..To Ancient SDA's ............ To "What's New?" ................. To "Conversations" index

 

Face to face with God


 

Dear Truth Seeker,

You also wrote:

**********************

Who are the UFO people, by the way? I know that there are a lot of flakes out there, but there is a connection between the Bible and THEM.

Angels are more than spirits, and the word means messengers (title) they also are physical and can mate with humans. Gen.6:1-10.They eat, rest, and appear to people even today. It's easy to put them in a box and say they're Satan or God, or aliens, or whatever term we can come up with. The fact is they're real and they DO affect our world, spiritually and physically. They've manipulated our spiritual beliefs and gave birth to religions. They're the ones running the show. We are just spectators to what they unfold. Some are vicious and evil, some are benevolent and kind, some are indifferent or neutral, just like us. Humans aren't all good or evil.

Remember God said "let US create man(kind) in OUR image (likeness); which literally interpreted means: we're like god. David said, "are ye all not gods?", which Jesus even quoted.

Also, (a lot of meat, huh?) Jesus is not God, he said himself he was his son. He told people to worship the "FATHER" who sent him. How'd he send himself? after resurrection he went up physically into the clouds; returned in a physical body still bearing the marks of death. Elijah went in similar fashion and i bet even Enoch.

In Isaiah he speaks of the new "paradise" as not being eternal, but as an indefinite period of time: the cursed dying at 100 and children being 100.

I wish sometimes that i had never prayed for wisdom, like i did for years since 15. God, who i do believe in, gives you what you ask for.

**********************

 

Now to try to answer these questions.

The UFO group is just one of the organisations that Satan uses to confuse the clear picture that is in the Bible. When Jesus comes He will not need a creature-made machine. He went up to heaven on "clouds" and the angels said He will come back that way. Acts 1:9-11. The next time He won’t even touch this earth - the Christians go up into the air to meet Him. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. It’s the time after that that He puts His foot on the Mt of Olives. Zechariah 14:4-5.

I also believe that angels are more than what men think of as "spirits". To most that word means a disembodied piece of smoke!! It is true that the Bible uses that term to describe them, but we also say, "He has a good spirit" etc. so maybe this is what is meant. They are called "ministering spirits" a bit further on. But they are real creatures who live on a real planet out there in the universe (not in our solar system). The Bible calls that planet "heaven" just as we call ours "earth". One of them says of his species that they are "fellow servants" with us and that they follow the Bible too.

Revelation 22:8-9

And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which showed me these things. Then says he to me, "See you do it not: FOR I AM YOUR FELLOW SERVANT, and of your brothers and sisters the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God."

There is a misconception in some minds that they can mate with humans. However, Jesus said that they do not marry (have sex), and there is no need for this because He created the right number of them in the first place. In the same way, after the resurrection humans will not need to reproduce, because their number will also be made up.

Matthew 22:29-30

Jesus answered and said to them [in answer to a question about marriage in the new world], "You do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they [Christians] neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven."

So why do some people think that angels procreate? It seems to be based on the thought that the description "sons of God" of Genesis means angels.

Genesis 6:1-2

And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.

But human beings are also called "sons [and daughters] of God. John 1:11-12. In the light of Jesus’ words I prefer to recognise that the "sons of God" were the religious men of the time and "the daughters of men" were the ladies of the world. A union of those two would certainly cause problems with the children as the next verses indicate!

What we need to remember is that there are "good" and "bad" angels, loyal and rebellious ones. I agree with you that both of them affect our world and our lives, but they are not really "running the show". As far as Satan is concerned he cannot even control his own angel followers, because the basic principle of sin is that ALL who indulge in it WANT THEIR OWN WAY.

Satan can persuade, threaten, cajole, and convince but he cannot FORCE anyone to submit to him. He couldn’t throw Jesus off the roof of the temple, so he had to try to get Him to jump. Matthew 4:6. Satan’s followers only do what he says because it suits them. Mind you, they are easily tempted!! Christians, on the other hand, can overcome him just as easily with the word of God, IF WE TRUST AND OBEY.

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" we are told. James 4:7.

Unlike humans, angels are either all good or all bad! There is no in between for them for they ceased to be neutral long ago. Jesus classed the fallen ones as the "enemy", and the Bible says they are awaiting judgment. Jude 1:6.

Luke 10:18-19

And He said to them, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give to you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of THE ENEMY: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Regarding the statement that Christians are "gods". Let’s look at it.

Psalm 82:1-8 A Psalm of Asaph.

God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods. How long will you judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.

Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked. They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.

I have said, "You are gods"; and all of you are children of the most High. But you shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.

Arise, O God, judge the earth: for You shall inherit all nations.

 

John 10:33-38

The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we stone You not; but for blasphemy; and because that You, being a man, make Yourself God."

Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, You are gods?’ If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; say you of Him, whom the Father has sanctified, and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme’; because I said, I am the Son of God?"

"If I do not the works of My Father, believe Me not. But if I do, though you believe not Me, believe the works: that you may know, and believe, that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."

It seems that those words are clear. Those who have been changed in nature by rebirth (the mighty) are called "gods". We should have no problem with that because in the New Testament it is repeated. There Christians are called the sons and daughters of God which makes them of the family of God. And that is what Jesus is saying. He too, is of the family of God.

1 John 3:1

"Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God."

And Christ says, "As You have sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world" (John 17:18) - to "fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ ... for His body's sake, which is the church." Colossians 1:24.

Every soul whom Christ has rescued is called to work in His name for the saving of the lost, which is what the psalmist wrote. "Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy." etc. Those who do it show that they are indeed, "the sons of God" but not with a capital "S". They are like Jesus in character but NOT like Him in ability.

As for the length of time in Paradise, it is written:

Isaiah 65:17-22

For, behold, I CREATE NEW HEAVENS AND A NEW EARTH: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be you glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create [new] Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.

There shall be no more there an infant of days, nor an old man that has not filled his days: for THE CHILD shall die an hundred years old; but THE SINNER BEING AN HUNDRED YEARS OLD shall be accursed.

And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.

Here we have a description of the new world, a great place to rejoice in.

First, we notice that there will no new infants, but children will die at 100 years old, which is the same time for "the sinner". Hang on a minute, sinners in the NEW world? A place where God’s people are not controlled, and live days as long as a tree? A tree 100 years old is still fairly young - some we know of today are hundreds of years old! Maybe God is talking about two groups of beings here?

There are "sinners" and "righteous" together in this picture.

The youngest of them grows up to be 100 years old and then dies.

Who dies? Romans 6:23 tells us that it is sinners who die as a result of the wages of sin. So the children who die are "sinners".

When will sinners and righteous grow together to be 100 years old?

Not in the world as we know it now. Most (good AND bad) die a long time before 100. So maybe, just maybe, God is talking of a time in the future when ALL the inhabitants of this earth are together again? When could that be?

Revelation 20:5-15

But the rest of the dead lived not again UNTIL THE THOUSAND YEARS WERE FINISHED.

This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection [for they are Christians]: on 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 [Where? They left the earth at the second coming to meet Him in the air, 1 Thessalonians 4:17].

And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog [a descriptive term for all the sinners who refused to be saved, Ezekiel 38], to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea [they have been resurrected, as it says in verse 5, at the end of the 1000 years while the Christians were resurrected at its beginning].

And they [Gog and Magog] went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city [the descent of New Jerusalem to the earth is described in the next chapter]: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

And [before this happened] I saw a great white throne [of justice], and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away [the Son of God, John 5:22]; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, SMALL AND GREAT [sinner and saint], stand before [the Son of] God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works [the judgment of Matthew 25].

And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell [the graves] delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. THIS IS THE SECOND DEATH.

And whoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire [but those whose names were in the book stayed alive].

Consider that the time between the second resurrection and the attack on the New Jerusalem at the end of the 1,000 years may not be as quick as it sometimes looks. Maybe the inspiring, the training and the making of weapons will consume some time, 100 years? Not all who die as sinners are really wicked and ferocious people and they will need to be goaded into that attitude. There will obviously be many women in that group, and, as we have read, some of them will be children. But after a hundred years all will be grown up, and if we begin the time of their new lives from their resurrection, all will be exactly 100 years old (in the new system which began with the resurrection of the Christians)!!

That will have been plenty of time for the propaganda machine to convince them that they can attack and defeat the people in the city of God, and make some weapons to do it with. They will need to be fanatical to believe this but the word of God says they will do it. That’s the time their bodies will fall apart. Zechariah 14:10-13.

Hope some of these thoughts will help you,

Regards,

 

P.S. I too believe that God gives us what we ask for! Hebrews 10:31. We should be very careful for asking to know the truth for that means that we have to do something with it. Jesus said,

John 7:17

If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself.

oooOooo

 


To Ancient SDA's ............ To "What's New?" ................. To "Conversations" index

 

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page