I truly believe that all the names that I
love, my mom and dad, my wife Linda, children (Lois, Moses, Anna, Daniel and
Rachel), siblings, relatives, brothers of faith who trust in the Lord are
written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
How? I know it by faith as Paul said in
Philippians 4:3;
Philippians 4:3
“Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help
these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along
with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the
book of life.”
What is the Book of Life?
The Book of Life contains the
names of those who are redeemed and will go to Heaven (Dan. 12:1). Those whose
names are written in it will live in the Heavenly city of New Jerusalem (Rev.
21:27). Phil. 4:3 mentions some associates of the Apostle Paul whose names are
written in the book. Jesus mentions His disciples’ names are written in the
book even though He doesn't mention the book by name (Luke 10:17-20). Psalm
139:16 is taken by some to refer to the Book of Life but more likely refers to
how God knows every day of our lives before we are born. If you repent of sin
and believe Jesus is your savior, your name will be in the Book of Life.
The
Bible also mentions the Lamb's Book of
Life. Is this the same book? It would seem to be since those who worship
the Anti-Christ in the future will not find their name in there (Rev. 13:8). We
also know the lamb is Jesus (1 Pet. 1:18-20). Taken together, we can say the
Book of Life is the same as the Lamb's Book of Life (Rev. 21:27) as both refer
to those who have eternal life.
Will names ever be blotted out?
Once
someone's name is in the Book of Life, can it ever be blotted out? The first
possible instance of this is when Moses pleaded with God not to kill the
Israelites for worshipping a golden calf (Exo. 32:7-14). Moses offered to have
his name blotted from the book God wrote (Exo. 32:32). God then said He would
delay their punishment, but when the time came He would punish them (Exo.
32:33-34). Does this refer to blotting out someone’s name in the Book of Life?
Although some have interpreted it that way, it likely doesn't refer to the Book
of Life but rather the census of the Israelites. Another example some point to
of someone’s name being blotted out is when King David prays God will blot the
names of his enemies from the book (Psa. 69:28). This may refer to the book of
Earthly life. Even if the verse does refer to the Book of Life, it doesn't
explicitly say God blots out names. We can be assured of our salvation as
believers since Jesus says He will never blot out any names of those who put
their faith in Him and are victorious (Rom. 8:37-39; Rev. 3:5).
Those whose names are not in the book
What
about those whose names are not in the book? They will go to the present-day
Hell. Later on they will be at the great white throne of judgment and like
believers will be judged according to what they've done in life (Rev.
20:11-12). Their wealth and stature in life won't be able to save them. Unlike
believers, they will then be thrown into the lake of fire, the eternal Hell (Rev.
20:15).
Some Interesting Questions
Some
interesting questions come to mind. What if someone changed his or her name in
life? What if two people have the same exact name? Somehow this won't be a
problem. Perhaps the book contains our adopted name, the one on a white stone
that will only be known to God and us once we are in Heaven (Rev. 2:17).
Is
the Book of Life a literal book? In Biblical days there were no books as we
know them but rather scrolls. A scroll in Heaven may seem primitive in this day
of iPads and mobile devices. However, it may have appeared as a scroll for the
benefit of the Bible writers as there was no other means for keeping written
records during that time, and they would have had no idea what an iPad was. The
Book of Life may be some record of names using a medium beyond our
understanding.
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