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Growth of the Divine Family – One, Two and Countless Others

Growth of the Divine Family – One, Two and Countless Others

Knowing Self, Knowing God

1.      In the face of competing philosophies and worldviews, my first step to certainty of knowledge is to recognize that I exist and have the ability to know.  I am aware of my existence; I don’t doubt it at any time.  A French philosopher and mathematician of the 17th century, Rene Descartes, says “I think, therefore I am.” This statement has generated much debates over the years.  Some say it is self-referential, presupposing the existence of an “I” in the premises, apparently failing the objectivity test!  I wonder, do I need to prove to myself that I exist? Everybody who sees me knows that I exist.  I’m aware of my being even when I’m not thinking.

2.    What if I say “My eyes see myself, see my limbs and every seeable part of me, therefore I exist”?  This I believe is a strong, objective evidence of my existence. Seeing is believing.  In addition, I can see myself reflected in a mirror or in a pool of water; hence seeing my real self from an independent silent witness.

3.     And what if I say “I see, touch (feel), hear, smell and taste almost all parts of my body” – enlisting the “immediate help” of my every sense?  Would this not be proof positive I truly am?  In a dream, I may not be clearly aware that I exist but when I awake, I know I exist.   If in a dream, I dreamt that I was a butterfly, when I awake, I don’t think that a butterfly is dreaming of me.  If I thought I might still be dreaming, I just pinch myself, and the resulting pain would definitely cry out to me I truly exist – not in a dream.  Parts of me know the whole of me.

4.     Before I learn to think, with words I have yet to learn, I express my thoughts (or needs) via the gestures of my limbs, expressions in my eyes and face, and tone of my voice. I have all the senses, albeit developing, through which I am aware, could express myself and communicate with others.  I exist right from my birth, even at pre-birth inception which my parents say it’s me, a soul nurtured a little while within the womb, and a longer while without.  

5.     I am my parents’ dreams realized.  Two tiny sparks fused to produce a maturing spark – two souls combined to yield another soul, a separate soul.  Having inherited traits from both, I became a new complete conscious being – the whole of me – myself – composed of mind and matter – my real self, separate and distinct from other selves.  My parents, siblings and every one of my relatives and acquaintances know that I am real, not an illusion before them.  Before I am, there was simply no “me.”  I am not a part of Space but living within it, occupying it, like any other object or being.  This is the basic commonsense, holistic logic I grasp.

6.     I am a highly complex self – endowed with intricately nested and linked systems and organs functioning ideally in relation to one other and to the whole body, along with certain talents.  I am the sum of my layered consciousness – my thoughts, memories, senses, awareness, and every experience that makes me fully human – what it is like to be a human – subjectively knowing – and objectively seeing (or sensing) my own self, and other things and beings out there.  This much also I grasp.

7.     To be sure, I recognize there is knowledge beyond my grasp, knowledge that has to be revealed or shown to me, coming from outside of my human endeavours. That outside knowledge I accept as coming from divine revelation – as written in the Christian scripture, the Bible – that has answered many of my questions and satisfied my intellectual curiosity thus far. 

8.     Referring to early scientific researches explored in the early chapters of my book, and some other later and ongoing researches, I see a growing scientific confirmation that the body is dualistic in nature – mind and matter – a “body-mind” – suggesting an integrated, inseparable relation between the physical body and the mind, matching the Genesis account.  Another related concept is the “subtle body” (a “quasi-material” body), it being neither solely physical nor solely spiritual.  It is seen as an energetic layer permeating and extending beyond the physical body. This subtle body consists of many energy fields including those of an electromagnetic nature, believed to be generated by all living cells, tissues, and organs, and the body as a whole.  Different names are coined by researchers in their respective areas of specialty to refer to certain aspects or functions of these fields in the human body. 

“A morphogenetic field (Rupert Sheldrake) refers to the fields responsible for the development and maintenance of the form of living organisms, both in plants and animals.  These fields contain information necessary to shape the exact form of a living thing and may influence its behaviour and coordination with other beings.  Morphogenetic fields can impose patterns on cellular activity, guiding the organization of cells during development.  They play a crucial role in embryonic development, as they can direct the formation of specific structures even when cells are transplanted to different locations within an organism." (Copilot summary from Wikipedia)

“The etheric body, also known as the vital body or energy body, is a significant aspect of our existence that extends beyond our material body. It is a subtle energetic field, encasing and interpenetrating our flesh and blood form, and is thought to be the blueprint or template for the physical body." (AI answer)

There are many different “biofields” that regulate various mental, emotional, spiritual, or physical functions and these correspond to various parts of the subtle body.  Examples are: physical field, etheric field, emotional field, mental field, the aura and auric fields, meridians, chakras.”

These energy fields correlate directly with pain, emotional and physical experiences, and conditions of health, and that these frequency variations can be measured and graphically displayed. (Dr Valerie Hunt)  https://www.transformationalbreakthroughs.org/

Within the living body, there are neuropeptides which Dr Candace Pert calls “molecules of emotion” which contribute to the “familiar feelings of anger, fear, sadness, joy, contentment, and courage, but also spiritual inspiration, awe, bliss, and other states of consciousness that scientists have never physiologically explained.”

9.     There is a part of man – the spirit (popularly called soul) – which has the property of knowing and making decisions, as might be confirmed by Benjamin Libet’s famous experiments. The “I” or thinker, knower or decision maker is this spirit, residing in the human being (1Cor 2:11).

10.    A holistic perspective emerges: we are a distinguishable “spirit-subtle body-physical body” complex or "spirit-mind-body" complex. And this complex is inherited and passed on from generation to generation after the first human, explaining all the phenomena that each person is endowed with.  

11.    When I die, my soul (the whole of me – cells, tissues, organs, nervous system, cardiovascular system and so on – along with all my senses) disintegrates or dissipates and returns to the earth.  My spirit returns to God from where it came (Eccl 12:6-7) – without the ability to know or have thoughts (Eccl 9:5, 9:10, Ps 146:4, 115:17).  All bodily sensations vanish – no more awareness or consciousness. The person or rather the spirit “I” is likened to being asleep (or in coma).  It could, in some unknown way, be brought back into the same body (if yet undecayed) to re-energize the body, with all the sensations (full awareness, consciousness) returning.  Near death experiences are explored in Chapter 4.

12.    The Bible provides a hope for the spirit – the “sleeping I” – to be reawakened at a future time of revival (resurrection) – when this spirit will be upgraded (transformed) with a new portion of God’s spirit – then to be reembodied, not with the old but a new spiritual body. New spirit, new body. (1Cor 15:44)

13.    The metamorphosis of a butterfly illustrates this hope very well.  After the egg hatched, the self in the caterpillar, after an earth-bound life, dies as a caterpillar – it went into a long sleep, or coma, entombed in the pupa – then resurrected, transformed into a beautiful butterfly with a glorious new body and the freedom to fly to all landscapes and enjoy every flower.

14.    From the love of two, I came to be.  Love begotten me.  I am much loved.  And I know it.  In return, filial love is naturally expressed and expected – justifiably due – to the ones who gave me life.  As I grew up, I needed to be taught, to believe in the wisdom of my parents, my teachers, my mentors.  They were my primary educators, long before I learnt to further educate myself.

15.    Whence came my parents? From their parents of course. And whence came their parents’ parents? Same answer. Asking such simple questions regressively, there must come a time when this question cannot be asked further without it becoming a meaningless question.  An ultimate answer is expected.  At the earliest beginning, there must be an ever-existing Something (commonly called God) that introduced other things and beings into deep empty Space. The ultimate answer would be: In the very beginning there was Space, God and Time. (As I reasoned in chapter 1 - First Principles and God).

16.    Yet another question could be asked: Why must there be something rather than nothing? That ever-existing Something must be the root property of Space – the possession and the attribute of Space – the Nucleus of Space – which could not be dispossessed.  Beyond this root of existence, no questions or questioner ever could arise.

17.    This God is singular, “Theos” in Greek, “El” in Hebrew, the Original Oneness (as expressed in general philosophy).  It can be stated more descriptively as “the Original Oneness Unified Embodied Self.”  This living substantive God must have a form, however flexible it may be, but not a (harder to believe) diffused, misty, or gaseous stuff. This Oneness is embodied, as distinct from Space – a form in formless Space.

18.    This God form is necessarily composed of, within and surrounding it, some kind of ever energizing living perpetual energy which keeps Him existing forever, some finer spiritual substance (in contrast to material substance, otherwise we might have spotted Him) that must be hugely complex in nature. Man’s make-up is similar to God’s make-up (image and likeness of God, as explained below).  God has a spirit, soul, body, all consciousness but greater in form.

19.    This Original Oneness Self is existing ontologically in Space; He’s not a mere abstraction. There was no one else out there to abstract Him at the very beginning.  He is in the celestial realm, an area in Space, as we are told by revelation.

20.    Whilst it is respectful and ideal to think that God is perfect, His perfection lies in what He truly is, not necessarily in attributes crafted by imperfect human minds and set into theological or philosophical dogmas that might inadvertently distort His true reality.  The classical attributes of God need an adjustment.  See chapter 7.

21.    How then can this Original Oneness Self be known?  I have an inkling of what this Original Oneness Self ought to be: like my parents – a natural intuition that needs to be confirmed.

22.    He needs to convey to us – by Revelation – information coming from outside of our own mundane system to tell us more accurately about Himself and ourselves. This follows Godel’s Incompleteness Theorem: “any consistent, sufficiently rich axiomatic system of ordinary arithmetic contains statements that can be neither proved nor disproved.”  Revelatory hints have been built into our terrestrial system that might point us to what this ultimate reality is.  “As above, so below” is a recognized adage.

23.    All philosophies out there without revelation are just probes and fallible ideas. A “oneness” concept reconstructed from broken down parts would necessarily miss yet unknown components, thus arriving at an incomplete construct.  If we wish to know the “mind of God,” we go to revelation for true answers.

24.    The Bible, as revelation from this Oneness Self we commonly call God, reveals to us the answer, albeit an answer that is realized progressively, as humans are able to receive it, with the best picture given by later revelation from the Chief Revelator’s (Jesus’s) own words, and the words of his chosen apostles spoken under inspiration. Chapter 5 of my book explores at greater depth the nature of God and creation ex-Deo.

Image and likeness of God

25.    We are made in the “image and likeness” of God, having an outward form like He has, and having an inner likeness like He has (similar senses, feelings, emotions, thinking).  This phrase “image and likeness” at the root readily includes the concepts of consciousness and subconsciousness that science and philosophy have been investigating for a long time.  Our substance however is different from His finer substance. Genesis 1:26.

26.    Once we accept the Bible as God’s revelation to mankind, then true knowledge and enlightenment comes.  An ultimate God should provide the ultimate answers.  I received my primary knowledge first from my parents, unavoidably so, in faith, in trust.  So is every other person’s initial experience of primary faith or trust.  Thus, my down-to-earth holistic thinking.

27.    A rehearse on the earliest starting point: God was living alone in heaven, an area in endless Space; He was the nucleus in Space; this is the property of Space.

Second God – First Begotten – Beginning of Love Story

28.    There came a time when God wanted to have another (and a big family) to share His life in Space, a generous thought that became a generous gesture, an act of love, an act of unselfishness, an act of sacrifice, giving up portions of Himself (His Life) that others might exist and live.

29.    He first produced another One just like Himself.  Could He?  Of course, He could, being almighty. This capability is exhibited in the process of parthenogenesis revealed everywhere in nature (His creation). For example, the single-celled yet complex amoeba produces by splitting or cloning itself into another amoeba, i.e. begetting a twin amoeba.  We learnt this in school. Another example is the flatworm, which after being cut cross-section wise into two, both parts regrow the missing parts; the tail part regrow a head and the head part regrow a tail, becoming a whole flatworm again, though slightly smaller. In the plant world, cutting off a branch of a species can reproduce another whole plant of the same species.  Other examples are found in nature.  See chapter 3 of my book.

30.    How do we get to know this second person, this second uniquely-begotten God? We were not there in the first place to know or to see.  So, we need to be informed by God – someone who was there.  The books of revelation were being written over centuries, now fully written and considered complete, describing past events that occurred before and since the creation of the first human couple; this later event occurred long after the presence of this second God, as we now know. The Scripture was completed over many centuries, translated from their inspired original languages for everyone to read, explore and fathom.

31.    This second God is to be named Jesus or Yeshua meaning “God with us” (Emmanuel) at His physical birth on earth when He decided to incarnate to show Himself to mankind.  Matt 1:23.  Strange idea?  Not so.  This birth and subsequent events impacted by it have been known as the Greatest Story Ever Told, a story that has been probed and analyzed in innumerable ways.

32.    Believers have been trying to understand the Divine Story.  Many controversies arise in human attempts to fathom revelation.  It is not easy.  The story is still unfolding – with more glimpses – more insights coming to the fore.

33.    As said earlier, the best revelatory answers would necessarily come from this Jesus himself and from His appointed disciples or apostles, to whom were imparted much revelatory information, particularly the apostle John (who was privileged to have learned directly from the Teacher and received visions of more events that are yet to come) and also from the apostle Paul (who was personally tutored for three years in an Arabian desert by Jesus after His ascension).  Old Testament revelations are frequently given cryptically, tantalizingly.  Greater clarity came during New Testament times.

34.    Here’s my attempt at fitting in the puzzle pieces:  Is Jesus co-eternal and co-equal with God, the Father?  And one might ask: Did not Jesus exist only at the time of His physical birth?  A man who claims to be God?

35.    Begin with the key Bible verse Col 1:15. “Who [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”    Here we see that Jesus in his visible human form looks like the invisible God.  By co-relation, the human form is the form of God, the same image, one being the mirror of the other.

“Firstborn” in Greek: prOtotokos (prOtos + tokos) (BEFORE-most-BROUGHT_FORTH, firstborn)* 

(*Greek root meanings are taken from Interlinear Scripture Analyzer.)

Compared to everything that’s created – the entirety of things created – the whole universe, Jesus is the “before-most-brought-forth” among them all. Jesus therefore preexisted as the first-begotten or firstborn of God before his physical incarnation on earth.

36.    Jesus is an exact lookalike of God – “the brightness of the (God’s) glory, and the impress of His subsistence, bearing up also all things by the saying of His might.” (Heb 1:3).

37.    God birthed or begot a second Being. Then followed a time of an intimate “father and son” family relationship – the first family.  The Father’s deep affection for the Son is revealed in many scriptural verses:

  • (Mat 3:17) “and behold, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I delighted.”
  • (Mat 12:18) “Behold, My Servant, whom I chose, My Beloved, in whom My soul delighted.”
  • (Mat 17:5) “While he is yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I delighted; hear Him.”
  • (Mar 1:11) “and a voice came out of the heavens, You are My Son, the Beloved, in whom I delighted.”
  • (Mar 9:7) “And there came a cloud overshadowing them, and there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is My Son, the Beloved, hear Him.”
  • (Luk 3:22) “and the Holy Spirit came down in a bodily appearance, as if a dove, on Him, and a voice came out of Heaven, saying, You are My Son, the Beloved, in You I delighted.”
  • (Luk 9:35) “and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is My Son, the Beloved; hear Him.”
  • (Joh 17:24) “Father, those whom You have given to Me, I will that where I am they also may be with Me, that they may behold My glory that You gave to Me, because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”
  • (Joh 17:26) “and I made known to them Your Name, and will make known, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
  • (Col 1:13) “who rescued us out of the authority of the darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”
  • (2Pe 1:17) “for having received honour and glory from God the Father, such a voice being borne to Him by the Excellent Glory: This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I delighted.”

38.    Such a lovely bond is to be expected.  Do not new parents feel great joy at the birth of their firstborn?  Jesus had a starting point in His existence before anything or anyone else. So, he is not co-eternal with God.  He is imparted eternal life by the Father, just as the Father has eternal life in Himself. (John 5:26).  Jesus became eternal from that point on.  There was an unbegotten God with no beginning and a begotten God with a beginning.  Our respect of them and faith in them are more than justly due.  Likewise, their expectation of our faith in them is more than justifiably asked. 

39.    The Father and the Son must have been engaging in good loving communication since early in time. The intimacy between them is conveyed to us. 

  • (Joh 10:30) “I and the Father are one.”
  • (Joh 14:10) “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The sayings that I speak to you, I do not speak from Myself, and the Father who is abiding in Me does the works Himself.”
  • (Joh 14:11) “believe Me, that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me; and if not, because of the works themselves, believe Me.”

40.    How could two separate persons be in each other?  The answer must be the same eternal spirit energy and life (the common denominator) infusing both – the Spirit of the Father – the Holy Spirit – which is not a third person, as popularly believed. 

Creation by the Second God

41.    There came a time the Father and Son both decided to expand their love, to create places in Space (planets, galaxies, stars) and fill them with life.  These heavenly bodies form the backdrop like a tent for all entities to dwell therein, to provide a background reference for the locations of these entities and everything else that exists, visible or invisible. Everything exists in Space, including the Father, and the Son, in spatial relations one to another and a big family of beings to occupy those spaces.  So, they created everything via the Son, the chief Executor.  Spirit beings were created first before human beings – to do their roles in helping to manage the heavenly places – and to provide support services to a forthcoming expanding family.  (Job 38:7, Psalm 82:1)

42.    “In the beginning was the word, and the word was toward God, and God was the word. (2) This was in the beginning toward God. (3) All came into being through it, and apart from it not even one thing came into being which has come into being.” (Joh 1:1-3 CLV). 

These verses indicate that in the beginning, there was the Word and there was God. The Word was with God and points towards God.  The Word was not an abstraction as it might appear on first impression.  It was also God – a begotten God - as verse 18 shows. Verse 10 says: “He was in the world and the world was made through him...” There were two beings – two Gods.   The Word acted as the Spokesman, Scriptwriter, Representative and Executor for God, the Father, in the universe’s creation.  And “In Him (the Word) was life, and the life was the light of men.” (Joh 1:4). This Word clearly refers to Jesus Christ as the second God at the beginning of creation. This second God took on flesh to become a man (verse 14) as John’s Gospel proceeds to introduce Jesus Christ.

43.    Another key scripture (Col 1:16): “because all things were created in Him, those in the heavens, and those on the earth, those visible, and those invisible, whether thrones, whether lordships, whether principalities, whether authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him, (17) and He is before all, and all things have consisted in Him.”

(John 1:3) “all things happened through Him, and without Him not even one thing happened that has happened.”  (John 1:10) “the world was made by Him.”

44.    The above scriptures clearly state that Jesus was the creator of all things after he himself first came into being as the firstborn of God.  After Jesus was originally birthed, he became the CEO who created everything else coming after himself, in consultation with or in active participation of his Father.  (Joh 5:17) “My Father works until now, and I work.”

45.    (Eph 3:9) “God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.” Jesus is the active co-creator with the Father.  Jesus is also called God and Saviour, and Great God and Saviour (2Pet 1:1, Tit 2:13, 3:4).  Doubting Thomas calls him “my Lord and my God” – with no correction of this address from the resurrected Jesus Christ.  Another scripture Heb 1:8 LSV: “but to the Son: Your throne, O God, is throughout the age of the age; The scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.” Jesus is the begotten Son and also called begotten God (John 1:18) – in contrast to the Father who is unbegotten, without beginning.

46.    (1Cor 8:6) “yet to us is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we to Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through Him.”

47.    The above scriptures indicate that Jesus Christ is the mediator, standing in the central position between God, His Father, on one side and all of creation on the other side.  He directs his creation towards understanding and worship of his Father.

48.    The apostle Paul’s epistles frequently, in an intimate way, refer to God as Jesus’s Father and as our Father whereas Jesus Christ is addressed as our Lord – who is subservient to the Father.  It is out of God that all things came, and these things came through the channel Jesus Christ – which is his high privilege.

49.    Jesus tells us that “my Father is greater than I” (John 14:28).  This statement from Jesus himself puts to rest the idea that he is not co-equal with God.  (John 13:16) “truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his lord, nor an apostle greater than he who sent him.”  Jesus tells us “I came forth from God” (John 16:27), “I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world” (John 16:28). 

50.    (Joh 8:58): “Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham’s coming—I AM.”  The people standing around Jesus understood clearly what he meant (verse 59) – that he existed before Abraham.

51.    (Joh 8:42 KJV): “Jesus said unto them .. I proceeded (issued*) forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.”

*{G1831 ἐξέρχομαι exerchomai (ex-er'-cho-mai) verb.  to issue. (literally or figuratively)}

Mankind in the image and likeness of God

52.    The time came for creating mankind.  (Gen 1:26): “And God [Elohim – plural] says, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.”  Who is this Elohim (in Hebrew)?  This plural word, meaning “mighty ones,” or “majestic ones,” usually refers to the Supreme God; it on occasions refers to human rulers and to heavenly spirit rulers and angels. Another parallel verse needs to be viewed to pinpoint the actual person who performed the creation of man.

53.     (Gen 2:7): “And the Yahweh God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

This specific God is given the name Yahweh. In the Old Testament, this name Yahweh invariably identifies to the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ.

54.      As reasoned earlier, this creator Yahweh is Jesus Christ, the Spokesman and CEO who works closely in consultation with the Father – the Father and Son team – the Co-Creators – just as they together created everything else, visible and invisible, in the universe (Col 1:16-17, John 1:3, 10, 5:17).

55.    The Son acted as agent of the Father, acting in the Father’s authority.  Both are having the same title God, one being secondary to the other.  So, the Son (or begotten God), carrying the title YHWH (commonly known as Yahweh), created whatever that is created, including the angelic messengers (Php 2:9). 

56.    All the hosts of heaven, the God-class of spirit beings called “sons of God” – shouted for joy when the earth was created. Job 38:4-7.  There are also four (what seem like) living super computers, full of eyes around them, surrounding the throne of God.  (Revelation chapter 4)

57.    (Joh 1:18) “No human has ever seen God [the Father]; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father—He has expounded Him.”  Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the only begotten Son, or the only begotten God – a unique Son or unique God.  Both terms hold true without contradiction and they refer to the same person.  (1Tim 3:16, Titus 2:13)

58.    (Joh 6:46) “not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God, He has seen the Father.”  God is invisible to humans – though visible to the spirit beings up there (Matt 18:10) – not yet ready to reveal Himself to mankind until the grand finale. Jesus came as a visible representation of the invisible God – one of the reasons for his incarnation.  He acts with the Father’s authority, in His behalf, frequently taken on the name Yahweh in Old Testament appearances as He dealt with His people before His incarnation.  It may not be easy to identify the Father or the Son as they appeared at sundry seasons and in diverse manners in Old Testament times.  Perhaps most or all of the appearances of God (Theophanies) are actually appearances of creator Jesus Christ (Christophanies).  An example is the Rock that followed and protected the Israelites at the time of the Exodus being the pre-incarnate Jesus (1Cor 10:4). 

59.    No human can see the super radiant God and live (Ex 33:20).  God hides Moses in a cleft in the rock and passes by Moses, revealing only God's "hind parts." And this encounter with God so affects Moses that he comes down from the mountain with his face glowing like he was exposed to radiation.

60.    (Joh 17:3) “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”   “The only true God” refers to the Father, being differentiated from all other gods.

Garden of Eden

61.    The Garden of Eden story is known to many people, and quite familiar to believers, but typically only half the story is told in the pulpit.  Yahweh God planted many fruit trees in the Garden, and the first human couple could enjoy their fruits freely. He also planted two special trees: one tree being called the Tree of Life; the other called the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” (Gen 2:9).  Strange tree name! Two opposing qualities coming from the same tree!  Chapter 8 of my book explores this topic in some depth.

62.    Adam and Eve were told they could eat from any tree in the Garden except from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  If they eat from this forbidden tree, they would die.   (Gen 2:17). “but from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, you do not eat from it, for in the day of your eating from it—dying you die.”

63.    There was a serpent, a creature of God, in the Garden.  This serpent was cunning and it deceived the couple by blending truth with falsehood, directly challenging Gods word.

(Gen 3:4-5)  “And the serpent said to the woman, Dying you shall not die {a lie, contradicting God}, for God knows that in the day you eat of it, even your eyes shall be opened, and you shall become like God, knowing good and evil.” {a truth, as confirmed subsequently by God (verse 22)}  Why do snakes have forked tongues, I wonder!

64.    The couple succumbed to the serpent’s temptation – they ate from the forbidden tree and the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig-leaves, and made girdles for themselves.

65.    (Gen 3:22) “And Yahweh God said, Behold! The man has become as one of Us, to know good and evil.” {A surprising answer?}  “And now, lest he put forth his hand and also take from the Tree of Life, and eat, and live forever,” Gen 3:23,  Yahweh God banished them from the garden of Eden to till the ground out of which they were taken. The Tree of Life was guarded by angels and later it was removed.

66.    Because of the couple’s first disobedience, mortality set in for them and this is passed on to all their descendants.  It was on account of this mortality (decaying nature), that all mankind inherited this tendency to sin (Rom 5:12), to depart from the ideal.  There is always a struggle between doing what is ideal and what is not ideal. Immortality was withheld for a time.

67.    The yielding of the first couple to the serpent’s temptation was intended by God. They didn’t know God’s underlying intention; they couldn’t know it, being innocent. There’s no other meaningful answer, not that I could see.  The outcome of the contest between them and the serpent is a foregone conclusion.  The couple (by inference, humankind) need to grow up from pure innocence, to learn how to differentiate between good and evil.  They could not learn without contrast.  Being in paradise, they would not know or appreciate that they were receiving all the blessings in life available there – freely, leisurely, lazily.  How could they know happiness without sorrow or joy without grief?  And how could God, in turn, receive a truly loving response for the life He imparted to them?

68.    As to the serpent, many scholars wondered if it might have been possessed by Satan, an adversary, a fallen angel, a spirit being who was once perfect but later fell into God’s disfavour because of pride, not being content with his role.  Living beings, created as independent individuals, would have their own freewill.  They can choose to be loyal or disloyal to God.  This is the risk God took in creation.  They would likely have their own strengths and weaknesses as well, being not perfect.  When God began creating the foundation of the earth, all of these spirit beings, without exception, shouted for joy.  They saw God creating the earth and filling it with beautiful forms of life, and creating the first human couple, who appeared like them, made from dust and energized by God’s spirit. 

69.    The chief of these spirit beings, commonly called Lucifer (subsequently also called Satan), saw that the Tree of Life was there in the Garden, and he figured that the first couple might be given eternal life and join his rank among the sons of God.  He also saw the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which would lead to death, as he heard God expressly told the human couple.  Why would God create humans when there were already numerous sons of God and angels available to serve Him?  What possibly could God’s motive be?  Would God elevate humans to his level?  Or perhaps even higher than his level?  The spirit beings were meant to be administrators and messengers in God’s scheme of things. 

70.    God did not reveal His plans to them; there was no necessity to do so.  After all, the spirit beings were created not as begotten sons (Heb 1:5). Lucifer was an anointed cherub, perfect in his ways, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty, and holding a high position in the heavenly realm until iniquity (envy, pride) found its way into his heart. (Isa 14:12-15 and Ezek 28:12-17). He wanted to “go up into the heavens, raise his throne above the stars of God, and sit on the mountain of meeting in the sides of the north and be like to the Most High.” He wasn’t content with his assigned station.  His desire became more intense, after seeing God made the first human couple and given them authority to multiply and rule the earth. There might arise a competition from a lower-level human couple, Lucifer feared – and jealousy took root in him. There was no specific instruction to Lucifer not to interfere; he was used to managing his own territory perfectly and freely.  The humans did not look as clever, he observed.  He watched, his suspicion grew and it got the better of him. Might as well attempt a first strike, thus relieving his nagging doubt, and securing his high position in heaven and perhaps hoping to take over ruling the earth as well, along with a group of renegade angels. This may be speculative but the scenario (inspired by real-life family stories) feels entirely plausible. 

71.    Was God taken by surprise?  This could not be if God is God.  “By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent.”  Job 26:13. The serpent is part of the signs (constellations) in the Hebrew zodiac, occupying a great span among them.  It was crooked from the time he was created, amid all the variety of creatures with unique talents and characteristics, strengths and weaknesses.  In management circles, we ask: shouldn't we attempt to resolve issues by engaging someone playing devil's advocate?  Or consider how a democratic government values the presence of an opposition party?  God knew He would face challenges when He decided to bring forth children (not robots) into the family, beings of His own image. And He was well prepared for these.

72.    After failure to overcome the temptation, the first couple knew they were naked (ashamed of their disobedience).  God made coats of skin to clothe them – in this action of God lies His answer to the hardships that He introduced.  It presupposes a lamb being killed to provide the coats of skin – the lamb being a foreshadow of the incarnate Jesus Christ – the Lamb of God – as understood in later revelation.  God meted out judgments to all three parties – judgments that are prophetic in the outworking of history.  Even the ground was cursed so that the couple (and their descendants) would have a constant reminder that survival demanded sweat and struggle, a harsh education in the value of hard work.  A broader treatment of the enigma of evil is given in chapter 8 of my book.

Life, Suffering, Death

73.    Genesis chapter 3 is a great chapter for meditation – the seed plot of cosmic history began to unfold – in stages, slowly, poignantly, even controversially, with deep meaning yet to be fully appreciated as humankind ached to understand it.  (1Cor 13:12). Even the angels of God wish to understand. (1Pet 1:12).

74.    Life, suffering and death – this inescapable cycle confronts us daily, in every generation, in every form of life.  Life is always contrasted with death.  The end of life is death.  Rom 6:23. The contrary idea of endless suffering is a human creation and not rooted in Scripture; more people are starting to recognize this truth.  Suffering is a troublesome reality, but death is not the ultimate end of life; there is hope yet for the Tree of Life to be restored and immortality to be realized.  Every human seems to have this desire to live forever, a longing that is built into them.  No one asks to be born, yet everyone born does not wish to die.

75.    God chose an enigmatically tortuous way to bring all his children to immortality and heal all estrangements.  This will not come until His plans are fully concluded when He will be “All in all” at the consummation. (1Cor 12:6, 1Cor 15:28, Eph 1:23).  This short essay does not examine the plots behind the Gospel story. 

76.    Strict laws were enacted for early humanity to school them – accompanied with impactful display of God’s power and awe.  Honour God, our Heavenly Parent who brought us into existence, and embrace one another as His beloved children.  This Golden Rule provides the prerequisites for a lasting family relationship, as generally intuited by mankind.  This point can never be over-emphasized.  Trust in God's capacity to foster goodness for humanity ultimately leads to a relationship of eternal connection and belonging.

77.    All these ingredients – love, hate, intrigue, greed, desires, friends, enemies, betrayals, romance, dilemmas, intrigues, thrilling missions, plots – tussle between good and evil – are found in real life that is the Story of the Universe.  The most heart-breaking question may be “why must there be suffering and evil?”  Where is God when tragedy strikes and becomes unbearable, especially one that is apparently not of one’s own making? 

78.    The first answer lies in the result from eating the forbidden fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil – mortality.  On account of this “original sin” (Rom 5:12 CLV) – an act of disobedience that betrays a lack of trust in the Divine Parent – the death process (with its attendant weaknesses) worked its way into everyone that came thereafter, centering on the heart.  “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jer 17:9).  There is also involvement of rebellious spirit beings into the affairs of humans – aggravating the situation.

79.    To the same question, there is a yet deeper answer, a more touching one – which lies in the Cross of Calvary – that which may be a scandal to the unbelieving is also the divine solution for all.  Is it any easier to feel or understand the level of cruelty and suffering put on the Son of God to “take away” or “pay for” – and implicitly to answer for – the sins of the world?  Does anyone’s pain match the extreme agony that the Creator Himself endured?  Did anyone suffer more than He did?  Perhaps, one could rewatch “The Passion of the Christ” movie of 2004 – to feel the heart-breaking answer to a heart-wrenching question!

80.    The Shroud of Turin (considered by believers to be the burial cloth of the man on the Cross), the most studied of all artifacts, may be the preserved testimony of the intensity of the sufferings endured by Jesus Christ at his crucifixion. (See https://shroud.com for more information). It has touched the heart of sceptics and turned them into believers.  There are other preserved historical accounts of this momentous event.

81.    Why must the Son of God suffer (and so severely) to be considered the Saviour of the whole world?  There is a surprising divine answer for the Son of God himself.  Heb 5:8-9: “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; (9) And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.”  He became the Redeemer – the Reconciler – the Perfector of our salvation, showing by supreme example.

Divine Self Sacrifice – Suffering of Love

82.    Mark 12:30-31 “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. (31) And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

God is the highest Good, as we all intuit, and He sets the standard for all to imitate where possible.  Love God our creator and love our fellow humans.  Joh 15:12-13: “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. (13) Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

83.    There is an ontological significance to the divine self-sacrifice.  The greater love is self-sacrifice – one that’s greater than self-love or kindness to self – or mere tender gestures to another.  The Father gave away a portion of Himself – His life – His holy Spirit – and this first-given-away portion became – transformed into – another being – His beloved Son, Jesus – that Jesus might exist and live as a distinctly different person, mirroring the Father.  The Father lost a portion of His Life.  The Son gains that portion and lives.  Yet at some point, the Son in turn expressed this greater love by first emptying himself of his glorious existence and became the smallest unit of himself – an embryo (the holy thing, Luke 1:35) – and began life in human flesh – in the womb of a surrogate virgin mother.  He then lived a life of humble obedience and service and suffering as prophesied of him and he himself truly died as a God-man.  He gave up his whole self to demonstrate his Father’s first act of self-sacrificial love for his own existence.  The Son did what the Father could not do – The Son give up his total self, a self that was first derived from – owed to – his Father.  He has absolute faith in His Father’s promise to resurrect him back to his former glorious self.  John 17:5.  And his Father did as He promised.  Christ possesses immortal life and lives in unapproachable light at this current time.  (1Tim 6:16).  From the natural world, the remarkable truth of self-sacrifice is amply illustrated by the lowly seed – sown to the ground, it died to produce many fruits (John 12:24).

84.    The Israelites witnessed many miracles in the desert when they were led by Moses.  Among the miracles was the “manna” that rained down from the sky to sustain them.  When Jesus came, He said He is “the bread of life” – “the living bread from heaven sent by the Father – to give life to the world – if any man eats this bread shall not die but live forever – the bread that I will give is my flesh – which I will give for the life of the world. – Whoso eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, has eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John chapter 6).

85.    The manner of his death demonstrated another powerful reason – that could only earn deep respect and admiration that tugs at every heart.  The person who created thorns received upon himself the pain caused by those thorns.  The Son of God took full responsibility for all the sorrows that was introduced, directly or indirectly, into the world by His act of creation – an act of love – an act to impart and generate more life – which also generated suffering.  Could we see His agonizing death as also an echo of deep apology for the resultant evils happening in this temporal world?  Love and suffering are unavoidably intertwined, apparently

86.    A mother experiences labour pain in birthing the child of her love.  Jesus Christ lamented over Jerusalem, over his people for their hard heartedness in not believing the prophets sent to teach them: “how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” Matt 23:37. There are many moments seen in Old Testament history where God was grieved at the disobedience of His people that He led.  Men suffered, God also suffered.

87.    In a smaller way, this sounds so familiar to us: a mother’s love.  She would do her utmost to care for her children, continue loving them even if they stray, though it pains her.  She might go to the extent of defending the prodigal ones even with her life, as seen in real-life stories throughout history. This profound devotion is a recurring theme in poetry and literature.  A mother’s love is unconditional – a grace unique to her – that reflects a glimpse of divine grace.  A son doesn’t earn his existence; it’s a gift from his parents. Comparing this to divine love, isn’t faith in God then rooted in His grace?

88.    All the inspired prophets and disciples came to teach the love of God for humanity – that God wants to reconcile them to Himself – to give them eternal life (equals salvation) – to elevate them into divine sonship – via a path of suffering that forms godly character – supported by faith and hope of glory.  (Rom 5:3-5). Pruning may stress a flowering plant temporarily, but it ultimately leads to healthier, more vibrant blooms. Subjected to extreme heat and pressure, a sparkling diamond is formed.

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From earthly images to heavenly ones

89.    (1Cor 15:40-49).

“and there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies; but one is the glory of the heavenly, and another that of the earthly; (41) one glory of sun, and another glory of moon, and another glory of stars, for star differs from star in glory. (42) So also is the resurrection of the dead: it is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption; (43) it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; (44) it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body; there is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body; (45) so also it has been written: “The first man Adam became a living creature,” the last Adam is for a life-giving spirit, (46) but that which is spiritual is not first, but that which was natural, afterward that which is spiritual. (47) The first man is out of the earth—earthly; the second Man is the LORD out of Heaven; (48) as is the earthly, such are also the earthly; and as is the heavenly, such are also the heavenly; (49) and according as we bore the image of the earthly, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.” 

The Way, The Truth, The Life

90.    “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” (Heb 2:9-10).  Jesus says “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.” – because he’s the Creator and Mediator. (John 14:6).

91.    Salvation is progressive – effected over epochs of time – first fruits, followed by subsequent fruits – just like in fruits trees, bearing fewer fruits in the first season, followed by more fruits in later seasons.  This is a natural revelation – that reflects an epoch-to-epoch dispensational scheme of God for mankind’s salvation (1Cor 15:21-24). “And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”  (Rom 8:23).  The hope of being granted the power to become children of God and inherit glorious eternal life far outweighs any suffering endured in this life.

92.    Meanwhile, “God locks up all together in stubbornness, that He should be merciful to all.”  (Rom 11:32 CLV).  “Before the coming of faith we were garrisoned under law, being locked up together for the faith about to be revealed.”  (Gal 3:23 CLV).

Pioneer and Perfector of Faith

93.    The just live by faith – faith in God’s grace which generates good works from within, without the need for rituals.  Human faith is rooted in Christ’s prior faith in his Father.  “..fixing our attention on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of the faith, who, in view of the joy set before him, endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb 12:2).

94.    Having faith in an almighty and all-wise God is the right and fitting attitude – fittingly called righteousness of faith (Romans chapter 4) – and justification by faith (Rom 5:1-2).

Gospel Story hidden in the Patriarchs’ genealogy

95.     The Gospel Story, right from the beginning, is told in the hidden names of the Patriarchs (Genesis 5):

  • Adam — Man
  • Seth — Appointed
  • Enosh — Mortal, Frail
  • Kenan — Sorrow
  • Mahalalel — Blessed God
  • Jared — Shall come down
  • Enoch — Teaching
  • Methuselah — His death shall bring
  • Lamech — The despairing
  • Noah — Comfort, Rest  

Joining the dots, we read: “Man was appointed mortal, frail, with sorrow – the Blessed God shall come down – teaching that His death shall bring to the despairing – comfort and rest.”  Remarkable! The story of mankind was planned; it didn’t come about by accident.

{The above insight is generally attributed to late Bible scholar Dr Chuck Missler.}

There are numerous interconnected stories spanning from Noah to the end times – some straightforward, others more puzzling. Many Bible teachers have studied these stories extensively, and numerous books have been written about them. The well-known “simple” story of Noah’s Flood is one of those more puzzling ones.  The Bible gives some hints that there was serious involvement of rebellious spirit beings in human affairs contributing to rampant wickedness on earth, to such an extent that God caused a great worldwide flood – to drown out all "corrupted" humans and land creatures – to begin everything afresh, so to speak, with the saving of righteous Noah and his family (eight persons) and many pairs of animals – preserved in an Ark during the period of the great downpour. (Jude 1:6-7, 2Pet 2:4-5, Gen 6:1-8,11, Gen 9:5-6, Luke 17:26-29). The corruption produced hybrid beings known as Nephilim (giants, fallen ones), the result of illicit union of sons of God (fallen angels) with human females (Gen 6:2-4, Num 13:32-33). The Nephilim returns after the Flood with more angelic activities, often working behind the scenes in world affairs. Noticing the involvement of the unseen realm brings an added level of understanding to the biblical narratives.

(For insights into this fascinating topic, refer to the book The Unseen Realm by Dr Michael S. Heiser and his website https://drmsh.com, among researches from other authors.) 

End-times Bible prophecy is a vast and complex topic – beyond the scope of this article, which focuses on the ultimate purpose of creation.

The Bible presents a unified narrative that revolves around a central theme: God's redemptive plan for humanity through Jesus Christ. This overarching theme can be seen from Genesis to Revelation, encompassing the creation, fall, redemption, and ultimate restoration of creation. 

This article reflects on the gentle threads of love and faith and hope flowing across biblical narratives (e.g. Hebrews chapter 11). It also explores a little philosophically the nature of God, human knowledge and consciousness. My book posits that all consciousness originates from the consciousness of God—a creation ex-Deo. Every phenomenon in nature is rooted in God's invisible attributes, His power, and His divine nature. (Rom 1:20) 

Future glory

96.    (Rom 8:11-23): “if the Spirit of Him who raised up Jesus out of the dead dwells in you, He who raised up the Christ out of the dead will also quicken your dying bodies, through His Spirit dwelling in you.  So, then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh; for if according to the flesh you live, you are about to die; and if, by the Spirit, the deeds of the body you put to death, you will live; for as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God; for you did not receive a spirit of bondage again for fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption in which we cry, “Abba! Father!” This One—the Spirit—testifies with our spirit, that we are children of God; and if children, also heirs, heirs, indeed, of God, and heirs together of Christ—if, indeed, we suffer together, that we may also be glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory about to be revealed in us; for the earnest looking out of the creation expects the revelation of the sons of God; for to vanity was the creation made subject—not of its will, but because of Him who subjected it – in hope, that also the creation itself will be set free from the servitude of the corruption to the liberty of the glory of the children of God; for we have known that all the creation groans together, and travails in pain together until now. And not only so, but also we ourselves, having the first-fruit of the Spirit, we also ourselves groan in ourselves, expecting adoption – the redemption of our body.” 

97.    (Eph 1:10-14): “in regard to the dispensation of the fullness of the times, to bring into one the whole in the Christ, both the things in the heavens, and the things on the earth—in Him; (11) in whom also we obtained an inheritance, being foreordained according to the purpose of Him who is working all things according to the counsel of His will, (12) for our being to the praise of His glory, even those who first hoped in the Christ, (13) in whom you also, having heard the word of the truth—the good news of your salvation—in whom also having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise, (14) which is a deposit of our inheritance, to the redemption of the acquired possession, to the praise of His glory.”

98.    “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1Cor 13:12).

99.    Looking forward to the end, Jesus says “in that day, you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.” (Joh 14:20).  This points to the time at the reconciliation between God and man – when a human will be like God – of the God kind – having the God consciousness or qualia – be a glorious god himself.  On that day, every person will truly understand what it means to be a divine spirit being – feeling exactly as God feels – recognizing the unity between mankind, the Father, and the Son. It’s the oneness of the Spirit of God that binds us together – manifesting the very essence of God – when human nature is elevated to divine nature, transforming from the earthly to the heavenly.

100.    The Father finally achieves producing a vast divine family – from one (Himself) – to two (He and His first-begotten Son, the mediator) – to the many (the whole of mankind, converted) – and all other spirit beings, reconciled – when death ultimately loses its sting, extinguished – when all are made alive (1Cor 15:55-57).  The Father will then be “All in all” – a divine union of many in tangible terms – when the whole universe echoes with resounding joy and aliveness – under the headship of Jesus Christ, the direct Creator of the Universe, along with the Almighty Father as the ultimate head (Eph 1:10, 1Cor 11:3). 

The increase or growth of the God family comes a long way, withstanding all interference (Col 2:19). Nothing can stand in the way of God's love – no obstacles, no threats from any quarter (Rom 8:38-39). Evil is turned around for good.  God’s mysterious ways will finally be fully understood.  An all-wise God and His goodness will be deeply felt by all.  

At that time, to the name of Jesus Christ “every knee may bow—of heavenlies, and earthlies, and what are under the earth— and every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ is LORD, to the glory of God the Father.” (Php 2:5-11)

In the meantime, with all assurance, we continue living in faith, hope and love.

Tony Yeap

Draft – 18th August 2025