But you can find a peace that surpasses understanding in your own life and your own relationships with others.

And you can’t feed every starving child in this world, nor heal every suffering person. But you can learn the miraculous way of give instead of get, and get to know the One who does provide His children’s every need.

Reject Satan’s Way of Life

You can end the devil’s rule in your life and begin personally experiencing the blessings of the reign of Jesus Christ.

In fact, those who are willing to allow Christ to end Satan’s rule in their own lives in today’s world are the very ones He will use to bring an end to Satan’s rule over all mankind in tomorrow’s world.

Thanks so much for watching. All of us here at Tomorrow’s World work very hard to help you understand your world through the pages of the Bible.

If you’re interested in today’s free DVD, The Occult and the Spirit World, you can go to TWTV.org/SPIRIT or just click on the link in the description. And, we’d really appreciate it if you’d give us a like and subscribe to the channel.

Thank you so much for watching!

[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

Why Does God Allow Suffering and Evil?

Our world is filled with evil and suffering. How do we reconcile that evil and suffering with the fact that God, Creator of the world, is good and loving?

Philosophers have wrestled with this “problem of evil” for centuries. But God reveals the answer to the problem—the reason for evil and suffering in the world—in the pages of His word. And that answer is perhaps the greatest source of hope the human mind is capable of understanding.

You need that hope.

Join us right now on Tomorrow’s World where we will give you God’s answer to the problem of evil.

Freedom of Choice Means Pain Has to Exist

Greetings, and welcome to Tomorrow’s World, where we make sense of your world through the pages of the Bible. And today’s subject is one that many struggle to make sense of: Why is the world so filled with evil and suffering if God is good and loving?

In philosophical circles, the topic we are tackling today is called the problem of evil. It’s been stated many ways, but you could summarize it like this:

“God is supposed to be all-powerful and good. Yet, evil clearly exists in the world, resulting in much pain, misery, and agony. Either God is too weak to do anything about it, or else He doesn’t care. In either case—a weak God or an uncaring God implies that, in reality, there is no God at all.”

Hence the existence of evil and suffering (supposedly) proves that there is no God.

In short, it argues that an all-powerful, all-good God simply can’t exist, because there is so much evil in the world that He does nothing about. And if you search around on YouTube and pointless discussion forums on the Internet, you’ll see the problem of evil thrown about as if it had somehow done God in.

Yet, as supposed “proof” that God does not exist, it’s long been recognized by many that the problem of evil falls short.

Many answers have been provided, including the fact that—to truly rule out God’s existence—one would need to prove it is impossible for God to have good cause for allowing evil to exist. And that’s a tall order.

Free Will Means Being Free to Choose Poorly

For instance, as our children grow, we sometimes need to let them experience the result of their wrong choices instead of intervening to prevent problems. Calling every parent who does so a “bad parent” would be naïve.

In the 1970s, philosopher Alvin Plantinga’s argument—that the value of human free will provides God with sufficient moral cause to allow evil—was widely perceived to have won the day, so to speak, demonstrating that, yes, it is feasible that God can have good cause to allow people to choose evil. If humans are free to choose, it’s unreasonable to expect that they will always choose the good.

Still, the problem of evil is not merely a philosophical problem, is it?

Where Does Evil Come From?

When we or those we love are personally stung by the pain and suffering of the world, the arguments of philosophers provide cold comfort. And this world truly is filled with pain and suffering.

On a personal level, how many have been victims of robbery, theft, assault, rape, or murder? And how many suffer at the hands of those who benefit from their suffering? Many of you watching know the burdens of sickness and infirmity. It seems no age—young or old—is immune to disease. And maladies of every sort plague mankind and bring pain and heartache to even the youngest and most innocent among us.

On a larger scale, how many lives have been ravaged by the scourges of mass murder, slavery, genocide, and warfare? Human beings are shockingly creative in their capacity to generate suffering among their fellow human beings.

And beyond the world of man’s cruelty to man, there are earthquakes; floods; droughts and famines; hurricanes and typhoons; plague, pestilence, and parasite. Nature seems intent on reminding us, over and over again, that we are not in control, and our lives are lived at the mercy of merciless forces far greater than we are.

Whether we are sitting amidst our burnt belongings in the smoldering ruins we once called home, or holding the hand of a son or daughter in a hospital room, suffering from a disease we cannot heal, the question of the problem of evil and suffering in the world is very real and very personal.

Why does evil exist? And how does suffering fit into the plans of a supposedly merciful and loving God?

We need more than the abstract assurance of philosophers. We need answers.

And God provides them. When we understand why mankind exists and what the purpose of life truly is, then our lives, even our sufferings, become infused with meaning, hope and, believe it or not, even a profound and unshakable joy.

And the best way to understand the purpose of human life is to go back to its beginning—all the way back to the VERY beginning, in the book of Genesis.

God Created the World as a Paradise—Not of Suffering

And when we do, we see that God did not create the world to be a place of suffering. Genesis 1 and 2 describe the world God created as a paradise. And it tells us of the creation of first human beings, Adam and Eve. There, we’re told in Genesis 1:26,

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Genesis 1:26–27).

Humans Were Made in the Image of God

Unlike any of the animals God made, we see that He made mankind as a sort of analog of Himself—sharing with them His own image and likeness, with the capacity of reasoning, judgment, and morality. And man was given a level of dominion over the creation—again, picturing what God possesses, but on a much smaller scale.

The importance of being made in God’s image is hard to overstate. In fact, skip ahead for a moment to chapter 5 and verse 3. There we read of Adam and Eve’s reproducing themselves in their son, Seth.

And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth (Genesis 5:3).

The use of this phrase is not a coincidence.

God Created Man With Potential to Join God’s Family

The larger picture of Scripture, supported from Genesis to Revelation, is that God created man as a part of a process of reproducing Himself and growing His divine Family, intending to produce countless children. Today’s free resource will demonstrate this astonishing truth to you beyond the shadow of a doubt. God intends man to one day share in His divine and glorious existence, ruling and creating throughout the cosmos forever.

This is why, unlike the animals, man was made in God’s own image and given analogous capacities and responsibilities—yet something vital was missing. While God is spirit, as Jesus tells us in John 4:24, man is physical—limited. And unlike God, who has eternal life inherent within Him, mankind was made with the potential for eternal life, but also for eternal death. Because being an eternal child of God requires holy and righteous character, and developing godly character requires choice.

Intrinsic Motivation: God Wants Us to Choose Wisely

So, Adam and Eve were given the opportunity to CHOOSE. God planted a tree in the garden that could provide them eternal life, and a tree that represented the knowledge of good and evil. And He lovingly told them which one to choose. If they continued choosing the right tree, the tree of life, then God could continue working with them, developing them, caring for them. But if they rejected Him and His instructions, then they would eventually die, refusing eternal life and obedience to their Creator.

God Gives Freedom of Choice—and Allows Us to Make Wrong Choices

You can read of their choice in Genesis 3. In short, they chose disobedience. They chose to accept the temptations of the devil and to take on themselves the “right” to choose what is good and evil, and what is right or wrong for themselves. They rejected God’s instruction, rejected God as their Creator, rejected His purpose for them, and rejected His care for their lives.

Pain Comes From Wrong Choices

And all of the suffering of the world has flowed from that choice. Yet it’s easy to sit here and blame Adam and Eve. The Apostle Paul makes it very plain that every single one of us, in our own way, has repeated their mistake for ourselves in our own lives. As he writes in Romans 3,

“There is none righteous, no, not one”… for ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:10, 23).

Think about it—and be honest with yourself. At any point in your life, was there a right thing to do, and you chose the wrong one? Was there a loving thing to do, and you chose a selfish one? Was there ever anything God tells us to do, and you chose not to? Or anything God tells us NOT to do, and you did it anyway?

In our own, individual ways, each of us has fallen short of the character of God—and, thus, fallen short of our purpose to become His children.

God Allows Suffering to Teach Us That We Need Him

And the world around us reflects this condition. We sin, and we suffer. Those around us suffer. Our children suffer. We kick God out of the world that He made for us and tell Him we can run it without Him, and that same world becomes a place of suffering.

Yet even in the midst of all of this evil, all of this suffering, God’s purpose remains. He is still working to create a family full of billions upon billions of glorified children of God who will live with Him forever in glory, majesty, and power. And the means by which He is accomplishing this not only resolves the problem of evil, but provides profound meaning in our suffering and life-changing hope beyond that suffering that you need to grasp.

Sin Is the Root Cause of Suffering

In fact, the Bible says something important in Proverbs 26:2.

Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause shall not alight.

The reason we suffer is because of sin—disobedience to a God who loves us too much to prevent us from learning, as a civilization, what it means to appoint ourselves the masters of “right and wrong” instead of accepting the guidance of a loving God who plans so much better for us.

If we examine the suffering we experience, all of it—every bit of it—comes from humanity’s choice to disobey God.

Pain: Feeling the Effects of Our Own Sins and Others’ Sins

Sometimes we suffer because of our own sins. We see this in many of the problems that plague us: Addictions, sexually transmitted diseases, some instances of poverty and wasted lives. But we suffer, too, as we are impacted by the sins of others—just as a pebble thrown in a lake disturbs the water in every direction.

Our societies suffer the ravages of diseases that would not exist if we would look to the laws of God as our guides in matters of health, and look to the God of heaven who has the power to heal and bless. And the Creation suffers disasters as mankind refuses to turn to the Creator—the One who can control the forces of nature that lie beyond our grasp.

And why God won’t simply snap His fingers and make everything all right makes sense when we consider the purpose for our lives in the first place. Human beings aren’t simply “pets” to God—fun playthings for Him to care for and make sure we’re fed, watered, and happy all of the time. He seeks to turn us into members of His family—full and glorious children of the divine family of God.

And unlike pets, we have a role to play in that purpose. We must learn to think like God, react like God, and choose like God.

Suffering Builds Character in Us—and Teaches Lessons

We are here to develop the mind and character of God Himself—to grow to reflect Him on the inside in the same way He has made us to reflect Him on the outside, in His image and likeness.

When we comprehend that, then our suffering takes on meaning, because we know that what we learn in that suffering, how we respond to evil in the world, and the godly character we develop becomes part of an eternal reward that will far outshine any pain and anguish we will ever know in this life. When we comprehend that, then how we grow in our trials contributes to that future of glory.

The Apostle Paul speaks of this coming time, and this coming existence, in Romans 8:18.

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Paul is saying that comparing light from the smallest matchstick to the light of the sun, or a mote of dust with a mountain range, would make more sense than comparing the sufferings of this life with the glory that God is building within those He is working with to develop His own righteous, godly character. Let’s continue:

For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God (Romans 8:19–21).

God intends the entirety of Creation, the whole universe, to be given over to the glorified children of God—you and me, if we repent and commit ourselves to Jesus Christ to allow God the Father to reproduce Himself and His character in us.

God Promises That Pain Will Not Last Forever

Paul writes that all of creation—the whole of created reality—is waiting for the liberty and glory that will come with the revealing of the children of God at Christ’s return.

For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now (Romans 8:22).

This, my friends, is the answer to the problem of evil and suffering—seeing that suffering not as an eternal condition, but a passing phase that, just like the pains of childbirth, are serving a purpose that will bring joy and happiness such that the suffering will never come to mind again.

Such a fact should remind us of the words of Jesus, spoken on the final Passover of His earthly ministry.

A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world (John 16:21).

And how much more joy will be known when that birth is not of a human being, but the expanded and glorified God family?

My friends, God is not silently watching us suffer in the cold, dark distance. For those willing to yield their lives to Him, to repent of their sins and turn to His Son, embracing His beautiful purpose for their lives, He is present in our suffering—working within us for His purposes, building within us a future, and creating within us a glorious existence that will last throughout time.

Our suffering is profoundly personal to Him. And He proved this to us in the most intimate way possible.

God Promises to Wipe Away Every Tear (Revelation 21:4)

He displayed this fact by sending His Son to suffer, just as we do.

Already one of the two members of the God Family, the One that John 1:1 calls the Word, the Logos, condescended to become like His Creation—like us—and become the man Jesus Christ. He came and, unlike us, followed His Father’s laws and way of life perfectly.

His obedience did not bring the praise of men, but their hatred, their contempt, and their violence.

The prophet Isaiah described the suffering that Christ would endure in this life:

Despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief… He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows… He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities… He was oppressed and He was afflicted… He was led as a lamb to the slaughter… (Isaiah 53:3–7).

Jesus Christ, Our Example: Learn Obedience Through Suffering

One whose life of love and generosity deserved nothing but praise and adoration was given instead mockery, threats, beatings, abandonment, torture, and execution. And through it all, He remained faithful to God, His Father.

As Philippians 2 explains, though He had existed in the form of God, He was willing to set that aside and become like us so He could suffer as we do, and:

Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross (Philippians 2:8).

Having done so, He was resurrected and given once again the glory He had set aside and the existence that He had before. But now from Heaven He makes Himself available to live His life again through His Spirit within those who are willing to repent, obey, and fulfill God’s purpose for their lives by following Him.

Pain and Suffering: Our Resistance Training to Enter the Kingdom

For those who do, then these times of evil and suffering can be seen for what they truly are—mere birth pangs before they, too, are born into the Family of God and into the glory Jesus Christ now has with His Father, which will be revealed at His return. A time when they will join Him in His Kingdom to begin building a world, and ultimately a universe, that will never know evil and suffering again.

As the Apostle John was told, in vision, of that final estate:

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 (Revelation 21:3–4).

May God send His Son soon to finally solve, once and for all, the real problem of evil.

Thank you for watching. If you would like to learn more, consider ordering our free study guide What Is the Meaning of Life? You can get it by going to TWTV.org/Life.

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[The text below represents an edited transcript of the TV version of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

What Happens When Unbelievers Die?

A cold hard fact of life is that the vast majority of humanity has lived and died without ever accepting Jesus Christ as their Savior—in fact, most of them without ever hearing His name spoken aloud. For many, this fact is more than a statistic, as they agonize with concerns about a dead loved one, unsure of their fate in the hereafter.

Yet the true answer concerning the fate of the unsaved is far more joyous and hopeful than almost anyone understands!

You need the hope of your Bible’s answer to the question of where the unsaved go when they die. Stay tuned.

How to Understand God’s Plan of Salvation

Greetings, and welcome to Tomorrow’s World, where we help you make sense of your world through the pages of the Bible.

The question we’ll tackle today has been a source of needless doubt, heartbreak, and hopelessness for many over the centuries: Where do the unsaved go when they die?

The answer to this question is one of the most hopeful and profound truths of the Bible. So today we are offering a free study guide to anyone who requests it, so they can study the topic themselves in their own Bibles. The title is Is This the Only Day of Salvation? and you’ll want to keep an eye on your screen for the information you need to get your own free copy.

In Acts chapter 4, we read of an exchange between the Apostle Peter and angry Jewish religious leaders who were upset that he’d just healed a man in the name of Christ. Let’s read it, beginning in verse 10.

Let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. … Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:10–12).

Billions of People Never Knew Anything About Jesus Christ

But causes a problem, doesn’t it? Because of the billions of human beings who have ever lived, relatively few have ever heard of Jesus Christ and His message.

Now let’s set aside for the moment the fact that most people who believe they have “accepted Christ” have not actually accepted Him at all, but have fallen for what the Apostle Paul called “another Jesus” and a “different gospel” (2 Corinthians 11:4). Again, let’s set that aside and be as generous as we can for the sake of this discussion.

Today, Christianity is just about as big as it’s ever been. For the more than 8 billion people currently on planet earth, a little less than a third, between 2 and 2½ billion, consider themselves any sort of “Christian.”

And if we go back to the beginning of Christianity around 2,000 years ago, population scientists estimate that as many as 65 BILLION people have been born in those two millennia (“How Many People Have Ever Lived on Earth?” Population Reference Bureau, November 15, 2022)—the vast majority of whom have never been any sort of “Christian.” In fact, most of mankind throughout history has been “unsaved” and never even heard the name of Jesus Christ, let alone His message.

So, what happened to them?

It isn’t just a question about cold statistics. Many have agonized over the fate of their loved ones, and others have been turned off of the Bible, believing the God of Scripture to be cruel and capricious.

Frankly, it’s a question I personally wrestled with as a young man. I asked everyone I knew and respected—my parents, my grandmother, my pastor—even my geometry teacher!

They all had answers, but the answers never completely fit the Bible.

I heard that God might ignore that some people hadn’t had an opportunity to accept Christ for forgiveness and would just save them anyway. But that didn’t fit Peter’s words in Acts 4, and it seemed to make Christ’s sacrifice unnecessary. And I knew that wasn’t the case, since Romans 3:23 said that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

Jesus Christ Spoke of a Future “Day of Judgment”

Some suggested that maybe God foreknew that those who never heard the Gospel would not have accepted it anyway, so He didn’t bother to send it to them. But that doesn’t even match Jesus’ own testimony. For instance, look in Matthew 11, starting in verse 20.

Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent: “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you” (Matthew 11:20–24).

Note that Jesus says clearly if the people in Tyre, Sidon, and even Sodom were given the same opportunities that his audience had been given, then they would have repented before they died.

It all started to make God seem so unfair. Yet passages such as Acts 10:34 and Romans 2:11 made clear that God is very fair and “shows no partiality.”

Well, then maybe God just didn’t care! Yet, Scripture, too, contradicted this. 1 Timothy 2:4 says that God “desires ALL men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

So, maybe it meant that God was simply not powerful enough to save most people. But the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, declares the sovereign God to be the Almighty, calling Him in Revelation 19:6 “the Lord God OMNIPOTENT!”

With so many billions dying “unsaved” who never had even a chance to be forgiven of their sins, it can move us to ask as Abraham once did,

Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? (Genesis 18:25).

Our Hope Is in the Resurrection

But the good news is that there IS an answer! And the Bible’s truth about what happens to the unsaved when they die is a beautiful source of joy, comfort, and hope that everyone needs to understand.

In the rest of our program, we’ll explain four key biblical facts that will lay out for you the answer to the question of what happens to the unsaved when they die.

But before that, let me give you a brief opportunity to request today’s free offer, Is This the Only Day of Salvation? With this free study guide, you will be able to sit down with your Bible and see the hope-filled truth with your own eyes and in the pages of your own Bible.

One of our Tomorrow’s World magazine subscribers from Texas ordered this booklet and wrote to us to express her thanks:

My prayers were answered when my blinders were taken off by the power of God through your literature. I have just finished reading your publication, Is This the Only Day of Salvation? I often wondered about the unsaved but could not find any answer that I knew in my heart to be true. Now, I know.

You need to know, too. Here’s the information you need to get your own free copy, and I’ll be right back to look at the four facts that explain the fate of the unsaved.

1. All of the Dead Are Awaiting Resurrection

Welcome back! Today, we’re explaining the true fate of the unsaved when they die. And the key to understanding the hope-filled answer lies in grasping four biblical facts.

Fact #1: All who have died—saved and unsaved—await a resurrection.

Most think that, once you die, your immortal soul either flies off to heaven and bliss if you’re saved or plunges into the depths of hell and torments if you’re not. But this isn’t the case.

Of all humans who have ever lived, Paul says in 1 Timothy 6:16 that the only one who has immortality at this time is Jesus Christ. Instead, the consistent teaching of the Bible, in both Old and New Testaments, is that we are mortal, and that after we die, we await a resurrection from the dead.

Again, don’t just believe me—believe your Bible.

The Apostle Paul Did Not Say His Hope Was to Go to Heaven

When Paul was challenged on multiple occasions, he didn’t say that his hope lay in going to heaven one day. Read for yourself in Acts 24:15.

I have hope in God, which they themselves also accept, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust.

He refers to the resurrection as his hope in Acts 23:6, as well, and he discusses it in many other passages. As we’ll see, he even devotes much of 1 Corinthians 15 to describing the resurrection, a future time when Christians will finally “put on immortality.”

Frankly, the focus of mainstream Christianity on “going to heaven” or “going to hell” is simply NOT the focus of the Bible, the Apostles, or Jesus Christ and the Church He founded. God’s word consistently points us to the resurrection from the dead as our hope and focus.

My colleague here on Tomorrow’s World, Gerald Weston, recently dived into that topic in depth on his program “When You Die—Then What?” You can find that program on our website at TomorrowsWorld.org or on our YouTube channel.

So, the short answer to today’s question about where the unsaved go when they die is that—according to the Bible—the unsaved are awaiting a resurrection from the dead, just like the saved are. But that’s where things get very interesting.

2. The First Resurrection Is for Faithful Christians

Fact #2: Faithful Christians will rise in the First Resurrection.

As already mentioned, we read of this resurrection of the righteous in many places. For instance, let’s look at one of my favorite passages in 1 Thessalonians and chapter 4.

But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:13–18).

It’s interesting how many seek to comfort the grieving by speaking of their loved ones in heaven, when the Bible itself says that it is the resurrection of the dead at Christ’s return that should be our source of comfort. But that’s another discussion for another time.

This resurrection of the righteous dead is spoken of in great detail, as well, in 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul writes that the faithful are given “spiritual bod[ies]” (v. 44) of “glory” and “power” (v. 43) it takes place at “the last trumpet” (v. 52) when Christ returns.

The Apostle John says in 1 John 3 that at the resurrection when Jesus Christ “is revealed” (v. 2) we will finally see Him “as He is” (v. 2), in glory, and we “shall be like Him” (v. 2).

The First Resurrection Happens Before the Millennium

Honestly, there are too many beautiful verses related to that resurrection for us to recount now. But one passage is particularly vital for our purposes today. We find it in Revelation 20, where the beginning of Jesus’ reign with the glorified saints is described. Let’s read verse 4.

And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years (Revelation 20:4).

That thousand years is the Millennium that begins with Jesus’ return to earth. Here we are told that the glorified, resurrected Christians will reign with Him for those thousand years.

A Later Resurrection Happens After the Millennium

But note the next verse:

But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection (Revelation 20:5).

Note that! The resurrection of faithful Christians is only the first resurrection. A “first” implies at the very least a “second!” And indeed, the verse says that “the rest of the dead”—that is, those who were not saved—“did not live again until the thousand years were finished.”

So there is a later resurrection of those who were not Christians in this life, taking place 1,000 years after the first resurrection.

God highlights this timing in many ways in Scripture, though few read carefully enough to notice—or else are so caught up in their own preconceived ideas that they don’t read the Bible for what it truly says.

My friends, we are on the verge of answering today’s question about the fate of the unsaved—right in the pages of your Bible. We only need two more points to complete the whole picture.

Before we continue, allow me to pause very briefly to give you an opportunity to request your own in-depth, free study guide on today’s topic—titled Is This the Only Day of Salvation?

Thousands of people have already felt the comfort and joy that comes with having their fears for their loved ones lifted and replaced with hopeful anticipation. Don’t miss out on experiencing that joy for yourself.

Order your copy right now, and I’ll be right back to explain, in detail, the fate of the unsaved.

3. The Second Resurrection Is for the Rest of Humanity—Unbelievers

Welcome back! Our last point left us on the very edge of revealing what happens to the unsaved after they die. Let’s jump right back in, with our next fact.

Fact #3: Those who died in ignorance will rise in the second resurrection.

Again, this second resurrection was implied in Revelation 20 and verse 5. In fact, let’s read verse 5 again, along with verse 6.

But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years (Revelation 20:5–6).

Now, this passage is focused on the first resurrection, but reading it carefully tells us a great deal about the second resurrection.

Details About the Second Resurrection

For instance, it highlights that the second death has no power over those in the first resurrection. That implies that those who rise in the second resurrection, at the end of the 1,000 years are still mortal—given physical bodies once again, just as they had in this life.

Later in the same chapter, we read even more about this resurrection of the unsaved to physical life.

Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works (Revelation 20:11–13).

There is so much here to unpack. Let’s take a closer look, but let me highlight again that today’s free resource dives into all of this with so much more detail.

But for now, we’ll have to move quickly.

The Dead Will Be Judged by Their Works and by the Bible—After the Second Resurrection

Notice that the passage says that “books were opened” (Revelation 20:12) and the works they then did were judged by what was written in the books.

Well, by what books are Christians judged in this life? The books of the Bible! And the Greek word for “books” in Revelation 20 and verse 12 is biblion, the Bible!

Just as 1 Peter 4:17 and James 2:12 say that Christians are in a time of judgment now, those in the second resurrection will have entered a time of judgment, as well.

God Is Fair

Note, too, that it says that the “books were opened” (Revelation 20:12). This is important, because the books of the Bible are not open to everyone in this life. In John 6:44, Jesus is plain that no one can “come to [Him] unless the Father … draws him.” And when God does call someone, He opens the Scriptures to their understanding—just as He did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus and with His apostles (Luke 24).

In this life, God calls people to follow His Son and opens the Bible to their understanding. And Revelation 20 describes this same process happening with the unsaved in the second resurrection.

The Great White Throne Judgment: God Will Open the Book of Life for All—After the Second Resurrection

And verse 12 adds: “another book was opened, which is the Book of Life.”

Now, keep in mind, everyone whose name had been written in the Book of Life had already been resurrected in the first resurrection—the resurrection of the faithful. The only reason for the Book of Life to be opened again in the second resurrection is for more names to be written in.

My friends, God truly is fair! Everyone who has ever lived will have an opportunity to have his or her mind opened and to learn the truth.

Those who have never heard the name of Jesus Christ and had His life-saving message opened to them in this life will have that opportunity.

Understanding this beautiful truth answers other mysteries, as well.

The World Will No Longer Be Blinded

For instance, in the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul laments that his fellow Jews and Israelites were refusing to accept the Gospel and that God had “blinded” them, “given them a spirit of stupor” (Romans 11:7–8), so that they would not understand.

Every day around him, his fellow Jews were dying—unsaved, unable to see that their own Savior had come in their day.

Yet, rather than despair, Paul states in Romans 11:30–31 that those who have in his day “now been disobedient” will eventually “obtain mercy,” explaining:

For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all (Romans 11:32).

Surrounded by Israelites dying daily without accepting the Gospel, Paul says confidently in Romans 11:26, “And so ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED!”

How could he be so boldly confident? Because he understood that there was a future resurrection to come for those God was not calling today.

The Second Resurrection Is Back to Physical Life

In fact, Paul had likely read about that physical resurrection many times, just as you can in Ezekiel 37. There, God gives Ezekiel a vision of a valley of dry bones and describes restoring dead sinners to physical life of bone, sinew, and flesh, so that He can put His Spirit in them and they can learn His ways (Ezekiel 37:7–14).

God describes these physically restored people as “the whole house of Israel” (Ezekiel 37:11)—or just as Paul said in Romans, “all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26).

And the Israelites are not alone in the second resurrection. Jesus Christ plainly says in Matthew 12:41–42 that Gentiles, too, such as the men of Nineveh and the queen of the South will “rise up in the judgment WITH this generation” of Jews.

No one will be left out. What a glorious time that judgment period to come will be!

But it is not yet the end of the story. We will see the whole conclusion of the matter in our last segment.

But first, let me take one final opportunity to encourage you to request today’s free literature: Is This the Only Day of Salvation?

My friends, this topic is too important for you NOT to prove it for yourself. This booklet, Is This the Only Day of Salvation?, dispels the myths woven by modern Christianity with the light of God’s word, and replaces despair and confusion with joy and hope.

Get your free copy right now, and I’ll be right back to give you God’s word on the conclusion of His great and merciful plan.

4. After the First and Second Resurrections Is the Lake of Fire for the Unrepentant

We’ve seen that God is fair, and He will give everyone who’s ever lived a real opportunity to have their minds opened to know His truth and to commit to His Son. But God will not rob us of our free will, and He will not force anyone to choose life over death.

And the implication in Scripture is clear that some will not accept obedience to Jesus Christ, and will choose to remain wicked, disobedient, and in rebellion against their Creator.

That brings us to fact #4: After the first and second resurrections, the incorrigibly wicked are destroyed in the Lake of Fire.

Let’s turn to Revelation 20 again and see what takes place after the second resurrection and the Great White Throne Judgment period. We’ll see it described in verses 14 and 15.

Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14–15).

Yes, the incorrigibly wicked who refuse to repent will be burned up, cast alive into the lake of fire, where they will be destroyed and made ashes under the feet of the righteous, as the Lord of Hosts says in Malachi 4:3.

At that point, with His Family grown to an innumerable multitude to include ALL who are willing to accept the lordship of Jesus Christ, and the incorrigibly wicked utterly destroyed forever in eternal death, the plan of God will be complete. And the saved will step into the rest of eternity, enjoying all of existence—physical and spiritual—as their inheritance alongside Jesus Christ and their loving Father, in the Family of God, forever.

No, the countless billions of unsaved in this life who never had their mind opened by God to the truth of Jesus Christ are NOT lost forever.

God really is fair. He will give everyone a real, true opportunity to embrace or reject His offer of salvation.

He is not capricious. He is not random. And he is not weak.

He is fair. He is merciful. And He is the Omnipotent God who reigns supreme—and who profoundly loves EVERY human being He has created.

And with Him, no one falls through the cracks.

Our short question may have had a long answer. But it’s a beautiful answer. And it’s the answer from God’s inspired word.

I hope you won’t fail to get your own copy of today’s free offer, Is This the Only Day of Salvation?, so you can truly PROVE this beautiful truth about the second resurrection for yourself.

And I hope you’ll come back next time! When you do, Gerald Weston, Richard Ames, Rod McNair, and I will be right here waiting for you, ready to share the truths of God’s word, the warnings of end-time prophecy, and the hope of Jesus Christ’s Gospel of the Kingdom of God. Until then, take care.