Category: creation

Keep Your Fork! #8

Tuesday, August 16, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

Read 1 Corinthians chapter 6: “[1] Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? [2] Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? [3] Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? [4] If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. [5] I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren? [6] But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers. [7] Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? [8] Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.”

The Corinthian assembly was so filled with human wisdom—especially Greek (pagan) philosophy—its members were unable to settle even the pettiest disagreements amongst themselves. Actually, these genuine Christians (!) had taken each other to the heathen courts of law so lost people (judges) could render verdicts for them. Imagine: God’s people appealed to Satan’s people for advice! One rhetorical question the Holy Spirit asked through Paul to prompt the Corinthian Christians to come to their senses is: “Know ye not that we shall judge angels?” Here, “judge” means “rule, govern” (cf. the 12 Apostles “judging” Israel’s 12 tribes in Matthew 19:28). If we saints will rule the angelic kingdom in Heaven, we are quite silly to seek unsaved governmental officials to determine what is good and fair among us….

Keep Your Fork! #7

Monday, August 15, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

Let us take a few moments to address a pervasive misunderstanding. Correctors of the King James Bible frequently refer to “the heavenlies,” and this faulty terminology has crept into the vocabularies of common people who innocently repeat what they have heard from “the blind leaders of the blind.”

Dear friend, if you use a printed King James Bible, you will notice “places” is italicized in today’s Scripture (also, Ephesians 1:3,20; Ephesians 3:10; Ephesians 6:12). That is, there is no Greek word directly corresponding to the English, but the implication is there: “en [‘in’] tois [‘the;’ plural noun] epouraniois [‘above the sky’ = ‘heavenly;’ plural noun].” Our translators inserted the noun “places” to complete the thought. In Greek, adjectives such as “heavenly” are usually written without the modifying noun (substantive). To avoid an incomplete thought, an English word must be supplied during translation. (Think of the English sentence, “The good die young.” Obviously, “good” suggests “good people/men/folks,” but we do not need a noun there because it is implied to us English speakers. The Greeks used adjectives in a similar manner, which our Greek New Testament reflects. To adequately convey the sense of the Greek adjective, our translators added a substantive or noun: “heavenly places.”)

To remove the italicized “places” from “heavenly places” and make it “heavenlies” is to generalize and obscure Bible truth. Firstly, “heavenlies” is actually nonsense to an English speaker. Heavenly what? We are not told! Our King James translators therefore supplied us with the plural noun “places.” Secondly, to take away the italicized “places” from “heavenly places” and have it read “heavenlies” causes us to lose the cross-reference to the word “place” in Revelation 12:8 (read verses 7-9). By correcting the Bible, we have robbed ourselves of the realization that we members of the Body of Christ will take over the seats of government, the dwellingplaces, of Satan and his fallen angels currently occupying the heavenly places….

Keep Your Fork! #6

Sunday, August 14, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

Upon hearing the word “government” (regardless of form), most people cannot help but frown and snicker. Why? No matter the nation or city, a great many politicians are fraudulent, corrupt, inefficient, abusive, wasteful, greedy, self-serving, and embarrassing, among other things. Remember, since Adam’s sin in Genesis chapter 3, this is a fallen world under Satan’s control (Matthew 4:8-11; Luke 4:5-8); the Devil is thus styled “the god [ruler] of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4). What would Earth be like if every “public servant” actually served the public’s best interests by working righteousness? There would be no crumbling infrastructure, unpunished criminals, shortages of necessities, and so on.

Similarly, Satan and his fallen angels (devils, evil spirits) have corrupted Heaven’s governments, leading to the “spiritual wickedness in high [heavenly] places” of Ephesians 6:12. Whatever evils we behold running and ruining Earth’s governments, they are precisely the activities and attitudes running and ruining Heaven’s governments. “Behold, he [God] putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight” (Job 15:15). “…[Y]ea, the stars are not pure in his [God’s] sight” (Job 25:5b). Until Almighty God removes all fallen angels (Heaven) and sinful humans (Earth) from power and replaces them with His saints (believing Israel in Earth, and us the Church the Body of Christ in Heaven), creation cannot function as originally intended.

The future eradication of evil in the heavenly places is Revelation chapter 12: “[7] And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, [8] And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. [9] And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” Here is the cross-reference to today’s Scripture….

Keep Your Fork! #5

Saturday, August 13, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

Moving into the verses immediately preceding today’s Scripture (and being mindful of the concluding verses of chapter 1), we read about what has been aptly titled “God’s grace factory.”

Ephesians chapter 2: [1] And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; [2] Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: [3] Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. [4] But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, [5] Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) [6] And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: [7] That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.”

Before God in His rich mercy and great love for us reached down and delivered us the Gospel of Grace through the Apostle Paul’s ministry and message, we were lost, spiritually dead, Hell-bound, Satanically-controlled, pagan, idolatrous Gentiles. God decided that those who would trust Paul’s Gospel—Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for their sins (grace not works!)—would become members of the Church the Body of Christ. Those saints would receive resurrection life through Christ’s own resurrection. When He ascended to Father God to become Head of Heaven’s governments (chapter 1), we too were counted qualified to serve in Heaven’s governments. Though we are not in Heaven yet, our Heavenly Father reckons it as though it has already happened….

Keep Your Fork! #4

Friday, August 12, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

Ephesians chapter 1: “[9] [Father God, verse 3] Having made known unto us the mystery [secret] of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: [10] That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: [11] In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:….”

The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul prayed for us members of the Body of Christ in verses 19-23: “And [that ye may know; verse 18] what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”

It was to our advantage that Father God exerted great power when resurrecting Jesus Christ and appointing Him as Head of all governments of Heaven and Earth. By allowing us to become members of the Body of Christ, God afforded us the opportunity to participate in His plan to restore creation unto Himself. Indeed, when God chose to form the Church the Body of Christ, it was not merely to prevent us from going to Hell and the Lake of Fire. It was “according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Ephesians 3:11) that He saved us….

Keep Your Fork! #3

Thursday, August 11, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

Thus far, we have established that Heaven is a real, organized place. From the Book of Ephesians, chapter 6, verse 12, we gain further insight: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” The Greek word (“epouranios;” literally, “above the sky”) rendered “high places” here was translated “heavenly places” in today’s Scripture (cf. Ephesians 1:3,20; Ephesians 3:10). Heaven is also defiled, corrupted because of sin, in rebellion against the Creator. Here is your third reason to “keep your fork.”

Let us return to chapter 1 of Colossians, now reading verses 18-20: “And he [God’s dear Son, Jesus Christ; verse 13] is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.” Lastly, Heaven will be restored to the Creator. Here is your fourth reason to “keep your fork.”

At this point, your four reasons to “keep your fork” are as follows: (1) Heaven is real, (2) Heaven is organized, (3) Heaven has been defiled, and (4) Heaven will be restored to God. We now draw our attention to today’s Scripture: “And [Father God] hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.” Indeed, we as members of the Church the Body of Christ will play an active role in the heavenly realm in the ages to come….

Keep Your Fork! #2

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6,7 KJV).

Will Heaven be a boring place? (It is a resounding “NO!”)

To a great many cynics, “Heaven” is nothing more than “a positive state of mind,” “wishful thinking,” or “a fairytale.” (If they so desire to be wrong, we dare not take away their right!) Nonetheless, if we truly are Bible believers, we will believe the Bible’s descriptions of it. As presented in the first verse of Scripture, Heaven is very much an actual place, just as real as Earth: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). Here is your first reason to “keep your fork.” Provided we have no difficulty trusting the Bible’s opening verse, we will accept the testimony of the rest of the Scriptures.

So as to teach us more about Heaven, the Holy Spirit commissioned the Apostle Paul to amplify Moses’ words in Genesis. We turn now to Colossians 1:16,17: “For by him [God’s dear Son, Jesus Christ; verse 13] were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” When the Lord Jesus Christ functioned as Creator in Genesis, creation was divided into two organized realms—Heaven and Earth.

Yea, the heavenly realm is “invisible,” but its “visible” earthly counterpart allows us the ability to comprehend what we cannot see. Look closely at those “things” in Colossians 1:16 again—“thrones,” “dominions,” “principalities,” “powers.” Do we not know what these are? Why, these imply offices of government or seats of authority, for they represent kings, lords, princes, and so on. The literal language the Bible uses for Earth is the same literal vocabulary it employs for Heaven. Whatever structure there is on Earth, it is also in Heaven. Here is your second reason to “keep your fork….”

Understanding Your Purpose

Sunday, May 15, 2022

“Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:” (Ephesians 1:9,10 KJV).

Friend, would you like to understand your purpose?

As human society continues spiraling downward and away from the truths of the Creation Week in Genesis chapters 1 and 2, it becomes increasingly ignorant of just why we are here. Prevailing thought today is that the heavens and the earth originated from some still inexplicable, random interaction of natural laws 14 billion years ago. Life is but an accident, meaningless. Our world is “unplanned.” We are just “highly evolved animals.” It is this depreciating of human life that has contributed to abortion on-demand, environmentalism, suicide, tyranny, violence, bloodshed, and all the other tragedies preventing the human race from ever enjoying real (!) progress (!).

If there is no God, no higher power of any kind, and we exist “just by chance,” then there really is no incentive for us to do right. Our accomplishments—no matter how grand—will all count for nothing because there is no one to make a final, decisive evaluation of them. Life is worthless, with no eternal significance. It makes no difference what we do. “Let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die” (1 Corinthians 15:32). This is precisely where natural-man thinking gets us, and exactly where human society is at this very moment, self-destructing because it is too prideful to come by faith to its Creator and submit to His plan for the heaven and the earth (Romans 1:18-32)!

Today’s Scripture explains that Father God has one overall aim for the heaven and the earth. Why do they exist? Why do we exist? No matter what sinful mankind purposes to do or actually does, God will ultimately exalt the Lord Jesus Christ in both realms. We can participate by faith—or not. Regardless, the life of Christ will fill the entire universe one day and He will be glorified throughout the endless ages to come. In that day, creatures with eternal life will finally bring to pass the Creator’s original objective!

The Awareness of a Temporary Earth

Friday, April 22, 2022

“And, Thou, O Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: they shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; and as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail” (Hebrews 1:10-12 KJV).

On this Earth Day, let us not confuse the creation with the Creator!

Today, people worldwide celebrate “environmental awareness.” According to the secular, naturalistic worldview, our planet and its sun could last many more billions of years. They claim that we have done so much damage to our planet—climate change, overpopulation, deforestation, pollution, et cetera—that we must change our attitude toward “mother earth” and change our lifestyles before we destroy her and civilization as we know it! You can sense the zeal in their message, can you not? While these people are sincere, they are wasting all of their time, energy, and resources on a temporary planet.

Let us be very clear that the Lord Jesus Christ placed man on the earth, especially the Garden of Eden, to “dress it and keep it” (Genesis 2:15). Adam was to take care of the Earth: he was God’s representative, God’s king, who had a divine commission to rule this planet for God’s glory (Genesis 1:26-28).

It was not long, however, before Satan distracted mankind from understanding God’s purpose for him. Adam began to focus on himself: like Satan, he began to “worship and serve the creature more than the Creator” (Romans 1:25). Thus began man’s continual downward spiral into spiritual ignorance. He would continually worship himself, as we well know today.

Today’s Scripture reminds us that, because of sin, this creation will pass away. The Lord Jesus Christ, however, will live forever. Why worship that which is temporary? It makes no sense! The Lord Jesus Christ gave you life, not the pagan goddess “mother earth.” Environmental awareness? Indeed, be aware that our world is temporary, as God will one day create “a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1).

Our two latest Bible Q&As: “Can you explain ‘ere?’” and “Can you explain ‘betimes?’”

Bowed Together! #8

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

“And he [the Lord Jesus] was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity” (Luke 13:10-12 KJV).

What lesson is the Holy Spirit conveying through this passage of the Holy Bible?

Recall the Sabbath Day was to serve as Israel’s weekly reminder to contemplate God’s work during the Creation Week and subsequent rest (cf. Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:8-11). Every Saturday, the Jews were to stop their labors and remember God’s purpose and plan for Creation. Why had the LORD rested that first Sabbath? His work completed, it was time for Him to enjoy the Heavens and the Earth! Alas, sin entered the world through Adam in Genesis chapter 3. Whatever God intended for Creation has yet to be fulfilled. Israel had been formed to take Adam’s place in the Earth, but she too rebelled and willfully followed Satan!

Sabbath rest ultimately looks toward Millennial Kingdom rest, when all Creation is delivered from Satan and sin, and God’s original purpose in Creation is finally brought to pass (see Hebrews 3:7–4:11). Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ performed a series of Sabbath miracles—including the healing of the “bowed together” woman—to highlight the deliverance connected to His earthly kingdom.

Upon hearing God’s wonderful promises to sinful Israel, Satan objects in Isaiah 49:24, “Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captive delivered?” Verses 25 and 26: “But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour [!] and thy Redeemer [!], the mighty One of Jacob.”

“And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him” (Luke 13:17).