From time to time I have readers and listeners to my radio programs write to me with questions. Rather than answer some of these questions individually, I feel it might be better to share the answers with all readers on questions that are relevant to previously discussed topics.
· Question: I am listening to Paul Sandhu's Chronicles of Creation (actually The Chronology of Creation) and am finding them very interesting. I have a question for Paul. You said God created evil for a purpose, in other words he wanted man to learn through aversion therapy. My question is, what role then, does prayer and intercession play in this? Why pray for healing, for deliverance, etc. when God actually wants us to experience evil? ???
Answer: God does not want us to experience evil; He wants us to experience GOOD. Regrettably without experiencing EVIL it is not really possible to 'EXPERIENCE' (to know, to Yada – Hebrew word for ‘know’) GOOD even though one may be its beneficiary, as Adam and Eve were in the Garden. Evil is necessary but not desirable, we do not go looking for evil. Sadly in this world, all too often evil finds us without any looking.
- 1 Peter 5:8: Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour...
So when we are afflicted, we do pray and intercede for deliverance, for comfort, for healing.
· When deliverance comes, we understand and value the DELIVERER
· When comfort comes, we understand and value the COMFORTER
· When healing comes, we understand and value the HEALER
This is how the knowledge and experience of evil gives us the knowledge and experience of God. This is how we learn how to love God because we understand His goodness; though He may allow us to be afflicted, He will surely heal us even if the healing comes after we depart from this life. For example the beggar Lazarus got no comfort in this life but that does not mean God failed him.
- Luke 16:25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
Even though our deliverance, comfort and healing may not come in this life, it will surely come; many true heroes of faith departed from this world destitute and penniless paupers with not even a roof over their heads, yet they were strong in faith, and their faith will be rewarded with a crown of glory and joy that will never fade away.
- Hebrews 11:36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
Few ‘Christians’ really understand that our existence is continuous, whether in the body or out of the body; some prayers will not be answered in this life but we trust our Heavenly Father that He is Wise; He knows how much we can endure, and the more we endure the greater our reward in the age to come. Our bodily experiences in this life prepare us for the next; the life that is eternal, so should we desire all our rewards and benefits in this life only? Would it not be much better to suffer if need be in this life which is so short so that we can enjoy ‘pleasures forever more’ in the age to come? The greater purpose of our creation will only be fully revealed and fulfilled in the age to come.
- 1 Corinthians 13:12 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.
Jesus Himself asked God the Father to remove the cup of death from Him if it was His will….However God did not do so because there was a greater purpose, by letting Jesus die not only did God make Jesus the conqueror of death, He made it possible for all men to be delivered from death. By not answering Jesus’ prayer in the manner that He desired God answered it in a much greater manner, fulfilled a much greater purpose. The point here is that just because our prayers may not immediately be answered as we desire, does not mean that they will forever go unanswered. When we see our brethren suffering we should pour our hearts out before God in prayer, petition and supplication for them; if our faith is strong we understand that in this world we will have tribulation but our weaker brethren may not. Therefore if they are delivered by our prayers, if they are comforted by our supplications, if they healed by our petitions; they will rejoice and give thanks to God and their faith will be strengthened and so will ours.
· Matthew 26:39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
Our experiences of this life prepare us for eternal life, and the experience of evil, rather the experience of deliverance from evil reveals to us the very heart of God which is the only way that we can truly love Him as He loves us. We will truly understand then that all that has happened to us happened for a reason, even though we feel forsaken by God at times, He has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5)
- Matthew 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Jesus taught us to pray to be delivered from evil, and therefore we do so fervently. However, as mature believers we understand that the deliverance may come in a manner which we do not presently perceive, and it may not come at all until after we depart from this world but it will come for sure!
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· Question: I have listened to your broadcast with interest but I am perplexed about one issue which I was wondering if you could address for me. The scriptures say that all died in Adam and all will be made alive in Jesus...this would strongly indicate that the sacrifice of Jesus covers those born from Adam onward. If this is the case then are we the only aspect of God’s creation that has received redemption..If there are Pre - Adamic races of creatures how will they fare? I do not believe that Jesus needs to die over and over on different worlds. Nor do I believe in multiple messiahs. Could you please give me your thoughts on this?
Answer: The listener is referring to two series of radio programs titled ‘The Chronology of Creation’ and ‘Pre – Adamic Civilizations’ in which it was proven that human civilization did not begin with Adam, that human beings were created even before the Earth was formed. The pre – Adamic humans are called ‘sons of God’ in the Bible. Please read the articles and listen to the radio programs to understand the listener’s question and my answer below.
· 1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
The question that the listener asks is does Jesus have to die for the humans that might have lived on other planets or may still be inhabiting worlds beyond Earth? This question is based on the presumption that redemption is available to all God’s creatures. There are some fundamental differences between the way God has assigned sin to creatures other than Adam, and the way they will be judged. God does not deal with all creatures exactly the same for reasons that He alone may fully understand. For example the Bible tells us in 2 Peter 2:4 that ... God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;... What becomes apparent from this scripture is that God did not assign sin to all the angels based on the sin of one angel, He judged only the angels that sinned, and therefore the ones who did not sin were not subject to judgment, nor did they require redemption. This is also applicable to the ‘sons of God’, the pre – Adamic humans that sinned. Unlike Adam’s race they were neither judged corporately nor was redemption necessary for those who did not sin. They were dealt with on an individual basis rather than as a race or family. Sin was not assigned to them on the basis of the sin of their father.
In the case of Adam, the sin of the Adamic race began with their first parents. In the case of the angels and the ‘sons of God’, a whole race or family was already in existence before evil and sin arose in those pre – Adamic worlds. We read in the book of Job that at the laying of the foundations of the Earth, there were in existence created intelligent beings, the morning stars (angels), and the ‘sons of God’ (the pre – Adamic humans). The terminology used in these scriptures is ‘morning stars’ (plural), and ‘ALL’ the sons of God’...which clearly indicates the presence of more than one person at that time; it indicates two races of beings in existence, the angelic race, and the human race. The common interpretation that the ‘sons of God’ were angels is not supported by Biblical or mythological evidence.
- Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?...7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
However, unlike the time of Adam, when only one man was present in the beginning, in the case of the original creation, two whole races of beings were already present, without any sin or evil in them. The chronology of creation in the Bible proves that God first created the Heaven, then he created living intelligent creatures, then He began to create the Earth and other worlds to be inhabited by these creatures. It was some time after a world or worlds had been inhabited, civilizations had been formed on them that evil and sin arose in God’s creation through the anointed cherub as described in Ezekiel 28:15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. This scripture would indicate a world or worlds of perfection, of sinless creatures in the beginning. This time is the mythological ‘Golden Age’, a time without sin, evil or death. There is a fundamental difference in the origin of evil in the anointed cherub, who is the father of evil in the Universe; the original angelic being who gave birth to evil, sin and death in his heart in an age long before Adam, and between Adam who sinned but did not give birth to evil itself.
Death passed upon the whole Adamic race through Adam because all of his race, including Eve were contained in Adam when the commandment was given to him to not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:17). It was disobedience of this command that brought death to Adam and the Adamic race, including Eve. This however was not the case with the anointed cherub or any of the ‘sons of God’ that predate Adam. The whole angelic race was not contained in the ‘anointed cherub’ nor the whole pre – Adamic human race in any one ‘son of God’. Therefore it was not possible that the whole race could be condemned or redeemed based on the sin of just one person. Subsequent to the sin of the ‘anointed cherub’, other angels and human ‘sons of God’ did join him and sinned even as he had but he was not responsible for their judgment as Adam was for his race.
Thus it was only the ‘angels that sinned’ that were made subject to judgment not the whole race. So it was with the ‘sons of God’, only those members of that race that sinned became subject to judgment not the entire race. The ones that sinned were judged or will be judged, and the ones that did not (like the 24 elders around God’s throne) will not be judged but neither do they require any redemption; therefore Jesus did not need to die for them. Some people question God as to why He would not offer redemption to the devil or the fallen angels, and to the ‘sons of God’ that sinned. Some will say that redemption was offered to the fallen angels but they refused. However, this is not supported by the Bible, there is nowhere in the scriptures that we read that redemption was offered to the angels or the ‘sons of God’ and they refused. Even in the case of Adam and his race, redemption was not offered to them; God chose to redeem them of His own will. God has his reasons for doing what He does; just because Adam and his race have been offered the hope of redemption, it does not necessarily apply to all the other creatures in God’s creation, even though they may be humans, which the Biblical ‘sons of God’ certainly are.
Most people, even Bible students have a hard time understanding why God would create human beings before Adam, but as stated earlier, God has His reasons for doing everything He does, just because we may not fully comprehend the reasons, does not mean that there are no reasons. If we consider even the planet Earth, not to mention the Solar System, and the rest of the Universe, it is not possible for mankind to understand how and why all that exists on the Earth fits together and makes a perfect whole. So too it will not be until later ages that we will understand all the reasons for all the things that God has done in the past, the worlds He has created, and the myriad variety of creatures that inhabit those worlds, and what relationship He has with each race and each world.
- 1 Corinthians 13 v 12: 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.
However, it is apparent that the race of Adam is truly unique among all God’s creatures for it is from this race that God chose to make Himself visible in the form of man. God’s relationship to Adam and his race is unique, and cannot be generalized to apply to all the other races in His Universe, whether angelic or human. God has chosen, for His own purposes to redeem only the race of Adam, and not any of the other species of creatures or races of humans that may have sinned in the past, and may continue to do so in the present. Therefore Jesus did not need to go to all the worlds to die there for them. What a great honor has been bestowed upon the race of Adam, and particularly the spiritual family of Abraham, few of this race truly understand.
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