As I have previously mentioned, this blog was for a limited time and a specific purpose. That purpose is to share the contents of my book "Science the Bible and Life on Other Planets". Approximatley 63 pages in length, chapter one begins with my first post and continues in order from that point to the present. If you are new to this blog and are interested in a unique take on the issues between science and religion so hotly debated elsewhere, this blog is for you.

To further your search for truth, I recently have posted a number of links to some video Bible studies I have been working on. They are available to view by clicking on "Video Bible Study" at airdriesda.org. All are welcome to learn more about God and His truth for our time there.
THANK YOU
LES MILLER

While the project for the Airdrie Church is on going, here are some various urls for Bible videos I have up on line.

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/298/How-to-Study-the-Bible-Part-1
http://www.3angelstube.com/video/309/How-To-Study-The-Bible-Part-2

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/312/Getting-To-Know-the-Father

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/313/Getting-to-Know-the-Son

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/322/Getting-to-Know-the-Holy-Spirit

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/492/Why-Do-We-Suffer

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/618/Forgiveness

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/679/Creation-and-Redemption

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/1420/Understanding-Temptation

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/1443/The-Second-COming-of-Christ-and-the-End-of-the-World

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/320/The-Search-For-Truth

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/1558/Which-Laws-Were-Done-Away-When

http://www.3angelstube.com/video/680/True-Grace-is-the-Power-to-Live-Right

http://vimeo.com/17230809 (God's Holy Day)


My Testimony on youtube in 4 parts
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mc5gGaSjggg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRAbN3taQ7Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2O_A0D1Y94
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLA2gGqLHcU

There's lots more great videos on 3angelstube.com and sabbathtube.com
God bless!

New Project

Look for "Video Bible Study" on airdriesda.org where you will find a number of different topics designed to meet your spiritual needs. May the Lord be with you!

Epilogue

This concludes the book “Science the Bible and Life on Other Planets” shared here on this blog. I am going to take a break from blogging for a few months while I work on other projects. Please take a look every once in a while at airdriesda.org for a series of video Bible studies that explore these topics further. For now though, I hope your worldview has been affected in a positive way. I also hope that the next time you look up the stars; you’ll have a greater appreciation for the Lord, all He’s done to save you and that you’ll want to live in such a way that the whole universe can praise Him.

Part 6 – World history and the plan of salvation unfold

The plan of redemption had a yet broader and deeper purpose than the salvation of man. It was not for this alone that Christ came to the earth; it was not merely that the inhabitants of this little world might regard the law of God as it should be regarded; but it was to vindicate the character of God before the universe. To this result of His great sacrifice--its influence upon the intelligences of other worlds, as well as upon man--the Saviour looked forward when just before His crucifixion He 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 unto Me." John 12:31, 32. The act of Christ in dying for the salvation of man would not only make heaven accessible to men, but before all the universe it would justify God and His Son in their dealing with the rebellion of Satan. It would establish the perpetuity of the law of God and would reveal the nature and the results of sin.

If the race had ceased to fall when Adam was driven from Eden, we should now be in a far more elevated condition physically, mentally, and morally. But while men deplore the fall of Adam, which has resulted in such unutterable woe, they disobey the express injunctions of God, as did Adam, although they have his example to warn them from doing as he did in violating the law of Jehovah. Would that man had stopped falling with Adam. But there has been a succession of falls each greater than the last, in every species of crime. God did not create a race of beings so devoid of health, beauty, and moral power as now exists in the world. Disease of every kind has been fearfully increasing upon the race. This has not been by God's especial providence, but directly contrary to His will. It has come by man's disregard of the very means which God has ordained to shield him from the terrible evils existing

In Eden Satan used the serpent as his instrument. Today he makes use of the members of the human family, striving by means of every species of cunning and deception to hedge up the path of righteousness cast up for the ransomed of the Lord to walk in. God does not consult our opinions or preferences. He knows what human beings do not know,--the future results of every movement, and therefore our eyes should be directed to Him, and not to the worldly advantages presented by Satan. Satan tells us that if we give heed to him, we shall reach great heights of knowledge. Ye shall be as gods, he said to Eve, if you eat of the tree forbidden by God. The test given to Adam and Eve was very light, but they could not bear it. They disobeyed God, and this transgression opened the floodgates of woe on our world

We can do nothing of ourselves. It is only by relying on Christ for all our strength that we can overcome, and do His will on earth. We must have the same simple, childlike trust in Him that He had in His Father. Christ said, "Without Me ye can do nothing." John 15:5.

It is Satan's constant effort to misrepresent the character of God, the nature of sin, and the real issues at stake in the great controversy. His sophistry lessens the obligation of the divine law and gives men license to sin. At the same time he causes them to cherish false conceptions of God so that they regard Him with fear and hate rather than with love. The cruelty inherent in his own character is attributed to the Creator; it is embodied in systems of religion and expressed in modes of worship. Thus the minds of men are blinded, and Satan secures them as his agents to war against God. By perverted conceptions of the divine attributes, heathen nations were led to believe human sacrifices necessary to secure the favor of Deity; and horrible cruelties have been perpetrated under the various forms of idolatry.

Age after age, the curiosity of men has led them to seek for the tree of knowledge; and often they think they are plucking fruit most essential, when, like Solomon's research, they find it altogether vanity and nothingness in comparison with that science of true holiness which will open to them the gates of the city of God. The human ambition has been seeking for that kind of knowledge that will bring to them glory and self-exaltation and supremacy.

The same spirit that prompted rebellion in heaven still inspires rebellion on earth. Satan has continued with men the same policy which he pursued with the angels. His spirit now reigns in the children of disobedience. Like him they seek to break down the restraints of the law of God and promise men liberty through transgression of its precepts. Reproof of sin still arouses the spirit of hatred and resistance. When God's messages of warning are brought home to the conscience, Satan leads men to justify themselves and to seek the sympathy of others in their course of sin. Instead of correcting their errors, they excite indignation against the reprover, as if he were the sole cause of difficulty. From the days of righteous Abel to our own time such is the spirit which has been displayed toward those who dare to condemn sin.

The Saviour's coming was foretold in Eden. When Adam and Eve first heard the promise, they looked for its speedy fulfillment. They joyfully welcomed their first-born son, hoping that he might be the Deliverer. But the fulfillment of the promise tarried. Those who first received it died without the sight. From the days of Enoch the promise was repeated through patriarchs and prophets, keeping alive the hope of His appearing, and yet He came not. The prophecy of Daniel revealed the time of His advent, but not all rightly interpreted the message. Century after century passed away; the voices of the prophets ceased. The hand of the oppressor was heavy upon Israel, and many were ready to exclaim, "The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth." Ezek. 12:22.

But like the stars in the vast circuit of their appointed path, God's purposes know no haste and no delay. Through the symbols of the great darkness and the smoking furnace, God had revealed to Abraham the bondage of Israel in Egypt, and had declared that the time of their sojourning should be four hundred years. "Afterward," He said, "shall they come out with great substance." Gen. 15:14. Against that word, all the power of Pharaoh's proud empire battled in vain. On "the self-same day" appointed in the divine promise, "it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt." Ex. 12:41. So in heaven's council the hour for the coming of Christ had been determined. When the great clock of time pointed to that hour, Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

It was not the will of God that this sinless pair should have any knowledge of evil. He had freely given them the good, but withheld the evil. Eve thought the words of the serpent wise, and she received the broad assertion, "Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods knowing good and evil" --making God a liar. Satan boldly insinuates that God had deceived them to keep them from being exalted in knowledge equal with himself. God said, If ye eat "ye shall surely die." The serpent said, If ye eat "ye shall not surely die."

The tempter assured Eve that as soon as she ate of the fruit she would receive a new and superior knowledge that would make her equal with God. He called her attention to himself. He ate freely of the tree and found it not only perfectly harmless, but delicious and exhilarating; and told her that it was because of its wonderful properties to impart wisdom and power that God had prohibited them from tasting or even touching it; for he knew its wonderful qualities. He stated that by eating of the fruit of the tree forbidden them was the reason he had attained the power of speech. He intimated that God would not carry out his word. It was merely a threat to intimidate them and keep them from great good. He further told them that they could not die. Had they not eaten of the tree of life which perpetuates immortality? He said that God was deceiving them to keep them from a higher state of felicity and more exalted happiness. The tempter plucked the fruit and passed it to Eve. She took it in her hand. Now, said the tempter, you were prohibited from even touching it lest you die. He told her that she would realize no more sense of evil and death in eating than in touching or handling the fruit. Eve was emboldened because she felt not the immediate signs of God's displeasure. She thought the words of the tempter all wise and correct. She ate, and was delighted with the fruit. It seemed delicious to her taste, and she imagined that she realized in herself the wonderful effects of the fruit.

She then plucked for herself of the fruit and ate, and imagined she felt the quickening power of a new and elevated existence as the result of the exhilarating influence of the forbidden fruit. She was in a strange and unnatural excitement as she sought her husband, with her hands filled with the forbidden fruit. She related to him the wise discourse of the serpent, and wished to conduct him at once to the tree of knowledge. She told him she had eaten of the fruit, and instead of her feeling any sense of death, she realized a pleasing, exhilarating influence. As soon as Eve had disobeyed, she became a powerful medium through which to occasion the fall of her husband.

I saw a sadness come over the countenance of Adam. He appeared afraid and astonished. A struggle appeared to be going on in his mind. He told Eve he was quite certain that this was the foe that they had been warned against; and if so, that she must die. She assured him she felt no ill effects, but rather a very pleasant influence, and entreated him to eat.

Adam quite well understood that his companion had transgressed the only prohibition laid upon them as a test of their fidelity and love. Eve reasoned that the serpent said they should not surely die, and his words must be true, for she felt no signs of God's displeasure, but a pleasant influence, as she imagined the angels felt. Adam regretted that Eve had left his side; but now the deed was done. He must be separated from her whose society he had loved so well. How could he have it thus? His love for Eve was strong. And in utter discouragement he resolved to share her fate. He reasoned that Eve was a part of himself; and if she must die, he would die with her; for he could not bear the thought of separation from her. He lacked faith in his merciful and benevolent Creator. He did not think that God, who had formed him out of the dust of the ground into a living, beautiful form, and had created Eve to be his companion, could supply her place. After all, might not the words of this wise serpent be correct? Eve was before him, just as lovely and beautiful, and apparently as innocent, as before this act of disobedience. She expressed greater, higher love for him than before her disobedience, as the effects of the fruit she had eaten. He saw in her no signs of death. She had told him of the happy influence of the fruit, of her ardent love for him, and he decided to brave the consequences. He seized the fruit and quickly ate it, and, like Eve, felt not immediately its ill effects.

Our first parents chose to believe the words, as they thought, of a serpent; yet he had given them no tokens of his love. He had done nothing for their happiness and benefit; while God had given them everything that was good for food, and pleasant to the sight. Everywhere the eye might rest was abundance and beauty; yet Eve was deceived by the serpent, to think that there was something withheld which would make them wise, even as God. Instead of believing and confiding in God, she basely distrusted his goodness, and cherished the words of Satan.

After Adam's transgression he at first imagined that he felt the rising to a new and higher existence. But soon the thought of his transgression terrified him. The air that had been of a mild and even temperature, seemed to chill them. The guilty pair had a sense of sin. They felt a dread of the future, a sense of want, a nakedness of soul. The sweet love, and peace, and happy, contented bliss, seemed removed from them, and in its place a want of something came over them that they never experienced before. They then for the first turned their attention to the external. They had not been clothed, but were draped in light as were the heavenly angels. This light which had enshrouded them departed. To relieve the sense of lack and nakedness which they realized, their attention was directed to seek a covering for their forms; for how could they meet the eye of God and angels unclothed?

Their crime is now before them in its true light. Their transgression of God's express command assumes a clearer character. Adam censured Eve's folly in leaving his side, and being deceived by the serpent. They both flattered themselves that God, who had given them everything to make them happy, might yet excuse their disobedience, because of his great love to them, and that their punishment would not be so dreadful, after all.

Satan exulted in his success. He had now tempted the woman to distrust God, to question his wisdom, and to seek to penetrate his all-wise plans. And through her he had also caused the overthrow of Adam, who, in consequence of his love for Eve, disobeyed the command of God, and fell with her.

Part 4 – The fall of humanity

It was God's purpose to re-populate heaven with the human family, if they would show themselves obedient to His every word. Adam was to be tested, to see whether he would be obedient, as the loyal angels, or disobedient. If he stood the test, his instruction to his children would have been only of loyalty. His mind and thoughts would have been as the mind and thoughts of God.

God assembled the angelic host to take measures to avert the threatened evil. It was decided in Heaven's council for angels to visit Eden and warn Adam that he was in danger from the foe. Two angels sped on their way to visit our first parents. The holy pair received them with joyful innocence, expressing their grateful thanks to their Creator for thus surrounding them with such a profusion of his bounty.

Everything lovely and attractive was theirs to enjoy, and everything seemed wisely adapted to their wants; and that which they prized above all other blessings, was the society of the Son of God and the heavenly angels, for they had much to relate to them at every visit, of their new discoveries of the beauties of nature in their lovely Eden home, and they had many questions to ask relative to many things which they could but indistinctly comprehend.

The angels graciously and lovingly gave them the information they desired. They also gave them the sad history of Satan's rebellion and fall. They then distinctly informed them that the tree of knowledge was placed in the garden to be a pledge of their obedience and love to God; that the high and happy estate of the holy angels was to be retained upon condition of obedience; that they were similarly situated; that they could obey the law of God and be inexpressibly happy, or disobey, and lose their high estate, and be plunged into hopeless despair.

They told Adam and Eve that God would not compel them to obey--that he had not removed from them power to go contrary to his will; that they were moral agents, free to obey or disobey. There was but one prohibition that God had seen fit to lay upon them as yet. If they should transgress the will of God, they would surely die. They told Adam and Eve that the most exalted angel, next in order to Christ, refused obedience to the law of God which he had ordained to govern heavenly beings; that this rebellion had caused war in Heaven which resulted in the rebellious being expelled therefrom, and every angel was driven out of Heaven who united with him in questioning the authority of the great Jehovah; and that
this fallen foe was now an enemy to all that concerned the interest of God and his dear Son.

They told them that Satan purposed to do them harm, and it was necessary for them to be guarded, for they might come in contact with the fallen foe; but he could not harm them while they yielded obedience to God's command; for, if necessary, every angel from Heaven would come to their help rather than that he should in any way do them harm. But if they disobeyed the command of God, then Satan would have power to ever annoy, perplex, and trouble, them. If they remained steadfast against the first insinuations of Satan, they were as secure as the heavenly angels. But if they yielded to the tempter, He who spared not the exalted angels, would not spare them. They must suffer the penalty of their transgression; for the law of God was as sacred as himself, and he required implicit obedience from all in Heaven and on earth.

The angels cautioned Eve not to separate from her husband in her employment; for she might be brought in contact with this fallen foe. If separated from each other, they would be in greater danger than if both were together. The angels charged them to closely follow the instructions God had given them in reference to the tree of knowledge; for in perfect obedience they were safe, and this fallen foe could then have no power to deceive them. God would not permit Satan to follow the holy pair with continual temptations. He could have access to them only at the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

But absorbed in her pleasing task, she unconsciously wandered from his side. She soon found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the forbidden tree. The fruit was very beautiful, and she questioned with herself why God had withheld it from them. Now was the tempter's opportunity. As if he were able to discern the workings of her mind, he addressed her: "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?"

Eve's curiosity was aroused. Instead of fleeing from the spot, she listened to hear a serpent talk. It did not occur to her mind that it might be that fallen foe, using the serpent as a medium. It was Satan that spoke, not the serpent. Eve was beguiled, flattered, infatuated. Had she met a commanding personage, possessing a form like the angels, and resembling them, she would have been upon her guard. But that strange voice should have driven her to her husband's side to inquire of him why another should thus freely address her. But she enters into a controversy with the serpent. She answers his question, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." The serpent answers, "Ye shall not surely die; for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

Satan would convey the idea that by eating of the forbidden tree, they would receive a new and more noble kind of knowledge than they had hitherto attained. This has been his special work with great success ever since his fall, to lead men to pry into the secrets of the Almighty, and not to be satisfied with what God has revealed, and not careful to obey that which he has commanded. He would lead them to disobey God's commands, and then make them believe that they are entering a wonderful field of knowledge. This is purely supposition, and a miserable deception. They fail to understand what God has revealed, and disregard his explicit commandments, and aspire after wisdom, independent of God, and seek to understand that which he has been pleased to withhold from mortals. They are elated with their ideas of progression, and charmed with their own vain philosophy; but grope in midnight darkness relative to true knowledge. They are ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Part 3 – Precursor to the fall

Satan stood in amazement at his new condition. His happiness was gone. He looked upon the angels who, with him, were once so happy, but who had been expelled from Heaven with him. Before their fall, not a shade of discontent had marred their perfect bliss. Now all seemed changed. Countenances which had reflected the image of their Maker were gloomy and despairing. Strife, discord, and bitter recrimination, were among them. Previous to their rebellion these things had been unknown in Heaven. Satan now beholds the terrible results of his rebellion. He shuddered, and feared to face the future, and to contemplate the end of these things.

The hour for joyful, happy songs of praise to God and his dear Son had come. Satan had led the heavenly choir. He had raised the first note, then all the angelic host united with him, and glorious strains of music had resounded through Heaven in honor of God and his dear Son. But now, instead of strains of sweetest music, discord and angry words fall upon the ear of the great rebel leader. Where was he? Was it not all a horrible dream? Was he shut out of Heaven? Were the gates of Heaven never more to open and admit him? The hour of worship draws nigh, when bright and holy angels bow before the Father. No more will he unite in heavenly song. No more will he bow in reverence and holy awe before the presence of the eternal God. Could he be again as he was when he was pure, true and loyal, gladly would he yield up the claims of his authority. But he was lost! beyond redemption, for his presumptuous rebellion! And this was not all; he had led others to rebellion and to the same lost condition with himself--angels, who had never thought to question the will of Heaven, or refuse obedience to the law of God till he had put it into their minds, presenting before them that they might enjoy a greater good, a higher and more glorious liberty. This had been the sophistry whereby he had deceived them. A responsibility now rests upon him from which he would fain be released.

Satan trembled as he viewed his work. He was alone in meditation upon the past, the present, and his future plans. His mighty frame shook as with a tempest. An angel from Heaven was passing. He called him, and entreated an interview with Christ. This was granted him. He then related to the Son of God that he repented of his rebellion, and wished again the favor of God. He was willing to take the place God had previously assigned him, and be under his wise command. Christ wept at Satan's woe, but told him, as the mind of God, that he could never be received into Heaven. Heaven must not be placed in jeopardy. All Heaven would be marred should he be received back; for sin and rebellion originated with him. The seeds of rebellion were still within him. He had, in his rebellion, no occasion for his course, and he had not only hopelessly ruined himself, but the host of angels also, who would then have been happy in Heaven had he remained steadfast.

He repented not of his rebellion because he saw the goodness of God which he had abused. It was not possible that his love for God had so increased since his fall that it would lead to cheerful submission and happy obedience to his law which had been despised. The wretchedness he realized in losing the sweet light of Heaven, and the sense of guilt which forced itself upon him, and the disappointment he experienced himself in not finding his expectations realized, were the cause of his grief. To be commander out of Heaven, was vastly different from being thus honored in Heaven. The loss he had sustained of all the privileges of Heaven seemed too much to be borne. He wished to regain these.

This great change of position had not increased his love for God, nor for his wise and just law. When Satan became fully convinced that there was no possibility of his being re-instated in the favor of God, he manifested his malice with increased hatred and fiery vehemence.

God knew that such determined rebellion would not remain inactive. Satan would invent means to annoy the heavenly angels, and show contempt for his authority. As he could not gain admission within the gates of Heaven, he would wait just at the entrance, to taunt the angels and seek contention with them as they went in and out. He would seek to destroy the happiness of Adam and Eve. He would endeavor to incite them to rebellion, knowing that this would cause grief in Heaven.

His followers were seeking him; and he aroused himself and, assuming a look of defiance, informed them of his plans to wrest from God the noble Adam and his companion Eve. If he could, in any way, beguile them to disobedience, God would make some provision whereby they might be pardoned, and then himself and all the fallen angels would be in a fair way to share with them of God's mercy. If this should fail, they could unite with Adam and Eve; for when once they should transgress the law of God, they would be subjects of God's wrath, like themselves. Their transgression would place them also, in a state of rebellion; and they could unite with Adam and Eve, take possession of Eden, and hold it as their home. And if they could gain access to the tree of life in the midst of the garden, their strength would, they thought, be equal to that of the holy angels, and even God himself could not expel them.

Satan held a consultation with his evil angels. They did not all readily unite to engage in this hazardous and terrible work. He told them that he would not entrust any one of them to accomplish this work; for he thought that he alone had wisdom sufficient to carry forward so important an enterprise. He wished them to consider the matter while he should leave them and seek retirement, to mature his plans. He sought to impress upon them that this was their last and only hope. If they failed here, all prospect of regaining and controlling Heaven, or any part of God's creation, was hopeless.

Satan went alone to mature plans that would most surely secure the fall of Adam and Eve. He had fears that his purposes might be defeated. And again, even if he should be successful in leading Adam and Eve to disobey the commandment of God, and thus become transgressors of his law, and no good come to himself, his own case would not be improved; his guilt would only be increased.

He shuddered at the thought of plunging the holy, happy pair into the misery and remorse he was himself enduring. He seemed in a state of indecision; at one time firm and determined, then hesitating and wavering. His angels were seeking him, their leader, to acquaint him with their decision. They will unite with Satan in his plans, and with him bear the responsibility, and share the consequences.

Final Chapter Part 2 - The Creation of the earth

The Father and the Son engaged in the mighty, wondrous work they had contemplated, of creating the world. The earth came forth from the hand of the Creator exceedingly beautiful. There were mountains, and hills, and plains; and interspersed among them were rivers and bodies of water. The earth was not one extensive plain, but the monotony of the scenery was broken by hills and mountains, not high and ragged as they now are, but regular and beautiful in shape. The bare, high rocks were never seen upon them, but lay beneath the surface, answering as bones to the earth. The waters were regularly dispersed. The hills, mountains, and very beautiful plains, were adorned with plants and flowers, and tall, majestic trees of every description, which were many times larger, and much more beautiful, than trees now are. The air was pure and healthful, and the earth seemed like a noble palace. Angels beheld and rejoiced at the wonderful and beautiful works of God.

After the earth was created, and the beasts upon it, the Father and Son carried out their purpose, which was designed before the fall of Satan, to make man in their own image. They had wrought together in the creation of the earth and every living thing upon it. And now God says to his Son, "Let us make man in our image." As Adam came forth from the hand of his Creator, he was of noble height, and of beautiful symmetry. He was more than twice as tall as men now living upon the earth, and was well proportioned. His features were perfect and beautiful. His complexion was neither white, nor sallow, but ruddy, glowing with the rich tint of health. Eve was not quite as tall as Adam. Her head reached a little above his shoulders. She, too, was noble--perfect in symmetry, and very beautiful.

This sinless pair wore no artificial garments. They were clothed with a covering of light and glory, such as the angels wear. While they lived in obedience to God, this circle of light enshrouded them. Although everything God had made was in the perfection of beauty, and there seemed nothing wanting upon the earth which God had created to make Adam and Eve happy, yet he manifested his great love to them by planting a garden especially for them. A portion of their time was to be occupied in the happy employment of dressing the garden, and a portion in receiving the visits of angels, listening to their instruction, and in happy meditation. Their labor was not wearisome, but pleasant and invigorating. This beautiful garden was to be their home, their special residence.

In this garden the Lord placed trees of every variety for usefulness and beauty. There were trees laden with luxuriant fruit, of rich fragrance, beautiful to the eye, and pleasant to the taste, designed of God to be food for the holy pair. There were the lovely vines which grew upright, laden with their burden of fruit, unlike anything man had seen since the fall. The fruit was very large, and of different colors; some nearly black, some purple, red, pink and light green. Everything was tastefully and gloriously arranged. In the midst of the garden stood the tree of life, the glory of which surpassed all other trees. Its fruit looked like apples of gold and silver, and was to perpetuate immortality. The leaves contained healing properties.

Adam was crowned king in Eden. To him was given dominion over every living thing that God had created. The Lord blessed Adam and Eve with intelligence such as He had not given to any other creature. He made Adam the rightful sovereign over all the works of His hands. Man, made in the divine image, could contemplate and appreciate the glorious works of God in nature

Very happy were the holy pair in Eden. Unlimited control was given them over every living thing. The lion and the lamb sported together peacefully and harmlessly around them, or slumbered at their feet. Birds of every variety of color and plumage flitted among the trees and flowers, and about Adam and Eve, while their mellow-toned music echoed among the trees in sweet accord to the praises of their Creator.

In the midst of the garden, near the tree of life, stood the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This tree was especially designed of God to be the pledge of their obedience, faith and love to him. Of this tree the Lord commanded our first parents not to eat, neither to touch it, lest they die. He told them that they might freely eat of all the trees in the garden except one; but if they ate of that tree they should surely die.

(On a side note – I just found out that supernova observed by the Chinese in 1054 AD happened in about 4000 BC. The light of course took that long to get here. I wonder if it had something to do with the war in heaven this chapter of the blog has already discussed?)

To dispute the supremacy of the Son of God, thus impeaching the wisdom and love of the Creator, had become the purpose of this prince of angels. To this object he was about to bend the energies of that master mind, which, next to Christ's, was first among the hosts of God. But He who would have the will of all His creatures free, left none unguarded to the bewildering sophistry by which rebellion would seek to justify itself. Before the great contest should open, all were to have a clear presentation of His will, whose wisdom and goodness were the spring of all their joy.

The King of the universe summoned the heavenly hosts before Him, that in their presence He might set forth the true position of His Son and show the relation He sustained to all created beings. The Son of God shared the Father's throne, and the glory of the eternal, self-existent One encircled both. About the throne gathered the holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng--"ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands" (Revelation 5:11.), the most exalted angels, as ministers and subjects, rejoicing in the light that fell upon them from the presence of the Deity. Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His will. The Son of God had wrought the Father's will in the creation of all the hosts of heaven; and to Him, as well as to God, their homage and allegiance were due. Christ was still to exercise divine power, in the creation of the earth and its inhabitants. But in all this He would not seek power or exaltation for Himself contrary to God's plan, but would exalt the Father's glory and execute His purposes of beneficence and love.

The angels joyfully acknowledged the supremacy of Christ, and prostrating themselves before Him, poured out their love and adoration. Lucifer bowed with them, but in his heart there was a strange, fierce conflict. Truth, justice, and loyalty were struggling against envy and jealousy. The influence of the holy angels seemed for a time to carry him with them. As songs of praise ascended in melodious strains, swelled by thousands of glad voices, the spirit of evil seemed vanquished; unutterable love thrilled his entire being; his soul went out, in harmony with the sinless worshippers, in love to the Father and the Son. But again he was filled with pride in his own glory. His desire for supremacy returned, and envy of Christ was once more indulged. The high honors conferred upon Lucifer were not appreciated as God's special gift, and therefore, called forth no gratitude to his Creator. He gloried in his brightness and exaltation and aspired to be equal with God. He was beloved and reverenced by the heavenly host, angels delighted to execute his commands, and he was clothed with wisdom and glory above them all. Yet the Son of God was exalted above him, as one in power and authority with the Father. He shared the Father's counsels, while Lucifer did not thus enter into the purposes of God. "Why," questioned this mighty angel, "should Christ have the supremacy? Why is He honored above Lucifer?"

Leaving his place in the immediate presence of God, Lucifer went forth to diffuse the spirit of discontent among the angels. Working with mysterious secrecy, and for a time concealing his real purpose under an appearance of reverence for God, he endeavored to excite dissatisfaction concerning the laws that governed heavenly beings, intimating that they imposed an unnecessary restraint. Since their natures were holy, he urged that the angels should obey the dictates of their own will. He sought to create sympathy for himself by representing that God had dealt unjustly with him in bestowing supreme honor upon Christ. He claimed that in aspiring to greater power and honor he was not aiming at self-exaltation, but was seeking to secure liberty for all the inhabitants of heaven, that by this means they might attain to a higher state of existence.

Lucifer had at first so conducted his temptations that he himself stood uncommitted. The angels whom he could not bring fully to his side, he accused of indifference to the interests of heavenly beings. The very work which he himself was doing, he charged upon the loyal angels. It was his policy to perplex with subtle arguments concerning the purposes of God. Everything that was simple he shrouded in mystery, and by artful perversion cast doubt upon the plainest statements of Jehovah. And his high position, so closely connected with the divine government, gave greater force to his representations.

Angels that were loyal and true sought to reconcile this mighty, rebellious angel to the will of his Creator. They justified the act of God in conferring honor upon Jesus Christ, and with forcible reasoning sought to convince Satan that no less honor was his now than before the Father had proclaimed the honor which he had conferred upon his Son. They clearly set forth that Jesus was the Son of God, existing with him before the angels were created; and that he had ever stood at the right hand of God, and his mild, loving authority had not heretofore been questioned; and that he had given no commands but what it was joy for the heavenly host to execute. They urged that Christ's receiving special honor from the Father, in the presence of the angels, did not detract from the honor that he had heretofore received. The angels wept. They anxiously sought to move Satan to renounce his wicked design and yield submission to their Creator; for all had heretofore been peace and harmony, and what could occasion this dissenting, rebellious voice?

In great mercy, according to His divine character, God bore long with Lucifer. The spirit of discontent and disaffection had never before been known in heaven. It was a new element, strange, mysterious, unaccountable. Lucifer himself had not at first been acquainted with the real nature of his feelings; for a time he had feared to express the workings and imaginings of his mind; yet he did not dismiss them. He did not see whither he was drifting. But such efforts as infinite love and wisdom only could devise, were made to convince him of his error. His disaffection was proved to be without cause, and he was made to see what would be the result of persisting in revolt. Lucifer was convinced that he was in the wrong. He saw that "the Lord is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works" (Psalm 145:17); that the divine statutes are just, and that he ought to acknowledge them as such before all heaven. Had he done this, he might have saved himself and many angels. He had not at that time fully cast off his allegiance to God. Though he had left his position as covering cherub, yet if he had been willing to return to God, acknowledging the Creator's wisdom, and satisfied to fill the place appointed him in God's great plan, he would have been reinstated in his office. The time had come for a final decision; he must fully yield to the divine sovereignty or place himself in open rebellion. He nearly reached the decision to return, but pride forbade him. It was too great a sacrifice for one who had been so highly honored to confess that he had been in error, that his imaginings were false, and to yield to the authority which he had been working to prove unjust.

A compassionate Creator, in yearning pity for Lucifer and his followers, was seeking to draw them back from the abyss of ruin into which they were about to plunge. But His mercy was misinterpreted. Lucifer pointed to the long-suffering of God as an evidence of his own superiority, an indication that the King of the universe would yet accede to his terms. If the angels would stand firmly with him, he declared, they could yet gain all that they desired. He persistently defended his own course, and fully committed himself to the great controversy against his Maker. Thus it was that Lucifer, "the light bearer," the sharer of God's glory, the attendant of His throne, by transgression became Satan, "the adversary" of God and holy beings and the destroyer of those whom Heaven had committed to his guidance and guardianship.

Satan refused to listen. And then he turned from the loyal and true angels, denouncing them as slaves. These angels, true to God, stood in amazement as they saw that Satan was successful in his effort to excite rebellion. He promised them a new and better government than they then had, in which all would be freedom. Great numbers signified their purpose to accept Satan as their leader and chief commander. As he saw his advances were met with success, he flattered himself that he should yet have all the angels on his side, and that he would be equal with God himself, and his voice of authority would be heard in commanding the entire host of Heaven. Again the loyal angels warned Satan, and assured him what must be the consequence if he persisted; that He who could create the angels, could by his power overturn all their authority, and in some signal manner punish their audacity and terrible rebellion. To think that an angel should resist the law of God which was as sacred as himself! They warned the rebellious to close their ears to Satan's deceptive reasonings, and advised Satan, and all who had been affected by him, to go to God and confess their wrong for even admitting a thought of questioning his authority.

God permitted Satan to carry forward his work until the spirit of disaffection ripened into active revolt. It was necessary for his plans to be fully developed, that their true nature and tendency might be seen by all. Lucifer, as the anointed cherub, had been highly exalted; he was greatly loved by the heavenly beings, and his influence over them was strong. God's government included not only the inhabitants of heaven, but of all the worlds that He had created; and Lucifer had concluded that if he could carry the angels of heaven with him in rebellion, he could carry also all the worlds. He had artfully presented his side of the question, employing sophistry and fraud to secure his objects. His power to deceive was very great. By disguising himself in a cloak of falsehood, he had gained an advantage. All his acts were so clothed with mystery that it was difficult to disclose to the angels the true nature of his work. Until fully developed, it could not be made to appear the evil thing it was; his disaffection would not be seen to be rebellion. Even the loyal angels could not fully discern his character or see to what his work was leading.

God could employ only such means as were consistent with truth and righteousness. Satan could use what God could not--flattery and deceit. He had sought to falsify the word of God and had misrepresented His plan of government, claiming that God was not just in imposing laws upon the angels; that in requiring submission and obedience from His creatures, He was seeking merely the exaltation of Himself. It was therefore necessary to demonstrate before the inhabitants of heaven, and of all the worlds, that God's government is just, His law perfect. Satan had made it appear that he himself was seeking to promote the good of the universe. The true character of the usurper and his real object must be understood by all. He must have time to manifest himself by his wicked works.

The discord which his own course had caused in heaven, Satan charged upon the government of God. All evil he declared to be the result of the divine administration. He claimed that it was his own object to improve upon the statutes of Jehovah. Therefore God permitted him to demonstrate the nature of his claims, to show the working out of his proposed changes in the divine law. His own work must condemn him. Satan had claimed from the first that he was not in rebellion. The whole universe must see the deceiver unmasked.

Even when he was cast out of heaven. Infinite Wisdom did not destroy Satan. Since only the service of love can be acceptable to God, the allegiance of His creatures must rest upon a conviction of His justice and benevolence. The inhabitants of heaven and of the worlds, being unprepared to comprehend the nature or consequences of sin, could not then have seen the justice of God in the destruction of Satan. Had he been immediately blotted out of existence, some would have served God from fear rather than from love. The influence of the deceiver would not have been fully destroyed, nor would the spirit of rebellion have been utterly eradicated. For the good of the entire universe through ceaseless ages, he must more fully develop his principles, that his charges against the divine government might be seen in their true light by all created beings, and that the justice and mercy of God and the immutability of His law might be forever placed beyond all question.

Satan's rebellion was to be a lesson to the universe through all coming ages--a perpetual testimony to the nature of sin and its terrible results. The working out of Satan's rule, its effects upon both men and angels, would show what must be the fruit of setting aside the divine authority. It would testify that with the existence of God's government is bound up the well-being of all the creatures He has made. Thus the history of this terrible experiment of rebellion was to be a perpetual safeguard to all holy beings, to prevent them from being deceived as to the nature of transgression, to save them from committing sin, and suffering its penalty.

MR. SPIELBERG HAVE I GOT A SCRIPT FOR YOU

Once every few years a major Hollywood motion picture is filmed in the area where I live. I remember one time I was working as a delivery man downtown and a few blocks had been shut down for a film in progress. In pondering all the trucks and equipment around, thinking of what celebrity might be right around the corner, I imagined a situation where I would walk into an elevator and low and behold, some great director would be standing beside me. The company “Dreamworks SKG” produces many films and has even done two epic Bible animated versions of the stories of Joseph and Moses (“Joseph ---“ and “The Prince of Egypt”). I know that Steven Spielberg is the “S” in “SKG” so in my imagined scenario I think of him and say “How about this for your next animated Bible film ‘Adam and Eve – A Love Story’? Give me your card and I’ll send you a treatment”.

If I ever got to pitch someone this idea in reality what I would send would be something like what you will see in the rest of this chapter, a story not of Adam’s love for Eve, but of God’s love for all humankind. The following words are taken from an author who lived in the 19th century. She wrote on a number of different faith related topics including many of the themes we have discussed here in this blog. What I find to be especially fascinating is the way in which she wrote. You get the impression as you read that you are watching the whole story play out on video inside your mind. I would like to ask you to imagine this as a script for a film as grandiose as Star Wars complete with special effects and a riveting score.

Of course no matter how good a job a team of filmmakers could do in bringing this story to life on the big screen, the general public probably wouldn’t like it. The modern mind that needs to be “wowed” with special effects is not the mind that seeks to find truth. The “wow factor” has to come from the truth itself, which I think it does do here. Combine that with the two opposing points of view that have run through this whole blog (the Star Trek mentality versus the 14th century one) and likely those who live one side or the other would not be willing to give up their preconceived notions in order to adopt such a radical idea. However I will hold until my dying day to the truth of all that has been discussed in this blog:

Science and the modern mindset has not defeated the Bible.

The story of the plan of salvation is just as exciting as any science fiction. It is not only true, it is truth and meets the deep seated spiritual needs that sci-fi is an attempt to meet.

That the ‘Heaven’ of the Bible is in the same physical reality as this world. And so is all that we can see of the universe, including any planets we may discover.

Holding to a balanced understanding as this blog describes therefore makes the gospel very practical for the 21st century.

And one final point, STAY FAITHFUL TO THE LORD AND YOU’LL GET THERE!

Here’s my script, taken from a number of books. From this point on the only words of mine are clearly indicated in parentheses:

Part 1 – How Lucifer became Satan

To many minds the origin of sin and the reason for its existence are a source of great perplexity. They see the work of evil, with its terrible results of woe and desolation, and they question how all this can exist under the sovereignty of One who is infinite in wisdom, in power, and in love. Here is a mystery of which they find no explanation. And in their uncertainty and doubt they are blinded to truths plainly revealed in God's word and essential to salvation. There are those who, in their inquiries concerning the existence of sin, endeavor to search into that which God has never revealed; hence they find no solution of their difficulties; and such as are actuated by a disposition to doubt and cavil seize upon this as an excuse for rejecting the words of Holy Writ. Others, however, fail of a satisfactory understanding of the great problem of evil, from the fact that tradition and misinterpretation have obscured the teaching of the Bible concerning the character of God, the nature of His government, and the principles of His dealing with sin.

It is impossible to explain the origin of sin so as to give a reason for its existence. Yet enough may be understood concerning both the origin and the final disposition of sin to make fully manifest the justice and benevolence of God in all His dealings with evil. Nothing is more plainly taught in Scripture than that God was in no wise responsible for the entrance of sin; that there was no arbitrary withdrawal of divine grace, no deficiency in the divine government, that gave occasion for the uprising of rebellion. Sin is an intruder, for whose presence no reason can be given. It is mysterious, unaccountable; to excuse it is to defend it. Could excuse for it be found, or cause be shown for its existence, it would cease to be sin. Our only definition of sin is that given in the word of God; it is "the transgression of the law;" it is the outworking of a principle at war with the great law of love which is the foundation of the divine government.

Before the entrance of evil there was peace and joy throughout the universe. All was in perfect harmony with the Creator's will. Love for God was supreme, love for one another impartial. Christ the Word, the Only Begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father,--one in nature, in character, and in purpose,--the only being in all the universe that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. By Christ the Father wrought in the creation of all heavenly beings. "By Him were all things created, that are in heaven, . . . whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers" (Colossians 1:16); and to Christ, equally with the Father, all heaven gave allegiance.

The law of love being the foundation of the government of God, the happiness of all created beings depended upon their perfect accord with its great principles of righteousness. God desires from all His creatures the service of love--homage that springs from an intelligent appreciation of His character. He takes no pleasure in a forced allegiance, and to all He grants freedom of will, that they may render Him voluntary service.

But there was one that chose to pervert this freedom. Sin originated with him who, next to Christ, had been most honored of God and who stood highest in power and glory among the inhabitants of heaven. Before his fall, Lucifer was first of the covering cherubs, holy and undefiled. "Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering. . . .Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee." Ezekiel 28:12-15.

Lucifer might have remained in favor with God, beloved and honored by all the angelic host, exercising his noble powers to bless others and to glorify his Maker. But, says the prophet, "Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness." Verse 17. Little by little, Lucifer came to indulge a desire for self-exaltation. "Thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God." "Thou hast said, . . . I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation....I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High." Verse 6; Isaiah 14:13, 14. Instead of seeking to make God supreme in the affections and allegiance of His creatures, it was Lucifer's endeavor to win their service and homage to himself. And coveting the honor which the infinite Father had bestowed upon His Son, this prince of angels aspired to power which it was the prerogative of Christ alone to wield.

All heaven had rejoiced to reflect the Creator's glory and to show forth His praise. And while God was thus honored, all had been peace and gladness. But a note of discord now marred the celestial harmonies. The service and exaltation of self, contrary to the Creator's plan, awakened forebodings of evil in minds to whom God's glory was supreme. The heavenly councils pleaded with Lucifer. The Son of God presented before him the greatness, the goodness, and the justice of the Creator, and the sacred, unchanging nature of His law. God Himself had established the order of heaven; and in departing from it, Lucifer would dishonor his Maker, and bring ruin upon himself. But the warning, given in infinite love and mercy, only aroused a spirit of resistance. Lucifer allowed jealousy of Christ to prevail, and he became the more determined.

William Miller and the others in the world-wide movement that came up as a result of exploring this prophecy correctly reasoned that the first part for the Jews and the rest must both start at the same time, 457 BC. They originally didn’t know about the lack of a year zero and just like you would on a calculator today, came up with 1843 (negative 457 plus 2300 equals 1843). At first they thought it would take place in the spring. They then came up with 1844 as the correct year and thought the next spring would be it. One scholar in this movement noticed that since Artaxeres decree came into effect in the fall, the time period wouldn’t end until the fall. As the fall got closer another also noticed that the spring festivals in the Jewish ceremonial calendar that pointed to Jesus’ first Coming were literally fulfilled on the exact days in question that they took place that year. The last super was held the same night as Passover, for instance. This lead them to the conclusion that the exact day for the Jewish Day of Atonement cleansing of the earthly sanctuary would be the day Jesus returned. October 22 was Rosh Hashanah that year. Since there was no more reasoning that could be done the hopes and dreams of the people were pitched to the highest level they could be. Hence the term ‘great’ to describe their disappointment. If you’d like to read more about this you can find William Miller’s book at the Internet Sacred Text Archive www.sacred-texts.com. We have already seen that they did make the one mistake thinking the cleansing would be the end of the world, but God used them to test the sincerity of the rest.

There’s a great comment in Hebrews 4:16 that ties what we’ve just discussed to what Jesus is doing for us now in the Sanctuary: “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” To come boldly is to not let the thought of your inability to obey Him cut off your faith. Don’t focus on how unworthy you feel compared to Jesus in His perfection. Focus on how good, kind and merciful He is. Don’t let this thought lead you to presume upon His mercy of course, but remember God loves you and He wants to save you. Salvation is a very practical thing. If you ask Him to wipe out the record of your sins in the Sanctuary now, He will do it if you have truly turned form those sins with all your heat.

What Jesus did on the cross was to save you and what He is doing now is to save you as well. He is going over the lists and will wait until everyone has made their decision. However at the same time several significant events are happening on earth. God’s truth about this many other important Bible teachings are going out to all the world. He has His people here sharing the truth so that everyone can have that chance to decide. At the same time a myriad of Satan’s counterfeits, including the great emphasis today’s society has on science as the way to solve all man’s problems and reclaim earth’s place in the universe, are going out as well. Another great counterfeit to watch out for comes from the Christianity of the 14th century. You see, this truth regarding what really happened on October 22, 1844, that Jesus began this first phase of the judgement described in Daniel 7 with the 100 million angels is only being taught today by the Seventh-day Adventists. When the Great Disappointment happened, the vast majority of those who believed and rejected William Miller’s teachings rejected this concept as the explanation for what really happened that day.

So that’s where we are now. There are many options available for you to choose but only one is really the truth. And that truth is far greater a truth that you’d ever previously imagined it could be. It encompasses all that was right and true from the Bible within the 14th century view, includes all that modern science has gleaned from this physical reality we are in, and is infinitely more fulfilling than the attempts to meet our spiritual needs that science fiction really is. All the events we’ve already seen at the start of this chapter about the Second Coming of Christ and the real end of the world won’t happen until everyone has made their decision. Why not make yours today?

In the next chapter we will have the same story told as if it were a novel or a screenplay. Let your heart be thrilled as you experience the wonder of God’s love for you. Very few of the words will be my own and are taken form the pen of someone writing as if she had seen the whole thing on video. Here’s a little bit of her words from “Steps to Christ” pages 88 and 89:

The theme of redemption is one that the angels desire to look into; it will be the science and the song of the redeemed throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity. Is it not worthy of careful thought and study now? The infinite mercy and love of Jesus, the sacrifice made in our behalf, call for the most serious and solemn reflection. We should dwell upon the character of our dear Redeemer and Intercessor. We should meditate upon the mission of Him who came to save His people from their sins. As we thus contemplate heavenly themes, our faith and love will grow stronger, and our prayers will be more and more acceptable to God, because they will be more and more mixed with faith and love. They will be intelligent and fervent. There will be more constant confidence in Jesus, and a daily, living experience in His power to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by Him.

As we meditate upon the perfections of the Saviour, we shall desire to be wholly transformed and renewed in the image of His purity. There will be a hungering and thirsting of soul to become like Him whom we adore. The more our thoughts are upon Christ, the more we shall speak of Him to others and represent Him to the world.”

Recently a friend told me a story about an ancient Egyptian whose life closely paralleled that of Christ. There is a book out on the subject called “The Pagan Christ”. I don’t take much stock in this theory, but it does raise a valid question. How do we know for sure the world’s Messiah was Jesus? What if Jesus was the counterfeit? Well, when the truth is on your side, you don’t have to be afraid of hard questions. One of the best proofs that no other so-called savior could pull off was to fulfill the over 300 prophecies given in the Old Testament. Some of these were given 2000 years before Jesus came onto the scene in world history. They cover a wide range of events from Christ’s birth, His public ministry and even the manner in which He would die. They not only mention things He did, but also things that happened around Him, things other people did that would have been beyond the control of any one man. One of the most notable prophecies covers the timing of the events of Jesus’ time preaching, teaching and healing. It’s found in Daniel 9:24-27 (we’ll go through it step by step and make comments).

“Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy.” The point of Jesus work was to complete the plan of salvation as this verse shows.

“Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. A day equals a year in prophecy. This is firmly proved here because this prophecy began in 457 BC with the great declaration by the Persian Emperor Artaxeres I that the Jews could return to their own land. We already had a total time period of 70 weeks or 490 years. Now we have 69 of those weeks or 483 years until Jesus begins His work. If you do the math on a calculator (negative 457 plus 483 =) you will get a date of 26 AD for the time of Jesus ministry. However when the calendar was changed there was no year zero instituted. The calendar went form 1BC to 1AD. Therefore the year 27 AD is the actual year this prophecy is speaking of. Look up Luke 3:1 and notice how it speaks of “the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar”. What year was that? It was indeed 27 AD! Jesus is the one and only true Messiah no matter how close any other counterfeit messiah’s may have come.

“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.” After the 62 weeks is at the end of the 483 years, or 31 AD, the year Jesus died on the cross. This is shown by the next verse as well. “Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.”

The rest of these texts refer to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 AD. It’s interesting to note how desolations are determined from that point on. When you really think about it in the light of all that the New Testament says about spiritual Israel (the Christian Church) replacing political Israel, that land isn’t holy anymore and in fact God’s curse is upon it. That’s why there’s been so much conflict over there for so long. So many people today who are sincere Bible believing Christians have bought into a system of interpretation premised on the theory that modern Israel has some sort of significance in prophecy. When the Jews rejected their Messiah, they ceased to be God’s special people anymore. That ‘specialness’ is available to anyone who accepts Jesus as his or her Saviour. That’s what Romans chapters 9 through 11 are all about. Romans 2:28, 29 put it this way: “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.”

This understanding then helps greatly in explaining the ‘times of refreshing’ that we discussed in the last chapter. Daniel 8:14 spoke of the Sanctuary being cleansed after 2300 days. This is a prophecy again so 2300 years is what it’s actually talking about. The 70 weeks prophecy of Daniel 9 here started out by saying “Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city”. The original word translated ‘determined’ here meant ‘cut off’. This 490 year time period was cut off from the larger 2300 year time period as that’s the last prophecy discussed before this one. Daniel was given a vision in chapter 8 that he didn’t understand. The chapter ends in fact with a reference to the fact that he couldn’t handle it. Chapter 9’s explanation comes as an answer to his prayer and the angel Gabriel starts off by explaining the first part of the 2300 year prophecy.

It was because the Jews, especially their priests, had misinterpreted the prophecies in light of an understanding that was for this world only that they rejected Him. He wasn’t the kind of Messiah they wanted. The same thing could easily happen again today as we near the Second Coming. There are so many false interpretations regarding end-time events that focus on political Israel instead of spiritual Israel. That’s a topic far beyond the scope of this blog however. The Lord did know this would happen. I recommend you take a look at Ezekiel chapter 34 in your spare time. It’s a prophecy about corrupt priests who lead His people astray and what God intends to do about the situation. Verses 11 and 12 say “For thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day.’”

In order to rightly understand the storyline of the Bible and prophecy in particular, you have to line up the really significant events and think beyond your own time period. Try to see the entire history of the world from God’s point of view essentially. You have Adam and Eve and the birth of sin, that’s the day in which Jesus was given to the world. Then the flood, as previously mentioned represents God showing the universe just how bad things would get under sin. We transition to Moses and the Ten Commandments then on to David. There were prophecies given through Abraham that Israel would have an earthly kingdom but the earthly success of the nation was only to provide a means for the spiritual success of the plan of salvation. Solomon of course frittered away the empire with the compromises he made for his many wives and false religion plagued the divided kingdoms. Then comes the captivity when Israel’s sovereignty was taken away. Ezekiel 21:25-27 speaks of the crown of Israel being overturned three times until the Messiah comes, who then keeps it forever. This happened; as the political sovereignty over God’s people was in Babylon’s hand when the prophecy was given and then overturned to Persia in the time of Nehemiah, and later to Greece, and finally Rome. This explains why Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world and why He said the kingdom of God is within you (John 18:36, Luke 17:21) The spiritual promise of being a new person with God’s love in your heart is always what the storyline of the Bible was really about.

Now we get beyond the time of Christ into the early church, how it went throughout the whole Roman empire sharing the truth. The falling away predicted by Paul came about as the pure church Jesus started became the Catholic Church in the Dark Ages. But God kept working bringing the truth back to light slowly through people like Martin Luther, the early Baptists and John Wesley. Now we transition into our time where the last of the truths of the Reformation, some of which are the secret keys we recently looked at, are being restored. When the full truth has gone to the whole world and everyone has had a chance to make a decision the end will come, but not without another counterfeit from Satan. This time the counterfeit will so closely resemble the truth that only those who really take God at His word and study it diligently will be able to tell the difference. (I’ll give you a hint, the true gospel has the true understanding of righteousness by faith, Martin Luther’s original point, while the false gospel doesn’t. With that true understanding comes a true understanding of how the Ten Commandments relate to practical Christian faith. With that eventually people will naturally ask themselves “why was the Sabbath changed?” The answer is that it wasn’t.)

Let’s look at 1 Corinthians 15:23,24 and add in 2 Timothy 4:1 and then have an in-depth study into the next great events that will soon come to pass. “But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.” “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom.”

Secret key two then is the fact that Jesus did exist before being born here on earth. The theology of most Christian Churches emphasizes His time here and that He went off to heaven after rising from the dead. Though they will speak of the over three hundred prophecies in the Old Testament that foretell Christ’s coming, they don’t always have a clear handle on the fact that he is mentioned in the Old Testament as being present. He simply hasn’t used the name “Jesus Christ” yet.

Most people today have seen Cecil B. DeMille’s “The Ten Commandments”, starring Charlton Heston. It’s on TV practically every Easter. If you’ve seen the film or any other Bible movie on Moses, you’ll be familiar with the story of how God appeared to Moses and spoke to him out of a burning bush. Yet look very carefully at the actual reference from Exodus 3:2-6.
And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” Moreover He said, “I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.

Notice it was an “Angel” who talked with Moses, yet He is clearly God. This is why of all the modern English Bibles I could have quoted form in this blog, I chose the New King James Version. Wherever in the Old Testament of the NKJV Bible you see “Angel”, that’s Christ. There are 59 such references with another 2 that use the ‘angel’ asnd then in the margin have ‘Angel’.
This maybe a hard concept to grasp as it’s so easy to conjure up old pictures of angels being winged human–like creatures who may have great power and strength, but are clearly not God. The misunderstanding comes from the word itself. It simply means “messenger” According to Isaiah 59:1, 2, we are cut off from God the Father by sin. Therefore God the Son comes as His messenger, or Angel.

Similarly in Joshua 5:15 He is “Commander of the Lord’s Host”. We see the same message given to Joshua here to remove his footwear. Therefore it’s the same being giving the message as the One who appeared to Moses. He is Holy and therefore no ordinary angel. “Then the Commander of the LORD’s army said to Joshua, “Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.”

Here are a few extra texts to look up if you feel so inclined. In Judges 13:20-22 Samson’s parents offered a sacrifice and the Angel accepted this worship. Ordinary angels don’t do this, see Revelation 19:10. Genesis 19:24 is from the story Sodom and Gomorrah. Read the whole story and you will see three beings from heaven who appear to Abraham. Two of whom are angels, one of whom is God. Here we have two references to “the Lord”. One “Lord” is on earth calling the judgements down and the other “Lord” is in Heaven raining down those judgements. Jesus must be one while God the Father is the other.

Daniel 10:13 calls Michael “one of the chief princes”. A prince is a royal term. The Hebrew word in verse 13 for ‘chief princes’ actually refers to the Trinity. So Michael is one of the Trinity! Verse 21 calls Him “your prince”. Our Lord and Saviour has over three hundred names in the scriptures. Some are titles, others are descriptions. None of them take away from His divinity. This includes the title of ‘Michael’.

I’ll have a little more to say on this in the chapter “John 3:16 in-depth”. For now the important thing is the effect this truth can have one your understanding of who Jesus is. He is not a mortal man who was deified by later generations of believers. That would make the gospels useless. Indeed the whole Bible would be pointless. No, Jesus is God. And God became a man in the early first century, AD to die on the cross for our sins. That one wonderful weekend was the end all and be all of the plan of salvation in one sense; and yet in another it wasn’t. Jesus has working through every generation of human history from the very first day Adam and Eve sinned and the world needed a Saviour. He has also been working since His time on earth to bring world history to where it is today. Soon we will be ready for the next great change to come. That change will be His return in the clouds to rescue His people.

The Secret Keys That Unlock the Real Truth Post One

A few years ago a friend of a friend told me about a practical joke someone once played that I thought was really funny. The victim of the gag was a woman hosting a Thanksgiving dinner. She had made effort upon effort to get everything just right for the special meal. What she didn’t know was that hours before, one of her guests had snuck into the kitchen and stuffed a Cornish game hen inside the turkey. When she went to carve up her beautiful bird, there was this other bird inside it. As the scene unfolded, the hostess was overwhelmed with shock, guilt and horror. “I killed the baby”, was her only thought. Morbidly funny I’ll admit, but think about this situation, birds lay eggs right? All birds do, yes, WITHOUT EXCEPTION! If this was the first case ever of a bird giving birth like a mammal, why wasn’t the baby bird whole and intact? Why was it prepared for eating just like the turkey? Even though the evidence in that immediate moment seemed completely overwhelming, logic and truth needed to prevail because what she saw was only a trick played on her by someone else.

What if you were in a similar situation? What if you saw something so overwhelming it had to be true, even though every single bit of logic and truth said it wasn’t, what would you do? What would you believe? People who buy into the modern, scientific mindset have no room in their belief system for the spirit world at all. Yet miracles still happen that science cannot explain all over the world. However, what very few are willing to consider is that there is such a thing as a false miracle. This is not to use the word ‘false’ in the sense of some slight of hand magician’s trick. What I mean is a real, supernatural event, but one that does not come from God.

First and foremost the Bible very clearly speaks of two supernatural forces working on this planet. On one side we have God and on the other there is the devil. 2 Corinthians 11:14 says “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” In other words, you can’t always tell them apart. God will work in your life and when He does He will make sure you know it is Him who is working. Satan will work in your life and will also try to make you thinks its God working. So how then can you tell? You can’t just trust your own eyes and ears; you need a standard beyond yourself. Satan has the power to work miracles that lead people to believe his lies. This kind of question is something the whole world has to face more often than people realize, especially in stories of near-death experiences. Millions of people say, “But I know what I saw, it was real!” Was it really? Why would God clearly and consistently say one thing about what death is really like for 59 centuries and then contradict Himself in our time?

Isaiah 8:19, 20 says “And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” There you have it. Satan’s false miracles are always shall we say, “flashy”; they’re designed to wow people with no real purpose. When God works, there’s a message there. The “law and the testimony” refer to the Bible and the Ten Commandments. A true miracle from God will pass the test of His word. Notice something else here. That is a connection between false miracles and death. The God of the Bible is referred to as the Living God. He works through living people, who are called prophets. Satan’s way of working is very often contained in “messages from beyond the grave“.

So the very first secret key we’ll look at is the fact that when you die you really do die. We have already found the proper balance between creation and evolution, that God has been creating solar systems for countless eons of time, but that each one was created and did not evolve. He has the power to cause matter to come into existence and that’s what makes Him God, among other things. Therefore the creation story of Genesis chapters 1 and 2 is not mythical but a realistic account of the very first week in planet earth’s history and it happened about six thousand years ago.

Genesis 2:7 gives us the process whereby the Lord created our first father, Adam. “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” The word being there is translated soul in other Bible versions. This is something that must be fully understood, Man does not HAVE a soul man IS a soul. The combination of a physical body and this ‘breath of life’ make a soul. The Bible uses the word ‘soul’ almost 1700 times and never calls it immortal.

A SOUL IS NOT A GHOST! So says 1 Peter 3:20 “who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.” Did eight ghosts get onto Noah’s Ark? No, eight living, breathing people did.

What most people think of when they use the word soul is this “breath of life”, which is another great mystery we’ll never fully solve and simply have to accept. Whatever it is, it has something to do with the ability to breath and something to do with the electricity that runs our minds. This ‘breath’ is also called ‘spirit’ or ‘ghost’ in certain Bible verses. It is the energy God gives to make life. This energy is not a conscious entity of its own. Job 27:3 puts it this way “As long as my breath is in me, And the breath of God in my nostrils”. When Paul spoke to the Greeks of his day, from whom we get our modern science, he said in Acts 17:28 “For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.”

Life comes from God and only from Him. Think about the computer you are using right now to read this blog. It has a hard drive and a processor, which are physical piece of equipment that parallel the functions of your brain. These cannot work unless the machine is turned on and plugged into the electrical power source, which is simply energy and nothing more. There is no way to communicate directly with that energy, it simply powers the machinery.

Job Learns What We All Must Final Post

THOUGH WE MAY THINK DIFFERENTLY, HE SHOWS THAT WE REALLY CAN DO NOTHING

Job 40:6-10 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me: “Would you indeed annul My judgment? Would you condemn Me that you may be justified? Have you an arm like God? Or can you thunder with a voice like His? Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and array yourself with glory and beauty.

We opened this chapter with 1 Timothy 6:16 which tells us God dwells in “unapproachable light”. Self-glorification is the principle behind the fashion industry where only those who have the latest are considered to be of any value. When people wear shiny pieces of metal or colored stones that reflect light (jewelry) they are trying to create a light of their own to dwell in. It’s also the reason people pierce themselves and get tattoos. They’re not satisfied with what God gave them and think they’re improving upon their appearance when really it’s a form of mutilation. The whole idea of “he who dies with the most toys wins” is another attempt at self-glorification. Any form of elitism, whether through business, education or culture is an attempt to say “I’m better than you” and therefore keeps with the principles of self-glorification the Lord balks at here. It’s possible to be a corporate Vice-President and still be humble, if you don’t think you’re worth more as a person because you’re not a garbage collector.

Job 40:11-13 deals with this idea a little further: “Disperse the rage of your wrath; Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him. Look on everyone who is proud, and bring him low; Tread down the wicked in their place. Hide them in the dust together, Bind their faces in hidden darkness.”

There are many ways humans attempt to deal with pride. Every attempt to defeat another person, whether it’s in something small like cutting someone off in traffic or something grand like a great war, all have one thing in common. Each is an attempt to bring down others. The thing that humans can’t understand unless they have surrendered their hearts to Jesus is that you don’t bring down pride with more pride. That doesn’t help. In a war the side that wins may have had God’s blessing, but no one has ever won a war without casualties. That’s because war is also a punishment for a nation’s sins.

Job 40:14 contains the most important words in the Lord’s challenge to Job: “Then I will also confess to you That your own right hand can save you.”

Here’s the way the first great king of western civilization, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, put it in Daniel 4:34-37, “And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’ At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and splendor returned to me. My counselors and nobles resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.”

This king actually wrote most of Daniel chapter 4. He was full of pride and took the credit for his achievements himself, so the Lord gave him seven years of insanity to teach him his real place in life. These words are the summary of the lesson he learned.

DO ANY OF US REALLY KNOW THE TRUE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS? LIKE NEBUCHADNEZZAR, JOB LEARNS WHAT WE ALL MUST!

Job 42:1-6 “Then Job answered the LORD and said: ‘I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, ‘”Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?”’ ‘Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak;’ ‘You said, “I will question you, and you shall answer Me.”’ ‘I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.’”

There’s no other way to say it, we need God. We’re not as smart as we may think we are. Even though life has gotten much easier with technology, technology itself will not create a heaven on earth for us. Marvin Moore wrote in “The Coming Great Calamity”, page 11 “This secular, scientific mindset has dominated Western culture during my lifetime and the lifetime of my parents and grandparents. Most people would probably feel comfortable with the idea that it reached its peak during the middle of the twentieth century with the exploding of the atomic bomb over Japan in 1945 and the Apollo moon landing in 1969.”

After between 100 and 150 years of trying to create a heaven on earth through our own endeavours, the culmination of this was in those two great achievements. As discussed in chapter one, humanity thinks it can embrace the ultimate power of destruction and take its place in the universe back again. What’s fascinating is that many of the grandchildren of those who were adults at the time of the moon landing don’t even believe it really happened. There is also a great deal of significance to that fact. We’ll look at the issue next.

THINGS MAY WE THINK WE KNOW BUT REALLY DON’T

Job 38:1-7: “Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Who is this who darkens counsel By words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me. “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

We looked at some of this already and saw how the rest of the universe was here to watch God create this solar system. This issue of creation versus evolution is of course one of the greatest challenges modern man has ever made to the Lord Himself. Charles Darwin took a trip to the Galapagos Islands and saw how an isolated community of birds varied within its own species according to the needs each kind of bird had (microevolution, which does keep with Bible truth). From there the leap was made to all life forming out of other life (macroevolution, which is a fanciful guess). I ask you, although there was variation in these particular birds, why do we not see the same thing in every single lake in the world? Why are there so many of the exact same species of fish in lake after lake in a given area when these lakes are completely isolated form each other? God created one cat and it micro-evolved into the lion, ocelot, siamese housecat etc. He created one dog and it became the coyote, wolf, hound etc. However, cats have always been cats and dogs have always been dogs. Geologists went around saying “these are old rocks because they have old fossils in them”. At the same time biologists were saying “these fossils are old because they’re in old rocks”.

I once heard put it this way “Skepticism and that which is called science has to a large degree undermined the faith of the Christian world in their Bibles. Error and fables are gladly accepted, that they may pursue the path of self-indulgence and not be alarmed, for they are striving not to retain God in their knowledge. They say, ‘Tomorrow will be as this day and much more abundant.’ But in the midst of their unbelief and godless pleasure the shout of the archangel and the trump of God is heard.” And this way as well “The Bible Our Guide in Science.--We are dependent on the Bible for a knowledge of the early history of our world, of the creation of man, and of his fall. Remove the Word of God, and what can we expect but to be left to fables and conjectures and to that enfeebling of the intellect which is the sure result of entertaining error.”
In thinking of what the Lord asked Job … “who determined (the earth’s) measurements?” some other thoughts come to mind about this whole discourse. We may be able to identify the different types of cells in a blade of grass or the different organs in the human body. We may be able to determine what purpose they serve. But that does not mean we have the power to make them serve their purposes. It doesn’t mean we deserve credit for their existence. Neither does it mean that we’ll ever figure out how to make something so complicated out of nothing.

Once in a trivia book, I read that all the weeping willow trees in North America today are descended from a few seeds that fell out of Benjamin Franklin’s broom. Just three or four seeds that he planted spread out over the entire U.S. and Canada over the last two and a half centuries. What if we could genetically trace them back even farther? What if we could get back to the very first weeping willow tree that existed in the Garden of Eden? From that point on, with all our scientific knowledge, we still couldn’t prove whether this first tree was created by the Lord Himself or evolved from a previous tree. A geologist walking into the newly created garden would see things created in their mature state; therefore he would conclude that they are much older.

We cannot pierce the mysteries of what the Lord has chosen not to reveal to us. You can’t prove God was the creator by looking at his creation; you have to trust Him that He is.
Job 38:24 “By what way is light diffused, Or the east wind scattered over the earth?”
Wind doesn’t blow, it sucks. It is a result of temperature differences - that’s the most basic Grade Eight Science. Light is something different. We don’t really know what it is. Sir Isaac Newton was the 17th Century scientist who theorized that light is a particle. He named those particles Photons. In the 19th century scientists had enough evidence from their experimentation to dispute this. They thought light was a wave. Today, there is experimental evidence to support both theories and scientists have simply resigned themselves to admit that they don’t really know what light is. It seems to be both a particle and a wave. This, like the mystery of the shower curtain, is something we have to accept. It’s the same with creation.

Job 38:34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, That an abundance of water may cover you?”

Today we have public address systems with microphones, amplifiers and speakers that are capable of multiplying the sound of our voices to a much greater degree than we can normally speak. The music industry has various studio tricks to make a recorded voice sound much more full than is normal as well. One such trick is overdubbing, where a recording is made of music or singing and then re-recorded over itself a second time but slightly out of synchronization. If you are familiar with the group ABBA from the 1970’s, they used this technique and were quite popular. The story goes that their concerts could not duplicate the sound of their albums and fans were disappointed because of this.

Job 38:36 “Who has put wisdom in the mind? Or who has given understanding to the heart?”

When my wife Melissa spent a year and a half babysitting her friend’s child I watched that child learn to stand and speak it’s first words. I remember trying to describe concepts to him such as: one thing is under something else. I also remembered watching a documentary once in which people were trying to teach this concept of under to monkeys by sign language and the monkeys didn’t get it. To be able to make sense of what is at first gibberish to the point that you can think in a language is a miracle.

Chapter four post one

JOB LEARNED WHAT WE ALL MUST

1 Timothy 6:16 “who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen.” This reference is to God the Father. What do you think of as you read it? I’m sure most people would imagine the Lord on His throne surrounded by some sort of mist or cloud that can’t be seen past. We can see He’s in there but can’t see Him, we can only hear His voice. Maybe there are flashes of colour in the background as we hear Him speak. I imagine that too. However! Would this verse not also apply to the concept of God dwelling in an intellectual light no man can approach unto?

A friend of mine once gave me an interesting factoid - apparently in ancient times, the knowledge base of a society like the Roman Empire would double every 150 years; while today our knowledge base doubles every eight years. With all the advances in technology in the last few generations we now think we dwell in a far greater intellectual light than we have before. Should we be surprised then that so many feel no need of Him today?

In the previous chapter we looked at some references to creation from Job chapter 38. We saw how the angels and the Adams from the rest of the universe watched as God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit made this world. In this chapter we’ll take a greater look at the last few chapters of the book of Job and examine the scientific statements they make. The book of Job is the very first book of the Bible ever written and tells the story of one man who suffers and how it affected his faith. Though the Lord never reprimands Job for complaining about his trials, God does not apologize for them either. (We have already briefly discussed the first 2 chapters of Job as well. If you haven’t already, I’d like to ask you to stop here, go to your Bible, and read them fully. Job’s problems ultimately are not God’s fault.) He goes on at the conclusion of the book to question this one “mortal man” about a great many things until Job sees his total and utter helplessness as a human being. What’s interesting to note is that some of those challenges God gave we have found answers to through all the progress we’ve made in the last 150 years.

Before we get to that, if our view of today’s modern age is not 100% accurate, who’s to say that what we believe about the past is? Jesus had this to say in Matthew 24:37 “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.” For today’s time to be like that of the flood, they must have had technology! Could it be that the history of their increasingly bold rebellion against God was tied to a growth in technology then just as much as it is today?

This may be a hard thought for some to consider. Evolutionists and Bible critics believe the modern view that we all started as cavemen with no knowledge at all, have steadily grown over time until we have what we have now, and that this is the only time humanity has ever possessed this much knowledge. Any great achievement of a previous civilization that we can’t fathom is called a ‘mystery’. Many of these include things like the statues of Easter Island; the Nazca lines in Peru and of course the Pyramids. One of the most ridiculous and outlandish theories touted in the 1970’s to explain these mysteries was the book “Chariots of the Gods”, where space aliens are credited with the engineering achievements of ancient mankind. However the more rational theory is that the people who lived back then were smart, for a while smarter than we are.

Bible scholars don’t normally have much to say one way or the other because their focus is not on this aspect of history. But think about it, God made Adam and Eve perfect. That should mean as we previously discussed that they had perfect memories (they didn’t need to write things down) and much higher mental abilities than we have today. Since the first ten generations lived into the 900’s, they were healthier and stronger than we are, their brains must have matched their bodies then. Think also about how much time they had then to study the world around them. It took ten more generations for the lifespan to get down to Abraham’s 175. Moses was seven generations after that and he lived to be 120. We don’t have confirmation of 70 year lifespans until the time of David as shown by Psalm 90:10 “The days of our lives are seventy years; And if by reason of strength they are eighty years, Yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.” As we saw a decline in physical power and strength, there must have been a corresponding decline in mental ability as well. (On a side note, do you know the main reason for the decline in lifespan? God’s original diet is listed as fruits, nuts and grains in Genesis 1:29. In Genesis 3:18 vegetables were added after sin. With this their perfect bodies did not decay for nine centuries. It was after the flood that they were allowed to eat meat, see Genesis 9:3. Meat eating is what caused this great decline in lifespan.)

This is the view Rene Noorbergen takes in “Secrets of the Lost Races”, written in part to respond to Chariots of the Gods. On pages 10-14 he compares the Bible’s list of the pre-flood leaders, known as the Patriarchs, with that of ancient Egyptian and Babylonian history, identifying them to be the same. Page 11 says “Upon comparing the list of the prehistoric Chaldean kings with the pre-Flood patriarchs, we find a fascinating parallel that again supports our basic premise.” He then goes on to elaborate on the similar meanings of the various names given in both accounts. Page 19 also takes China’s history into account, “The Chinese have set 2250 B.C. as the beginning for their history, while traditional Bible chronology estimates 2248 B.C. as the year for the Flood occurrence.”

Noorbergen gives his book’s basic premise on pages 3-4: “According to the Genesis account, the antediluvian people were highly knowledgeable, being the first to develop agriculture, animal husbandry, construction, architecture, political organization, metal-working, the abstract arts, mathematics, chronology and astronomy. What’s more, while the Genesis record tells us that there were altogether only ten generations of antediluvians, they developed the majority, if not all, of the basic elements of civilization by the sixth generation. Now if the antediluvians, beginning with the raw earth, were able to master the arts of civilization in the first six generations their existence, we may well wonder to what degree they further developed and refined those arts in the remaining four prior to the Deluge.”

He then continues on page 21 with: “Is it possible that the few human survivors of the Flood, whether the leader was called Noah, Nu-u, or Nuwah, depending on the tradition, were not so primitive after all? Can we assume that they carried with them sufficient knowledge of the antediluvian era to enable them to give a rapid start to the new civilization that sprang up … in the years immediately following the Flood?”

Page 124 gives a description of a model airplane found in an ancient Egyptian tomb. This finding is also discussed and pictured in “Unlocking the Mysteries of Creation, Premiere Edition, by Dennis R. Petersen, page 225. On pages 94-95 Noorbergen tells of an ancient map, the “Piri Reis chart of 1513”, which was drawn “from a composite of twenty older maps”, eight of which “were from the time of … Alexander the Great”. It “showed South America and Africa in correct relative longitude” when our modern map makers took “another two hundred years” to establish this as true. The map also “accurately showed the coastline of Queen Maud Land in Antarctica – even though the map was drawn in 1513, and the southern continent’s existence was not verified until 1819!” A picture of this map is in Unlocking the Mysteries of Creation, page 211. (This book like the other creation textbook I mentioned in the last chapter. It contains a great many things that are obviously true and gives a great many challenges to evolution. Unfortunately, the author clearly has the same earth centred, 14th century understanding of the events of day four of creation week as is shown by his statements on page 22.)

This information comes from chapter three of “Secrets of the Lost Races”, called “Following in the Tracks of Ancient Explorers”. There Noorbergen describes ancient records and evidence of post-Flood world exploration from several cultures. On page 99 we read: “In Genesis 10:25 we meet a descendant of Noah called Peleg who was given his name because ‘in his day was the earth divided’. The usual interpretation of this passage is that it refers to the division of nations; however, it could also mean division as in ‘allotment, marking off an area, a measurement.’ A more accurate translation of this historical passage could read, ‘Peleg, in his day was the earth measured, or surveyed.’”

I had previously heard two other interpretations of this verse. That the story following in chapter 11 of the Tower of Babel, when God confused the languages of the people to scatter them all over the earth, took place in Peleg’s time. And that the continents were originally one even after the flood and that this was the time in which they broke up into the geography we have today. Likely all these interpretations are correct.

In the same chapter Noorbergen discusses the story of Chinese world exploration with a focus on the “Shan Hai King”, a Chinese story from 2208 B.C. This “treatise on geography … for several hundred years … was regarded as a scientific work … but during the third century B.C., when many Chinese records were reevaluated and condensed, it was discovered that {it} did not correspond to any lands known at the time … {and} was reclassified as myth (page 103).” Rene shows on pages 103 and 104 that this work describes North America.

He also discusses “petroglyphs” ancient rock carvings found all over the world, one of which he mentions at Writing-on-Stone provincial park near Milk River, Alberta. That happens to be only a three and a half hour drive from my home, so after reading about them my wife and I went there and took the tour. I remember the very first set of carvings the tour guide took us to. When she asked us what we thought it was, two pictures came to both our minds. One was shaped very much like the animals in the famous cave paintings in France, which Rene discusses elsewhere in his book. The other was shaped like a brontosaurus. And all the information at the displays in the Visitor’s Centre clearly told how the Siksika First Nations, (formerly known as the Blackfoot Indian tribe) were not the ones who carved these stone pictures. They regarded them as sacred but had no idea who did carve them or how old they were.

“Secrets of the Lost Races” has greatly elaborated on my understanding of early world history. Though they likely did explore the earth, and built many of the great mystery monuments in those first five generations after the flood, by the time of Abraham five generations further on, we have an example of technology in his day. In Genesis 22:6 “he took the fire in his hand”. The way they traveled with fire back then was to coil up a very long rope, light one end and put it in a container. It would slowly burn over the course of days and could be taken out anytime it was needed to ignite a new fire. They didn’t even have flints, what we gave up when matches and lighters were invented! It’s clear that no matter what else may have been known or discovered in those first few generations after the Flood, as the people settled down in their respective regions of the earth and created the cultures we have today; it was all lost by Abraham’s time.