Propagating The True Mission of
CHRIST
CHRIST
CONCEPTUAL MISCONCEPTIONS
1. The forbidden fruit
The events that happened in the Garden of Eden have grossly
been misunderstood and/or misrepresented by all and sundry.
Yet, the shock waves generated by the reverberations of these
events continue to dominate every activity of man without let
up. A thorough understanding of these events will definitely
affect in a big way our perception of purpose of life and the
purpose of the mission of the Son of GOD.
A good deal of Christians, in fact almost the generality of
people believe that the forbidden fruit was sexual activity. This
has even been named 'the original sin'. There is nothing like
that suggestion in that Bible. Contrary to what the Bible says
that Adam was there when the serpent tempted Eve, they
maintain that Adam was not around at that point in time. They
went on to insinuate that the serpent initiated Eve into sexual
activity. Following that, Eve eagerly awaited Adam’s return and
then she seduced him. If that was the case, there was no
reason for the Bible to cover it up. I believe rather strongly that
there is no cover up of any kind in my Bible. We must not fail to
observe that while Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden,
they had nothing to care about. Food was free and in
abundance. There was nothing whatsoever to demand Adam’s
attention that would have temporarily removed him from his
wife’s presence.
What the Bible says is that the LORD GOD blessed man at
creation: “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth
and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds
of the air and over every living creature that moves on the
ground.” Genesis 1:28. I do not believe that the GOD whom I
serve would give His blessing to sexual activity one moment
only to prohibit it the next moment. I also refuse to believe that
He would have regarded it as a sin if Adam and Eve were to
engage in sexual activity the very next minute after He has
given the go-ahead blessing. The obvious conclusion is that
the commandment which the LORD GOD gave Adam had
nothing to do however remotely, with sexual activity.
The forbidden fruit was exactly what the Bible says it was: The
fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. The serpent is reported
as assuring Eve that the forbidden fruit was for the possession
of knowledge of good and evil like the LORD GOD. Genesis 3:
5. It is vital that one knows everything about this fruit. In the
Garden, that fruit stood between man and (eternal) life with
GOD. The truth is, up till today, it still does.
2. Punishment for the disobedience
According to the Bible, the LORD GOD meted out direct
punishment, but separately to the serpent and to Eve. However
when it was time for the LORD GOD to pronounce the
punishment for Adam, the Bible tells us: “To Adam He said,
‘Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree
about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat of it,’
Cursed is the ground because of you.” Genesis 3:17.
It is obvious now that Adam, unlike the serpent and his wife,
Eve, received an indirect punishment. We must also note that
though the serpent was cursed and Eve received her own
curse, Adam was not cursed at all. However, Adam was
punished indirectly as a result of the curse on the ground.
After the LORD GOD had blessed them at creation, He said: “I
give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole
earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will
be yours for food.” Genesis 1:29. Rather than these, the
ground would now produce thorns and thistles for Adam.
Obviously he would now have to toil for food which would no
more be naturally available. In other words, the consequence
of the curse on the ground was no more free food for Adam.
3. The enmity between GOD and man
Almost every Christian gets it wrong why the LORD GOD
banished Adam from the spiritual Garden of Eden. They are
quick to squeak with relish that because Adam sinned or
because he disobeyed. This wrong answer portrays them as
terribly lacking in their understanding of the Bible.
The Bible tells us: “And the LORD GOD said, ‘The man has
now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He
must not be allowed to (reach out his hand and take also
from the tree of life and eat, and) live forever.’ So the
LORD GOD banished him from the Garden of Eden to work
the ground from which he had been taken.” Genesis 3:22-
23. If you take out what is in the bracket, the reason why Adam
was banished comes out clearly.
It was Adam’s possession of the knowledge of good and evil
that caused the enmity between GOD and man. Adam knew
good and evil like the LORD GOD. What made this
unacceptable to GOD was that exercising the knowledge would
be independent of the LORD GOD. This would lead to
divergent views and opinions between GOD and man, the
basis of every disagreement, quarrel and war. Can you
imagine all of these in the Kingdom of GOD? Fact is, only the
Almighty GOD is righteous. Had Adam possessed divine
knowledge of good and evil by eating the fruit of life, he would
have been led to do the will of GOD and have the
righteousness of GOD. By possessing his own knowledge of
good and evil, it became impossible for Adam to have the
righteousness of GOD and eternal life. It was on this account
that Adam was banished from life in the spiritual into life in the
physical world of flesh and blood which Satan rules. The
banishment meant death or end of activities in the spiritual. In
effect, man faces the opposite direction to where the LORD
GOD wants him to go. This has continued to influence every
facet of human existence in a most tragic manner.
All that matters is to end the enmity between GOD and man.
The first step is to come back to life in the spiritual. Glory be to
the ALMIGHTY GOD that in His mercy, Jesus Christ achieves
this for us by His death and resurrection. By this, He becomes
the only way to the Father. The second step is to use GOD’s
knowledge of good and evil rather than yours. It is important
we take note of the fact that the LORD GOD has put in place a
definite procedure to achieve these spiritual events. It is not
subject to change or variation. These are achieved when you
are born of water and then of Spirit.
4. The condition for man to have eternal life
Eternal life for man is life with the LORD GOD in the spiritual.
Adam’s death in the spiritual meant man would no more come
to eternal life. The first step towards eternal life for man is to
reconcile with GOD and come back to life in the spiritual. This
is achieved for us by Jesus Christ if we participate in the New
Covenant and then baptize in water by full immersion. Your
sins are forgiven, and you are reconciled with GOD. You are
now born of water. The next step is to eat the fruit of the tree of
life which is in the spiritual. Revelation 2:7 & 22:14. Your spirit
is born of Spirit when you inhabit the Spirit of GOD. You will
then be led by the Spirit of GOD to do the will of GOD. Then
and only then are you born of Spirit, born of GOD.
5. Living a sinless life
A great deal of Christians delude themselves when they claim
that they parted ways with sinful life. They have done away with
sexual immorality, smoking, consumption of alcohol and
whatever you care to mention. What is difficult to understand is
that they claim to have a good understanding of the Bible. Yet,
what the Bible says is that flesh and blood will never be
justified on any account. “Do not bring your servant into
judgment, for no one living is righteous before you.” Psalm
143:2. If you can keep yourself from sinning contrary to what
the Bible says, you definitely do not need Christ.
6. Where is heaven?
For man, heaven is here on earth. The Bible says: “The
highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth he has
given to man.” Psalm 115:16. Can your misconception
accommodate that? Every thing that is physical in nature will
be destroyed to mark the end of the reign of Satan. This
means that every thing will now have a spirit nature. At that
time, Jesus Christ will appear in the clouds. The spirits of those
who have been born of Spirit before they died will arise to meet
with the LORD. Those who have been born of Spirit but are still
living in the flesh will transform into spiritual nature. They will all
give Jesus a rousing welcome in the sky before settling down
to earth, the new world and the new heaven. Only those who
are born of Spirit have the righteousness of GOD. And so,
“The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it for
ever.” Psalm 37:29.
1. The forbidden fruit
The events that happened in the Garden of Eden have grossly
been misunderstood and/or misrepresented by all and sundry.
Yet, the shock waves generated by the reverberations of these
events continue to dominate every activity of man without let
up. A thorough understanding of these events will definitely
affect in a big way our perception of purpose of life and the
purpose of the mission of the Son of GOD.
A good deal of Christians, in fact almost the generality of
people believe that the forbidden fruit was sexual activity. This
has even been named 'the original sin'. There is nothing like
that suggestion in that Bible. Contrary to what the Bible says
that Adam was there when the serpent tempted Eve, they
maintain that Adam was not around at that point in time. They
went on to insinuate that the serpent initiated Eve into sexual
activity. Following that, Eve eagerly awaited Adam’s return and
then she seduced him. If that was the case, there was no
reason for the Bible to cover it up. I believe rather strongly that
there is no cover up of any kind in my Bible. We must not fail to
observe that while Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden,
they had nothing to care about. Food was free and in
abundance. There was nothing whatsoever to demand Adam’s
attention that would have temporarily removed him from his
wife’s presence.
What the Bible says is that the LORD GOD blessed man at
creation: “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth
and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds
of the air and over every living creature that moves on the
ground.” Genesis 1:28. I do not believe that the GOD whom I
serve would give His blessing to sexual activity one moment
only to prohibit it the next moment. I also refuse to believe that
He would have regarded it as a sin if Adam and Eve were to
engage in sexual activity the very next minute after He has
given the go-ahead blessing. The obvious conclusion is that
the commandment which the LORD GOD gave Adam had
nothing to do however remotely, with sexual activity.
The forbidden fruit was exactly what the Bible says it was: The
fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. The serpent is reported
as assuring Eve that the forbidden fruit was for the possession
of knowledge of good and evil like the LORD GOD. Genesis 3:
5. It is vital that one knows everything about this fruit. In the
Garden, that fruit stood between man and (eternal) life with
GOD. The truth is, up till today, it still does.
2. Punishment for the disobedience
According to the Bible, the LORD GOD meted out direct
punishment, but separately to the serpent and to Eve. However
when it was time for the LORD GOD to pronounce the
punishment for Adam, the Bible tells us: “To Adam He said,
‘Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree
about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat of it,’
Cursed is the ground because of you.” Genesis 3:17.
It is obvious now that Adam, unlike the serpent and his wife,
Eve, received an indirect punishment. We must also note that
though the serpent was cursed and Eve received her own
curse, Adam was not cursed at all. However, Adam was
punished indirectly as a result of the curse on the ground.
After the LORD GOD had blessed them at creation, He said: “I
give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole
earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will
be yours for food.” Genesis 1:29. Rather than these, the
ground would now produce thorns and thistles for Adam.
Obviously he would now have to toil for food which would no
more be naturally available. In other words, the consequence
of the curse on the ground was no more free food for Adam.
3. The enmity between GOD and man
Almost every Christian gets it wrong why the LORD GOD
banished Adam from the spiritual Garden of Eden. They are
quick to squeak with relish that because Adam sinned or
because he disobeyed. This wrong answer portrays them as
terribly lacking in their understanding of the Bible.
The Bible tells us: “And the LORD GOD said, ‘The man has
now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He
must not be allowed to (reach out his hand and take also
from the tree of life and eat, and) live forever.’ So the
LORD GOD banished him from the Garden of Eden to work
the ground from which he had been taken.” Genesis 3:22-
23. If you take out what is in the bracket, the reason why Adam
was banished comes out clearly.
It was Adam’s possession of the knowledge of good and evil
that caused the enmity between GOD and man. Adam knew
good and evil like the LORD GOD. What made this
unacceptable to GOD was that exercising the knowledge would
be independent of the LORD GOD. This would lead to
divergent views and opinions between GOD and man, the
basis of every disagreement, quarrel and war. Can you
imagine all of these in the Kingdom of GOD? Fact is, only the
Almighty GOD is righteous. Had Adam possessed divine
knowledge of good and evil by eating the fruit of life, he would
have been led to do the will of GOD and have the
righteousness of GOD. By possessing his own knowledge of
good and evil, it became impossible for Adam to have the
righteousness of GOD and eternal life. It was on this account
that Adam was banished from life in the spiritual into life in the
physical world of flesh and blood which Satan rules. The
banishment meant death or end of activities in the spiritual. In
effect, man faces the opposite direction to where the LORD
GOD wants him to go. This has continued to influence every
facet of human existence in a most tragic manner.
All that matters is to end the enmity between GOD and man.
The first step is to come back to life in the spiritual. Glory be to
the ALMIGHTY GOD that in His mercy, Jesus Christ achieves
this for us by His death and resurrection. By this, He becomes
the only way to the Father. The second step is to use GOD’s
knowledge of good and evil rather than yours. It is important
we take note of the fact that the LORD GOD has put in place a
definite procedure to achieve these spiritual events. It is not
subject to change or variation. These are achieved when you
are born of water and then of Spirit.
4. The condition for man to have eternal life
Eternal life for man is life with the LORD GOD in the spiritual.
Adam’s death in the spiritual meant man would no more come
to eternal life. The first step towards eternal life for man is to
reconcile with GOD and come back to life in the spiritual. This
is achieved for us by Jesus Christ if we participate in the New
Covenant and then baptize in water by full immersion. Your
sins are forgiven, and you are reconciled with GOD. You are
now born of water. The next step is to eat the fruit of the tree of
life which is in the spiritual. Revelation 2:7 & 22:14. Your spirit
is born of Spirit when you inhabit the Spirit of GOD. You will
then be led by the Spirit of GOD to do the will of GOD. Then
and only then are you born of Spirit, born of GOD.
5. Living a sinless life
A great deal of Christians delude themselves when they claim
that they parted ways with sinful life. They have done away with
sexual immorality, smoking, consumption of alcohol and
whatever you care to mention. What is difficult to understand is
that they claim to have a good understanding of the Bible. Yet,
what the Bible says is that flesh and blood will never be
justified on any account. “Do not bring your servant into
judgment, for no one living is righteous before you.” Psalm
143:2. If you can keep yourself from sinning contrary to what
the Bible says, you definitely do not need Christ.
6. Where is heaven?
For man, heaven is here on earth. The Bible says: “The
highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth he has
given to man.” Psalm 115:16. Can your misconception
accommodate that? Every thing that is physical in nature will
be destroyed to mark the end of the reign of Satan. This
means that every thing will now have a spirit nature. At that
time, Jesus Christ will appear in the clouds. The spirits of those
who have been born of Spirit before they died will arise to meet
with the LORD. Those who have been born of Spirit but are still
living in the flesh will transform into spiritual nature. They will all
give Jesus a rousing welcome in the sky before settling down
to earth, the new world and the new heaven. Only those who
are born of Spirit have the righteousness of GOD. And so,
“The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it for
ever.” Psalm 37:29.
babasanyacraig.com
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