"What Is Man?"

Hello again, my friend. Nice to be back with another blog post that ...

... could be appreciated or ...

... ridiculed, sneered at, scoffed at.

No matter. Can't please everyone anyway. 

But you, my friend ... have you ever wondered what you ... or every man, woman, and child for that matter ... are, in the grand scheme of things on this planet -- the only green orb that can sustain life out of the billions and billions of heavenly bodies in the vast limitless universe?

Are there beings out there who can be like us in any way? 

Three or so millennia ago, King David, the man GOD called "a man after my own heart," looked up and beheld God's glorious works in the heavens one beautiful, starry and moonlit night, and pondered: “… what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him?” (Psalm 8:4).

Indeed, who or what are we before God? Puny men that we are, do we matter to Him at all?

Hundreds of years later, in his letter to the Hebrews, the apostle Paul quoted King David, “‘Thou didst make him for a little while lower than the angels, thou has crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet.’” He went on to add, “Now in putting everything in subjection to him, He left nothing outside his control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him” (Hebrews 2:7-8).

The above-quoted verses give us a glimpse of the awesome future that awaits mankind, turned God’s spirit children, in the Kingdom of God, not too long from now. It transcends our loftiest dreams and ambitions in this physical life. Fully understood, it should inspire us and motivate us to really think like Jesus Christ and make the Kingdom of God our supreme goal in life—the FOCUS of our aspirations to which we ought to commit ourselves, whatever it takes. IT IS OUR DESTINY.

Things don't stop there, though. GOD wants us to understand His mystery. He is a personal loving Father who listens to His children. He doesn't mind that they ask questions to understand. Note what Jesus Christ taught about loving God: " ... love God with all your heart ... soul ... MIND (faculty for understanding) ... and strength." (Mark 12:30)

And so we ask:

• Why did God not create man as spirit being like the angels?
• Why did He have to form the first man, Adam, “of dust from the ground”? (Genesis 2:7) 
• Did God decide to create humans physical beings as a result of Lucifer’s rebellion? So that in the event they sinned and refused to repent they could easily be destroyed in the lake of fire?
• Was the decision to create man physical arrived at only after the angels sinned?
• Did God know beforehand that the angels and men could sin?
• When did Jesus Christ’s role as Savior begin?

These are crucial questions that need to be answered clearly for it is in these areas that we could fall prey to “deceitful spirits” who teach “doctrines of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1).

Now for the answers: 

In Genesis 1:26 we read, “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.’” More than just a historical account, the verse gives us an idea of what was in God’s mind when He planned for the creation of man. It was a unique creation that He was planning, a complex work that was to ultimately result in a replica of Himself. In other words He was going to reproduce Himself. He will create a family of like beings as Himself who will populate the Kingdom that He was going to give to the WORD—His partner, alter ego and would-be Son (John 1:1), as a token of His Great Love—the most precious gift God can ever give. “He destined us in love to be His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will to the praise of His glorious grace which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:5-6).

Putting things in perspective, we see that the process of creation that God employed in creating mankind which He intended to be a replication of Himself, was totally different from that of the angels. With men, it was generation (the process of begetting or the natural process of procreation) whereas with angels, it was individual creative work.

Because of the nature of God’s intention in creating man, it was of necessity therefore that He had to form man of “dust from the ground”—as physical being—in accordance with the natural law of reproduction to accomplish His purpose. There was no other way. Spirits cannot reproduce by themselves. They do not have the organs needed for procreation. Reason why Satan, in spite of his awesome attributes, cannot reproduce himself. 

God’s transcendent plan for man involved a two-step process:

• First, man was to be created physical for replication purposes; 
• Thereafter, God would fill each and every individual brought forth as a result (assuming a 100% sin-free mankind), with His Holy Spirit that will then transform man into the very being that God intended him to be (1 Corinthians 15:46, 50, 53).

Here’s how the Apostle Paul explained it: “But it is not the spiritual which is first but the physical, and then the spiritual. I tell you this, brethren: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. For this perishable nature must put on the imperishable, and this mortal nature must put on immortality.”

Before man could become spirit in the likeness of God, he must first be physical in order that God’s basic attributes be passed on to him and then with God’s Holy Spirit uniting with his spirit (“spirit of the man”—1 Corinthians 2:11), at the appointed time, he will be transformed into a spirit being (1 Corinthians 15:51-52) as God is (1 John 3:2).

Let’s get it clear in our minds that man’s creation as physical being had more to do with God’s intention to reproduce Himself than it had to do with man’s eventual destruction in the event that he deliberately rejected God. It was planned from the beginning. It was not some decision that God made only after Lucifer’s rebellion as a fail-safe mechanism in case man went the wrong way as Satan did.

Indeed Lucifer’s willful turn to wickedness, which earned for him the name Satan (adversary), adversely affected the overall plan and the work of creating mankind afterwards but its only direct effect was God’s holding back of the giving of His Holy Spirit to man until he had proven himself worthy of it. Unless and until man chose, on his own accord, to live God’s way and proved himself fit for the Kingdom, there was no further purpose for him and no other recourse left but to have him destroyed totally in the lake of fire at the appointed time as though he never existed at all. The Kingdom is no place for wicked people.

Did God know beforehand of the possibility that angels and men would sin? YES HE DID (this is implied in 1Peter 1:20) but He chose to wait and see how they would behave, react, and respond after they have been shown, educated and given the chance to live His way. He gave them individual minds that have the capacity to think independently from Him and everyone else. He did not create dumb robots with pre-programmed mechanical actions and responses. He wanted His creation to respond and relate to Him and with one another not by compulsion or as unthinking automatons but by self-will, better known as FREE WILL. 

While men and angels share the same attribute in the area of FREE THINKING and JUDGMENT, one particular trait sets men apart, however. And this is their capacity to change their minds (as in repentance), something apparently not present in angels. This is best illustrated by the recorded incident in Matthew 8:28-32 where demons who came face-to-face with Jesus Christ, begged rather to be cast out and sent away into the herd of swine than ask forgiveness for their sins.

From the beginning, God set the standard of conduct (the great commandment [Mark12:29-31]—the Eternal LAW based on Love) that automatically exacted the penalty of rejection and damnation if WILLFULLY violated (“…the wages of sin is death” Romans6:23). That is why Satan and his cohorts are doomed. In the case of men, however, because of their supreme importance in the overall purpose of creation, GOD and the WORD deemed it necessary that they were not to be automatically disqualified from the Kingdom in the event that they erred in their ways and fell short of the standard of righteousness required of them to be able to enter the Kingdom. Unless they deliberately turned wicked in the fashion of Satan’s, they were to be saved and redeemed from their sins. 

In this connection, God determined a remedy for such an eventuality. The penalty can be revoked but only by the shedding of blood to cover the guilt of the offender. The requirement was extremely heavy in that the offender cannot cover his guilt by his own blood (indeed he cannot since in the ritual of the Passover in Exodus 12:5 [a precursor of Jesus’ sacrifice to wash away sins] the lamb that was to be sacrificed must be without blemish, whereas the offender is blemished by his sins), neither can the blood of any other man (naturally because all have sinned” [Romans 3:23]); or animals, (“… it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins” [Hebrews 10:4]). It required blood coming from someone without blemish and who is superior to man. Who could it be but GOD himself? In Hebrews 13:20 we read, “the blood of the eternal covenant,” meaning requirement that was agreed upon by God and the WORD from the very beginning of the plan.

But how can God shed blood and die to pay the penalty of death in man’s stead as required by Law and then be resurrected to save mankind? God is spirit—without flesh and blood—and therefore, cannot die (death is a physical occurrence). 

We find the solution to this dilemma in Romans 5:8-10: “But God shows His love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we are now justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life.” 

Paul further explains this in Romans 8:3-4: “For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

The Word, always the humble, submissive and great loving being that He is, rose to the occasion. In the event men faltered, He will divest (“empty”) himself of all His Godly powers to satisfy the requirement (Philippians 2:7). He will take the form of man by being born of a woman and live like any other man would, except in the area of sinning, until He accomplished His mission and His powers restored to Him (John 10:17-18).

The understanding that the process of salvation was worked out in the very beginning of the plan is supported by Peter’s statement in 1 Peter 1:20. He said, “He (Jesus Christ) was destined before the foundation of the world but was made manifest at the end of the times.”

Every detail of the Master Plan was first worked out before actual creation took place. Nothing was overlooked, omitted, neglected, not considered or left to chance. Luke14:28 gives us an idea of how God’s mind works. “For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?” 

Jesus Christ’s coming to earth was not a “spur-of-the-moment” decision. Nor was it decided upon only after man sinned. Please read Ephesians 1:3-14. Meditate on it. It will work wonders for you.

Now we have every reason to rejoice notwithstanding the troubles we are now going through, because we are about to see the conclusion of God's Plan and very soon, as world events which perfectly match Bible prophecy now indicate, we will see the glorious kingdom of God. Not all of mankind will be entering it though. But everyone will be given a chance.

Well, I have shared with you another "heavy stuff" which, I'm sure, would not sit well with most people, the "Bible-ists" in particular. But it's OK with me. Jesus Christ, Himself a God, during the three and a half years that He walked the earth as human, was ridiculed and mocked for His teachings. But one thing is sure. God's awesome plan for mankind stands and will be carried out to its completion irrespective of man's view of it. God is no respecter of persons. 

BTW, I'm not a minister nor am I aspiring to become one. This understanding I shared with you I did not learn from men. A few things, yes, but not as comprehensive as I posted here. And it is not the product of research or "burn-the-midnight-oil" study of the Bible. God opened my mind to understand the "deep things of God" for the accomplishment of His purpose not because I am special in His eyes. King David never performed priestly duties even though he had more understanding than his teachers (Ps 119:99). Understanding God's Word is not exclusive to ministers, Bible scholars, preachers or priests -- whatever their title be. God will give you wisdom to understand. Just humbly ask for it.

That's just about it for now. Thanks again for the time. C ya. :)