Christmas Reconsidered, Ralph Woodrow

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sparkman

Guest
#1
I recently received a book called "Christmas Reconsidered" by Ralph Woodrow.

Ralph wrote a book against Christmas observances long ago, which was used by various cultic organizations such as Worldwide Church of God. I was a member of Worldwide Church of God and believed their doctrines including the anti-Christmas stance for about 10 years. There are similar organizations nowadays called Restored Church of God, Philadelphia Church of God, Living Church of God and United Church of God which teach the same things. Their bad doctrines include the belief that they are going to become literal Gods in the resurrection with the full power of God the Father and Jesus Christ, and that other Christians are unsaved and are still in their sins.

Ralph's initial book was quoted extensively by Armstrongites.

This issue regarding Christmas is a peripheral one, and doesn't determine whether one is a Christian. I have no issue if someone holds the view that Christmas is pagan at its roots and should not be observed.

However, I would point out the following:

  • Individuals who hold these views tend to be wonky in other areas of their theology, casting evil suspicions on other aspects of Christianity...I know the Armstrongites did this. The doctrine of the Trinity and the Saturday/Sunday issue are a few more examples of such thinking.
  • Individuals who hold these views quite often are not in a healthy corporate fellowship themselves, and are not submitting to church authority of any kind. Scripture is very clear in teaching that we are to be in fellowship with other believers AND we are to be submitting to church authority. The context of the Christian life is within the confines of the Church, and it is a face-to face relationship with other believers where we partake of communion and baptism and church discipline when needed. I know that some individuals are shut-ins or are under unique situations which do not allow for this at times, but this is mostly certainly and undeniably the Scriptural model. You will find that many of these who are so loud at proclaiming these wonky beliefs isolate themselves from fellowship as they have the mentality that the rest of Christianity is "Babylon". By the way I notice a similar trait amongst sinless perfectionists.
  • Individuals who hold these views are often unsound and unbalanced in their thinking. They speak often of conspiracy theories within the government, etcetera, and look for villains behind every corner. To be honest, I find way too much of this sort of thinking in the forums and the chat room. In fact, if I was not already a Christian who had experienced a genuine encounter with God, I would probably never consider Christianity based on these views that I've seen expressed in both forums, and I constantly tell seekers to realize that the people here don't represent the normal Christian worldview that one would find in a sound church. Few of the people in my congregation, if any, would be fixated on such nonsense.

Regarding the book, here's the link to Ralph's site where you can purchase it..he also has one on Easter and one on Divorce and Remarriage that I ordered recently:

Ralph Woodrow Evangelistic Association

Some major points:

  • Many of those who hold such beliefs are more known by what they DON'T believe, not what they do believe..for instance, you may hear them loudly proclaiming how Christmas is pagan, but do they just as loudly proclaim that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Light?
  • The churches which hold such beliefs, by Ralph's experience, are no more spiritually fruitful than those who do not. And he has spoken at churches of both types.
  • Anti-Christmas people end up finding themselves on the same side as atheists who desire to keep such things out of school...atheists desire to keep such things out because they hate God.
  • The reasoning that Christmas is not found in the Bible is poor reasoning..many things that are part of Christian life are not found in the bible..for instance a Christian pastor officiating at a wedding is not found in the Bible.
  • There are incidences of Israelites having days that they designated for worship in Scripture including the four days that were observed by Israelites regarding Jepthah's daughter (Judges 11:40), one related to the deliverance of the Jews in Esthers' time (Esther 9:19), the Feast of Dedication (John 10:22, 23), and various fasts mentioned in Zech 8:19.
  • The idea that Santa is "Satan" with a slightly different spelling is a juvenile and foolish argument.
  • The idea that Christmas is Nimrod's birthday Is a similar juvenile and foolish argument..how do they get that from the scant information provided in Scripture concerning Nimrod?
  • Jeremiah 10 does not describe a Christmas tree like some claim it does..it is talking about an idol..read verse 18. How many Christmas trees are dressed up in violet and purple? How many are expected to talk like a man?
  • Do Christians worship Christmas trees? How silly is this accusation...they throw them out for the trash man to collect afterwards.
  • The Christmas tree actually only dates back a few centuries, and the origin more likely points to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. The ornaments on it are associated with the fruit of the tree of life.

I will add a few more points:



  • The idea that it is wrong to celebrate birthdays of any type often is part of the reasoning of Christmas observers. I will point out that within the Old Covenant festivals was one called the Feast of Tabernacles. Sabbath/festival keepers claim this primarily symbolizes the Millennium, but I contend that it symbolized the Incarnation, and is very much an observance of the birthday of Jesus Christ. In fact, I don't think their view that it is referring to the Millennium is sustainable. Their reply will be that if I hold this position, why don't I observe the Feast of Tabernacles instead? I would have no issue with this observance although it isn't a requirement because the Old Covenant is not in effect per II Cor 3, Gal 3 and 4 Romans 7:1-7, and Hebrews 8 and 9. The reason why I don't associate with groups that teach these observances is because they are mostly Arminian and also hold very bad theology in other areas..quite often being very judgmental against other Christians deeming them to be unsaved or spiritually inferior or being in sin due to their non-observance of the elements that they declare as still applicable, namely Sabbath, Holy Days, and clean/unclean meats. They are also inconsistent as they don't observe the entire Old Covenant themselves...for instance they don't throw their wives, daughters and mothers in the garage during their monthly uncleanness or throw away sofas they've sat upon during that period.
  • I see a parallel with the "meat sacrificed to idols" situation. Christians were allowed to eat meat sacrificed to idols. The fact that something had a previous association with paganism does not mean that it cannot be repurposed by a Christian for his own use. Christmas may have had some pagan associations with some of the customs but do those things mean that a Christian cannot repurpose the day in a manner that is honoring to God? People have come to Christ through being invited to Christmas plays where a presentation of the gospel message has occurred. Same with Easter..in fact, the message of salvation is ALWAYS the theme of our Easter day message.

In summary, though, I suggest that you consider the fruits of your own life before throwing stones on this issue. If you are a person who is not part of a corporate fellowship which extolls Jesus Christ and salvation by faith in Him as the main message, you are not qualified to be criticizing the rest of Christianity. In fact you are in rebellion against God if you are not part of a corporate fellowship, and have not been baptized and are not receiving communion in the body of believers. Placing one under the authority of elders within the local church is a fundamental expectation regarding believers.

Those who are casting stones on this issue yet are failing to follow these basic Scriptural mandates are like the Pharisees who strain at gnats and swallow camels. They really aren't worthy of listening to, as they are in rebellion against clear Scriptural teaching and have issues to resolve in their own lives. Part of the unconverted mind is rejection of God's guidance and instruction and pursuing an autonomous lifestyle apart from God and other believers..I think some Christians are still trying to live that autonomous lifestyle at some level and their rejection of corporate fellowship is a sign of the remaining remnants of that way of thinking.

I realize there's many who are sound believers and are in corporate fellowship and submitting to church leadership who hold this view of Christmas, though..I have no issue with them..in fact I can sympathize at a certain level as I've held the same position. I'd simply ask if Jesus is your main focus in life and he very well may be. These are issues we can disagree on per Romans 14.

Christian chat rooms are not the same as corporate fellowship..as fantastic as this place is for supplemental fellowship, there is no accountability here. It is a joke to claim otherwise. The wonkiness of all the ideas expressed here bear testimony to that.
 
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sparkman

Guest
#2
P.S. Matt, I hope this message qualifies as a non-Law thread on the tally you are keeping of my posts ;)
 
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-puppy-

Guest
#3
Thank you! Someone actually presented this on going issue with scripture, logic and reason.
 

BenFTW

Senior Member
Oct 7, 2012
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#4
My reasoning in partaking in any holiday that religious Christians are opposed to is simply that God knows the heart and the reasons we "celebrate" these days. Who cares about their origins when the origin has no say in how and why society currently celebrates it?

It means nothing to me the origin of a holiday, what matters to me is the reasons why I celebrate it. A lot of these reasons are quite simple, and it points to the heart. Christmas, since its the topic, is simply a time of giving and family. The tree? It is no idol but simply is the symbol for the season. It represents the holiday and the place where we place the gifts. It is a time when parents can give their children the desires of their heart.

Such simple reasoning and justification and again, God looks at the heart. You can tell me until you're blue in the face that all these holidays have pagan origins and it doesn't matter. Their origin is not the reason behind why I celebrate these days. Follow your own convictions, don't put them on others. They have their own. They have such liberty and the freedom to choose what edifies (or doesn't edify) them. That's my perspective.
 
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sparkman

Guest
#5
By the way, some even think they shouldn't wear wedding rings due to the "pagan origins" of them. The SDAs used to teach that, but they changed their position in the 1980's.

It must be awful handy for adulterers to avoid their tan lines by not wearing rings :)

One issue, I think, is that we become aware of the fact that the devil has deceived the entire world (Revelation 12:9), and take that rruth to an illogical extreme, and look at everything with suspicion. We'd be better off concentrating on the blatant issues in our life, including avoiding corporate personal (not impersonal internet stuff) fellowship, which is a Scriptural mandate and is unquestionable.
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#7
I recently received a book called "Christmas Reconsidered" by Ralph Woodrow..

maybe you should burn this book , and go back to reading the bible.

sorry but Christmas is a pagan celebration not in the bible,

a mans tradation not Gods, another anti Gods sabbath thread again,

If you are not for Him, you are againest him.
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#8
Many have reconsidered Ralph Woodrow and have determined he is not only a flip-flop, he has shown us how men cave in when they get old and their minds are no longer fresh with clear thinking. Once Ralph's hair turned white he started thinking how he and Santa Claus favored and suddenly came to the conclusion the papacy was right about Christmas, Santa Claus and Rudolph.
 
Nov 30, 2012
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#9
Many have reconsidered Ralph Woodrow and have determined he is not only a flip-flop, he has shown us how men cave in when they get old and their minds are no longer fresh with clear thinking. Once Ralph's hair turned white he started thinking how he and Santa Claus favored and suddenly came to the conclusion the papacy was right about Christmas, Santa Claus and Rudolph.
Are you actually arguing that when men get old they are not to be respected because they are "no longer fresh with clear thinking"? That's crazy.
 
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Tintin

Guest
#10
maybe you should burn this book , and go back to reading the bible.

sorry but Christmas is a pagan celebration not in the bible,

a mans tradition not Gods, another anti Gods Sabbath thread again,

If you are not for Him, you are against him.
Oh, boy. Here we go again.

(I only agree with your last line)
 
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sparkman

Guest
#12
Many have reconsidered Ralph Woodrow and have determined he is not only a flip-flop, he has shown us how men cave in when they get old and their minds are no longer fresh with clear thinking. Once Ralph's hair turned white he started thinking how he and Santa Claus favored and suddenly came to the conclusion the papacy was right about Christmas, Santa Claus and Rudolph.
He mentions that the fruit of his anti-Christmas attitude was bad, and that those who hold such views are not any better in behavior than those who don't..in fact many are worse in terms of behavior. Some aren't in corporate fellowship, which is commanded in Scripture, because they feel that other churches don't meet their expectations in that regard.

I guess anti-Christmas people would claim such things though :) They must have some reason to justify his change of attitude.

Sabbath-keepers tend to say that I 1) had a bad experience with my church and that's why I am no longer a Sabbathkeeper 2) am ignorant of Scripture or 3) am disloyal to God. They can squawk all they want though..I switched my position based on biblical teaching :D

Whether I had a bad experience is irrelevant. Actually I was not ill-treated in the Armstrongite organization although I saw others treated poorly. As long as you paid your tithes and kept your mouth shut there wasn't much ill treatment.
 
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sparkman

Guest
#13
maybe you should burn this book , and go back to reading the bible.

sorry but Christmas is a pagan celebration not in the bible,

a mans tradation not Gods, another anti Gods sabbath thread again,

If you are not for Him, you are againest him.
I read the Bible. I am not the Armstrongite who is still believing Armstrongite garbage :)

When you get your planet as a God being, can I come live on it? :D
 
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sparkman

Guest
#14
maybe you should burn this book , and go back to reading the bible.

sorry but Christmas is a pagan celebration not in the bible,

a mans tradation not Gods, another anti Gods sabbath thread again,

If you are not for Him, you are againest him.

Thanksgiving isn't in the Bible either :)
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#15
Sabbath-keepers tend to say that I 1) had a bad experience with my church and that's why I am no longer a Sabbathkeeper 2) am ignorant of Scripture or 3) am disloyal to God. They can squawk all they want though..I switched my position based on biblical teaching :D

.
you can search from the first page to last page of the bible,

and not one verse says to keep sunday instead of the sabbath.



your position is [not] based on biblical teaching

my guess at this point you are 1-2- and 3
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#16
Thanksgiving isn't in the Bible either :)
so does that make pagan christmas ok then I see.

the falling away is in the bible, do you believe this happened yet
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#17
•The reasoning that Christmas is not found in the Bible is poor reasoning
..many things that are part of Christian life are not found in the bible..for instance a Christian pastor officiating at a wedding is not found in the Bible.
.
poor reasoning would be following mans traditions, and not Gods statues and judgements.

God Himself married the nation Isreal, [some of us] are to be the bride of Christ.
 

BenFTW

Senior Member
Oct 7, 2012
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#18
so does that make pagan christmas ok then I see.

the falling away is in the bible, do you believe this happened yet
To get to the core of the issue (that you perceive), let me ask you a question. Christians celebrating Christmas, what is their punishment if indeed it is pagan and sinful to partake? If this isn't a salvation issue, then in the totality of things does it really matter? If it is a salvation issue, because it is sinful then I must ask, what did Jesus accomplish on the cross? Is His blood insufficient?

Of course I am not arguing that because His blood is sufficient that we ought to continue in sin, but as I said, God looks at the heart. Christians don't celebrate Christmas in the form of idolatry and therefore it isn't sinful. You would have to prove that in their heart they are being idolatrous. Good luck.

If anything, they would be praising God for His providence that they live in such abundance that they can enjoy such a time as the Christmas season, giving gifts and enjoying family. It rather seems that God is glorified than forgotten; who is the giver of wealth and riches? Our heavenly Father. Maybe we should take a moment on that day to give Him praise? He is worthy. That we enjoy such providence is a witness to His goodness.
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#19
I read the Bible. I am not the Armstrongite who is still believing Armstrongite garbage :)

When you get your planet as a God being, can I come live on it? :D
you mean the Awesome universe potential idea



our Awesome universe potential

“In the beginning God created the
heavens and the earth. … By the word
of the Lord the heavens were made, and
all the host of them by the breath of
His mouth. … For He spoke, and it was
done; He commanded, and it stood fast”
(Genesis 1:1; Psalm 33:6, 9;

there is a chronological gap—of probably millions or billions of years—
between the spectacular creation event described in Genesis 1:1
and the state of disorder and decay (Hebrew tohu and bohu)
described in Genesis 1:2

(which preceded the rest of Genesis 1,
in which God renewed the face of the Earth—Psalm 104:30).
In Isaiah 45:18,God says He did not create the Earth in vain (Hebrew tohu)

the cause of this Genesis 1:2 desolation: the angelic rebellion led by Lucifer,
which caused a violent war in heaven (Isaiah 14:12-15 ,Ezekiel 28:11-19)

that God “stretched out” or “spreads out” the heavens.
God “created the heavens, and stretched them out” (Isaiah 42:5).

“He stretcheth out the north over the empty place,
and hangeth the earth upon nothing”(Job 26:7).

The phrase spreadeth out comes from the Hebrew natah,
which means to stretch or spread;it can mean to extend in every direction.
Scripture refers to the heavens in this way a total of 11 times, by the pen of
five different biblical writers: Job, David,Isaiah, Jeremiah and Zechariah.

Four verses (Isaiah 45:12; 48:13; Jeremiah 10:12; 51:15)
use a form of natah that literally means the action was completed
some time ago. Seven instances use a form of the verb natah
that implies continual or ongoing stretching (Job 9:8;
Psalm 104:2; Isaiah 40:22; 42:5; 44:24;51:13; Zechariah 12:1).

Both of these aspects of this stretching can be seen
in Isaiah 40:22, which says that God “stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain,
and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in.”

Stretches out comes from natah and implies something continuing today,
while spreadeth comes from the Hebrew mathach (this word’s only use in
the Old Testament)—meaning to stretch out and implying something
that God has already done and completed.

Job 9:8 tells us that “[God] alone spreadeth out the heavens.”

“Praise him, ye heavens of heavens,
and ye waters that be above the heavens.
Let them praise the name of the Lord:
for he commanded, and they were created.

… He telleth the number of the
stars; he calleth them all by their names”
(Psalm 148:4-5; 147:4).

“By faith we understand that the world was created
by the word of God, so that what is seen [physical matter] was made
out of things which do not appear” (Hebrews 11:3, rsv).

“Lift up your eyes on high, and behold
who hath created these things,” God says,
“that bringeth out their host by number:
he calleth them all by names by the greatness
of his might, for that he is strong in
power; not one faileth” (Isaiah 40:26).

What is dark matter? No one knows. We can register its
effects, but we cannot see it or measure it.

He asked Job,
“Where is the way where light dwelleth? and as for darkness,
where is the place thereof, that thou shouldest take it
to the bound thereof, and that thou shouldest know the
paths to the house thereof?” (Job 38:19-20).
The Living Bible renders this, “[T]ell me about the darkness.
Where does it come from? Can you find its boundaries, or go to
its source?”

Romans 1:20 says “the invisible things of him from the
creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by
the things that are made ….” The visible universe shows
that there must be this invisible matter or force holding
it all together. We can see the invisible power of God by
seeing the visible.

Perhaps “dark matter” is actually the invisible power of
God holding the universe together. By the power of God
“were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are
in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or
dominions, or principalities, or powers: all thing were created
by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and
by him all things consist” (Colossians 1:16-17).

“By him all things consist” or are held together. Hebrews 1:3 says
that Jesus Christ is “upholding the universe by his word of
power” (rsv). Upholding comes from a Greek word meaning
to bear or carry. God says in Psalm 75:3 that “When the
earth totters, and all its inhabitants, it is I who keep steady
its pillars” (rsv). God holds together and sustains the
universe by His power.

How can scientists never consider the possibility
that God created all of this?

“[T]heir eyes they have closed” (Matthew 13:15).
These scientists are studying God’s creation—and their eyes are closed!
They choose to exalt the creation above the magnificent Creator

Romans 1:19-20: “[T]hat which may be known of God is manifest
in them [people who disbelieve]; for God hath shewed it unto them.

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world
are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made,
even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.”
Never have we been so “without excuse” as we are today

“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,
the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
What is man, that thou art mindful of him? …” (Psalm 8:1, 3-4).

Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands;
thou hast put all things under his feet: All sheep and oxen, yea,
and the beasts of the field; The fowl of the air, and the fish of the
sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas” (4, 6-8).



that which God gave mankind in the creation of man—the solid earth,
the Earth’s atmosphere, and the waters and sea (as in Genesis 1:26-28)


“the world to come.”

In the book of Hebrews we read: “For
unto the angels hath he [God] not put in
subjection the world to come, whereof
we speak” (Hebrews 2:5).

The theme of the context here is “the world to come.”

There is but one Earth, but the Bible speaks of three worlds, ages,
or civilizations on the Earth—

the “world that then was” (the antediluvian world from Adam to Noah);
this “present evil world”(from the Flood until Christ’s return, yet future);and
“the world to come” (which starts when Christ comes and sets up the Kingdom )

6But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful
of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?
7Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour,
and didst set him over the works of thy hands:
8Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet.
For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him.
But now we see not yet all things put under him.

9But 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.
10For 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.

3When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
4What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
5For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
6Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

In this psalm, David continued showing specifically that God has now placed in
subjection under man the solid earth,the Earth’s atmosphere or air, and the sea.

But now the writer of the book of Hebrews is inspired to follow with
something radically different—something to happen in the world to come!

God says He has prepared for them that love Him (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)


[L]et’s see what is said in this passage in Hebrews, beginning where
Hebrews leaves off quoting the eighth Psalm:

“Thou hast put all things in subjection under his [man’s] feet.
For in that he [God] put all in subjection under him [man],
he [God] left nothing that is not put under him” (Hebrews 2:8).



Is it possible God could meanwhat He says (“all things”)? Nothing excluded?
 

prove-all

Senior Member
May 16, 2014
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#20
In the first chapter, the Moffatt translation of the Bible renders the
Greek word translated “all things” as “the universe.”

In other words, for those willing to believe what God says, He says that
He has decreed the entire universe—with all its galaxies, its countless suns
and planets—everything—will be put under man’s subjection.

the next words in the same eighth verse: “But now we see
not yet all things [the endless universe] put under him [man].”
Remember (verse 5), this is speaking of the “world to come”—not today’s world.

But what do we see now, today?
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels [or, “for a little
while lower”] for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour.”

Man, other than Christ, is not yet “crowned with glory and honour.”

But see how Christ is already crowned with glory and honor. Continue:

“For it became him, for whom are all things [the entire universe] and by whom
are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation
perfect through sufferings … for which cause he [Christ] is not ashamed
to call them brethren” (verses 10-11).

In other words, Christians having God’s Spirit are joint-heirs with Christ
to inherit all that Christ already has inherited. He is now in glory! He has
already inherited the entire universe.

He sustains it by His power. Man, if he is converted, having God’s Holy Spirit
(Romans 8:9), is now only an heir—not yet a possessor.

crowned with glory and honor—and is already in possession—has already inherited.
Begin with Hebrews, chapter 1:

“God … hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath
appointed heir of all things [the entire universe], by whom also he made the
worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his
person, and upholding [sustaining] all things [the entire universe] by the word
of his power …” (Hebrews 1:1-3).

The living Christ already sustains the entire universe by His limitless
divine power. The passage continues to show His superiority over the angels:

He is the begotten and born Son of God—
angels are merely individually created beings. Angels are now
administering spirits (invisible to us), ministering to us—

to us who are now in lower status than angels, but who are heirs of salvation,
when we, like Christ, shall become born sons of God (Hebrews 1:4-14).

that he might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29).
Humans having God’s Holy Spirit are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ—
who, alone of all humans, has already been born as God’s Son by a resurrection
from the dead (Romans 1:4). He is the first of the human family to be born
into the Family of God—the Kingdom of God.

We shall follow at the resurrection of the just at Christ’s return to
Earth in supreme power and glory.

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the
sons of God …. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit,
that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God,
and joint-heirs with Christ, if so be that we [in this life] suffer with him,
that we may be also glorified together.

For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be
compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us …” (Romans 8:14-18).

“For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the
sons of God; for the creation [all the suns, planets, stars, moons]
was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of him who
subjected it in hope;because the creation itself will be set free from its
bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation [stars, suns and moons now in decay and futility]
has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation but we ourselves
[we Spirit-begotten humans], who have the first fruits of the Spirit [the “firstfruits”]
groan inwardly as we wait for the [birth] as sons”.

At His return to Earth in power and glory
those who have been converted and received God’s Holy Spirit
shall be born into the God Family by a resurrection.
Then the entire universe will be put into subjection under them!

Why should the whole universe—the creation—be waiting with eager longing
for the actual birth and appearing of all these sons of God,
to be born into the Family of God?

“Because the creation itself [the universe not now capable of
sustaining life] will be set free from its bondage to decay
and obtain the glorious liberty

“For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens;
God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it,
he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited:
I am the Lord; and there is none else.”

God says that the universe—not just the Earth—was designed to be inhabited.
It wasn’t created in vain, to be simply an ornament. It was created for a purpose.


In Isaiah 51:16, God says, “And I have put my words in thy mouth,
and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand,

that I may (plant the heavens), and lay the foundations of the earth,
and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.”

God intends to “plant the heavens.”Think about what that is saying.
When you plant something, that means you are laying down seeds
that you expect to grow into a crop.

This Hebrew word, nata, is the same word used in Genesis 2:8
to say that God planted a garden in Eden.
Noah planted a vineyard in Genesis 9:20.
Abraham planted a tree in Genesis 21:33.

Isaiah 51:16 tells us that God is going to plant the heavens—
the abode of the stars—the universe! He is going to seed it with life,
expecting that it will grow into a greater, more impressive harvest in time!
governed by God from Jersulam

For this corruptible must put on incorruption,
and this mortal must put on immortality”

We will actually have the same glorious spirit body that God has (Philippians 3:21).

Why did God create us after His likeness—to look like Himself? (Genesis 1:26).
Because He is actually fashioning us into Spirit-born sons of God!
Those who are transformed into spirit essence will look like Christ.
“For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death,
we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection” (Romans 6:5).

“And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear
the image of the heavenly” (1 Corinthians 15:49).

A description of Jesus Christ in His glorified form is given in Revelation 1:14-16.

To be joint-heirs along with Jesus Christ and to actually look as He does,
with our faces shining as bright as the sun, is difficult to comprehend.
But this is exactly what God has promised to give His sons who
overcome! (Revelation 21:7). And God cannot lie (Titus 1:2).

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we
shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM;
for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).