A
WORLD
IN
CAPTIVITY
The world in which we live has advanced with awesome progress, but along with that progress, it has also escalated with appalling evils. Why has it become this way? What has caused the world to seek the evil and ignore the good? Is it possible that the whole world has been deceived – kidnapped, by an arch-kidnapper and deceived into LOVING IT’S CAPTIVITY? Is humanity being held captive in deception, sorrow, suffering, human discontent, sickness and death? Strange as it may seem, the answer that question is a resounding YES! However, deliverance from this sin-sick, evil world of suffering and death hastens ever nearer and a world of peace, joy, happiness and eternal life are just around the corner. God HAS A MASTER PLAN and that Plan involves you and I, and the whole human race! Satan is trying desperately to thwart that plan. But he will fail utterly and miserably! God will triumph!
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All scriptures quoted from the Authorized King James Version of the Bible, unless otherwise stated.
I’m sure that many of you have heard in the news about some kidnapping that had taken place somewhere in the world. One of the most well-known in recent decades was the 1974 kidnapping of Patty Hearst. Her story serves to illustrate just how easily a person can BE BRAINWASHED into preferring the criminal way of life of the kidnappers instead of the respectable way of life of her parents. Eventually Patty Hearst was rescued and her mind cleared of the false illusion, and she now lives a more normal life.
It seems that the more notable kidnappings everyone has heard about. But, the colossal kidnapping of all time – that took place approximately 6,000 years ago – went virtually unnoticed. That kidnapping involved the WHOLE WORLD – EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE IN IT! The arch-kidnapper – Satan the devil – has deceived the whole world (Revelation 12:9) into loving his way of life, filled with appalling evils, suffering, diseases, death, murder, stealing, cheating and a host of other disgusting evils that bring only misery and sorrow. The world has been so completely deceived that they actually think and believe that this way of life is NORMAL. They cannot realize what really did happen to make the world as it is today.
We live in a world of tremendous progress and awesome knowledge, yet this world has become so blinded by the convincing deceptions of the arch-kidnapper that it simply cannot understand or see the fact that along with the progress and knowledge came appalling and escalating evils. And those appalling evils are causing tremendous suffering, heartache, pain, frustration and death. Satan has people convinced that this way of life is NORMAL.
The Late, Herbert W. Armstrong, Pastor General of God’s Church, died in 1986. Yet, before his death he visited many kings, presidents, prime minister, the great and near-great of history and education. He often discussed with them national and world problems of personal, social and economic troubles plaguing the world. Their countries (and the world) are faced with crises, evils, lawlessness, suffering, fears and worries completely beyond their human abilities to solve. There seems to be no solution to the appalling evils of the world.
A professor in a famous law school pointed out that lawmakers, judges, the supreme courts and police departments are unable to determine right from wrong on many complicated matters before the courts. WHY?
The world in which we live is nearly 6,000 years along in its course of history. You look at the world today and what you see the advance stage of “civilization,” with its own system of “organized” societies. You see the PRESENT results of human efforts that are strongly influenced by the arch-kidnapper. But, you really need to know and understand what went on before, to truly understand why the world is the way it is today. It’s like turning on your Television in the middle of a program. You try to judge what the show is all about from that point on, without knowing all the facts and events that lead up to that point. To judge properly, you really need to see the program from the beginning to truly understand what the program is all about.
To truly understand what is REALLY going on in this world, we have to understand the beginning and happenings up through time to the present. Then we can have the proper understanding and knowledge to make the right judgment.
We have to have a clear view the origins and events, from the beginning, that led up to the perplexities of our day. You simply cannot have a good understanding of the present without having a good understanding of the past.
Let’s get an overview by looking back into the distant past – back into prehistory, at the beginning of life and all things. There can be no true understanding of the present without the right understanding and right knowledge of origins and past events.
The greatest cause to present-day perplexities is the false premise of the “Theory of Evolution,” which is now holding universal acceptance in modern education. When you carelessly “ASSUME” something to be true, without any proof to support your assumption, a false premise arises. All modern thought is centered on the theory of evolution – which has no factual support as true. The word “theory” simply means, “We think.” And that is the whole foundation of the theory of evolution. “We think that life evolved.”
If you chose to believe – as factual – a theory that cannot and will never be proven as true – because it isn’t – then you can never have any rational understanding or explanation of the cause of this present world’s appalling evils and conditions.
Basic original truth is revealed truth. Without that revealed truth you are left lacking of the vital knowledge of reality. The theory of evolution cannot explain the cause of the problems and present frightening state of humanity. If you cannot explain any purpose of human life, other than the theory of evolution, then your very existence is meaningless, to say the least
Stop and think – if your existence was only by happenstance, that would mean that there was no meaning, no purpose, no design in your existence. You were not created for any purpose, just came into existence by happenstance. It would mean that you are only destined to live a short life and then die to never live again. If you evolved there would be no life after death. This is it – this is all there is – nothing more! However, if the cause of your life was by divine design – CREATED by a Divine Being – then you can rest assured that you were created for a grand purpose. God does not create anything in vain – for no purpose at all. Everything that God creates has a grand purpose in His over-all plans and goals. Contrary to the theory of evolution, there is AN ABUNDANCE of factual evidence to PROVE that you were CREATED for a purpose that far exceeds that of the Angels. And Satan wants to keep humanity from that truth.
Satan has blinded the world to the truth. People do not know or understand what their destiny is if they chose to obey God. Satan is keeping everyone steeped in evil and suffering and causing mankind to disbelieve in the existence of a God. He injects negative, misleading, damaging thoughts into EVERYONE’S mind. Thoughts like: “If there really is a God why does He allow all this suffering?” Then he systematically injected false premises into all areas of life, and the most damaging is the theory of evolution. He wants people to believe that God did not create them – that they only exist by a chance happenstance – in an effort to give the false premise that there is no God.
If you were not created, your life is totally meaningless and very, very, very short. Is it any wonder why the world is the way it is? People living in a hopeless, meaningless state of being, tend to do what pleases them in an effort to get the most out of life before it’s all over. Of course, their efforts to get the most out of life are centered around evil practices, which cause a host of suffering, sicknesses, heartache, pain and death. Satan does not want people to know of God, about God, or prove the existence of God. It would ruin his efforts to deceive and blind the world. Satan wants people to suffer and he is doing a supurb job of it, because mankind refuses to LEARN THE TRUTH.
If you want to understand the truth and get to know God, you can!
Let’s look back into the distant past – back into prehistory, at the beginning of life and all things – and take a close look at the events, happenings and the origins of the past. Then we will have a much better knowledge by which to understand properly our present time in history.
There existed two beings composed of Spirit, before all else existed. They possessed supreme minds, intelligence, power and perfect righteous character. They are revealed in the first chapter of the Book of John in your Bible. John reveals that One was known as The Word (the Spokesman – the revelatory thought). The Other was named God. The Word eventually was born as Jesus – about 2,000 years ago. The Word was also God - the second personage in the God Family. As a human, Jesus was “God with us” – or God in human flesh, born of a virgin woman, but sired by God.
What, then, did God and The Word do to occupy their time? They CREATED! They planned out, tested and created everything there is.
In Ephesians 3:9 it states that God created all things BY Jesus Christ. “All things” includes the vast universe and everything in it, including you and I. So you see, Jesus had been around long before His human birth. Before His human birth He was called the Word, or Spokesman of God.
In Genesis 1:1 the word translated God is from the Hebrew word Elohim. It literally means “The Mighty Ones” (Plural – more than one). If you carefully study your Bible you will soon learn that God is a Family. You have God the Father and God the Son, a Family called God. God plans to expand His family to many, many more Sons. That’s His plan for you and I, if we will only strive to obey Him. He will bring “many sons into glory.” When Christ was baptized God the Father said, “You are my beloved Son.” God loved the Word. And the Word loved God – obeyed Him completely.
The God family lives in perfect harmony with each other – in total agreement and cooperation. Two can’t walk together except they be agreed. Also, They could not walk together in continuous peace and harmony unless one is the head, or leader, in control. God the Father was the Leader.
Their lifestyle was that of perfect righteous character – the way of out-flowing love. They lived the way of life THAT PRODUCES perfect peace, cooperation, happiness, and accomplishment. Their way of life became a LAW. (Law is a code of conduct, or relationship, between two or more. One might call the rules of a sports contest the “law” of the game. The presence of law requires a penalty for infraction. There would be no purpose for law without a penalty for its violation.)
They were a Family with a leader having law. This presupposes GOVERNMENT. (Government is the administration and enforcement of law by one in authority over the law.) This necessitates authoritative leadership – one in command. In the God Family, God the Father was the leader – in authoritative command. So, there was GOVERNMENT even when the only conscious Life-beings were God and the Word, God was in supreme command. God rules supreme over ALL that is created. When the God Family created other life-beings, the Government of God was administrated over those beings. However, Satan and perhaps millions of angels, and all of mankind have all rebelled against the Government of God. Mankind was lured into rebellion by the powerful influence of Satan and demons. At the very beginning of that rebellion it became necessary for One to put an end to the rebellion and again administer the Government of God over God’s creation. Jesus Christ has qualified and been crowned to take that office. He will soon set up the Kingdom of God here on earth. But, for now, God is allowing the rebellion to continue – until an appointed time.
Remember, the government of God is based on the law of God. The law of God is the way of life that produces peace, harmony, cooperation, happiness, out-flowing love and concern for the good of those governed.
The God Family is in perfect agreement. They planned and created everything there is. And, first, before all else, the God Family created angels. Angels were created as spirit beings, immortal, with power of mind superior to that of humans.
Now I want you to realize that God creates in dual stages. When He created the angels, their creation was not completed until character was developed in them. Righteous character is the ability of a conscious thinking being to choose the way of life that is out-flowing love – God’s law – and to will with determination to live that way of life, even when worldly circumstances, self-desires and peer-pressures are to the contrary. Righteous character is developed when one chooses to live the right way and is striving to live it as best one can.
In angels, once character had been developed and lived as a way of life, it could not be changed. Angels are spirit, and spirit never changes. They have to continue in the way of live they developed. Think of it like this: when a construction worker mixes up cement it’s easy to form and shape, and its shape can be changed. But with the passage of time, as the cement hardens, the ability to change its shape decreases. Once it has “set” – hardened – it cannot be reshaped or changed. Once angels have developed their character as a way of life – set, hardened – they cannot change. That is why Satan and the demons will continue being evil forever. They chose to develop and live the way of life of evil, lust, greed, rebellion, and corruption. Their evil character has “set” in them. It cannot change.
There is ample indication in the Bible that at least a third of the angels were place here on earth prior to their character “setting” as an evil way of life. Angels were created before any other material thing in the universe. In Genesis 2:4 we are told that the physical universe and earth were all created in the same day. In Job it is plainly revealed that angels were created before the earth. Since the earth and universe were created in the same day, angels had to be created prior to the universe. They were created before all else.
God’s Government has an office (throne) here on earth. Both Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 reveal that the cherub Lucifer was place on the throne of the earth to administer the Government of God on earth. In II Peter 2:4 we learn that the angels SINNED. God’s Word also reveals that Lucifer was a super archangel. He had been trained at the very throne of God in the administration of God’s government.
In Ezekiel 28 we learn perhaps the cause of his vain decision to rebel. “You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty” (verse 12 [The American Standard Bible – hereafter known as ASBV]). It is evident that this was the cause of his rebellion because we are told that, “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor” (verse 17, ASBV). People who think that Satan is some ugly, red suited, horned being are sadly mistaken. Satan is perfect in beauty.
He was so beautiful that he became self-centered from self-glory. This vanity caused him to become jealous, envious, resentful and hostile against God. He then turned hostile against the law of God. Satan turned to the way of life that is vanity, envy, competition, rivalry, covetousness, violence and destruction. He developed evil character. His hostile, rebellious way of life was itself a law. It was the law of self-concern, “do your own thing,” in rebellion against the authority of God. It became the basic LAW of the government of Lucifer. Later Lucifer’s name was changed to Satan the devil, which reflects his true character. The name Satan means “adversary.”
So Lucifer rebelled against the Government of God here on earth and set up his own law – the government of Satan.
He somehow, in some way or another, convinced perhaps a third of the angels to accept his vain and evil way of life. They rebelled against God also and became known as demons. Satan and perhaps millions of demons ARE right here on earth this very moment. The Word of God reveals that.
Satan and the demons will suffer the penalty of their rebellion for eternity. They will always suffer the torture from perversion of mind, bitterness, anger, hostility and wrath. They will never be happy. They CHOSE to develop evil, unrighteous character and it became “set” in them as a way of life. Being spirit they cannot change. They will continue in that state of mind, growing worse and worse, forever.
When the angels rebelled they brought physical chaos, decay, ruin and darkness to the physical earth – which was the condition of the earth as revealed in Genesis 1:2.
After the angels sinned and destroyed the earth, God had to “renew” it for another grand purpose that He had in mind. God sent forth His Spirit, and renewed the face of the earth (Psalm 104:30). It was made like new for the creation of man.
If you open your Bible to Genesis 1:1 it tells us that God (Hebrew Elohim: The Mighty Ones – meaning more than one – God and The Word) was the Creator of the vast universe, including the earth. God does not create “in vain.” Yet when you come to Genesis 1:2 you read that the earth was a waste and empty place. Why? God did not create it that way. He created the earth a beautiful planet.
The Hebrew words tohu and bohu translated in Genesis 1:2 as form and void are an inappropriate rendering. Tohu in the Hebrew means waste – like a desert – an empty place. Bohu in the Hebrew means to be empty, ruin – or an undistinguishable ruin. So we see that Genesis 1:2 could much better be translated as: “And the earth became empty like a desert and in undistinguishable ruin…etc.” It was chaotic and in physical confusion, waste and empty because the angels destroyed it during angelic warfare.
Darkness had replaced light under Satan’s rule and in Genesis 1:3 the Word (which was Jesus Christ before He became known as Jesus Christ) spoke the words, “let there be light.” It was then that physical light appeared again on earth, dividing daylight from darkness.
God took only six 24-hours days to “renew” the face of the earth for man. He created plant life, fowl, fish, and mammals. But notice the wording on the sixth day. God said: “Let us make man in our image after our likeness” (Genesis 1:26). The “Our” reiterates that there are two beings -- God and The Word. The Word (Who became Jesus Christ some 4,000 years later) formed man out of the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7). He breathed the breath of life (air) into him and he became a living being. (In Genesis 2:7 the word soul translated from the Hebrew, is a mistranslation. It should be correctly translated as living being.)
Mankind was given only a temporal physical existence, like that of animals. However, mankind differs from animals in that they were created in the image and likeness of God. Also, it might be noted that many scriptures reveal that man differs from animals in possessing MIND, although animals have a brain precisely like a human. Humans can think and reason, while animals cannot. But, of course, mankind has a much greater, awesome potential than that of animals. Humans have a potential that would allow them to become immortal – after a physical life – if they would only learn to obey God. If they did not, they would be destroyed forever.
Scripture also reveals that mankind was created to have a personal relationship with God – to be begotten as children of God, and eventually born into the God Family.
We now come to the very point in time that is the root of the world in which we live today. At this time the world was started on a course that is continuing in our time. Everything that had gone on before…the eternal existence God; the creation of angels; the creation of the physical universe and all matter; angels and the throne and government of God on earth; the sin of the angels, which caused the government of God to be replaced by the government of Satan…all of this was the background to the creation of man on earth.
But, why man? What was the divine purpose for God creating man on earth? Everything that God creates is for a grand purpose and man was created for an awesome purpose. A potential so great that it boggles the mind to try to comprehend all that it really means. The purpose – the awesome potential, is revealed in Genesis the first chapter. The God Family (God and the Word) created man in God’s own image, form and shape. The same word translated as image is used in Hebrew chapter one to designate spiritual character.
As stated before, God created the angels in dual stages. First, came the actual creation of the angels, and then the creation of holy righteous character – by their choice to live God’s way of life. Man was created in the same duel stage. The physical creation of man, and then the creation of holy righteous character – by man’s choice to live God’s way of life.
Mankind was created to reproduce himself, but he could not do that of and by himself. So God created a woman, in order that mankind could reproduce. This completed the physical creation of man. However, the spiritual creation of man, the-development of holy righteous character-was not yet complete. Man would have to do that by his own choice – with the help of God.
For man to become spiritually and mentally complete, he would need the power to think, reason, come to conclusions and make decisions.
Let me explain here that even the modern science of brain research is at a loss as to why humans can think and reason, while animals cannot. They acknowledge that the small difference between an animal brain and a human brain does not explain why humans can exercise vastly superior functions and output than that of animals. Man can acquire vast amounts of knowledge. He can think, reason and come to conclusions. Man has decision-making ability.
He can exercise judgment and wisdom, appreciate the arts, literature, music and beauty. Man can express emotions such as sympathy, hate, anger, love and concern for the welfare of others. The human brain is capable of performing vastly greater functions than that of animals.
There is a tremendous difference between the capability of an animal brain and that of humans. And it’s only through revealed knowledge that this tremendous difference can be known. The written Word of God reveals the reason why. Yet science will never discover that reason unless they accept God’s truth on the matter. God’s Word reveals that there is a spirit IN man. “But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding” (Job 32:8). Notice that this spirit is something IN MAN. That spirit IS NOT the man, as some traditional religions teach.
This spirit in man enables the human mind to think, reason, come to conclusions and make decisions. It makes it possible for humans to express different emotions. It empowers the human brain with intellect. There is no such spirit within any other form of physical life.
The minds of scientists are blinded by false theories that hold them captive so that cannot acknowledge the existence of any such spirit.
But understand this. This spirit in humans cannot see, hear, taste, smell or feel – yet all knowledge enters the brain through one of those five channels. This human spirit cannot think. The brain thinks, as the human spirit empowers it. The brain makes the decisions, formulates attitudes, and develops character, either good or evil.
But why do you suppose that the Almighty God put a spirit in humans and not in animals? There is an awesome purpose being worked out here on earth. That supreme purpose is that God is REPRODUCING HIMSELF THROUGH MAN.
Think about it. Man was created from the dust of the ground, yet he can have a personal relationship with his Maker. God is composed of spirit. Once Godly character is developed in man, it is God’s divine purpose that man be changed from mortal flesh and blood to immortal spirit – a member of the God Family.
As I’ve said before, there are only two members in the God Family right now – God and the Word (who became known as Jesus Christ). But God is bringing MANY SONS into glory. Man may be begotten, and then later born as divine God. Each human may become a child of God, a member of the very God Family, and that is the incredible human potential.
Only life can beget life – that is the first law of science. You cannot get life from the nonliving. Life cannot gradually come into existence. Yet that’s what they teach in our educational system with the “theory of evolution.” Remember the word theory means “we think” it’s that way. God could not have gradually come into existence as some think. We are told in His word that God the Father and the Word (Jesus Christ) have coexisted – without father or mother, having neither beginning of days nor end of life – but living from eternity through eternity. He did not come into existence from nothing – neither can non-life beget life. The theory of evolution is hogwash and can never be proven. How can you prove something happen that never happened?
God created all physical life out of matter. All existence could be classified in kingdoms – the mineral kingdom, plant kingdom, animal kingdom, human kingdom, angel kingdom, and the God Kingdom. Although mankind was created in the human kingdom, they have the potential to be born into the God Kingdom. Remember that God said that we were created a little lower than the angels (Psalm 8:5; Hebrew 2:7) – in the human kingdom. But the Word of God constantly assures us that we have the potential to become members of the God Family as sons of God. But religionists who boast of being already “born-again Christians” are sadly mistaken. They have been deceived by a clever lie. The Bible plainly shows that to be “born again” one is “born” from the physical flesh and blood body to a spiritual divine body. If those religionists truly were born again, they would be spirit beings now. Jesus, himself, said that once a person is born again physical flesh and blood humans COULD NOT SEE THEM. They would be invisible like the wind. (Study John 3:6-8.)
The ultimate creation of man – to become God – necessitated the development of godly character within him. So notice the duality. The physical creation of man was made complete in two stages, first the male, then the creation of a female. The physical creation was complete once the female was created – they became ONE as a human family. Man was to be made spiritually and mentally complete in two stages also. First the human mind had to be empowered by a spirit in him (for lack of a better term, we’ll refer to it as a human spirit). This human spirit only aids the mind to acquire physical knowledge and makes it possible for a person to express emotions, etc. But to be complete it needed another spirit added to the human spirit so that one can acquire spiritual knowledge and understanding. The Holy Spirit makes the man spiritually AT ONE with God. Once the Holy Spirit is joined to the human spirit the human mind is spiritually complete. However, he is still a human – only now he is begotten of God as a God person – a Child of God. He is only an heir of God and not yet an inheritor of the God Kingdom. He is only begotten, not yet born as God.
The God birth is precisely pictured by the human birth. A woman’s egg cell – called an ovum-possesses potential life. But, unless fertilized by the human male sperm it only has a life span of less than 28 days. When the male sperm enters the ovum that is the start of human life. It is a human being at that moment – it is now a living being. That is why abortion is murder – the killing of human life. But, even though it is now a human life, it has not yet been born. It’s similar to “professing Christians” saying that they are “born-again” – when, in fact, (if begotten by God’s Holy Spirit) they are spiritual embryos – not yet born.
The ovum is called an embryo at the moment of conception. The mother now must feed it so that it can grow physically. Approximately four months later, when the embryo starts to take human shape, it is called a fetus. The whole process of human reproduction takes approximately nine months from conception to birth.
Adam, the first human, had a temporary physiochemical existence. We might say that he was created in a similar manner by a spiritual ovum. If “fertilized” by the male divine sperm of God (His Holy Spirit – actually God-life), he would have been begotten, but not yet born as God. But Adam would have to choose God’s way of life over Satan’s way of life to qualify to be begotten into the Family of God.
After creation, God placed Adam and Eve in the beautiful Garden of Eden. There were two special symbolic trees of tremendous significance in the midst of the Garden. God freely offered immortal God-life to Adam through the tree of LIFE. Adam would have to choose between the government of Satan and its self-centered way of life, and the Government of God with its God-centered way of life. Each way of life was the basic Law of a GOVERNMENT.
Very few people realize that God could have restored the Government of God back on earth through Adam, if Adam had chosen the way of life that leads to eternal life. That eternal life was symbolized by the tree of life.
God instructed Adam and Eve late on the sixth day of creation of the situation. He continued the first Sabbath eve and on through the first Sabbath, instructing them He explained to them that if they chose the way of life that is self-centered, symbolized by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would reject His gift of LIFE (immortal life), and on taking of the forbidden fruit they would surely DIE.
Some lose the point here by thinking that since Adam and Eve did not immediately die upon eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, that God mislead them. But God was speaking of the physical death that all human are “appointed” to, since all mankind has sinned bringing on the death penalty. If Adam and Eve had chosen he tree of life, they would not have sinned and therefore, would not have had to experience a physical death because of sin.
After the first Sabbath was over, at some time when Adam was not with Eve, Eve stole away and encountered Satan in the form of serpent. Very few people know or realize that the human family is a direct threat to Satan’s continued rule on the throne of the earth. Satan wants to destroy human life and is trying desperately to do that.
The story of Eve’s encounter with Satan is recorded in Genesis chapter 3. Notice the craftiness of Satan. He did not come right out and say, “Choose my way of life (his government) and my ways of vanity and self-centeredness, and reject God.” He got to Eve by appealing to her intellectual vanity, tempting her with the beauty of the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He suggested that God wasn’t fair, assuring her that she had an immortal soul and would not die. (Of course Satan was speaking of not dying an immediate death. He knew they would live out a physical life before they died.)
By Satan’s clever deception, Eve was lured into believing Satan and disbelieving God. She ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and encouraged Adam to eat also. Adam willing disobeyed God. Adam chose for himself how he wanted to live. He chose to make his own decisions of what he thought was the knowledge of good and evil according to his own human vanity.
Adam, the first created human, chose to disbelieve God and disobeyed Him. He chose to go his own way (actually Satan’s way) of “do your own thing.” Although Adam did it willingly, it doesn’t appear that he did it willfully. Adam was willingly led into captivity by the archkidnapper of all time – Satan.
God created Adam with the potential to be born a Son of God. However, once Adam willingly gave in to Satan’s way, that of choosing to “do his own thing,” he rebelled against a direct command of God and he therefore became the spiritual property of Satan.
He actually had chosen the Government of Satan, his law as a way of life leading automatically into attitudes of self-glory, coveting, competition, desire to get rather than God’s way of give.
All humanity, including this present evil world was founded in Adam and Eve and Satan had successfully kidnapped all humanity because of their choice to disobey God. The whole world, deceived up through time, has been choosing the way of the kidnapper, rather than the way of the potential parent!
However, God the Father was to pay the ransom price and even yet bring His potential spiritual children back to Him.
When Adam sinned, God closed off the tree of life, until the second Adam, Jesus Christ, would pay the ransom price.
To have law, there must be a penalty for infraction of that law. The penalty of human sin (violation of God’s Law) is death. At the very foundation of the world it was determined that Jesus Christ, as the “Lamb of God,” should be slain in payment of the penalty for all human sin (Revelation 13:8), effective upon repentance and faith.
It was also determined by God at that time that all of Adams children must die-including us, because we are all children [descendants] of Adam (see Hebrew 9:27). We are told that, as in Adam all must die, so in Christ the same all shall be made alive by a resurrection from the dead to be judged (1 Corinthians 15:22).
No one can ever be born of God until the holy and perfect spiritual character of God had been developed within that person, by individual choice.
There is a supreme plan in effect. God set apart a 7,000-year period of time to complete His original SUPREME PURPOSE of reproducing Himself through man. For nearly 6,000 years this present world has been developing. But it has been a world held captive by Satan – who still sits on the throne of earth – but not much longer.
Through his craftiness, he has injected into this world and humanity enormous evils and suffering. Jesus Christ the second Adam came to start a new world of God through the Church.
World violence is escalating rapidly as the arch-kidnapper, in a rage, sees the fast approaching end of the captivity. The satanic kidnapper is stirred to furious wrath for he KNOWS that he has but a short time left to achieve his goal to destroy humanity and thus – so he thinks - prevent God’s plan for mankind from replacing him. But, of course, we have studied the Book diligently and we know the conclusion to Satan’s efforts. Satan will fail miserably and God will replace him.
Satan has spent many years here on earth tormenting humanity – leading mankind into all kinds of discontent, suffering, sorrow, sickness, disease and death. But, Jesus Christ will soon come and deliver mankind from the hands of the arch-kidnapper. We should be mighty thankful to our Creator for the tremendous concern that He has for His creation. World peace, happiness, joy, content and prosperity will soon replace the suffering caused by Satan’s efforts to destroy.
As far as I know, no one appreciates being told that they are deceived. In fact, I don’t think most people would even believe that they are deceived. Satan has deceived most of the world into believing that world conditions are normal and very little is wrong with it. However, the hurt of being told that they are ignorant of the knowledge of the truth is far less painful than suffering the results of the deception.
Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong often stated that, “a deceived person doesn’t know they are deceived.” That, “most people believe what they believe because they were taught to believe that way, and never really proved to themselves if what they were taught was true or not.” The world as a whole doesn’t know or believe that they have been deceived and they are suffering grievously because of it.
Satan convinced the world that true is false and false is true! One of his biggest and most useful tools of deception is television. He uses it to reach the children at a very young age and inject all kinds of violence, hatred and evils in them by the programs they view on television. Another extremely useful tool is music with sick, foul, disgusting words “dressed up” to appeal to kids, so that they can be exposed to all the violence, filth and a host of other evils made to sound good them through music. We, as members of the human family, need to be awakened to the fact that this human family was, and still is, the potential family of the living God. Yet, the human family was kidnapped at its very inception, and has remained willingly held captive for nearly 6,000 years.
Christ is coming soon to wake-up mankind and make them see what is really going on. Satan, and all the demons with him, will be removed so that they can no longer deceive the world. Human history has recorded that humanity has loved the way of the kidnapper. They have vigorously pursued the ways of Satan and lived his way for so long, that life, as it is, seems normal to them. There is a cause for every effect and the WAY of Satan IS the root cause of all the world’s troubles, evils and sufferings. Mankind is in for a shocking revelation soon. The truth will be plainly known to them. Then they will be mighty thankful to God for paying the ransom price to free humanity from Satan’s captivity.
Satan is furious! He knows that he is about to be removed from the throne of the earth, and he believes that the only way he can prevent that is to destroy humanity, so that they cannot replace him.
So we see world violence and agonies escalating at an alarming pace. He is violently stirring up national and world misery as this world plunges into the crisis at the end of this age.
We need to wake up and understand what Bible prophecies have to say about what is soon to happen – and why. The development of current world events started about 6,000 years ago. God has a divine purpose that He is working out here below. Nothing or no one will prevent that purpose from being accomplished, not even Satan and his demons.
I’m sure that you’ve all heard the saying, “if someone throws bricks at you, use them to build a beautiful house.” Well God is using the evil of this satanic kidnapping to “build” the supreme glory of all eternity.
In spite of false scholarly hypotheses to the contrary, this world DID have its origin in the creation of Adam. Adam and Eve were the first parents and everyone who ever lived, or now living, are descended from them. Decisions and actions of Adam and Eve were the causes that brought the world to its present state.
The world is full of differing religions, but, astonishing as it may seem, NOT ONE of them really understands who and what God actually is! Even more astonishing is that those claiming to worship God – proclaiming to know and love Him – refuse to learn the truth about Him and His way of life.
God reveals Himself throughout the scriptures that have been available to man since the days of Moses. Before then, God was revealed to mankind by direct divine personal revelation.
God IS NOT a “trinity” – as some “make-believe Christian” organizations teach. In John 1:1-5, 14, God is revealed as a divine FAMILY, originating with two Persons – the “Word” (Hebrew: Spokesman) who later became Jesus Christ the Son (a family designation) and God who upon Jesus’ birth became the Father (a family designation). Humanity is the “many sons” (a family designation) whom God is bring into glory. We are the children (a family designation) of God. Throughout the Bible we find this clearly revealed family designation. God is NOT a trinity – He is a Family.
This is revealed also in Genesis 1:1. The word translated “God” is from the Hebrew: Elohim, which is a plural word meaning “more than one person.” The word “Elohim” means “The Mighty Ones.” Notice it’s Ones – meaning more than one – God and the “Word” (Spokesman).
God created the first humans, and through human reproduction came all mankind, yet God still created mankind and place a “human spirit” within every one (Job 32:8). In like manner, God is reproducing Himself, and through mankind He plans a spiritual reproduction of many sons. He will place His Holy Spirit in each person; so that they can grow spiritually, and eventually become born members of the God Family.
Right now, He has given His Holy Spirit to only a handful of faithful believers. But at an appointed time, all will be given His Spirit and all will know the truth.
Remember these two basic truths: Two cannot walk together unless they are in agreement with each other (Amos 3:3). For continued harmony and peace two or more must proceed in cooperation and agreement. Both God and the Word are immortal, composed of spirit. They have always lived the way of out-flowing love, peace and harmony with God the Father as the supreme head. Their way of life constitutes a Law – the Law of God. It’s a spiritual Law. With God as supreme head and ruler, a Law with a penalty for infraction, it became a Government over all that they created.
The first things that God created were angels. Then He created the vast material universe and the earth. God set a throne on the earth and placed a cherub (Lucifer) on that throne to administer the Government of God over the inhabitants of earth. The earth became the habitation of perhaps millions of angels.
Lucifer was created with stunning beauty. Because of his beauty his mind gradually became corrupted with self-glory. He eventually became hostile against God’s Law, as a way of life as he grew more and more vain, self-centered and evil. As he became more hostile against his Creator, he went up to heaven and tried to overthrow the Throne of God in heaven but God cast him back down to the earth. Satan’s way of self-centeredness, self-glory, greed, competition, strife and hostility became the law of Satan’s government. He still strongly teaches the world to “look out for good ole number one first even at the expense of others” – “to do your own thing” – “if it feels good DO IT.” He has virtually the whole world thinking that, “I (the individual) am better than everyone else.
The world has lost concern for one another as they seek to “look out for good ole number one” in their efforts to please one’s own self. “Love thy neighbor” was cast out of their lives along with obedience to God’s Law, the Ten Commandments. Outgoing love and concern for others, was traded for self-love and concern for ones own self. The world has become frustrated, unhappy, miserable, hostile, and bitter. Satan has brainwashed virtually the whole world with his self-centered way.
When approximately a third of the angels (which was perhaps the number of angels on earth) rebelled – they destroyed the earth in their rebellion. God then “renewed” (Psalm 104:30) the face of the earth and created man.
Although man was mortal like the animals, God created man in his own image –His form and shape. He gave mankind a spirit that would allow him to think, reason, come to conclusions and make decisions. That spirit enabled man to appreciate beauty, music and the arts. To develop skills, gather knowledge and exercise wisdom. Mankind possessed the ability to have a relationship with God, their creator.
The one most basic and all-important dimension in this world’s learning and recorded knowledge has been missing. That awesome, awe-inspiring truth is the one supreme purpose of the Great Creator God and His master plan for working out that overall purpose. Humanity does not understand or realize that God has a tremendously important awesome purpose for which He created mankind and most don’t even care or want to know.
God IS reproducing Himself and creating “many sons” through mankind, and He allotted 7,000 years to accomplish His master plan. God’s supreme purpose and Master Plan are not known, understood or taught by any of the world’s religions. People who boast that they are “Christian” do not know or understand God or His purpose and master plan. Modern science cannot know or understand because they are caught up in Satan’s clever “theories” and “hypotheses.” Education does not know or teach it, nor any university of higher learning.
Why? God’s MASTER PLAN and SUPREME PURPOSE are clearly revealed in His Word, the Bible. Do religionist even study God’s word to learn the truth? I think not. If they had, they would know, and therefore teach, as you are reading now in this booklet. The Holy Bible is the most widely distributed, best-selling book, but, it’s also the most misunderstood, most distorted, most misrepresented and falsely interpreted book in the world. Why? It’s because people need God’s Holy Spirit, to understand spiritual things – the spiritual knowledge of God’s word. But mankind is in rebellion against their God, and they refuse to learn from Him or of Him.
Adam rejected the Holy Spirit – the tree of life, and chose to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He decided that he wanted to decide for himself what was good and what was evil.
The Holy Spirit is closed off to mankind today, as a whole, and only a small handful of faithful believers, called and drawn by God to come to Him through Jesus Christ, have been given the Holy Spirit. They are the one true original Church of God today. God’s word plainly states that without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God none can understand His Word. So religionist, without the Holy Spirit, interpret the Bible any way they can to fit their “pet” beliefs, which are usually in gross error. “Blind leaders of the blind.”
Adam had only a temporary physical existence. To become begotten and then born into the God Family he would have had to develop, with God’s help, holy perfect, righteous character. Character is the ability to choose the true values from the false, right from wrong, and will to do the right – even against self-desire.
Eternal life was offered to Adam through the symbolic “tree of life” in the Garden of Eden, he did not already have it. Satan deceived Eve into eating the forbidden symbolic fruit of the “tree of the knowledge good and evil.”
By Adam’s choice to eat of the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” he chose to take to himself the production of knowledge of good and evil. In other words, he chose to be the one to decide what was right and wrong in his own eyes, despite revealed truth of God’s Law. He rejected the Holy Spirit.
This incident is recorded in Genesis chapter 3, man and his whole human family, potential children of God, were kidnapped – became the property of Satan. They chose the law and government of Satan to rule over them and rejected the spiritual Law and Government of God. Remember Sin is the transgression of God’s Law (1 John 3:4 AKJV). In choosing the forbidden tree, Adam yielded to the basic law and government of Satan over the earth. In real fact, Satan kidnapped Adam and Eve and they chose to follow the way of life of their kidnapper.
Not many realize that Adam could have qualified to restore the Kingdom of God here on earth. But he rejected that opportunity by his decision to disobey God. Satan literally kidnapped him, and all of humanity ever since. This world is still under the government of Satan who still remains on the throne of the earth.
Human civilization developed from Adam and Eve under the sway and deception of Satan. The world in which we live is not the way it could have been, had Adam chosen “the tree of life.”
Stop and think about that. Had Adam chosen “the tree of life” he would have been brought into a direct relationship with God – begotten as God’s son. He would have been given God’s Holy Spirit, joined to the ”human” spirit, and thus have the ability to understand God’s spiritual knowledge and purpose – be able to develop the very mind of God. Through the leadership of God he would have been led into building God’s world.
Then the world would have been full of love, joy and happiness – with no suffering, no sorrow, no misery, no sickness, no diseases and no death. It would be a world of beauty, harmony, cooperation and abundant out-going concern for others. The true God, our loving and caring Creator, would be our Ruler and GOD.
Sounds good, doesn’t it? Well, this way of life is coming when Jesus Christ and all the saints with Him restore the Kingdom of God back on earth in the VERY NEAR future. The wonderful world tomorrow is within sight on the horizon! Satan’s days are numbered! He has but a short time left now!
Satan deceived Adam, and has been deceiving the whole world ever since (Revelation 12:9), causing people to desire to sin and choose his way of life.
The world we live in today, our system of government, our cites and nations, our economic and social system, our education system – all based on the principle of “get” rather than out-flowing love, cooperation, harmony and peace – all developed through time from Adam and his successors into the civilization we now live in. A world of every man for himself, do your own thing, look out for good ole number one, if it feels good do it, serve me – my way, lust, hatred, murder, idolatry, vanity, coveting, greed, competition and strife – the law of Satan!
God’s purpose cannot be thwarted! Although it seems that Satan struck a major blow by kidnapping humanity – God is using the kidnapping for good and Satan will lose! God will reproduce Himself millions of times over and the Kingdom of God will be restored to earth.
At the very time that Adam sinned – disobeyed God – and was kidnapped by Satan, God decreed that Jesus, the second Adam should come and pay the ransom to reclaim his potential children. The very begotten Family of God, for which Adam had been created, would now be started in and through the second Adam – Jesus Christ!
If you studied your Bible, you know that Jesus, unlike the first Adam, DID choose the “tree of life.” He did obey God, His father. He resisted temptations, obeyed God, conquered Satan and qualified to replace Satan on the throne of the earth. God decreed that, as in Adam all would pay the penalty of death, so in Christ, the second Adam, the same all would in God’s due time be resurrected again to physical life, brought to judgment, sentenced to eternal death, but then learn that their death penalty had been paid for them by Jesus Christ and the tree of life then reopened to them in the Great White Throne Judgment period (Revelation 20:11-12).
Jesus came some 4,000 years after Adam to a world that had developed into appalling satanic evils. He came as the second Adam, to start God’s world, which the first Adam failed to start.
But, you might ask, “How did Jesus found or start God’s World?” “If He did start it, where is it today?
Jesus’ coming began the spiritual phase of God’s creation of humans. But, Jesus DID NOT come to earth to reform or save this world – Satan’s world. He came to START A DIFFERENT WORLD. It was God’s plan to start that world through His Church!
Jesus said: “I will build my Church” (Matthew 16:18). The word translated from the Greek as church means “called-out ones.” Jesus called and chose His 12 original disciples (students), and taught them the ways of the Kingdom of God.
In Isaiah 9:6-7 it was prophesied of Jesus, that He would be born as a babe – grow up, and the Government (of God) would be on His shoulders. He would bring peace to the earth. Which He will do in the very near future!
When Jesus came, he brought the gospel message from God to mankind. To announce the coming world-ruling Kingdom of God as a witness. He did not come on a soul-saving crusade! He did not plead with people to “accept Him as Savior.” He did not try to convert and change Satan’s world – contrary to what “traditional Christianity” teaches. God is not going to try and save the world until after He has removed Satan from the throne of the earth, so that he (Satan) can “deceived the nations (including all humanity) no more”
The word gospel means “good news.” Jesus announced the good news of the soon coming Kingdom of God to earth. It was a message of hope to mankind. And it certainly is good news in advance.
Since God has planned to expand the Family of God by reproducing Himself and since it will be a world-ruling family, then the Kingdom of God will be the born Family of God ruling the entire world (and universe). No religion on earth understands this pivotal truth! It is a deceived world – held captive by a lying, deceiving, crafty, cunning, misleading, soon to be removed, Satan.
When Jesus started the Church of God, it was the embryonic beginning of the soon-to-be world ruling Kingdom of God.
He began His Church with just one man – himself, the second Adam. Then he chose, called and taught 12 others. During His ministry God had called a few more to believe His gospel message and follow Him. Among them, a few followed only a short time and fell away. By the day of Pentecost, only 120 received the gift of the Holy Spirit, and became begotten (not yet born) children of God.
Jesus proclaimed the gospel for 3-1/2 years and then gave himself up as a ransom to be crucified – paying the penalty for all the sins of all mankind who would repent, believe, grow in grace and God’s knowledge, overcome and endure to the end of each one’s human life.
The New Testament states repeatedly, that only those whom God specifically chooses and spiritually calls, can come to Him through Jesus Christ. Jesus said: “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draws him” (John 6:44).
Those called, must come out from among the world. They were not to stop living in it, but to stop participating in the ways of this world that are contrary to God’s ways, and live the ways of God. Be in the world, but not doing the evils of the world (2 Corinthians 6:17) They must continue to live on the same earth and even be subject to its governments over them; but not to obey when that would mean disobedience to God, but be subject – if necessary, even to whatever penalties they impose. Jesus didn’t live His life as part of this world, its ways and customs – nor should those whom God calls.
The gospel message was to continue being spread throughout the world. He commissioned His apostles to teach others, as many as God would call. Today that gospel message has reached the entire world through the true Church of God. In Matthew 24:14 we are told, “ And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached into all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” At no other time in history has the Gospel been preached to all the world. But, Jesus said that when it was, it would be a sign of the end of this world (age [of man]).
During His earthly ministry, Jesus likened this world to a building. He said that this present evil world was built on a foundation of sand (of Satan’s way of vanity). Jesus did not come to repair or remodel the building (this world - civilization). Its foundation is faulty and crumbling. Its superstructure – its governments, legal system of law and justice, its system of corrupt education, its deceitful religions, its social system and customs – its whole superstructure is defective and extremely shaky, It is producing only discontent, unhappiness, contention, competition and strife leading to violence and destruction, anguish, suffering, poverty and death. This world is doomed to crash! And Jesus said great shall be the fall thereof.
Jesus is not going to reform this world. He is not going to have some great “spiritual revival” or repair any of this worlds broken down and sin sick ways. Jesus is not going to repair this world – He is going to REPLACE IT!
The true Church of God, which Jesus founded, is the start – spiritual embryo – of an entirely NEW and DIFFERENT BUILDING – a world founded on the solid foundation of the Government of God.
Nearly 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ founded the Church of God. Some might wonder why God has waited for nearly 2,000 years, before establishing the Kingdom of God back on earth?
God wanted to call and prepare certain individuals for positions in His Kingdom. They had to be trained to become teachers and rulers when God sends Jesus back to earth as King of kings and Lord of lords, to rule, teach and convert all – who then shall be willing and teachable. All who have lived in this world and become set in its wrong and evil ways must be taught the right ways of life – God’s way! The ones that God would call had to have time to be trained properly and be thoroughly prepared to sit in the position that God has for them.
Those called during this life time, converted and chosen will become kings and priests and given power to rule and teach all others (Revelation 2:26-27; 3:21; 5:10). During this nearly 2,000 years of training Jesus has been supervising as High Priest and Head of the Church. He has always been in charge and He never delegated His authority to any man as some religions teach.
Jesus Christ shall sit on the throne of David ruling over Israel. Satan shall be removed from earth’s throne when Jesus returns in supreme power and glory, and Jesus will also sit on the throne of earth. The Church will have made herself ready for the stupendous responsibility that will be delegated to them under Christ.
Why did Jesus found the Church? What is its purpose? Did Christ found the Church to hold spiritual revivals and try to save the world during the nearly 2,000 years since its inception? Did He found it to repair the damage caused by the destructive efforts of Satan to destroy mankind? Was the Church supposed to be divided into the many denominations, divisions or branches – Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Protestant, Baptist, and others?
The whole professing Christian world has been deceived and that is emphatically and clearly stated in Revelation 12:9. God does not lie, and when He says the “whole world is deceived”, you can believe that the whole world is deceived. If anyone says its not, that would be calling God a liar!
God created Adam, instructed him in the proper way of life, warned him of the consequences if he sinned and then allowed Satan to test him. Adam failed the test - he disobeyed God. God closed up access to the tree of life to all humanity and it remained close until the Second Adam.
Jesus, the second Adam was born of his mother, the Virgin Mary a descendant of Adam. But God was Jesus’ father, not man. As the Son of God, the tree of life was open to him. However, as the son of man, he was still required to make right choices.
When Jesus was an infant, Satan tried to destroy him, but God prevented that. When Jesus was about 30 years old, Satan confronted him directly.
Satan tempted Jesus in every way and you can read about that temptation in Matthew 4:1-11. Jesus, like Adam, had to make the proper choice. Unlike Adam, Jesus made the right choice and pasted the test. He rejected Satan’s temptation and way of life. He defeated Satan commanded him to depart and Satan left him alone. By making the right choice, Jesus qualified to replace Satan on the throne of the earth! Then Jesus proclaimed, that the time was fulfilled and the Kingdom of God was at hand (Mark 1:15). He had passed the test and overthrown Satan. Jesus had qualified to replace Satan on earth’s throne and could now restore the Kingdom of God back on earth.
This world of sin and rebellion had started with one man, Adam, and the whole world has been held captive to the ways of Satan ever since. The way of righteousness and obedience leading to peace now started in one man, Jesus Christ. He was the beginning – the TRUE FOUNDATION – of the altogether new building – the new world – the new civilization – the world tomorrow!
Satan is furious! He knows full well that he has but a short time left, and you can expect the world conditions to get extremely evil, dangerous and violent as he tries desperately to thwart the plan of God. Be forewarned that extremely frightening, horrendous and chaotic times are immediately ahead for this world, as the “time of trouble such as never has been or ever will be after” engulfs the whole earth.
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